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The Kensington Rune Stone, 2002.
Deciphering the authenticity of the Kensington Rune Stone by the studying of the inscription.
2,140 words (approx. 8.6 pages), 6 sources, MLA, AU$ 84.95
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Abstract
This paper is about the Kensington Rune Stone and the controversy surrounding it as a possible Pre-Columbian, Scandinavian relic. By looking at each individual line this paper shows how it is overwhelmingly possible that the tale told on the stone is authentic. The author discusses the controversy, the background of the stone, and examines the inscription line by line.
From the Paper
"Since its discovery in 1898 by Olaf Ohman, the Kensington Rune Stone has been at the center of a heated controversy surrounding its authenticity. The general academic world?s position on the authenticity of the stone began as almost overwhelmingly negative and remained that way until recent studies and findings have given it more credibility. The argument in favor of the stone?s authenticity has recently become nearly un-opposable. The apparent credibility for the stone can be shown when one considers the facts concerning the inscription itself when studied as a whole and then line by line."
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"The Shield of Achilles", 2002.
The writer presents an analysis of "The Shield of Achilles" by Phillip Bobbit and offers a review of Greek society in the eighth century.
2,692 words (approx. 10.8 pages), 1 source, MLA, AU$ 102.95
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Abstract
This paper reviews the work in light of ancient Greek culture and society. The writer claims that this time was well organized with a set way of making decisions, a hierarchy headed by the elders, a population fully involved in affairs and heralds who serve as protection and population controls. The original document proves this mythology to be complex and extensive while it still relates directly to the real world. The writer attempts to understand and explain the story for its reader.
From the Paper
"First, this is a society that has achieved a higher level of organization. Certainly, it is a society that has reached the Bronze Age. Civilization developed following a pattern based on the ability of the human population to learn to use different tools at different stages, different materials from which those tools were made, and different modes of food production. With the development of more sedentary habitats, urban centers eventually developed and produced civilizations with certain similar characteristics, though these developments may have taken place at different rates in different areas. Civilization began with agriculture, developed metalworking in the Bronze Age, and progressed to more advanced metalworking in the Iron Age."
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Chichen Itza, 2002.
The paper looks at the history of the Chichen Itza archaeological site in Mexico and its role in contributing to our knowledge of the Mayan empire.
3,522 words (approx. 14.1 pages), 9 sources, MLA, AU$ 125.95
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Abstract
The paper traces the visits of important archaeologists to the prime destination of Chichen Itza since the 1800s. It also describes the archaeological ruins there that teach us about the Mayan empire and places the location in its geographical context. The paper examines the famous sites of the great Castle, the Castillo and the Great Ballcourt which are all huge tourist attractions today.
From the Paper
"Chichen Itza was undoubtedly the greatest Mayan city on the Yucatan peninsula. It stands on a flat plain, and the massive pyramid that stands at the heart of Chichen Itza can be seen for miles around. Chichen Itza was joined by roads to the Mayan city of Izamal and to the seacoast city of Pole, making it a likely hub of trade and information for the Mayan empire."
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The Great Flood in Literature, 2002.
Examines how the flood story appears in "The Epic of Gilgamesh" and the Biblical "Genesis".
1,895 words (approx. 7.6 pages), 7 sources, MLA, AU$ 77.95
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Abstract
The flood story recurs in many ancient civilizations, even in distant parts of the world, though the nature of the story may be very different in some cultures. The paper shows the links between the flood story as told in the ancient Sumerian epic of Gilgamesh and the flood story of Noah as told in Genesis. There is recent evidence that there may have been a great flood in the area of the Black Sea which may have become a continuing tribal memory that was eventually embodied in "The Epic of Gilgamesh" and reshaped to fit the theology of the Israelites for the tale told in Genesis. The paper shows that the two versions of the flood story have many points of agreement, suggesting that they are somehow connected, although in the Noah story, the role of God differs from the role of the gods in Gilgamesh.
