Customer Reviews

Slavery in the Ancient Near East: A Comparative Study of Slavery in Babylonia, Assyria, Syria, and Palestine, from the Middle of the Third Millennium to the End of the First Millennium

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This is a fascinating treatment of Slavery in ancient Israel. It is extensively referenced and uses ancient documents as its primary source of understanding how things worked. As well as dealing with ancient Israel, this book delves into the laws and practices of surrounding nations including those in Mesopotamia and Egypt quoting documents from those countries also. I think it is a real bonus that when translating a document he gives a phonetic transcription of the original alongside his translation.

I think I can really do no more justice to its contents than to list the Table of Contents here for you.

Chapter I - Source of Slavery

1. Prisoners of War

2. Foreign Slaves

3. Exposure of Infants [leaving them by the roadside for anyone to claim when they couldn't be cared for rather than let them die of starvation or exposure, though some probably died this way anyway] and Kidnapping of Minors

4. Sale of Minors

5. Self-sale

6. Adoption of Freeborn Children

7. Insolvency (debt-slavery)

Chapter II - Legal Status

1. The Nature of the Sale Contract

2. Branding

3. The Female Slave

4. Marriage Between Free and Slave

5. The Houseborn Slave

6. The Fugitive Slave

7. Treatment

8. Peculium

9. Manumission

Chapter III

1. State Slavery

2. Temple Slavery

3. Slaves in Agriculture

4. Slaves in Industry

5. Price and Number of Slaves

Conclusion

Don't expect a light easy to read book here. This is great research material and is well worth the effort it takes to assimilate. And don't let the size of this text fool you. It is packed with good information and doesn't waste your time.