Friday, September 1st
3-5pm| NES Commons Room (254 Barrows)
Welcome Party for the Near Eastern Studies Department
This party is an introduction to the department and a great way to meet
your professors and GSIs while grabbing some good food.
Wednesday, September 6th
5pm| NES Commons Room (254 Barrows)
NESSA/JAGNES Party
Come meet your fellow grads and undergrads in the NES Department! JAGNES
(http://www.jagnes.com/) is the graduate run journal in the NES Department
and NESSA is the student organization that holds events throughout the
semester. Come learn about both!
Wednesday, September 13th
6pm| NES Commons Room (254 Barrows)
First Meeting of the Semester
Meet other NESSA members, hear about upcoming events this semester and be
sure to suggest a few you would like to see. Chocolate chip cookies
provided but disappear quickly!
Wednesday, September 20th
6pm| NES Commons Room (254 Barrows)
"Working in Iran"
Javier Alvarez-Mon, graduate student, UC Berkeley
Javier's focus is the Elamites, the pre-Persian civilization that arose in
Iran. He spent two years doing museum work in Iran and will be discussing
his study and work experience.
Tuesday, September 26th
5:30pm| NES Commons Room (254 Barrows)
Movie Night
'The Mummy' Starring Boris Karloff, this classic 1932 film became, for
many, a first introduction to ancient Egypt.
Tuesday, October 3rd
5:30| NES Commons Room (254 Barrows)
Movie Night
'The Mummy' Starring Brendan Fraser and Rachel Weisz. Made in 1999, this
adventure film entertains with gratuitous action scenes and cheesy dialog,
set in the background of 1920's Egypt.
Thursday, October 5th
6pm| 370 Dwinelle Hall
Lecture: "The Visual Representation of Deities and Demons
in Early Achaemenid Iran: Moving from Religious Iconography to Religious
Semantics"
Professor Mark B. Garrison, Department of Art and Art History,
Trinity University, has published widely on the seal iconography of the
Achaemenid Persian Empire, most notably the seal impressions of the
Persepolis Fortification Tablets. Sponsored by The Townsend Center, Center for Middle Eastern Studies, Archaeological
Research Facility, The Graduate Group in Ancient History and Mediteranean
Archaeology and NESSA
Friday, October 6th
Noon| NES Commons Room (254 Barrows)
"Private vs. Public Economy of the Ancient
Near East"
Dr. Steven Garfinkle, Associate Professor of History in the Ancient Near
East and Ancient Mediterranean at Western Washington University, will be
lecturing about the application of the terms public and private in the
ancient economy. He will discuss the issues associated with modern
interpretation and application of these terms and approaches to the Near
Eastern economy.
Sunday, October 8th
2pm|Florence Gould Theater, Legion of Honor, 100 34th Avenue, Lincoln Park, San Francisco
“The First International Era: Trade and Diplomacy in the Late Bronze Age and Near East”
Steven Garfinkle
Associate Professor, History Department, Western Washington University
and AIA Cesnola Lecturer.
The lecture focuses on the royal diplomatic correspondence of the Egyptian
pharaohs, known as the Amarna letters, in the 14th century b.c. These clay tablets
document the Egyptian foreign affairs and explore the diplomatic, dynastic, and
commercial connections between Egypt, Mesopotamia, and the Mediterranean world during
the Late Bronze Age.
This lecture is free and open to the public. To obtain a museum admission
waiver, please check in at the AIA table 1:30-2:00 p.m. at the main entrance of
the Legion of Honor. Parking information is available at www.thinker.org, under
“Legion.” This lecture is co-sponsored by Ancient Art Council, the UCB Graduate Group in
Ancient History and Mediterranean Archaeology, the Dept. of Classics, Near Eastern
Studies, the UC Berkeley Archaeological Research Facility, and ARC
Wednesday, October 18th
Noon| NES Commons Room (254 Barrows)
Lecture by Professor Marian Feldman: 'Looking at Ancient Art, Seeing Ancient Societies: A Case Study of
Phoenician and North Syrian Arts in the Early First Millennium BCE'
Wednesday, October 25th
6:30pm| NES Commons Room (254 Barrows)
Movie Night Hosted by David Giovacchini, Stanford University Lecturer and Librarian in the Middle Eastern Collections
'G.O.R.A. : a space movie', written by and starring Turkey's top comedian
Cem Yilmaz; directed by Omer Faruk Sorak (2004).
The most watched film of the last decade in Turkey, G.O.R.A. is a rowdy,
high-tech spoof of all the major sci-fi epics in film history. Cem Yilmaz
does a star turn playing "Ali", the sleazy rug-salesman who is abducted by
aliens, and "Commander Lugar", the human hating alien commander. The film
is in Turkish and subtitled in English.
Showtime will be prompt. Light refreshments provided.
Wednesday, November 8th
Noon| Room 101 in the ARF (2251 College Building)
Lecture: "Microarchaeology at a 4th Millennium Village: Preliminary Research from
Kenan Tepe, Turkey"
Catherine Painter, Dept of Near Eastern Studies, UC Berkeley
Sponsored by ARF
Thursday, November 9th
6pm| NES Commons Room (254 Barrows)
Iranian Movie Night: 'Children of Heaven'
Hosted by Ari Siletz, Iranian author (www.arisiletz.com). Made in 1997, this film follows a brother and sister who have to share a pair of shoes during the day and support each other to keep this secret from their parents, until they find a way to get another pair of shoes. With English subtitles. Nominated for an Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film in 1999.
Showtime will be prompt. This event will be catered by Zand's.
Monday, November 13th
5pm| Sultan Room, 340 Stephens Hall
"Catastrophes and Sanctification: Reflections on the Economy of Divine
Violence in the Hebrew Bible" Professor Adi Ophir. Sponsored by the Center for Middle Eastern Studies
As a visiting Professor from The Cohn Institute, Tel Aviv University, Mr. Ophir will examine why does God (at least the one described in the books of Pentateuch) need
miraculous catastrophes in order to rule the world? What is the relation
of his wrathful violence - demonstrated from the flood to Egypt and then
through the forty years of wandering in the desert - to the Law? Why the
holy and sacred (kadoshim) are more exposed to this violence than most
others? Reflections on these questions will result in a model of divine
sovereignty that may contribute to our understanding of both sovereignty
and the sacred.
Thursday, November 30th
5pm| NES Commons Room (254 Barrows)
Farewell Party for this semester: Central Asian Feast
All the mutton that's fit to eat.