Author Description

Babylonia and Assyria were two of the greatest nations the history of mankind has brought forth. These two great Mesopotamian civilizations were best known for their massive armies and instruments of war. This is not surprising, since they were rarely at peace with one another. They were, however, heavily influenced by each other, as well as their predecessors, the Sumerians. Much of what we taken for granted today, the arts and science of industry and invention, were bequeathed to us from these ancient cultures. This two-volume series is remarkable in that it offers an exceedingly comprehensive and detailed looked at ancient Babylonia and Assyria. The way in which these reference works were compiled and written will bring noteworthy enjoyment for the curious reader.These two volumes are based mostly on the archaeological discoveries of the late 19th Century, and are well-referenced and cited with footnotes from that period. As a result, much of what they have to say is timeless, in a sense, because of nature of how the information is presented. For example, randomly thumbing through this 900 page tome and stopping to read a passage will normally result in the reader being completely preoccupied in whatever annal of history is being revealed. As a professor of ancient Oriental literature at Princeton University at the turn of the twentieth century, professor Robert William Rogers provides a competent perspective concerning the past history of Babylonia and Assyria. This book was skillfully written from the author?s vast scholarship and understanding on these subjects.Volume two examines the beginnings of the Assyrian empire, its trials and tribulations, and how it eventually held authority over the Babylonians. The author reveals in meticulous detail each of the kingships as well as the accompanying wars, revolts and rebellions. A considerable amount of space is devoted to the reigns of specific Assyrian kings, including Asshurnazirpal, Shalmaneser, Asshurnirari, Sa