From the Paper
"In the Atrahasis version of the story, the Flood portion of the text, which is quite damaged, presents a narrative account of Mesopotamian primeval history that parallels the version in Genesis 1-11 inclusively. The Flood Story in Atrahasis is more than twice the length of the Gilgamesh version. While they seem to tell the same story, the function of the floods in the two epics is quite different. In Atrahasis, the flood is a means of population control and a divider of epochs, while in Gilgamesh, it explains how immortality was once granted to a mortal. The Atrahasis Epic begins with the creation of humankind because the labor-class gods are tired of the heavy tasks imposed on them by the management-class gods."
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Palenque, 2002.
A review of Palenque in Mexico, part of the Maya sites.
2,299 words (approx. 9.2 pages), 6 sources, MLA, AU$ 90.95
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Abstract
This paper offers a descriptive review of the architectural site Palenque in Mexico. The writer believes that Palenque may be the most beautiful and evocative of all the Maya ruins. The paper includes a description of the actual site, its surrounding scenery and additional sites nearby. The paper also includes a history of the site with reference to its discovery in the 1700s by an indigenous farmer. The paper points out that Palenque is famous not only for its beauty but it also has the distinction of being the actual site of major breakthroughs in the study of the Maya written language.
From the Paper
"The site lies on a narrow shelf of land abutting the forested escarpment of the Chiapas highlands. Below Palenque, the lush coastal plain of Tabasco extends all the way to the Gulf of Mexico. Set upon this scenic vista lies the true beauty of Palenque?its unequaled architecture. The Maya architects that constructed Palenque revolutionized the methods utilized in the construction of the day. The Maya architects made the upper facades of the temples in Palenque slope backward at the same angle as the slant of the corbelled walls inside."
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The Parthenon, 2002.
An overview of the architectural details and history of this great Athenian building.
1,507 words (approx. 6.0 pages), 6 sources, MLA, AU$ 63.95
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Abstract
The Parthenon (447-32 BCE) was a crowning glory of Athenian civilization of the classical era and, what is more important, it was intended as such at the time. Thus, nearly 2,500 years later, it is possible to view the building as incorporating all of what the Athenians saw as beautiful, sacred and of civic importance in architecture. The paper shows that as its overwhelming position and the nature of its sculptural decoration make clear, it was the focal point of the religious-civic identity of the Athenian polis. The paper describes how the Parthenon housed the great statue of Athena Parthenos, was the main building in the complex of temples dedicated to the gods on the sacred rock of the Acropolis, depicted some version of the most important Athenian religious ceremony (the Panathenaic procession and festival) and loomed over the city as a reminder and a promise of Athenian greatness.
From the Paper
"But there was also a contradiction in being expected to achieve the perfection of the Doric order on a much larger scale, for which adjustments had to be made to the greater number of columns. As Boardman points out, however, the wider fa?ades lent the building a "reassuring breadth which is enhanced by the way its proportions then seem to match those" of the Acropolis on which it stands (112). But this breadth might have been oppressive in its effects if the architects had not devised a means of avoiding too great a visual equivalence between the rock and the temple. Their solution was a very subtle curvature of the stylobate, and the rest of the floor, which is also reflected in the entablature. This also affects the columns which "lean slightly in while the upperworks [that they support] lean slightly out" (Boardman 112). This gives the entire fa?ade a "pyramiding movement" to which all the external lines contribute; ever so subtly, therefore, the columns' inward inclination lends itself to a slight triangular effect that is enhanced by the surmounting pyramid of the pediment (Martin 292)."
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Egyptian Art, 2002.
A review of Egyptian artwork using two examples which can be seen at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LCMA).
