The Routledge Handbook of the Senses in the Ancient Near East (Routledge Handbooks)

This Handbook is a state-of-the-field volume containing diverse approaches to sensory experience, bringing to life in an innovative, remarkably vivid, and visceral way the lives of past humans through contributions that cover the chronological and geographical expanse of the ancient Near East. It comprises thirty-two chapters written by leading international contributors that look at the ways in which humans, through their senses, experienced their lives and the world around them in the ancient Near East, with coverage of Anatolia, Egypt, the Levant, Mesopotamia, Syria, and Persia, from the Neolithic through the Roman period. It is organised into six parts related to sensory contexts: Practice, production, and taskscape; Dress and the body; Ritualised practice and ceremonial spaces; Death and burial; Science, medicine, and aesthetics; and Languages and semantic fields. In addition to exploring what makes each sensory context unique, this organisation facilitates cross-cultural and cross-chronological, as well as cross-sensory and multisensory comparisons and discussions of sensory experiences in the ancient world. In so doing, the volume also enables considerations of senses beyond the five-sense model of Western philosophy (sight, hearing, touch, taste, and smell), including proprioception and interoception, and the phenomena of synaesthesia and kinaesthesia. The Routledge Handbook of the Senses in the Ancient Near East provides scholars and students within the field of ancient Near Eastern studies new perspectives on and conceptions of familiar spaces, places, and practices, as well as material culture and texts. It also allows scholars and students from adjacent fields such as Classics and Biblical Studies to engage with this material, and is a must-read for any scholar or student interested in or already engaged with the field of sensory studies in any period. Cover Half Title Title Page Copyright Page Table of Contents Figures Tables Contributors Acknowledgements Editors’ Note Introduction What Is Sensory Studies? The New “Sensory Turn” How Does the Field of Sensory Studies Intersect With the Study of the Ancient Near East? How Is this a New Compilation? The Sections and Chapters in this Volume Note Bibliography Part I Practice, Production, and Taskscapes 1 The Sense of Practice: A Case Study of Tablet Sealing at Nippur in the Ur III Period (C. 2112–2004 BCE) Introduction Learning and Practice Sealing Practices and the Ur III Period The Case of Nippur The Sense of Sealing Conclusion Notes Bibliography 2 Senses and Textiles in the Eastern Mediterranean: Late Bronze and Early Iron Ages (1550–1100 BCE) Introduction The Sensory Experience of Textile Production Spinning and Weaving Dyes and Dyeing Sensory Experience of Clothing and Textiles Conclusion Notes Bibliography 3 New Sensory Experiences Through Technological Innovation: The Use and Production of Transparent Drinking Bowls in the ... Introduction Methodological Background Glass and Its Transparency Archaeological Contexts of Transparent Hemispherical Glass Bowls Use Production Conclusion Notes Bibliography 4 To Touch Upon: A Tactile Exploration of the Apadana Reliefs at Persepolis Introduction The Apadana of Persepolis Touch of the Craftsmen Touch Carved in Stone Curating and Producing Interactions With Art Conclusion Notes Bibliography 5 Soundscapes and Taskscapes in the Ancient Near East: Interactions and Perceptions Introduction Work and Taskscapes Music and Soundscapes Approaching and Delimiting Work Songs Sensing the Past: an Overview Ancient Near Eastern Work Songs as Indicators of Multisensoriality The Song of the Millstone The Song of the Plowing Oxen Two Songs to Soothe a Child’s Crying Conclusion: Singing at Work in the Ancient Near East Notes Bibliography Part II Dress and the Body 6 Adornment Practices in the Ancient Near East and the Question of Embodied Boundary Maintenance Introduction The Data The Grave Goods The Iconography Discussion Conclusion Notes Bibliography 7 Dress, Sensory Assemblages, and Identity in the Early First Millennium BCE at Hasanlu, Iran Introduction Hasanlu in Period IVb (1050–800 BCE) Assemblages and Phenomena Sensorial Assemblages and Intersubjectivity Senses and Power Dynamics Accumulated Magnificence Pins Finger- and Toe-Rings Head, Neck, and Body Beads Armour Scale Pectorals Conclusion Notes Bibliography 8 Beyond the Flesh: Sensing Identity Through the Body and Skin in Mesopotamian Glyptic Contexts Introduction Things, Cognition, and the Haptic Sense The Mesopotamian Body: a Sense of the Body, the Divine, and Stone The Mantic Body and Clay Conclusion Notes