Kings of Cities and Rulers of the Steppes
Representations of Kingship in Pre-Islamic Central Asia
By (author) Michael Shenkar
Hardback (Published)
(March 2025)
ISBN: 9783447123440
8.31 x 11.69 inches
Price: $173.00
On back order
Kings of Cities and Rulers of the Steppes examines the iconography of Central Asian rulers from the Bronze Age to the Early Islamic period, focusing on the cultural, religious, and ideological messages conveyed through royal imagery. With over 650 illustrations (including 300 original drawings), Michael Shenkar traces the evolution of kingship and its iconography over time, highlighting Central Asia’s role as a meeting point for Iranian, Greek, Chinese, Indian, and Turkic cultures. Often referred to as a “crossroads of civilizations,” Central Asia provides a rich context in which these cultures interacted and influenced one another. By examining royal imagery as a historical and cultural source, this book uncovers the cultural complexities behind the kings who ruled the region’s rich cities and vast steppes. It uses these visual representations as a lens to explore the cultural, political, and religious dynamics that defined Central Asia’s heritage. A major theme of the book is the unparalleled diversity of ancient Central Asian royal imagery, which reflects both the political fragmentation of the region and the interactions between nomadic and sedentary populations. Shenkar also highlights the distinct feature of collective sovereignty found in many Central Asian and Iranian states. Post-nomadic royal clans such of the Scythians, Yuezhi, Huns, and Turks often utilized an ‘appanage system’, allowing rulers to express their identities by combining traditional symbols of power with unique elements that differentiated them from others. This book provides an ambitious, multi-century exploration of Central Asian kingship, offering new insights into the political and cultural significance of the region’s royal imagery
Kings of Cities and Rulers of the Steppes examines the iconography of Central Asian rulers from the Bronze Age to the Early Islamic period, focusing on the cultural, religious, and ideological messages conveyed through royal imagery. With over 650 illustrations (including 300 original drawings), Michael Shenkar traces the evolution of kingship and its iconography over time, highlighting Central Asia’s role as a meeting point for Iranian, Greek, Chinese, Indian, and Turkic cultures. Often referred to as a “crossroads of civilizations,” Central Asia provides a rich context in which these cultures interacted and influenced one another. By examining royal imagery as a historical and cultural source, this book uncovers the cultural complexities behind the kings who ruled the region’s rich cities and vast steppes. It uses these visual representations as a lens to explore the cultural, political, and religious dynamics that defined Central Asia’s heritage. A major theme of the book is the unparalleled diversity of ancient Central Asian royal imagery, which reflects both the political fragmentation of the region and the interactions between nomadic and sedentary populations. Shenkar also highlights the distinct feature of collective sovereignty found in many Central Asian and Iranian states. Post-nomadic royal clans such of the Scythians, Yuezhi, Huns, and Turks often utilized an ‘appanage system’, allowing rulers to express their identities by combining traditional symbols of power with unique elements that differentiated them from others. This book provides an ambitious, multi-century exploration of Central Asian kingship, offering new insights into the political and cultural significance of the region’s royal imagery
- By (author) Michael Shenkar
Other Titles in this Series
Archaologie visualisieren
Entwicklung einer standardisierten Zeichenschrift zur Analyse und Vermittlung archaologischer Funde und Befunde
Volume 15
Der Palast in Nuzi
Studien zur formalen Struktur des Palastgebaudes und den Funktionen der Palastinstitution
Volume 18
Urban Cultures of Central Asia from the Bronze Age to the Karakhanids
Learnings and conclusions from new archaeological investigations and discoveries. Proceedings of the First International Congress on Central Asian Archaeology held at the University of Bern, 4-6 February 2016
Volume 12
Gesellschaften im Wandel
Funerarer Aufwand und soziale Wirklichkeit im fruhstaatlichen Mespotamien und Agypten anhand von Grabbefunden aus Ur und Kafr Tarkhan
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Sirkeli Hoyuk
Ein urbanes Zentrum am Puruna-Pyramos im Ebenen Kilikien. Vorbericht der schweizerisch-turkischen Ausgrabungen 2006-2015
Volume 13
Mobility and Archaeogenetics in Central Asia
People – Goods – Ideas. 3rd International Conference on Central Asian Archaeology in Bern, 11th–13th January 2024
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Königsbilder, Libationskuhlen und Steinbau
Der hethitischen Kultkomplex und die Felsreliefs in Sirkeli Höyük. von Fabrizio Bätscher, Natalia Bolatti Guzzo, Ekin Kozal, Massimiliano Marazzi, Mirko Novák, Annick Payne, Leopoldo Repola, Carsten Schneider, Deniz Yaşin
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Fremdes in Anatolien
Importguter aus dem Ostmittelmeerraum und Mesopotamien als Indikator fur spatbronzezeitliche Handels- und Kulturkontakte
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Sirkeli Hoyuk
Struktur und Dynamik einer urbanen Stadtlandschaft im Ebenen Kilikien. Vorbericht der schweizerisch-turkischen Ausgrabungen 2016-24
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Die 114 Tells der Mardin-Ebene
Convolutional Neural Networks in der archaologischen Fernerkundung
Volume 23
Cultures in Contact
Central Asia as Focus of Trade, Cultural Exchange and Knowledge Transmission
Volume 19
Bergesgleich baute ich hoch
Untersuchungen zur Architektur, Funktion und Bedeutung neuassyrischer Befestigungsanlagen
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