1,030 words (approx. 4.1 pages), 4 sources, MLA, AU$ 46.95
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Abstract
This paper explores Egyptian artwork, using 2 pieces from ancient Egypt which can be seen at the LCMA - Wadjet and Sekhmet. The writer studies the art as it relates to the expression of ideas, rituals and religion in ancient Egypt. The paper uses these two pieces because while the goddesses are similar, each with a lion's head, they are associated with different parts of Egypt - Sekhmet derives from Memphis, while Wadjet is from Buto.
From the Paper
"This sort of rigid and bisymmetrical form is seen in both Wadjet and Sekhmet in the Los Angeles collection. The goddesses are similar as each has a lion's head, as noted, but the goddesses are associated with different parts of Egypt. Sekhmet derives from Memphis, while Wadjet is from Buto. Wadjet is considered the protector of the north, or Lower Egypt, and she also has associations with Hathor and is said to have helped Isis protect the infant Horus in the mythology of ancient Egypt."
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The Panathaenaic Amphora, 2002.
Discusses the black figure of the goddess Athena known as the Panathaenaic Amphora (375-70 B.C.).
1,525 words (approx. 6.1 pages), 4 sources, MLA, AU$ 64.95
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Abstract
The Panathenaic Prize Amphora, on display in the collection of the Detroit Institute of Arts, is dated to around 375-70 B.C. and stands 33 inches high. It is attributed to the Asteios group and is an example of the ceramic black-figure ware that was a principal industry of Athens. This paper discusses the amphora and shows why its design and features are so typical of Athenian ceramic-ware production.
From the Paper
"Various centers competed in the production and export of ceramic wares, but by the middle of the sixth century Athens had eliminated its principal rivals "and the many other wares that had flourished during the seventh and early sixth century had gradually disappeared, continuing only as local products" (Richter 315). Athens' dominance in the Mediterranean ceramics market extended from 550 to 400 B.C. and the Detroit example comes at the end of the city's reign. Black-figure technique also dominated production in the sixth century but was gradually overtaken in popularity by red-figure ware in the fifth century."
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The Archeology of the Ark, 2002.
Examining the story of Noah's Ark from an archaeological perspective.
3,015 words (approx. 12.1 pages), 12 sources, MLA, AU$ 113.95
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Abstract
This research examines archaeological evidence associated with the story of Noah's Ark told in Genesis. It explains how the Genesis story of Noah's Ark, which describes a great flood that destroys all life and civilization except for an extended family and the extended family of livestock in its care, is premised on the idea that the family patriarch, Noah, received instructions from God to build a gigantic boat, or ark. The paper looks at alternative version of the story and archaeological evidence of its occurrence through history.
From the Paper
"Articulation of alternative visions of Noah in the modern period has occurred in a climate of contentiousness. That is because the absence of definitive archaeological confirmation of the ancient texts runs up against a widespread insistence in Judaeo-Christian culture on the historicity of the Noah story. The extent of contentiousness was manifest especially in 1997, when a credentialed Australian geologist, Ian Plimer, was ejected from a creationist lecture when ark explorer Allen Roberts refused to answer questions about geologic time. Plimer later sued Roberts for science fraud on the theory of "the dangers inherent in letting fundamentalists go unchallenged" (Scott 9). Plimer lost on the legal issue, which resulted in his bankruptcy, but won on substantive argument and PR grounds, reflected in a host of contributions to Plimer's legal fund."
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Communication from the Gods, 2002.
Examines ways in which Ancient Egyptian gods were believed to have communicated with the population.
4,140 words (approx. 16.6 pages), 12 sources, MLA, AU$ 142.95
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Abstract
This research provides six specific examples of how the gods were believed to communicate with humanity in ancient Egypt. The research describes ways in which divine-to-human acts of communication were thought to take place in various periods of Egyptian civilization and the content of the patterns of belief. It discusses how perceptions and beliefs appear to have altered over the course of the culture's several-thousand-year tenure, before it was absorbed by Rome in the first century BC. Egypt's pharaonic period, which begins with the Old Kingdom (about 3200 BC), ends in 525 BC, which coincides with the emergence of Greek influence and the infancy of Rome. The paper shows that it is a truism that Greeks and Romans alike considered Egypt to be an ancient civilization.
