[Authors and titles are listed at the end of the review]
The volume Ancient Western Asia Beyond the Paradigm of Collapse and Regeneration, 1200–900 BCE constitutes a significant scholarly contribution to the study of the early Iron Age in Ancient Western Asia. The book challenges long-standing interpretative frameworks concerning the post-Late Bronze Age period. In particular, it challenges the definitions of collapse and regeneration and related concepts like crisis and fall. As explained by the editors, the challenge is needed since the models of crisis-collapse-regeneration “have oriented and influenced not only our own research, but also the interpretation of the archaeological, philological, and historical documentation” (p. 1).
The volume opens with an introduction in which the currently accepted mainstream paradigm is defined, the issues with it are highlighted, and a critical reassessment of the Late Bronze to Early Iron Age is set. In fact, the editors question the traditional narrative of collapse and subsequent regeneration. They nuance this view by pointing out that the transition was the result of local processes, different from region to region, and specific depending on the culture and the environment. These processes laid the groundwork for the emergence of new political and cultural configurations, setting the stage for the rise of Assyrian imperialism and other significant historical trajectories in the region.
The volume is structured in three parts, each dedicated to a region: Anatolia, Assyria, and the Levant. Each part contains several chapters that include historical, philological, and archaeological analyses, as well as the evaluation of environmental data.
The first part of the volume is devoted to Anatolia. It explores the consequences of the end of the Hittite Empire and considers the region’s responses to political fragmentation and environmental change. The chapters in this section address a wide range of topics, from the continuity and transformation of agricultural practices (Castellano) as well as the interpretation of geomorphological data related to climate change (Kuzucuoğlu et al.) to the evolution of settlement patterns (specifically at Gordion) (Voigt and Kealhofer) and innovations in textile production at Arslantepe (Manuelli et al.), to the question of the continuity (and change) between the Hittite culture and the cultures that emerge in the early Iron Age (D’Alfonso, Summers), more specifically, for instance, the discussion on Neo-Hittite political entities, the persistence of Luwian religious traditions (Mouton), and the legacy of the Hittite Empire (Mora).
The second section turns to Assyria, focusing primarily on northern Mesopotamia and its political and cultural landscape between 1200 and 900 BCE. The contributions analyze Assyria’s territorial contraction and its subsequent re-expansion, alongside changing religious practices, intercultural dynamics within state rituals, and shifts in settlement organization (Pongratz-Leisten). Several case studies, such as those from Qasr Shemamok (Masetti-Rouault) and the Koi Sanjaq/Koya (Pappi) region, reveal how material culture adapted to new political configurations and explore, respectively, the local cults and the patterns of mobility in the region. Further papers investigate iconographic transitions in monumental art—such as the Neo-Assyrian rock reliefs at Maltai and Khinis (Justement)—and delve into how the Neo-Assyrians themselves defined and viewed this period (Marti), particularly through the lens of religious professionals and scholars who maintained and transformed cuneiform traditions (Roche-Hawley).
The final section addresses the Levant and neighboring regions, extending the analytical scope to include cultural interactions, political shifts, and religious change in a broader Near Eastern context (Luciani, Giusfredi). In this section, the volume examines, in particular, the emergence of Aramaean identity as attested in cuneiform sources (Valk), the persistence and transformation of cultic practices (notably the worship of the storm god) (Lovejoy), and the sociopolitical implications of urban decline in areas such as the Middle Euphrates (Fleming). Further chapters focus on case studies from regions like the Barada and Wadi Zarqa river basins (Nicolle) and the Hula Valley (Thareani), highlighting the importance of local dynamics within broader systemic changes. The section concludes with a discussion of the diffusion of the consonantal alphabet as both a cultural and epistemic marker of transition, pointing to long-term shifts in communication and identity (Hawley).
The volume closes with a comprehensive index of personal, divine, geographical, and ethnic names, as well as of sources and data, keywords, themes and topics, and authors and authorities, which enhances its usability by facilitating cross-referencing across chapters and themes.