Bibliography 9 A Sense of Scale: Proprioception, Embodied Subjectivities, and the Space of Kingship at Persepolis Introduction: Touch, Sight, and Productive Entanglements Performative Inclusion: Mirroring, Reduplication, and Mimetic Slippage Persuasive Stairways: Proprioception and Bodily Interrogation Immanent Encounters: Scale, Mediation, and the Body of the King Conclusions: the Space of Kingship Bibliography Part III Ritualised Practice and Ceremonial Spaces 10 Temple Ritual as Gesamtkunstwerk: Stimulation of the Senses and Aesthetic Experience in a Religious Context Introduction Sight Sound Taste Smell and Touch Kinetics Gesamtkunstwerk Notes Bibliography 11 Pure Stale Water: Experiencing Jewish Purification Rituals in Early Roman Palestine Introduction Modern Mikva’ot and Western Modernity The Archaeology of Ancient Jewish Ritual Baths Sensing Stepped Pools Getting Wet! Towards a Sensorial Experience of Stepped Pools Changing Settings, Changing Sensorial Experiences Ritual Bath AA209 in the Hasmonean Buried Palace, Jericho The Southern Mikveh, Masada Stepped Pool “Mkv1,” Magdala Ritual Bath L1060, Gamla Conclusion Notes Bibliography 12 Megaliths and Miniatures: Scale and the Senses in the Early Neolithic Introduction Context: the Early Neolithic Period Megaliths Miniatures A Sensory Perspective Bibliography 13 Sensing Salience in the Landscapes of Egyptian Royal Living-Rock Stelae Introduction Sensing the Stelae Egyptian Geologics—and Geoaesthetics Stelae at Konosso Island, Gateway to Egypt Shouting From the Hilltops: the Nauri Decree Stela The Medium Is the Message Notes Bibliography 14 In the Light and in the Dark: Exhibiting Power, Exploiting Spaces in Early and Old Syrian Ebla—an Analysis of the Five ... Introduction In the Light: Exhibiting Power in Early Syrian Ebla In the Dark: Exploiting Spaces in Old Syrian Ebla Who Was There? Conclusion Note Bibliography 15 The Ishtar Gate: A Sensescape of Divine Agency Introduction The Affect of Architecture and the Protective Powers of City Gates City Walls and City Gates in Mesopotamia Craftsmanship and the Affect of Monuments Decorating the Walls and Infusing Them With Agency Colour and Affect at Babylon Conclusion Notes Bibliography 16 The Jerusalem Temple: A Sensory Encounter With the Sacred Introduction Journey to the Temple Musical Performance Ritual of Sacrifice Aromas of Worship Feasting in Yahweh’s Presence Sacred Space and the Dimming of the Senses Conclusion Notes Bibliography 17 The Ancient Synagogue at Nabratein: The Acoustic Dynamics of Architectural Change Introduction The Ritual of Scripture Reading and Translation The Two Architectural Arrangements of Nabratein Synagogue 1 The Acoustics of a Scripture Reader’s Or a Scripture Translator’s Voice The Acoustics of Synagogue 1a Direct Sound Location 1: the Impact of First Reflections On the Listener in Front of the Scripture Reader Side Reflections, Step 1 Side Reflections, Step 2 Side Reflections, Step 3 Ceiling Reflection: Steps 1 Through 3 Location 2: the Impact of First Reflections On the Listener Behind the Scripture Reader Location 3: the Impact of First Reflections On the Listeners to Each Side of the Scripture Reader The Acoustic Zones of the Open-Centre Synagogue, Nabratein Synagogue 1a The Acoustics of Nabratein Synagogue 1b Listener at Four Metres Listener at Seven Metres The Acoustic Character of Nabratein’s Pre-Basilical Synagogue, Synagogue 1b Conclusion: From the Open-Centre Synagogue to the Basilica Synagogue Afterword Notes Bibliography Part IV Death and Burial 18 Sensing the Ancestors: The Importance of Senses in Constructing Ancestorship in the Ancient Near East Introduction Senses and the Cult of the Ancestors in the Ancient Near East The Power of Touch: Fragmentation, Manipulation, and Decoration of the Human Body as a Proxy for Ancestral Veneration Don’t Open That Door! Residential Graves as Locales for Creating a Visual Reference for the Cult of the Ancestors Do You Remember That Smell? Human Decay and the Use of Perfumes for a Sensorial Experience of the Dead Ancestors Feasting With the Spirits of the Ancestors: Offerings and Lamentations During Postmortem Rituals Conclusions Notes Bibliography 19 Sensing the Dead in Household Burials of the Second Millennium BCE Introduction Research Questions, Data, and Methodology From Flesh to Bone: the Funerary Sequence Approach Case Study: the Funerary Sequence of Qatna’s Royal Hypogeum Pre-interment Phase: Navigating the Burial Chamber Interment Phase: Inhumation and Disturbance Scents and Sensibility Post-interment Phase: Body Curation and Representations Discussion: Corporealities and Sensing the Dead at Qatna Sensing the Dead in Tomb 100 at Megiddo Materializing