Dear Mar Shiprim readers,
Please join us in congratulating Adeline Reynaud, laureate of this year’s IAA Dissertation Prize, Jonathan Beltz,, laureate for this year’s Best Article of an Early Career Scholar Prize and Andrew Pottorf, runner up for the Best Article of an Early Career Scholar Prize.
Applications are now open for next year’s prizes. For more information, see https://iaassyriology.com/awards.
With warm wishes for the upcoming academic year,
Pavla Rosenstein
Mar Shiprim Editor
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Congratulations to this year’s IAA prize winners!
Best Dissertation
Adeline Reynaud. Photograph by Jimmy Parot.
This year’s Dissertation Prize was awarded to Adeline Reynaud for her dissertation “Les diagrammes mathématiques paléo-babyloniens : catalogue, propriétés matérielles, rôles dans les raisonnements,” completed at Université Paris Cité and supervised by Christine Proust and Brigitte Lion.
Reynaud’s dissertation presents a systematic study of mathematical diagrams from ancient Mesopotamia, with a focus on the Old Babylonian period. Reynaud shares that, “On several dozen mathematical cuneiform tablets, we find diagrams drawn alongside with, or instead of, discursive texts. However, contrary to those appearing in ancient sources from other parts of the world, the mathematical diagrams from the Ancient Near East had never been extensively analyzed. The aim of my Ph.D. project was, therefore, to offer the first substantial study on this topic. In my dissertation, I discuss the definition of the notion of the mathematical diagram in the context of the cuneiform corpus, provide a catalogue of these objects, investigate the techniques used to produce them, and launch an analysis of the roles they played in mathematical reasoning.”
Taking an inter-disciplinary approach, Reynaud combined her knowledge of approaches from the fields of History of Science and Assyriology. She adds that, “Throughout my Ph.D., I strove to combine methods inspired by those traditionally used in history of mathematics and methods inspired by those traditionally used in Assyriology, and I sought to show how their association could yield results that can be of interest to both disciplines. It is therefore a great pleasure, as well as a great honor, to have my work, institutionally belonging to the field of history of science, recognized within the field of Assyriology.” Reynaud notes that the dissertation is freely available online and can be downloaded at: https://theses.hal.science/tel-04960676.
Jan Tavernier, Professor, Université Catholique de Louvain and elected IAA board member, comments that, “This year’s laureate produced an excellent and highly original systematic study of mathematical diagrams and the mathematical practices associated with them. The author offers many new insights: about the conventions of broader cuneiform mathematical culture (with shared features such as layout, terminology, conventions) that she has discovered, about how texts interact with the diagrams, and also about more conceptual issues, such as the relationship between mathematical practice and theory, for example through her study of the link between geometric figures and abstract reasoning. In sum, the well-structured dissertation, which also discusses the materiality of the Old Babylonian mathematical sources, has major scientific significance for the field of Assyriology (more specifically Babylonian mathematics) and for that of History of Science.”
Best Article of an Early Career Scholar
Jonathan Beltz. Photograph by Pavla Rosenstein.
This year’s laureate for the Best Article of an Early Career Scholar Prize is Jon Beltz, currently a Teach@Tübingen Fellow. His article “Everyday Magic? Four Sumerian zi…pa₃ Incantations on Amulets,” was published in the Journal of Cuneiform Studies 77: 97-121.
“This article began as a side project during my PhD, while I was a student worker at the Yale Babylonian Collection,” says Beltz. “One day, on a whim, I tried to see if I could read an odd amulet text I had come across. From there, the project grew as I searched for other examples of similar texts and began to ask questions about the amulets and the nature of the texts that were inscribed on them. In the end, I hope that my work can function as a starting point for Assyriologists to explore further the early Sumerian incantation corpus, the relationship between amulet texts and compendium texts, and structural analyses of incantations. I’m glad that the article is finally out, and I’m grateful and humbled to receive the IAA prize.”
Jana Mynářová, Professor of History and Cultures of Asia and Africa at Charles University and chair of the selection committee for the IAA Prize for the Best Article of an Early Career Scholar, comments that, “Beltz makes a significant contribution to the study of Mesopotamian magic through his edition and analysis of four inscribed amulets. Combining meticulous philological work with structural comparison, the article challenges the conventional division between scribal literary compositions and practical magical usage, demonstrating that these incantations were fully integrated into healing and protective rituals. Beltz convincingly reveals both the continuity of these texts with established incantation traditions and evidence of creative adaptation, suggesting a more dynamic interplay between oral performance and written forms. Methodologically rigorous, the study draws on paleographic, linguistic, and ritual contexts and introduces an innovative typology that advances our understanding of early magical praxis. Grounded in strong engagement with existing scholarship while offering fresh interpretations, the article is clearly presented and well-supported with transliterations, translations, and visual documentation, making it a valuable resource for future research in Assyriology and the history of magic.”
Best Article of an Early Career Scholar runner-up
Andrew Pottorf. Photograph by Erin McBrine.
Andrew Pottorf, currently a Teaching Associate in Assyriology at Cambridge University, is the runner-up for the Best Article of an Early Career Scholar prize. Based on his dissertation, “Social Stratification in Southern Mesopotamia during the Third Dynasty of Ur (ca. 2100–2000 BCE),” completed at Harvard University, Pottorf’s article addresses social stratification during the Ur III period.
“The article began as a presentation for Vitali Bartash’s workshop titled “Beyond Slavery and Freedom in the Ancient Near East” during the 68th Rencontre Assyriologique Internationale, hosted by Leiden University,” says Pottorf.
“It focuses on UN-il2 as a distinct social status or order in comparison to citizens and enslaved people While UN-il2 were legally free like citizens and could maintain families similar in composition to citizens, their employment was fully controlled and often poorly compensated by various administrative households, which restricted their livelihoods in comparable ways to enslaved people. I am honored to receive this prize, and I would like to thank my former advisor Piotr Steinkeller, and Vitali Bartash, among others who helped me in this work. I also hope that UN-il2 and the socioeconomic history of the Ur III period overall can be enlightening for understanding ancient societies more broadly.”
Jana Mynářová adds that, “Andrew Pottorf’s article offers a reassessment of the social status of the un-il₂ (menials) during the Ur III period, arguing that they constituted a distinct, serf-like stratum characterized by limited mobility and hereditary obligations. Through close analysis of administrative texts, Pottorf suggests that un-il₂ were systematically attached to institutional households, often across generations, and were subject to coercive labor regimes. The article challenges earlier interpretations that treated them merely as low-status workers or generalized dependents, instead proposing that they formed a structurally embedded and socially differentiated group. By integrating quantitative data with qualitative interpretation, the study aims to reconstruct labor relations, institutional authority, and social stratification in the Ur III state. The article represents a serious and well-documented effort to engage with a significant and complex topic. It contributes to ongoing scholarly debates on bonded labor in ancient economies, and stands out for careful engagement with prior scholarship, and close attention to the textual evidence.”
Applications for next year’s prizes are now open.
For more details about the IAA dissertation prize (awarded at €1,500), visit:
For more details about the first article prize (awarded at €1,000, €250 for the runner up), visit:
https://iaassyriology.com/iaa-prize
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Article by Pavla Rosenstein