The Enigma of Ancient Elam - Part I: The Proto-Elamite and Old Elamite Periods (3500-1500 BC)

Located in what’s today southwestern and southern Iran, the ancient country that most of us today know as Elam emerged as a dynamic and influential civilization that has left an indelible mark on the tapestry of human history. From its earliest origins as a collection of city-states and principalities in the 4th millennium BC to its peak as a formidable empire, Elam's complex history is one of resilience, innovation, power politics and ultimately in many areas, tragedy.

In Part I, we’ll delve into the annals of Elam's early past and discover the origins of Elamite civilization, art, politics, and its growth as an important military power and commercial conduit that connected east and west.

Contents:

00:00 Introduction
01:50 Where was Elam and who are the Elamites?
07:38 Proto-Elamite Culture
10:15 The Mysterious Proto-Elamite Script
12:23 Trade and War with Ancient Sumer
15:40 Elam Under the Akkadian and Awan Dynasties
23:50 The Oldest Elamite Document and Treaty?
26:51 Puzur-Inshushinak
29:03 The Linear Elamite Script
32:35 Elam Under the Third Dynasty of Ur
35:55 The Shimashki Dynasty
42:54 From the Shimashkis to the Sukkalmahs
57:11 Thank You and Channel Patrons

Related Videos:

The Enigma of Ancient Elam - Part II: The Middle Elamite and Neo-Elamite Periods (1500-550 BC)

The Complete and Concise History of the Sumerians and Early Bronze Age Mesopotamia (7000-2000 BC)

Babylon: The City at the Center of the World - The Concise History of Babylonia (2000-539 BC)

Sources and Suggested Reading:

The Archaeology of Elam, 2nd Edition - D.T. Potts
The Elamite World - Ed. by Javier Álvarez-Mon, Gian Pietro Basello and Yasmina Wicks
The Art of Elam - Javier Álvarez-Mon
The Archaeology of Iran from the Palaeolithic to the Achaemenid Empire - Roger Matthews and Hassan Fazeli Nashli
Elam and Persia - Ed. by Javier Álvarez-Mon and Mark B. Garrison
A History of Babylon, 2200 BC - AD 75 - Paul-Alain Beaulieu
King Hammurabi of Babylon - Marc Van De Mieroop
Hammurabi of Babylon - Dominique Charpin
Civilizations of the Ancient Near East Vol. III - Ed. by Jack Sasson

Machinimas created using Total War: Rome 2 Age of Bronze mod

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[Manic-Main]

Hell yeh. 1 hour program on Elam. Let’s

[fanzy]

This video is by far the most researched and detailed presentation of the Elamite civilization. Great job 👏

[IranTalk]

Excellent work, Cy! Content like this is what makes your channel standout compared to others.

[aimeemorgado]

I came home hot and tired. Sat down and here is just what I needed to improve my mood, knowledge, and perspective! Thank you!!! Love your work.

[oriffel]

omg thank you! everyone talks about Elam, but they always talkin shit, rather than ever talkin about them. I've been waitin for a video like this for a very long time.

[Shaymuhs]

I already know this is gonna be a wonderful video, I hope you know how much this kind of free high quality education means to us! Thank you for all of your work.

[scoringbox]

Been binge watching your work for the past several months now. Please keep making awesome content like this!

[theresawilliams]

My husband and I absolutely love your work cy. You make two genuine Aussies history lovers happy mate.
Keep up the good work.

[BoomaRanga]

One of the only things I wanted more than the next episode of Egyptian Dynasties

Keep up the great work mate, much love from Australia.

[BiggestCorvid]

Hey hey it's gonna be a great sunday evening.

[bistokidsfan]

History with Cy. My afternoon is complete! 👍🏻😉

[cariboux]

Thank you, Cy. You're performing a great service. The more we understand about societies that preceded ours, the better able we will be to make choices for our own. I'm doing some independent research on belief systems and social stability (I have no idea if anything will ever come from it 😅), and your channel is great at expanding my scope and pointing me in new directions. Thanks once again. Great production!

[raminsadeghi]

wow

Finally

Thanks for keeping your word

[iexist]

I can’t wait to watch when I find the time. I hope to visit Iran and see the sights of these ancient civilizations once again. Thank you again Cy!

[hairyjohnson]

I have a 2 hour drive to work this morning, I woke up and saw a 1 hour video on elam. Going to be a great day! Thanks Cy!

[pikmin]

woo! I had a feeling yesterday that something Cy would be dropping soon. Thank you!

[anasevi]

I've long heard of Elam and Susa, but this documentary truly pieced how it came together in a way I can see the entity forming.. At least a loose groundwork of what the the Medes and Achaemenids would spring off of. Thank you!

[ancientsitesgirl]

Another excellent Bronze Age episode to watch ❤️ Greetings Cy✌️

[WanaxTV]

I was waiting for this one! Congrats Cy, great video!

[spacebunny]

I love the Elamites. Great video so far it’s going to take a while to watch and I’m all for it.