The Uruk period existed from the protohistoric Chalcolithic to Early Bronze Age period in the history of Mesopotamia, after the Ubaid period and before the Jemdet Nasr period. Named after the Sumerian city of Uruk, this period saw the emergence of urban life in Mesopotamia and the Sumerian civilization. The late Uruk period saw the gradual emergence of the cuneiform script and corresponds to the Early Bronze Age; it has also been described as the "Protoliterate period".
Mesopotamian king as Master of Animals on the Gebel el-Arak Knife, dated circa 3300-3200 BC, Abydos, Egypt. This work of art suggests early Egypt-Mesopotamia relations, showing the influence of Mesopotamia on Egypt at an early date, and the state of Mesopotamian royal iconography during the Uruk period. Louvre Museum.
Similar portrait of a probable Uruk King-Priest with a brimmed round hat and large beard, excavated in Uruk and dated to 3300 BC. Louvre Museum.
The king-priest and his acolyte feeding the sacred herd. Uruk period, ca. 3200 BCE.
Cylinder-seal of the Uruk period and its impression, c.3100 BCE. Louvre Museum
The Ubaid period is a prehistoric period of Mesopotamia. The name derives from Tell al-'Ubaid where the earliest large excavation of Ubaid period material was conducted initially in 1919 by Henry Hall and later by Leonard Woolley.
Ubaid 0-1; pottery; Godin Tepe; Oriental Institute Museum
Ubaid 0-1; footed bowl; Godin Tepe; Oriental Institute Museum
Ubaid 2; pottery; Oriental Institute Museum
Northern Ubaid; pottery; Tepe Gawra; Oriental Institute Museum