Overall, the structure of the book reflects its ambition to deconstruct traditional models and offer a more nuanced, culture- and environment-related understanding of the early Iron Age in Western Asia as well as of the complex period of transition between the Late Bronze and the Iron Age. The editors deliberately avoid a particularistic approach by organizing the volume regionally, allowing for the identification and comparison of similar processes and outcomes across different areas. This structure facilitates a better understanding of the period, highlighting patterns of continuity, innovation, and transformation.
Bringing together a series of case studies authored by leading specialists in Near Eastern archaeology and history, the volume advocates for a more nuanced understanding of the transformations that marked the period between 1200 and 900 BCE. Rather than endorsing a uniform narrative of collapse and subsequent regeneration, the contributors highlight diverse processes of continuity, adaptation, re-organization, and transformation across a variety of different contexts.
Given my field of expertise, as a Hittitologist, I want to point out how the contributions of Part 1. Anatolia re-evaluate the paradigm of a loss of continuity between the Hittite Empire and the communities of the Iron Age. I focus on how this aspect is presented in two contributions that are based on the evaluation of Hittite texts. Clelia Mora examines elements such as administrative structures, religious rituals, and artistic expressions to understand how the communities maintained, after the end of the Hittite Empire, a connection to their imperial past while adapting to new socio-political realities. In particular, Mora emphasizes that the Neo-Hittite kingdoms were not merely remnants of an Empire that ceased to exist but were dynamic entities that actively reinterpreted their heritage to establish legitimacy and identity in a transformed geopolitical landscape. This nuanced approach challenges the simplistic narrative of a complete collapse, highlighting instead a complex process of transformation and adaptation.
A similar conclusion of active reinterpretation of elements related to the Hittite Empire is reached by Alice Mouton. She examines how the pantheon of Luwian deities was represented in ritual formulas, focusing on the continuity and transformation of divine names and epithets. Specifically, Mouton analyzes the linguistic and cultural shifts that influenced religious practices, shedding light on how the Luwian-speaking communities adapted their religious expressions in response to broader socio-political changes. Through a philological approach, the chapter explores the interplay between tradition and innovation in Luwian religious texts, offering insights into the resilience and adaptability of religious identities during periods of transition.
One final interesting point of note is the consideration of the Late Bronze Age/Early Iron Age by an emic perspective, since what we describe as crisis might have been considered differently by the communities directly involved. In this sense, through an analysis of Neo-Assyrian texts and inscriptions, Marti explores how these societies interpreted the changes occurring around them. He posits that the Neo-Assyrians viewed the period not as a “Dark Age” but as a time of opportunity to redefine their identity and expand their influence.
Summing up, the contributions are methodologically diverse yet conceptually coherent, and they combine archaeological, textual, and theoretical perspectives with the purpose of reassessing the complexity of sociopolitical and cultural change in Iron Age Western Asia. The geographic scope of the volume is notably broad, encompassing Anatolia, Syria, Mesopotamia, and the Levant, and it draws attention to both local developments and transregional interactions. Particularly noteworthy is the critical engagement with the traditional paradigm of crisis, as well as the effort to integrate empirical data with interpretative reflection.
Methodologically sound is the choice of the editors to focus on the different case studies and the data they bring, not with the purpose of substituting the paradigm of collapse and regeneration with another one that should be considered universally valid, but of emphasizing the multi-faceted and nuanced situations that depend on the region, the specific historical circumstances, and the environment. Also, each contributor was able to frame the work within the general theoretical discourse, thus rendering the volume an actual dialogue among disciplines.
Furthermore, the decision to divide the volume into three parts, each dedicated to a region, allows for the emergence of the peculiarities of each case study while also tracing more consistent patterns within the studied region, showing the complexity of the general picture. Additionally, since the early Iron Age and the very last phase of the Late Bronze Age have traditionally been considered a period lacking sources (the term “Dark Age” was commonly used by previous scholarship), the presentation and discussion of the data from the individual case studies also demonstrate that the narrative of a lack of sources must be revised in favor of a different perspective in which the sources, though not always as abundant as in previous periods, are definitely present and constitute a mine of information.
