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Lesson Plans
Reading Homer in Oxyrhnchus
Explore how Roman Egyptians read Homer's epic "The Iliad" and largely ignored "The Odyssey." Investigate the ISAC's fragment in more detail and how to use ancient documents to understand what people read.
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Tell Asmar Statue Hoard
In 1934, excavations at the site of Tell Asmar (ancient Eshnunna) in Iraq revealed a hoard of statues buried in the so-called square Temple. This statue hoard is now divided between three museums: ISAC Museum, Baghdad Museum, and Metropolitan Museum of Ar
View Lesson PlanMuseum in a box
Explore ancient Mesopotamia from your classroom with our "Museum in a Box"! It contains everything you need for your students to engage in hands-on, object-based learning that can be applied beyond the museum. The kit contains the following:
1. Suitcase with magnifying glass
2. Artifact replicas from our collection with information on each object
3. Classroom activities involving object-based learning
3. A hard copy of the book: "The Adventures of Inanaka and Tuni: Learning to Write in Ancient Babylonia."
Schools can rent or purchase the "Museum in a Box." If renting, schools may keep the suitcase for one month. Extensions available.
The "Museum in a Box" currently focuses on Mesopotamia, but stay tuned for more topics including ancient Egypt.
Activity: Create your own seals
What do seals signify?
Cylinder seals, small cylindrical objects usually made from a hard stone and engraved with different designs and sometimes script, are an important part of life in the ancient world from the 4th millennium BC onwards, replacing the earlier stamp seals. Although usually associated with ancient Mesopotamia, they were also used in Persia, Anatolia, the Levant, Arabia, and even spread to Egypt. At the end of the first millennium BC, however, cylinder seals disappeared, replaced by stamp seals. Cylinder seals can convey the identity of individuals or the identity of a particular office, encompassing social, administrative, and religious identities. In addition, cylinder seals could also be decorative and used as jewelry.
Want to create your own? Check out these free downloadable activities.