Mourning: Burial Assemblages Sight and Light Altered Minds Discussion and Conclusions Notes Bibliography 20 The Smells of Eternity: Aromatic Oils and Resins in the Phoenician Mortuary Record Introduction Death and the Sense of Smell The Phoenician Evidence Smelling in Phoenician? Buried in Myrrh and Bdellium Aromatics in Phoenician Mortuary Contexts Myrrh (Commiphora Myrrha): Phoenician Mr; Akkadian Murru; Hebrew Môr; Greek Σμύρνα Bdellium Or Bdelium (Commiphora Mukul): Phoenician Bdlh; Akkadian guḫlu/ budulḫu; Hebrew Bedolaḥ; Greek Βδέλλιον Cedar (Cedrus Libani): Phoenician ʿṣ (?), Akkadian Erēnu, Hebrew ʿeren/ ʿerez, Greek Κέδρος Other Aromatic Woods Other Oleo-Resins and Scented Oils Smells of Life, Smells of Death Notes Bibliography 21 The Sixth Sense: Multisensory Encounters With the Dead in Roman Egypt Introduction Seeing the Dead: Shrouds and Portraits Sensing the Dead: the Mummified Body Engaging With the Dead: Ritual Interactions Experiencing the Dead: Tombs and Catacombs Death in a New Light: Portraits and Torches Conclusion Notes Bibliography Part V Science, Medicine, and Aesthetics 22 Seeing Stars: Knowing the Sky in Mesopotamia Introduction Astronomy and Astrology in Mesopotamia Mesopotamian Observation in Later Sources The Mechanics of Observation The Language of Observation Amāru: “To See” Naṣāru: “To Watch” Tāmartu: “Appearance” “Seeing” in Mathematics Sources of Observations Neo-Assyrian Observational Reports Late Babylonian Astronomical Records Observation and Thought Collectives Conclusion Notes Bibliography 23 Sensory Experience in Ancient Mesopotamian Medicine Introduction Cuneiform Medical Texts and the Art of Diagnosis: Perception and Interpretation Modes of Sensory Perception in Mesopotamian Medical Diagnosis Vision Auditory Perception Touch Smell and Taste Kinaesthesia and Interoception The Senses and Mesopotamian Therapeutics Conclusion Notes Bibliography 24 The Understanding of Intellectual and Sensorial Impairment in the Hebrew Bible Introduction Links Between Sensory Studies and Disabilities Evaluations of the Intellect Aspects of Sensorial Deficits Beyond Intellectual Impairment Multisensorial Festivals: Chances for Repetition Ambiguous Aspects of the Sense of Touch Conclusion: Power and Disability Notes Bibliography 25 The Distant Eye and the Ekphrastic Image: Thinking Through Aesthetics and Art for the Senses (Western/non-Western) Introduction Confronting the Legacy of Fine Art and Disinterested Aesthetics The Distant Object: Constructing the Modern System of the Arts The Distant Eye: Disembodied Aesthetics and the Denigration of Sensual Pleasure Ancient and Non-Western Art and Aesthetics: Other Ways of Sensing and Seeing The Intimate Eye: Aesthetics and Art for the Senses in Mesopotamia The Intimate Image: Ekphrasis and the Sensuous (And Affective) Body Conclusion Notes Bibliography Part VI Languages and Semantic Fields 26 Language Technology Approach to “Seeing” in Akkadian Introduction Semantic Fields Data and Preparations Methods Analysing the Collocates amāru naṭālu palāsu dagālu barû, Ḫiāṭu, and Ṣubbû Discussion of the Results Conclusions Notes Bibliography 27 Metaphors of Perception Verbs in Ancient Egyptian: The Proximal Senses Introduction and Preliminary Considerations The Perceptive Research History Perception in the Works of Lakoff and Johnson The Structuring of Metaphorical Mappings Property Selection Processes The Distant Senses and Their Metaphorical Extensions Metaphors of Sight Metaphors of Hearing The Proximal Senses in Egyptian: Prototypical and Metaphorical Meanings Prototypical Meanings of the Proximal Senses Prototypical Meanings of Touch Prototypical Meanings of Smell Prototypical Meaning of Taste Metaphorical Meanings of the Proximal Senses Touch Domain Smell Domain Taste Domain Final Comment and Conclusion Appendix A. List of Egyptian Text Examples Appendix B. Glossing Abbreviations Notes Bibliography 28 Metaphors of Sensory Experience in Ancient Egyptian Texts: Emotion, Personality, and Social Interaction Introduction Theoretical Bases: Emotion Research, Historical Semantics, and Sensory Studies Emotion and Metaphor Historical Semantics: Metaphor and Semantic Change Sensory Studies Research Questions Method Findings Sounds Quiet Noise Temperatures Heat/Warmth Cold/Coolness Visual Stimuli Colour Shade and Luminosity Physical Beauty Tastes Sweetness Bitterness Tactile Stimuli Unevenness Smoothness Heaviness and Lightness Firmness Softness Smells Stinkiness Discussion and Conclusion 1. What Kinds of Sensory Phenomena Are Used to Depict Specific Emotions and Temperaments? 