The issue of the transition between the Late Bronze and Iron Age in Western Asia will continue to pose interpretative questions (especially the one regarding the emic perspective that has been so far not yet fully considered) and will need further directions of research. In this light, the volume under review is not the end of the road; on the contrary, it opens the way for changing the paradigm, for reflecting on whether new models are needed, and for indicating a different narrative in the interpretation of a challenging period. Ancient Western Asia Beyond the Paradigm of Collapse and Regeneration thus represents a landmark publication that will be of interest not only to archaeologists and historians of ancient Western Asia but also to scholars concerned with broader issues of cultural transformation and with paradigms like collapse, crisis, and resilience, and to consider them as universal tools for describing the transition from the Late Bronze to Iron Age in Ancient Western Asia.
Authors and Titles
Introduction – Lorenzo d’Alfonso, Ilaria Calini, Robert Hawley, and Maria Grazia Masetti-Rouault
Part 1: Anatolia
- Interpreting the Late Bronze Age – Iron Age transition in central Anatolia, and the aftermath of the Hittite Empire – Lorenzo d’Alfonso
- Hydrogeomorphological records of climate changes during the Bronze and Iron Ages in the Bor Plain (central Anatolia) – Catherine Kuzucuoğlu, Ali Gürel, Müslim Demir, Şahabettin Çakıcı, and Jean-Pascal Dumoulin
- Farming the land of Hatti: Emergence and collapse of the Late Bronze Age agricultural landscape of central Anatolia – Lorenzo Castellano
- Observing change, measuring time: Documenting the Late Bronze Age – Iron Age sequence at Gordion – Mary Voigt and Lisa Kealhofer
- Interweaving the threads: Changes and continuity in the textile production at Arslantepe (SE Anatolia) at the turn of the first millennium BCE – Federico Manuelli, Romina Laurito, and Pamela Fragnoli
- Memory of the empire? Aspects of continuity and innovation in the Neo-Hittite Kingdoms – Clelia Mora
- The gods in Luwian religious formulas: Second and first millennia BCE – Alice Mouton
- Notes on the paradigm of Late Bronze Age collapse and Iron Age regeneration in the Hittite sphere of influence – Geoffrey D. Summers
Part 2: Assyria
- Assyria in turmoil between territorial loss and the emergence of new powers (1200–900 BCE) – Aurélie Paci and Aline Tenu
- Changing gods at Qasr Shemamok: Local cults and the Assyrian Empire at the beginning of the Iron Age – Maria Grazia Masetti-Rouault
- How “Assyrian” was Assyrian religion? The intercultural dynamics of Assyrian state rituals during the Late Bronze and Iron Ages – Beate Pongratz-Leisten
- Portrait of an ancient borderland: Settlement patterns and mobility in the region of Koi Sanjaq/Koya (Erbil, Iraq) – Cinzia Pappi
- Changing powers and material culture: The case of Qasr Shemamok – Ilaria Calini
- Monument and motif in transition: The Neo-Assyrian rock reliefs at Maltai and Khinis – Kate Justement
- Collapse, or not? How the Neo-Assyrians saw the Dark Ages – Lionel Marti
- On the transmission of knowledge in cuneiform: The role of religious professionals and scholars during the so-called “Dark Age” (1200–900 BCE) – Carole Roche-Hawley
Part 3: The Levant and Beyond
- Who are the Aramaeans? A selective re-examination of the cuneiform evidence for the earliest Aramaeans – Jonathan Valk
- Interculturality and linguistic legacy in the Syro-Anatolian polities at the turn of the second millennium BCE – Federico Giusfredi
- The cult of the storm god in the Syro-Anatolian region: Regional continuity and local innovation in figurative representations between the Late Bronze and Iron Ages – Nathan Lovejoy
- After Emar: The disappearance of cities in the Iron Age Middle Euphrates – Daniel E. Fleming
- Between the Barada and the Wadi Zarqa: Local scenarios for a global crisis – Christophe Nicolle
- Identity politics in a buffer zone: A sociopolitical view from the Iron Age IIA Hula Valley – Yifat Thareani
- Farther horizons: The Late Bronze Age to Iron Age transition beyond the southern Levant – Marta Luciani
- The diffusion of the consonantal alphabet as a bellwether of systemic change in Levantine graphic and intellectual history during the Bronze–Iron transition (1200–850 BCE)? – Robert Hawley