Well illustrated and informative. It's not a topic I know a lot about, so I can't evaluate accuracy, but it seemed solid, and the images make it very worth it.

I enjoyed reading this catalog to accompany an exhibit at the Getty. The book is very well written and informative. The illustrations are beautifully done. If you are unable to view the exhibit in person this catalog is the next best thing. Enjoy

This book is the companion catalogue to an exhibition at the Getty Museum. The first half gives a detailed explanation about Mesopotamia and the historical information that has been discovered through excavations. The second half is a catalogue detailing all the artifacts for the exhibition. The information is certainly detailed and perfect for someone looking for an indepth history but reading an ebook copy meant it was hard to hold my attention so I just browsed through the pictures. I know I would love visiting this exhibition though.

Mesopotamia: Civilisation Begins by J Paul Getty Museum was produced to accompany an exhibition at the J Paul Getty museum in March to July 2020. 

It's a beautiful book, with essays at the beginning that give you the context of Mesopotamia, and the objects you are looking at.

There are lots of photos throughout the book from the exhibition, and photos of Iraq, for context.

I enjoyed reading the essays, and having the photos made the essays more enjoyable, such as examples of cuneiform writing, how it evolved, and how it looks on pottery.

 Mesopotamia: Civilisation Begins  was published on 7th April 2020.  You can buy it on  Amazon ,  Waterstones  and from your  local independent bookshop .

You can follow J Paul Getty museum on  Twitter  and on their  website .

I was given this book in return for an unbiased review, so my thanks to NetGalley and to  Getty Publications .

This book would definitely best be enjoyed as a giant coffee table book, where you can peruse at your own discretion, even jumping around from one topic to another if you would like. You can of course also read it straight through, it is not as though it is a drag. I just have a soft spot in my heart for books that are meant to be perfectly lovely and large and demand attention. This book is one of those. It also happens to be the guide that was to accompany the Mesopotamia exhibit on display at the J. Paul Getty Museum that was to run from mid-March through July 27th. The pieces were on loan from the Louvre, though I have not yet looked up whether the exhibition will be extended, or not due to COVID-19 storming on up in here and ruining everyone's year.

Mesopotamia was home to easily some of the greatest civilizations ever - namely Babylon and Ninevah. Though they, and many others, have long since vanished from our world, we never stop wondering about them, never stop looking for them, never stop imagining what it would have been like to live there, in that time. Archaeologists continue searching for whatever lost pieces of these mighty civilizations they can find, and as a result we end up with amazing collections. Though, truly, the collections should be returned to the places they came from. But that is a whole different conversation, meant for a different kind of book. This simply could have been a beautiful catalog of amazing objects that have survived for thousands of years. The problem is, the idea of French colonialism is never actually addressed, yet the archaeologists who discovered and stole these priceless artifacts to begin are presented as some kind of saviors and that does not sit well with me. You can not present one side of the story, but not the other. Just think of how many artifacts were lost in those years where pretty much anyone could be an archaeologist and go tramping around wherever they pleased, digging up what they wanted, taking what they found most valuable, and throwing away things they thought they didn't need. So much history has been lost by simple incompetence and arrogance. It makes me sick.

The book begins with those very first civilizations, and onto a fair amount of what it was like at the time Alexander the Great showed up. There exists here such a variety of objects that tell so many stories, and I am insanely jealous that the Louvre has such a stunning collection. Everything you could possibly imagine is showcased here - seals, jewelry, and of course the cuneiform tablets that fascinated me endlessly as a child. Though, to be fair, I can still stare at them for a good long minute as an adult.

In addition to beautiful photos, there are several essays on a wide range of topics - history, religion, economy, and yes, cuneiform writing, plus so much more. I appreciated the attention to detail given in the essays, while also being concise and realizing that the reader was likely just as much here for the photos as the essays. Again, addressing the theft of these artifacts and objects would have been a great idea, but you will find no such thing within these pages.

The photos are absolutely stunning and as a reminder, this book is 100% meant to be a physical book - digital did it no justice. Seeing as how I will not be able to visit the Getty any time soon, and the Louvre is a ways off until Eleanor is older (fun fact: the only known object still in existence that belonged to Eleanor of Aquitaine is there so yes, we are going to France in the future to see one item and one alone: the Eleanor rock crystal vase. I know I will cry and I won't even be embarrassed.)

The book is well-designed, the layout is perfect, and it serves it purpose well. Recommended, as long as you remember that archaeologists stole massive amounts of priceless treasures that did not belong to them, and colonialism is a bad, bad thing.

Mesopotamia: Civilization Begins is a catalog guide to accompany an exhibition at the J. Paul Getty museum on the rise of Mesopotamia and its place and influence in the emerging world. Released April 7th 2020 by Getty Publications, it's 236 pages and available in hardcover format.

This is a lavishly illustrated volume with well written subject essays by well known scholars of cultural and ancient history. The exhibition is on loan from the Louvre under the auspices of a collaborative effort between the Getty, the Louvre, and several other institutions.

