New Books Network Moudhy Al-Rashid, "Between Two Rivers: Ancient Mesopotamia and the Birth of History" (W.W. Norton, 2025)
Oct 16, 2025
Moudhy Al-Rashid, an honorary fellow at Oxford specializing in ancient Mesopotamia, shares fascinating insights from her book. She discusses Leonard Woolley's discovery of a room that hints at the world's first museum. Al-Rashid elaborates on Princess Enigaldinana’s pivotal role and uncovers the intricacies of cuneiform writing. Highlighting ancient medicine and astronomy, she reveals how these practices shaped decision-making through divination. Al-Rashid also emphasizes women's significant roles, from businesswomen to powerful queens, in shaping Mesopotamian history.
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Discovery That Sparked The Book
- Leonard Woolley found a room in Ur (6th century BCE) filled with much older artifacts, prompting the 'ancient museum' idea.
- A clay cylinder describing a brick 'for display' led Woolley to call it possibly the earliest museum label.
Cuneiform's Vast Reach
- Cuneiform was a multi-layered, non-alphabetic system used for different languages and recorded mainly on clay with a reed stylus.
- It preserved both major works and everyday records like receipts, letters, and lullabies, revealing daily life across millennia.
The Ancient 1-Star Review
- A famous cuneiform complaint about copper became an early 'zero-star review' meme.
- Moudhy Al-Rashid notes the humour and human continuity in such everyday records preserved on clay.
