article
Of priestesses, princes and poor relations: the dead in the royal cemetery of Ur
Cambridge archaeological journal • 1 (2) • Published In 1991 • Pages: 171-189
By: Pollock, Susan.
Abstract
Pollock re-examines Woolley's data from the Royal Cemeteries of Ur. Woolley excavated the cemetery between 1922 and 1934 but did not save the skeletons. The most well known graves (the ones with great wealth and with human sacrifices) date from the Early Dynastic III period. In her article, Pollock proposes that objects buried with the dead may only have been on loan to them, that the human sacrifice seen in the cemetery may have been a short-lived phenomena, and that the Sumerians viewed being naked as being powerless. Pollock also points out that there are too few individuals buried in the cemetery to account for all of Ur's dead during the time period the cemetery was in use and she proposes some alternate ways the dead may have been disposed. Her article is followed by comments from five other anthropologists and her reply to them.
- HRAF PubDate
- 2003
- Region
- Middle East
- Sub Region
- Middle East
- Document Type
- article
- Evaluation
- Creator Type
- Archaeologist
- Document Rating
- 4: Excellent Secondary Data
- Analyst
- Sarah Berry ; 2001
- Field Date
- no date
- Coverage Date
- Early Dynastic Period III (2600-2350 B.C.)
- Coverage Place
- Royal Cemetery of Ur; Iraq
- Notes
- Susan Pollock
- Includes bibliographical references (p. 188-189)
- LCCN
- 91658653
- LCSH
- Iraq--Civilization--To 634