2. Can Lexemes of Emotion and Temperament be Distinguished Semantically From Each Other? Do Compounds Play a Role Here? 3. Do These Terms Exist in Complementary Distribution With Each Other? Are there Relationships of Synonymy, Antonymy, ... 4. Are Diachronic Forces of Language Change at Work? If So, What Effect do they Have? 5. What Is the Role of Genre in the Appearance and Use of Emotion Terms? Notes Bibliography 29 Smellscapes in Ancient Egypt Why Smell? Smell and the City Ancient Smellscapes Methods, Difficulties, and Goals Smellscapes in Ancient Egypt Smell of the Palace Smell of the Temple Smell of a Garden Smell of the House of Life Smell of Streets Smell of Stables Smell of Private Houses Smell of Lower-Class Housing Smell of Middle-Class Housing Smell of Upper-Class Housing Smell of Workshops Smell of Festivals Smell of a Banquet Discussion Notes Bibliography 30 Crossing Sensory Boundaries: From Vocabulary to Physical Experience Introduction Tracking Sensory Dimension in Akkadian Vocabulary: a Methodological Approach to Vocabulary Identifying the Semantic Value of Vocabulary The Multisensory Dimension of Akkadian Vocabulary Material, Substances, and Their Sensory Descriptions Linking Words and Experience: the Ritual Scene as a Case Study The Ritual Scene: Presencing the Divine With Sensory Effects Sensory Metaphors and Physical Experience in Ritual Conclusion Notes Bibliography 31 Open Your Ears and Listen!: The Role of the Senses Among the Hittites Introduction Sight Hearing Smell Taste Touch Conclusion Notes Bibliography 32 Hearing and Seeing in Hurrian Hearing in Hurrian ḫaž- and Šalġ- in the Hurro-Hittite Bilingual ḫaž- in Other Contexts ḫaž- With Patient = Utterance ḫaž- With Patient = Oblique Reference to “Word” ḫaž- With Speaker as Patient šalġ- “To Listen” ḫaž- and Šalġ- in the Same Context Verbs of Seeing for- “To See” am- “To Look Upon, Gaze Upon” ši- “To Witness, Observe, Examine” Conclusion Notes Bibliography Index "This Handbook is a state-of-the-field volume containing diverse approaches to sensory experience, bringing to life in an innovative, remarkably vivid, and visceral way the lives of past humans through contributions that cover the chronological and geographical expanse of the ancient Near East. It comprises thirty-two chapters written by leading international contributors that look at the ways in which humans, through their senses, experienced their lives and the world around them in the ancient Near East, with coverage of Anatolia, Egypt, the Levant, Mesopotamia, Syria, and Persia, from the Neolithic through the Roman period. It is organised into six parts related to sensory contexts: Practice, Production, and Taskscape; Dress and the Body; Ritualised Practice and Ceremonial Spaces; Death and Burial; Science, Medicine, and Aesthetics; and Language and Semantic Fields. In addition to exploring what makes each sensory context unique, this organisation facilitates cross-cultural and cross-chronological, as well as cross-sensory and multisensory comparisons and discussions of sensory experiences in the ancient world. In so doing, the volume also enables considerations of senses beyond the five-sense model of Western philosophy (sight, hearing, touch, taste, and smell), including proprioception and interoception, and the phenomena of synaesthesia and kinaesthesia. The Routledge Handbook of the Senses in the Ancient Near East provides scholars and students within the field of ancient Near Eastern studies new perspectives on and conceptions of familiar spaces, places, and practices, as well as material culture and texts. It also allows scholars and students from adjacent fields such as Classics and Biblical Studies to engage with this material, and is a must-read for any scholar or student interested in or already engaged with the field of sensory studies in any period"-- Provided by publisher This chapter surveys and analyses the aromatic substances associated with burial and the preservation of the dead in the Iron Age Phoenician Levant (c. 1100-300 BCE), as part of an exploration of the lost smellscapes of the ancient world. First, Phoenician vocabulary related to smelling and pungent substances is outlined and investigated. Then, a review of coastal Levantine archaeological and textual evidence, along with comparanda from the wider Mediterranean world, is used to establish the range of smells and substances that would have been associated with mortuary practice at this time. While oleo-resins in use in the burial record overlap to some degree with those used in everyday life--in perfumes, religious practice, and other uses of scented oils and incense--the unique constellations of aromatics used to inter the dead highlight the importance of these deeply mnemonic sensory elements in our understanding of the Iron Age past