Aims & Scope
The project of this Journal was conceived some years ago by some of the members of the present-day Scientific Committee. It was aimed at filling what we perceived as a relative void in periodical publications, not only in view of the advance of historical studies on the Ancient Near East in general, but also as regards the particular significance that this branch of research has taken on in Italy.
The title KASKAL (the Sumerian logogram for Akkadian harranu, hulu, ‘road, path’) is a reminder of the relevance that is nowadays attributed to a spatial and dynamic outlook on Antiquity and to the problems of cultural interrelationships regarding the Ancient Near East.
The ‘roads’ to which ideal reference is made are those that pass through ‘dense’ spaces: these may be either fully inhabited spaces, or abandoned spaces (and thus replete with history), or even liminary spaces connecting different environments and cultures. This Journal is thus planned to cover a geographical area, which may even reach beyond the traditional borders of the Near East to include bordering regions, if this proves useful to pinpoint specific connections, influences, and relationships.
Moreover, while we are convinced of the indispensable autonomy of the individual branches of research, we aim at maintaining solid ties between historical and archaeological studies, exactly because we believe that the ongoing dialogue between historians and archaeologists is bringing about meaningful revisions of the respective outlooks on Antiquity.
We also aim at making this Journal an international Journal specifically open to younger researchers on the Ancient Near East, for whom we require and expect broader opportunities in fieldwork and research. They are the co-travelers that henceforth KASKAL hopes to find most often on its path.
Periodicity biannual |
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