From the Paper
"What began in the Old Kingdom as a perception of the underworld as a place of wondrous information and potentiality was transformed by the time of the New Kingdom into a perception of the underworld as almost instrumental in the project of transfiguration of human experience into divine experience. As Hornung says, the figure of Osiris in the Old Kingdom period is given precedence over the pharaoh "as if it were a title; later [Osiris] is placed before the name of each deceased individual," which shows that godhead could be incorporated in or infused humankind, the oneness symbolic of perfect communication between matter and spirit."
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Apostolic Spirituality, 2002.
Examines the emergence of spirituality in the apostolic period of Christianity.
11,090 words (approx. 44.4 pages), 22 sources, APA, AU$ 278.95
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Abstract
This research sets forth the context in which Christian spirituality unfolded in the first century A.D., also known at the apostolic period. It discusses in particular evidence of how the apostles made connections from spiritual experience to the shared experience of faith in the Christian community. The paper examines how the apostolic generation arrived at and then fostered a cohesive doctrine of spirituality that centered around the figure of Jesus Christ, in the shape of a mission of love.
From the Paper
"No less significant is the fact that this spirituality and the apostolic mission are new because they specifically differ from Judaism, not only in the content of the message but also in the behavior of the messengers. For example, Matthew's Jesus (13:14) refers to those who are taught in parables as a fulfillment of "the [Hebrew] prophecy of Esaias, which saith, By hearing he shall hear, and shall not understand." What is implied here is that the teachings of Jesus are meant to be directly relevant to Jewish experience, but the Christian mission is also meant to reinterpret it and point it in new directions. When Matthew says that "every scribe which is instructed unto the kingdom of heaven" (13:52), the implication is that the new interpretation, not the old law, will be preeminent, hence that the Christians and not the Jews (i.e., the new scribes and not the old black-letter-law priests of Judaism) are to have the keys of the kingdom."
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Egyptian Religion and Magic, 2002.
Examines elements of magic and religion in Ancient Egyptian culture.
3,676 words (approx. 14.7 pages), 9 sources, MLA, AU$ 130.95
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Abstract
This research examines elements of Egyptian culture that seem closer to magic than to religion as they are commonly understood. The research sets forth the context in which concepts of magic and religion achieve resonance in ancient Egypt and then discusses specific examples from Egyptian religious literature and thought that show how the Egyptians distinguished between religion and magic, compared to other monotheists. Finally, it illustrates how magic fits into the religious environment of the culture.
From the Paper
"Differentiating between religion and magic in ancient culture has proved problematic for western commentators to the degree definitions of the terms are approached from the Western but not from a subject other culture's point of view. The tendency to bring Western religious classifications to the project of identifying the attributes of Egyptian religion does not seem to accomplish a great deal analytically. In the worst instances of this type, Ritner says, misinterpretation and mistranslation of some hieroglyphic inscriptions have resulted. Specifically, inscriptions that supposedly distinguished between magic and religion (cult) have proved to be inaccurate. Walker agrees, defining magic not as an expression of evil but as "the art which attempts to influence a course of events by controlling nature of supernatural powers." The good-evil opposition of religion and magic that is typical of and fundamental to Western analysis proves not to be sufficient to the task of understanding the character of religion and the role of magic in religion for Egyptian antiquity."
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The Dead Sea Scrolls, 2002.
Examines the history of the discovery and current issues surrounding the Dead Sea Scrolls.
2,162 words (approx. 8.6 pages), 9 sources, APA, AU$ 86.95
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Abstract
What started out as an exploration of some ancient scrolls discovered in the Dead Sea region has become a career for some people, a controversy regarding control of the material and a matter leading to interpretation and reinterpretation of central issues in Christianity. The paper examines the story of the Dead Sea Scrolls, describes the controversies and sets forth current findings.
