After more than 20 years from the first edition and several re-editions with only few, relatively marginal, corrections, it is time to provide a systematically revised edition of this book to the reader. The main reason behind these revisions is not only the publication of the new Italian edition, but also of the English and German editions, which make this volume accessible on an international level. I have to say that the lateness of these translations (which follow the Spanish one, published in 1995), testify that through the years this work has gradually acquired and preserved the character of a unique and internationally acknowledged reference point. This is both due to its methodological approach and its size, unparalleled among the works of an individual author in this field.
I have to add that the recent (but now established) changes in university courses (in Italy and elsewhere) make a book of this size a somehow anomalous manual for the purpose of teaching a subject that cannot claim a large number of course credits. As a result, this book has been recently moved from the ‘Manuals’ series to the ‘Historical Library’ (Biblioteca Storica) series. Nonetheless, in recent years, the distribution of this book has continued. This fact indicates that there is an audience outside universities interested in a more detailed and reliable account ofthe Near East than that which is provided by more commercial accounts. At the same time, it indicates that within universities themselves there is a concrete need for a reference work of this size.
After all, when one of my students complains that the book is ‘too long’ for the final exam, I answer that the number of pages is not the only factor to take into account. One also has to take into consideration a book’s readability. A smaller volume full of names, dates, and events to memorise becomes far more difficult to remember than a longer volume that simply needs to be read. This book indeed needs to be read. I distinctly remember that, when I wrote it, I forced myself not to include anything that I did not know already without having to consult anything else. Admittedly, the book comes with a whole set of chronological tables, maps, texts and bibliographies. However, this is simply for consultation.
The publication of a revised edition has also become necessary due to the amount of time (20 years) that has passed from the first edition. This period has been filled with discoveries. In the study of the Ancient Near East, these discoveries appear at a much faster pace than in any other field of ancient history. This is true despite the many difficulties the current wars and political events provide to archaeological activities in many countries of the Middle East. Unfortunately, these ‘new discoveries’ are not evenly distributed, but mainly concern areas in which it has been possible to excavate.
I have to point out that the revisions (which only affect some chapters, while others have remained almost unchanged) mainly consist in the addition of new information. The revisions, then, consist in the inclusion of new discoveries, the reformulation of certain problems, and the inclusion of new considerations and debates. Whenever possible, I have tried to simplify the text as a whole. I have not deemed it necessary to modify the overall structure of the book. Therefore, its methodological premises, the balance of political, economic and cultural aspects, and its main chronological divisions have essentially remained the same. In other words, I have not written a new book, and I did not do it for a series of reasons closely related to each other.
A book like this requires a degree of effort, time and energy that can only be achieved once in a lifetime. Moreover, if the structure of the book seems dated, this task would befall on a scholar from the new generation and with a different background. Personally, I believe that the overall structure of this book is still valid. The period between 1965 and 1985 has been innovative in terms of historical methodology, which was applied to the study of the history of the Near East for the first time. However, the same cannot be said for the years between 1985 and 2005. Apart from new discoveries, I believe that the greatest innovation of the last 20 years has been the implementation of a ‘systematic’ way of reasoning and analysing problems. We owe these changes to the spread of electronic resources for historical purposes. However, this is an innovation that affected more the way we work than the general evaluation of the Near East. Consequently, I have kept the same structure the book had 20 years ago, and I do not regret this choice.
World History
