Sumerians and the Birth of Writing (opens in new tab)

Despite being one of the first civilisations in human history, Sumer is not as well-known as other Bronze Age societies such as Babylonia and, of course, Ancient Egypt.Recent research indicates that the first ever writing system emerged in the Sumerian heartland of southern Mesopotamia around 3500 BC. So who were these Near Eastern pioneers forming some of the first urban settlements along the Tigris and Euphrates rivers?In this episode, Tristan is joined by Dr Paul Collins from the Ashmolean...