Taking us back to the earliest days of cities-and the earliest days of human civilization-in Mesopotamia, Pedro Azara in Cornerstone offers a contemporary view on the rise and growth of early cities and urban culture. Investigating ruins and exploring archaeological sites, Azara helps us understand how the earliest cities looked and felt, what the first architects and their buildings were like, and what nascent aesthetic ideals they upheld. Azara's scholarship is rigorous and far-reaching, but his writing is agile, direct, and entertaining as he not only brings the far-distant past to life, but teases out its relevance for our understanding of contemporary culture as well. The result is a fascinating glimpse into our history and a fresh new take on the origins of the civilization of some of our most ancient ancestors.

As archaeologists unearth the past, they seek meaning or purpose for the objects they uncover by looking at the objects themselves and their archaeological context. Art historians, on the other hand, primarily focus on aesthetics, asking why a particular object stimulates our senses, and what that tells us about ourselves. From Ancient to Modern offers a lens for understanding ancient objects through the perspectives and processes of both archaeology and aesthetics, and, in so doing, illuminates the multiple layers of meaning that a single object can take on--sometimes simultaneously--over the course of its existence. This beautifully illustrated volume is the accompanying catalog for the exhibition at New York University's Institute for the Study of the Ancient World and focuses on fifty objects from three iconic sites in the ancient Near East: Ur, Diyala, and Kish. The excavation, unique characteristics, and transformative journey of each object--from archaeological artifact to aesthetic item--are examined. Select contemporary artworks are also considered in the investigation of how ancient objects acquire meaning in the present day. Contributors include Kim Benzel, Jennifer Chi, Jean Evans, Lynn Grant, Jack Green, William Hafford, Marc Marin, Naomi Miller, Holly Pittman, Clemens Reichel, Karen Wilson, and Richard Zettler. Cover photograph (c) Bruce M. White, 2016