Ancient Near Eastern Seminars Czech Institute of Egyptology, Faculty of Arts, Charles University – Department of History, Faculty of Arts, Palacký University Olomouc LIVING AT THE MARGINS OF ASSYRIA Dr. Cinzia Pappi Assur, a small city-state on the Tigris river at the beginning of the Talk #1: 16 March 2021, 6 pm CET (Prague) 2nd millennium BCE, developed between the 14th and the 7th Introduction: The Development of centuries BCE into a powerful state extending from Western Iran Assyrian Peripheries. Urban and Rural to Egypt. The dynamic expansion of the empire underwent Spaces of Assyria. Presentation of the Talks. several phases, each associated with different grades of hegemonic and territorial control. Talk #2: 30 March 2021, 6 pm CET (Prague) Since its early phases, the seat of the political and The Rise of the Provincial Core: Kār administrative power of Assur rested in the palace (Akk. ekallu). Tukulti-Ninurta, Tell Barri/Kaḫat, Satu While the physical nexus of this institution was originally located Qala/Idu, The Mittanian Roots. Colors and Glaze. exclusively in the capital at Assur, the development of Assyria also saw the repeated relocation of political and administrative power Talk #3: 13 April 2021, 6 pm CET (Prague) to peripheral or subsidiary centers. The process began already in The Western Provinces: Tell Aḫmar/Tīl th the 18 century BCE, when king Shamshi-Addu moved his capital Barsip, Tell Halaf/Arslan Taš, and Tell first to Ekallatum on the Tigris and built a further large Masaikh/Kār Assurnasirpal. Architectural administrative center at Shubat-Enlil, the modern Tell Leilan in the Patterns. region of the Upper Khabur. Many discussions of the problem have taken their starting Talk #4: 27 April 2021, 6 pm CET (Prague) point from two datasets which have proved hard to reconcile. On Anatolia and the Levant: Zincirli, Ziyaret the one hand, the philological focus on the term ekallum itself Tepe/Tušḫan, Megiddo, and Lachish. includes a range of buildings and institutions which go beyond Hybridization and Local Cultures. that of a centralized residence. On the other hand, the archaeological discussion has traditionally focused on the great Talk #5: 11 May 2021, 6 pm CET (Prague) Assyrian Local Power after Assyria: palace complexes of royal capitals, relegating the discussion of Nimrud/Kalkhu, Tell Barri/Kahat, and Tell provincial palaces to the topic of elite residential architecture. Sheikh-Hamad. Resilience and Economic However, excavated examples of provincial buildings reveal Regeneration. common patterns in the layout, in functional spaces, and in the decorative systems, sometimes combined with features of local culture. These seminars, conceived as a wide survey, are aimed to explore the development of such political representations throughout the imperial periphery, specifically, the way in which centralized power was historically distributed or recapitulated throughout the territories of the developing Assyrian state. Focusing first on geographically selected data, each example will provide a starting point for a discussion of different aspects of the palaces, including the spatial distribution, the architectural layout, functional spaces, and decorative systems, to investigate the development of Assyrian provincial policies. The lecture will take place online and a Zoom link will be provided shortly before the event to registered participants. Please, send a registration email to [email protected].