By the mid-19th century, a fascination with ancient civilizations gripped Victorian society, spurred on by mysterious artifacts emerging from desert sands and the ruins of once-great empires. Among these treasures was cuneiform, the wedge-shaped script of ancient Mesopotamia that had preserved the stories, science, and secrets of civilizations such as Sumer, Assyria, and Babylonia for millennia—only to have its meaning lost to history. For centuries, these enigmatic inscriptions defied understanding, their secrets locked in clay tablets scattered across the Middle East.
In the 1840s, three bold and unlikely figures set out to change that. A swashbuckling archaeologist, a polished British officer turned diplomat, and a reclusive Irish rector embarked on a high-stakes race to decipher the world’s oldest written language. Their quest would take them from the grand ruins of Persepolis to the unpredictable frontiers of the Ottoman Empire, blending scholarship with adventure as they competed for glory and a place in history.
Journalist Joshua Hammer delves into the captivating story of how these Victorian adventurers unlocked the secrets of cuneiform, illuminating the forgotten voices of the ancient world and offering a glimpse into humanity’s earliest recorded past.
Hammer’s book The Mesopotamian Riddle: An Archaeologist, a Soldier, a Clergyman, and the Race to Decipher the World's Oldest Writing (Simon & Schuster) is available for purchase.
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