The people of the ancient Middle East made incredible advances in communication systems, mathematics, and systems of government. Spiritual and religious beliefs played an important role in the day-to-day lives of many.
The objects in this gallery relate to lived experiences, from the mundane to the sublime, recording ancient lives. You will learn about ongoing Yale research and find connections between these ancient civilizations and the region today.
Click to expand images below.
The World's Oldest Written Recipes
1900 to 1600 BCE
These 4,000-year-old cuneiform tablets are the earliest written recipes. They include stews, pies, and some foreign dishes, revealing culinary sophistication in ancient Mesopotamia.
Writing in Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia
Sumerian cuneiform and Egyptian hieroglyphs emerged around the same time in the late 4th millennium BCE. The two cultures initially used writing for different purposes.
Math Through the Millennia: The Square Root of 2
This tablet calculates the diagonal of a square. The answer, the square root of 2, is noted with an accuracy of six decimal places.
Eternal Cities
Syrian-American artist Mohamad Hafez draws connections between past and present, and New Haven and Syria, by incorporating 3D prints of collections objects into this sculpture.
Photo credit: Luke Hanscom
Photos: credit Andy Melien / Yale Peabody Museum unless otherwise noted.
"Eternal Cities" photo credit: Luke Hanscom