Envisioning the Persian Gulf as a liquid continent during the early to mid-1st millennium BCE
(2023) University of Sydney Archaeology Seminar — Location: Chau Chak Wing Museum (25.May.2023)
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- Abstract
- The importance of the Persian Gulf as a facilitator for intercultural contacts between the civilisations of Elam (Iran), Mesopotamia (Iraq), Dilmun (Bahrain and Saudi Arabia) and Magan (UAE and Oman) dates back to the earliest historical records. Yet, regional powers rarely exercised effective political control over the Gulf littoral, where coastal societies shared a maritime culture based on long-distance trade. By the end of the 2nd millennium BCE, changes in the political landscape of these regional powers constitute a major watershed for interregional dynamics in the Persian Gulf. These events introduce a transformative era in Persian Gulf history (1100-520 BCE), at present largely ignored in modern scholarship. Most scholars assume a severe decline of maritime commerce on the Persian Gulf during the early to mid-1st millennium BCE, due to either competitive trade networks in the Mediterranean and the Red Sea or new Arabian overland routes. However, this traditional view has recently been challenged by advances in Arabian archaeology and improved readings of Neo-Elamite cuneiform texts. During this seminar, Dr. Gorris will focus on her ongoing research in the Persian Gulf region. She will explore whether recent data and academic projects may gradually lead to a more holistic line of research in which the Persian Gulf area can be approached as an interactive space connecting the multiple civilisations of the Ancient Near East.
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Gorris, E. (2023). Envisioning the Persian Gulf as a liquid continent during the early to mid-1st millennium BCE. University of Sydney Archaeology Seminar, Chau Chak Wing Museum. https://hdl.handle.net/2078.5/240026