Before the 1177 B.C. Collapse: The Bronze Age World of the Amarna Letters | Prof. Eric Cline

Welcome to KEDEM Channel! In this episode, we are honored to welcome back Prof. Eric Cline (The George Washington University) to discuss his latest book, "Love, War and Diplomacy: The Discovery of the Amarna Letters and the Bronze Age World." While Prof. Cline is world-renowned for his work on the 1177 B.C. collapse, this conversation takes a deep dive into the world before the fall. We explore the "Amarna Letters"—a collection of 3,400-year-old clay tablets that act as the ancient world’s version of text messages and diplomatic cables. From gold-smuggling scandals and "fake news" discovery stories to the "Mafia Don" of ancient Canaan, Prof. Cline reveals that while the technology has changed, human nature and geopolitics remain strikingly the same.

Watch our previous episode with Prof. Cline (1177 B.C.: The Year Civilization Collapsed):    • 1177 B.C. - The Collapse of the Bronze Age...  

In this conversation, we discuss: Geopolitics Then and Now: Why the dynamics between modern superpowers mirror the "G8" of the Late Bronze Age. The Gold Scandals: Decoding the diplomatic complaints of kings receiving "low-quality" gold from the Pharaoh. The "Missing Sister" Mystery: How royal marriages were used to cement treaties—and what happened when a princess disappeared. Fake News in Archaeology: Debunking the legendary story of the peasant woman who found the tablets. Labayu of Shechem: Why this local ruler was described as a "Mafia Don" running wild in Canaan. Social Network Analysis: Using modern mathematical tools to identify the true power brokers of the ancient world. The Mystery of the Missing Greeks: Why are the Mycenaeans and Minoans absent from this diplomatic archive?

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About our guest: Prof. Eric Cline is Professor of Classical and Near Eastern Languages and Literatures and of Anthropology at The George Washington University. He is the Director of the GWU Capitol Archaeological Institute and has over 30 seasons of excavation experience in Israel, Greece, Jordan, and beyond. A three-time winner of the Biblical Archaeology Society’s "Best Popular Book on Archaeology" award, Prof. Cline is one of the most effective communicators of ancient history today. His best-selling work, "1177 B.C.: The Year Civilization Collapsed," has been translated into over 15 languages.

His recent and notable publications include:

Love, War and Diplomacy: The Discovery of the Amarna Letters and the Bronze Age World (2024) - https://www.amazon.com/Love-War-Diplo...

After 1177 B.C.: The Survival of Civilizations (2024)

1177 B.C.: The Year Civilization Collapsed (Revised Edition, 2021)

Digging Up Armageddon: The Search for the Lost City of Megiddo (2020)

Chapters:
0:00:00 - Geopolitics: Why Human Nature Never Changes
0:03:38 - Gold & Marriages: The Cost of Ancient Diplomacy
0:17:44 - The Bronze Age G8: An International Society
0:24:16 - Fake News: The True Story of the Discovery
0:31:36 - Budge vs. Sayce: The Race to Translate
0:38:33 - Labayu of Shechem: The Mafia Don of Canaan
0:47:54 - Biblical Prototype: Did Labayu Found Israel?
1:00:07 - Social Network Analysis: Mapping the Power Brokers
1:12:04 - Aegean Mystery: Where Are the Greeks?
1:20:02 - Summary: Legacy

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