Word: sumeria
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Dates: during 1950-1959
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Lost Homeland. Where did this civilization come from? Few Egyptologists believe that the crude inhabitants of the Nile Valley developed it themselves within a few years. Most specialists think it was imported, probably by conquerors, but they do not know from where. One theory suggests Sumeria, whose cultural development may have begun a little ahead of Egypt's. But only a few items in First Dynasty Egypt look as if they came from Sumeria...
Brooklyn's example (at right) is mysterious from head to toes. The helmet is adorned not with the familiar bull's horns of Mesopotamian moon gods, but with those of an ibex. The broad-cheeked face is Caucasian; the inlaid eyes date back to Sumeria. The staff in the hand is a later addition; no one knows whether the figure actually carried a staff, an offering, or a weapon. The pack on the back resembles the wings and tail of a great bird, and the pointed beard can be taken for a beak. The girdle is an ancient...