Thirdspace in Assyrien und Urartu: Eine Archaologie der Sinne und Subalternitat in der Eisenzeit in Nordmesopotamien

This book explores the relationship between Assyria and Urartu in Iron Age northern Mesopotamia through the lens of the so-called Thirdspace, focusing on the lived experience of marginalized subjects of that time such as deportees and POWs.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 330 pages
Publication date: 25 May 2023
Publisher: Sidestone Press

can we investigate subalternity in the past when today we have access to the remnants of the elites? Why is such an investigation worthwhile, and where does it lead us? These questions are explored in the book, which examines the relationship between Assyria and Urartu in ancient northern Mesopotamia (c. 9th-7th century BCE). Between the warring neighbors, there were a multitude of deportees and prisoners of war, whose experiences and lives have received little attention in research. However, post-modern and post-colonial thinkers from the fields of literature, human geography, or sociology have recently argued that historically, these marginalized and forgotten social groups often serve as catalysts for change. This book delves into an interdisciplinary discourse on subjugation, the production of (social) space, subalternity, and habitus, and integrates these concepts into the study of West Asian archaeology. By employing methods from the field of "archaeology of the senses," various sites are investigated quantitatively and qualitatively to shed light on the foundations of the sensory organization of Urartu and Assyria. The comparison of the reconstructed sensory worlds takes place against the backdrop of the question of how deportees and prisoners of war perceived their new environment after being forcibly displaced. What impact did this abrupt shift in living conditions have on their lives? How were the new, subaltern subject positions communicated and enacted nonverbally through spatial arrangements – and were there instances where it led to lower-level subversion through irritation, misunderstanding, or unintended behavior?

Dimension: 254 x 178 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9789464280548