Lions in the Shadows

Northern Syria and Southeastern Anatolia at War, c.1180-708 BC

James, Thomas

Welcome to the first publication that has sought to understand Early Iron Age warfare from the perspectives of the cultures that lived in northwestern Syria and southeastern Anatolia, including places such as Carchemish and Sam’al. Traditionally conflict studies of the era have been pursued through the lenses of these polities’ contemporaries, especially Neo-Assyrian kings. The goal of this publication is to use the available archaeological evidence to establish insights into their own conflicts, which can be used to move toward creating a history of war for the era that encompasses the viewpoints from as many cultures as possible.