This volume would make a good selection for students of ancient art, history, anthropology, arts, and ancient language and culture. It is written in a meticulous and scholarly style, but as a layperson I had no problems understanding and learning from the included essays.

The exhibition is scheduled to run at the J. Paul Getty Museum at the Getty Center from March 18 to 27th July, 2020. Given the current climate of the world with regard to travel, the status of the exhibition and access to the museum and exhibits is unclear, but this beautiful volume is an acceptable alternative.

Five stars, this is a sterling exhibition catalog and will have value long after the exhibit is over.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

This book was really hard to read as a download because the font was so small. The pictures are beautiful though and overall this book is full of information.

this was a catalogue of the exhibition and, as all the catalogues of the world, is full of informations, so it could be a little bit boring to read if you are not interested in all the parts. But it was really good and the chapters were fascinanting, while the images were a good point in the "narration".

Great book, but not really readable as the downloaded version that I received had very small text. The Photographs were lovely though.

Of course, this is an interesting introduction to the ancient civilization in what now more or less corresponds to the country of Iraq, accompanying a beautiful exhibition. As to the subtitle of this book (and of the exhibition), "civilization begins", I can understand the organizers wanted to draw the attention of as much people as possible, and thus choose an 'attractive flag' to accompany it. And there's no doubt at all that important steps were taken in human history in the Mesopotamia area. But there are some issues with this statement of "civilization begins".

First, it suggests human civilization in general started in the region between the Euphrates and the Tigris-rivers. Now, of course a lot of important human inventions (writing, irrigation and the wheel, to name just three of them) can be situated in this geographic area. But a lot of alternative forms of writing and irrigation also started elsewhere (Egypte, China, Middle America...), most probably independently, though at a (slightly) later date. Secondly, equalizing civilization with the invention of writing always is a very risky business, reflecting a backdrop to earlier debates about what civilization really is (what about agriculture, the development of human settlements, of a social hierarchy and of trade relations, that occurred earlier in other regions?). And thirdly, limiting Mesopotamia to what is now Iraq clearly goes against all the archeological findings of the last decades. Fortunately the editors of this book acknowledge that this geographic limitation isn't correct any more, and they also have included the East of Syria, the Southeast of Turkey and the Southwest of Iran in their field of view.

What particularly strikes me, after reading this book, is that there actually still is so much to discover about Mesopotamia. Anyone who thinks that after 200 years of regular excavations and investigations we know about everything there is to know about that region will be very disappointed. Mainly due to the difficult political circumstances (in more recent times the Saddam dictatorship, the 2003 US-British invasion, and the IS/Daesh barbarism), hardly any systematic research has been possible, and on the contrary a lot of material has been lost. Sad, very sad. At the same time it opens up the perspective that still a lot is to be found and researched, and thus, that conclusions and statements in the direction of "civilization begins" really still are open to discussion. Fascinating and challenging, isn't it? Unfortunately, that aspect remains largely underexposed in this book.

This accompanying catalogue to the exhibition of Mesopotamian Art at the Paul J. Getty museum comes with rich illustrations that certainly inspires one to see this brilliant and extensive collection in person one day!

The interesting and introductory essays, which are again, accompanied by pictures do not only introduce some aspects of Mesopotamian cultures and civilizations but discusses the process of rediscovery and excavation in the 19th century, Mesopotamia in popular culture and the arts throughout history, and as someone who already learned about Mesopotamian civilizations in school, I can say it is informative for someone with a blank plate on the subject, as well as, someone who looks for some interesting details.

Loved the images in this book. Would love to see the exhibit now. All the images really made me feel I was there. I would have loved to have seen more than one image of each artifact but I understand this is tied to the exhibit and is designed to fill in blanks.

Mesopotamia: Civilization Begins takes you through the history from its early prehistoric times. There are tons of facts and tons of pictures. The pictures show amazing artifacts, to give you an even better understanding. Mesopotamia produced some of the most powerful and captivating art of antiquity and led the world in astronomy, mathematics, and other science. Some of which is still recognized today. You get to learn about Mesopotamia’s economy, religion, cities, cuneiform writing, rulers, and history.

The book is very interesting and the pictures are amazing to look at. And there are a lot of pictures in this book.

I received this book from the Author or Publisher via Netgalley.com and chose to leave this review.

A collection of brief essays followed by a detailed inventory of items in the exhibit this book is meant to accompany, an exhibit temporarily canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic. In the context of an expanding publication to the exhibit, assuming I was attending the exhibit, I likely would have given this a higher rating. As a standalone book I wanted more essays and more history via the artifacts.

Thanks to Getty Publications and NetGalley for the Advance Review Copy in exchange for an honest review.

As expected from the Getty Museum, this is an in=depth and visually stunning book that accompanies an exhibition at the Getty Villa. Sadly in the current situation regarding Covid-19 the museum is closed but this book stands alone as a fascinating insight into the exhibits on loan from the Louvre.

