The First Writing

Ancient writing gives us our first glimpse of history, people and institutions, and yet its origins remain mysterious. This book offers the most up-to-date treatment and examination of the origins of ancient writing. It studies often neglected writing systems, such as those of Mesoamerica. The leading scholars in the field collectively discuss new topics and highlight new subtlties about how these scripts came into existence and development during the first centuries of use. Egypt, Mesopotamia, Elamite, Mesoamerica and the Maya, Shang, and Runic are all represented.

• Most up-to-date, comprehensive look at why writing comes into existence, from case studies in many different parts of the world, with top experts in those areas