In this book H.W.F. Saggs shows us the foundations of civilization. Easy to read and understand this is a good overview of life in the three thousand centuries between 3,500 and 500 BC. Evidence from Mesopotamia; Egypt; Syria and Palestine; the Indus Valley and Crete are brought together.

An opening chapter gives us information about the uncovering of these early civilizations and the people who deciphered the writings left behind. Then each chapter is devoted to a different aspect of what makes a society. An abundant use of source material shows us the development of cities, writing, technology, agriculture, laws, maths and religion; the importance of trade and the drift of ideas.

An informative and well written book. ( )

This book concentrates primarily on Mesopotamia and Egypt but there is some discussion of Crete, Assyria, the Indus Valley, etc. Saggs divides his narrative into sections where he discusses how civilization moved from from hunter societies to city-states, the invention of writing, urban life , development of codes of law, science, the ancient's view of religion, and how the different regions were the same and how they differed. This includes how the geography of an area affected the way its culture grew and changed and sometimes quit changing.

A very readable book that I enjoyed and a good introduction to the subject.

The author was a professor of Semitic languages, University of Wales. He discusses the archeological discoveries throughout the Middle East made in the last few centuries which reveal rich cultures flourishing two thousand years before the Greco-Roman era. Instead of the Wars, he focuses on ancient Religious practices, and even establishes the fact that international law made international trade possible.