J. Zarins and R. Hauser

     It has been forty years since the first edition of this book, as an Oriental Institute doctoral dissertation, was completed. Now, in a fully revised and much expanded study, CUSAS 24 presents a comprehensive discussion of the philological, historical, and archaeological evidence for the range of equidae known now from much of Western Asia after a century of intense study and excavation.
     The study provides a unique perspective from the viewpoint of field archaeologists on the complex issues associated with the physical study of the remains of equidae and their associated terminology in cuneiform sources as well as their artistic representation.
     The study integrates diverse and recently excavated data, which reflect a wide geographical and chronological range, with cuneiform sources and new artistic finds to create a synthesis that will serve as a basis for all future research on the subject.
     The volume includes numerous illustrations, photos, and charts that enhance the presentation of the data. Equid representations recovered in Royal Storehouse AK at Urkesh [see The Royal Palace] figure prominently in sections about artistic representation; they are placed in the context of other research in cuneiform studies and archaeological documentation. In fact, it is they who offer incontrovertible evidence regarding the presence of domesticated equidae.
     Being subject to measurement (ratio, proportion, discrete measurement) and analysis of the relationship of diagnostic body parts to each other, the evidence they afford is subject to objective verification, whereas sealings and other pictorial representations are often difficult to identify with certainty.
     The volume will be of interest to archaeologists, anthropologists, Assyriologists, and to all those interested in the role of equidae in the early history of Mesopotamia and Western Asia.
[Summary adapted by mDP from authors' abstract].

[M. De Pietri – November 2019]