On the Spot: Moudhy Al-Rashid

‘Humans change very little over time. We love, worry and hope today in much the same way as we did 5,000 years ago.’

Moudhy Al-Rashid.Why are you a historian of the ancient Near East?
To study the ancient past is to learn what connects us to the people that populate its texts and left behind its fragments, to learn what makes us human.

What’s the most important lesson history has taught you?
Humans change very little over time. We love, worry and hope today in much the same way as we did 5,000 years ago.

Which book has had the greatest influence on you?
Stephanie Dalley’s Myths from Mesopotamia.

What book in your field should everyone read?
The Oxford Handbook of Cuneiform Culture edited by Karen Radner and Eleanor Robson.

Which moment would you most like to go back to?
It’s mythical, but the moment that Gilgamesh returned to Uruk after his journey.

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