From the Paper
"One of the best overviews of the Qumran project is provided by Hershel Shanks (1998). Shanks was part of the basic editorial team, involved with the archeological excavations, and the initial work on the scrolls. He was part of the group which decided, in the 1990s, to open up the Qumran scrolls to general access. He discussed the political machinations of the group, as well as the relationship of the scrolls to numerous. For example, one issue is the nature of the Copper Scroll and whether that is essentially a fantasy or a real treasure map."
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Ancient Religions, 2002.
Description and comparison of the religions of ancient Greece, Egypt and Mesopotamia.
1,206 words (approx. 4.8 pages), 2 sources, MLA, AU$ 53.95
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Abstract
This paper discusses and contrasts the main religions of three civilizations which shaped world history - the religions of ancient Mesopotamia, Greece and Egypt. The paper provides reflections on god/human relations and the way people gods were perceived in different societies.
From the Paper
"In the kingdom of Egypt, beliefs were different because of its isolated position. Situated in a river valley, surrounded by deserts, Egyptians hardly knew what invasion meant. The Nile, with its mild and indescribably fertile floods, gave the habitants of this region assuredness that the gods were with them. The climate was warm and humid, natural disasters were extremely rare. In other words, the gods loved people, and people loved them; in The Leiden Hymns for example, Amon Ra, was described as the ?all powerful one (yet kindly, / whose heart would lie open to men)? (Norton Anthology 45)."
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The Babylonian Zero, 2002.
An examination on how the figure "zero" evolved during the Babylonian times.
2,176 words (approx. 8.7 pages), 17 sources, APA, AU$ 86.95
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Abstract
This paper begins by providing a history of the evolution of zero and discusses the origin of the symbol. It then discusses the origins of the concept of "zero" and how this was perceived differently by various ancient cultures such as the Egyptians, the Mayans and the Babylonians. It then focuses specifically on the "Babylonian zero" and how this differed in concept from other figures at the time. The paper includes several diagrams and pictures.
From the Paper
"The symbol zero evolved into its present form after quite a number of transformations. The idea of how the symbol was devised also harbors a few contradictory ideas. Opinions range from it being a dot originally, replaced by a circle with a dot in the center and then maturing to the current form, an oval shape that we all are familiar with. (Pearce, I., 2002). The Egyptian zero that evolved has also been equated with the hieroglyph for beauty, and that of the human windpipe, heart and lungs. (Williams, S. W., 2002)"
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Burial Rituals of Ancient Egypt, 2002.
This paper examines the burial rituals of ancient Egypt, especially the processes of embalming and mummification.
2,245 words (approx. 9.0 pages), 7 sources, APA, AU$ 88.95
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Abstract
This paper discusses the Egyptian funerary rituals and equipment, which eventually became the most elaborate the world has ever known. The author states that Egyptians began the art of embalming in the very earliest dynastic times because the body had to remain intact to grant to the dead the illusion of life. The paper presents in detail the many processes of embalming.
From the Paper
"The Predynastic Cultures of Ancient Egypt, for example, were relatively simple in their material possessions, including their grave goods, although these cultures seemed to enjoy a substantial degree of prosperity compared to the peoples around them and a relatively constant level of prosperity. As early as about 4000 B.C., some people were being buried with a relatively high number of grave goods compared to others, indicating that a complex society with a number of different social ranks had already evolved and was established well enough for people to want it to be reflected through eternity. The bodies of this time do not bear the elaborate preparations that they would by the New Kingdom thousands of years later. But, they do bear signs of an attempt to preserve them against the elements, including the wrapping of the body in cloth and at least sometimes the treating of the body with preservative chemicals ? sometimes by simply immersing or coating the body with these chemicals, sometimes by infusing the cloth wrappings with these chemicals. Except for the simplicity of this treatment, it resembles in essential ways later mummification techniques."
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