Les Métiers Féminins Dans Les Palais et Grands Domaines De Syrie et Haute-Mésopotamie au Début Du IIE Millénaire av. J.-C.

Abstract

The archives discovered in the palaces of Syria and upper Mesopotamia, dating to the Middle Bronze Age, show that many women worked in these buildings. This article brings together data from the sites of Mari (Tell Hariri), Qaṭṭarā (Tell Rimah), Ašnakkum (Chagar Bazar), Tuttul (Tell Bi’a), and Alalah (Tell Açana) to compile an inventory of the female occupations that were carried out there. The fields represented are housekeeping, kitchen work (including food accounting), gatekeeping, and childcare. Except for nannies, most of these occupations have a male counterpart. Among the different types of sources, the ration lists provide a hierarchy of occupations and within occupations.