Judith Starkston has spent too much time exploring the remains of the ancient worlds of the Greeks and Hittites. Their myths and clashes inspire her fiction and open gates to magical realms. She has degrees in Classics from the University of California, Santa Cruz and Cornell. She loves myths and telling stories, and her novels imbue fantasy with the richness of ancient worlds. The first book in her Trojan Threads Series, Hand of Fire was a semi-finalist for the M.M. Bennett’s Award for Historical Fiction. Priestess of Ishana, the first in her historical fantasy Tesha series, won the San Diego State University Conference Choice Award. Judith is represented by Richard Curtis.
I wish you good health, peace, and happiness this winter season in the company of those you love. With the birth of a grandbaby, my husband and I have so much to celebrate and lots to look forward to in the new year. I hope you’re also finding joys, small or large. Here’s a bit of entertaining history appropriate for holiday parties, evidence of some very early celebrations with beer.
I love when archaeologists bring to light a new glimpse of the “real” world that inspires my fiction. In my novels, Hattu faces off against a Pharaoh inspired by Ramses II. Now the tomb of Ramses’ treasurer is the latest high profile discovery at the necropolis of Saqqara.
How did a Bronze Age person pay for something and later, who invented coinage? It’s all quite interesting. Money matters. In an age when we use tangible coins less often, it’s intriguing to find out how it all began.
Of the archaeological treasures from Roman Britain, mosaics are among the rarest and most admired. This time, a chance find by a 13 year old of a mosaic is especially compelling for the Iliad scenes it depicts. The Trojan War through the lens of Roman Britain—fascinating.
For several generations, we have been awed by the beautifully preserved elegance of Pompeii. Exquisite frescoes and mosaics, lovely gardens, neighborhood bars, and ghostly plaster casts of those who died. But rarely do we get glimpses into the darker side of Roman life, the life of slaves. The recent excavations have uncovered Pompeiian slave quarters.
From a Neolithic city, the famous archaeological site of Catalhöyük in Turkey comes a re-examination of the earliest woven fabric fibers. What were they made from? Definitely not what you’d think.
An aspect of Hittite culture that has always drawn my interest is the role of influential women within it. That’s true despite its patriarchal structures. Now, Hittite seal impressions found at Carchemish, a venerable site in SE Turkey, identify another prominent Hittite woman, named Matiya. What do we learn about her? I also give a quick “how to” for understanding Hittite seal impressions. Modern business logos had nothing on the Hittites.
Perhaps the most effective way to “go back in time” is to read letters written in the past. Fortunately, personal letters survive written by Egyptians and Hittites during the Bronze Age. I particularly enjoy the insights I gain about the personalities of the writers. I’m delving into my favorite Hittite queen’s letters to Pharaoh and sharing insights into Egyptian life via an excellent article in ANET.
As I begin drafting the 4th book in the Tesha series, I’m deep into renewing my knowledge of the capital city of Hattusa. It turns out I’m out of date, and the new understanding of this massive archaeological site is a gift to a fiction writer. I’m reporting back from my deep-in-the-weeds research.
I’ve had inklings about the forms and role of slavery in the ancient Near East, but I was grateful for an excellent piece in Ancient Near East Today that clarified that unexpected picture. For most of us, not what we think.
