Senior Wednesday

Join us every first Wednesday at 1:30 PM for Senior Wednesday at the Museum of World Treasures! 

Event Details

• Date: Wednesday, February 5, 2025
• Time: 1:30 PM
• Location: Museum of World Treasures [Get Directions]

Cost

• Museum Members: Free
• Non-Members: $4 per person plus tax

Become a Museum Member

Attending Information

• Open to all ages
• No need to register; simply walk in!
• Light refreshments provided.

Talk Summary

Have you ever heard of a place called Lagash or two of its most important rulers, Gudea and Ur-Namma? Chances are high that you haven’t. Despite their key roles in the history of ancient Mesopotamia, one of the political and economic superpowers of the region in the late third millennium B.C., the deeds of these important and fascinating kings have largely been forgotten. In part, this is because of the passage of time; in part, because we had to wait until cuneiform writing was re-discovered. Though often visually unprepossessing, cuneiform documents such as the clay cones, tablets and bricks in the Museum’s collection, are very numerous in this period and allow us to get to know Gudea, an orphan who rose to be Lagash’s most revered king, a major builder and patron of the arts, and Ur-Namma, famous for military exploits and infrastructure projects, and author of one of the earliest law codes. His wife’s lament for his untimely death remains moving today. So let’s get ready to visit South Iraq in the Late Bronze Age and meet Gudea and Ur-Namma together on February 5!

Speaker Bio

Dr. Tonia Sharlach is a professor of history at Oklahoma State University. She earned her PhD in Assyriology from Harvard University following her bachelor’s in Assyriology from the University of Cambridge. Her work focuses on the history of Early Mesopotamia in the late third millennium B.C., particularly on cuneiform tablets from a period called the Third Dynasty of Ur (2112-2004 B.C.). She has written books on taxation and women in religion, as well as a number of articles on various topics, such as economic history, diplomacy and religion. Her last book, published in 2017, is called An Ox of One's Own: Royal Wives and Religion at the Court of the Third Dynasty of Ur. She teaches a variety of history courses at Oklahoma State, including Ancient Greece, the Roman Republic, and Survey of Eastern Civilization.

Senior Wednesdays are informational and entertaining sessions, designed for active seniors and offered by a collaboration of Wichita institutions. To learn more, visit:

Senior Wednesdays Website