My Wish Lists Login / Join

The Sumerians

Name: The Sumerians
Brand: Reaktion Books
Price: 38.75 AUD
Availability: BackOrder

Lost Civilizations

By: Paul Collins

Write A Review

Hardcover | 1 August 2026

At a Glance

Format
Hardcover

Dimensions(cm)
21.59 x 13.79 x 1.12

Hardcover

$38.75

or 4 interest-free payments of $9.69 with

Available for Backorder. We will order this from our supplier however there isn't a current ETA.

A nuanced reassessment of the ancient Fertile Crescent civilization that complicates received wisdom by exploring the ever-present politics of archaeology and laying claim to the past.

The Sumerians are widely believed to have created the world's earliest civilization on the fertile floodplains of southern Iraq from about 3500 to 2000 BC. They have been credited with inventions no lesser than cities, writing and the wheel, and therefore hold an ancient mirror to our own urban, literate world. But is this picture correct? Paul Collins reveals how the idea of a Sumerian people was assembled from the archaeological and textual evidence uncovered in Iraq and Syria over the last 150 years. Reconstructed through the biases of those who unearthed them, the Sumerians were never simply lost and found, but reinvented a number of times, both in antiquity and in the more recent past.

'This book makes a vital and thought-provoking contribution to the study of the ancient Middle East, and is written in such a way that readers beyond those working in the field will also find it accessible.' Journal of the American Oriental Society

Shipping

	Standard Shipping	Express Shipping
Metro postcodes:	$9.99	$14.95
Regional postcodes:	$9.99	$14.95
Rural postcodes:	$9.99	$14.95

Orders over $79.00 qualify for free shipping.

How to return your order

At Booktopia, we offer hassle-free returns in accordance with our returns policy. If you wish to return an item, please get in touch with Booktopia Customer Care.

Additional postage charges may be applicable.