The imagery is beautiful and high quality but the essays are a fascinating insight into Mesopotamia and include, but are not limited to, architecture, culture, history and language.

A stunning book containing a series of articles about mesopotamia. If you are a history buff, or indeed like learning about other civilisations, this book will be of extreme interest. It would make a wonderful coffee table book too as the illustrations are wonderful with lots of photographs to accompany the text.

This is a beautifully illustrated book with chapters on Ancient Mesopotamia ranging from the historical perspective to modern day references. The chapters are written by different authors, so there is a little discontinuity which is easily forgiven as the book seeks to cover a vast reign of achievements: over 8,000 years of humanity’s many ‘firsts’ – first writing, first decimal system, first sexagesimal system, first cities, first governments and many more, to the current day references from Nabucco to Saddam Hussein’s attempt to link himself to fellow Iraqi, Nebuchadnezzar!

It also includes a unique and extensive collection of photos of artifacts from the period provided by the Louvre to the J. Paul Getty museum for its exhibition: Mesopotamia, Civilization Begins.

While is not a comprehensive history book in itself, it serves as a wonderful supplement for anyone who is interested in ancient history and for beginners, it provides a vivid oversight of that most important period in all of our common history – a photographic documentation of the first of mankind’s civilizations.

The authors make the important point that while the Western world has chosen to celebrate the Greeks and Romans, few are even aware of the existence, much less the contribution of these colorful and dynamic peoples from Mesopotamia. These are the giants on whose shoulders the Greco-Roman world was built; they (and we) owe an incredible debt to these ancient peoples. It is inspiring and humbling to reflect on how the ideas of these great thinkers from Mesopotamia, whose names we will never know, have reached down to us through over five thousand years of history and persist in our systems of government, our number system, our systems of measurement (eg of time in units of 60) and our calendar based on the lunar cycle.

The authors also point out the similarity between the ancient stories and those that later appear in the Old Testament. They make an important (and maybe to some, controversial) point that the OT was not a unique revelation, but a part of a continuum of thousands of years of reflection by many civilizations and should be seen in that context. I suggest that if the authors of the OT were required to cite references, they would have had to credit the Babylonians and Sumerians for many of their narratives and characters including Noah and Moses.

The authors also provide food for thought on the evolution of religion: today, most view monotheism as superior to polytheism; this is not necessarily the case – polytheists were more accepting of other gods and more in tune with nature - not a bad thing when compared to the tribalism, exceptionalism and ‘man created in God’s image’ espoused by the monotheistic religions today that has led to wars and environmental destruction.

This book is a wonderful contribution to the literature on Mesopotamia and is a great introduction to the readers new to the subject; for history buffs, it is also a great way to have your very own photographic collection of one of the best exhibits in the Louvre.

Thank you to NetGallery for generously providing this book for free in exchange for an honest review.

I am a history major, and loved when we learned about Mesopotamia. This book was well written and I thought it was a great start for anyone who is interested in learning about this era.

Mesopotamia was one of my favorite subjects during my History studies; I loved every aspect of it. I specifically went to a museum to see a touring piece of tablet from The Epic of Gilgamesh and fangirled the whole time. Being able to preview this book was quite lovely, but I will be honest, I did not read through all of the text because I do fully plan to purchase this book and I want the full experience of the pictures with the text. With that said though, I found the layout of the book-both text and picture-to be pleasing to the eye and easy to follow through. I like that there was a decent mix of text and photos and drawings. All in all, a well thought out book.

This catalogue from the J. Getty museum combines short introductory essays about history and life in Mesopotamia and a classic museum catalogue with selected items from the Louvre's vast collection.

To be honest, I felt like I am not the target audience for this as I'm studying assyriology and most of the mentioned facts were known to me from introductery courses. Also, some of the translations threw me off as I'm from another school, especially the bs and ps. edubba, srsly? That looks so weird.

The best part from this were the pictures. They had the best photographers and graphic makers, especially the maps from the beginning stood out to me because they're so beautiful. Also, be aware that this is best consumed in physical format. Digital Editions struggled quite badly with the pictures.

What stood out negatively to me is the constant reminder of how brave first researchers were, without mentioning that they stole the stuff. Proveniance didn't seem to matter to anybody, but especially the person writing about the collection of the Louvre.
In the later chapters the author sounded very distanced as they wrote about how recent war activities destroyed many an unique artifact, without mentioning the many lives that were lost or destroyed. This would be easily managed by saying hey, if we don't look out, we might just destroy the last remnants of this fascinating culture, which would have fit perfectly into the tone of the whole catalogue.
There simply is no criticism for the powers that be, which made some parts a quite disturbing read.

If you're a novice to this topic, you might enjoy the articles. If you're further into it, you will enjoy the catalogue section with the beautiful close-ups of the items.

I recieved a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.