Zainab Bahrani
Encyclopedia
Zainab Bahrani (born 1962) is an Iraqi
professor of Ancient Near Eastern Art and Archaeology
at Columbia University
.
, Iraq
, she was educated in Europe and the United States. She received her Master of Arts and doctoral degrees (Ph.D. 1989) in art history and archeology from New York University
's Institute of Fine Arts.
Prior to her appointment at Columbia University, Bahrani taught at the University of Vienna
in Austria
, State University of New York at Stony Brook
, and was a curator in the Metropolitan Museum of Art
's Near Eastern Antiquities Department from 1989 to 1992.
On May 25, 2004, Bahrani was appointed to work with the Coalition Provisional Authority
as Senior Consultant for Culture. She has stated that her objective will be to continue the reconstruction of the Iraq National Museum and the Iraq National Library and to identify new opportunities for training and study abroad.
Iraqi people
The Iraqi people or Mesopotamian people are natives or inhabitants of the country of Iraq, known since antiquity as Mesopotamia , with a large diaspora throughout the Arab World, Europe, the Americas, and...
professor of Ancient Near Eastern Art and Archaeology
Archaeology
Archaeology, or archeology , is the study of human society, primarily through the recovery and analysis of the material culture and environmental data that they have left behind, which includes artifacts, architecture, biofacts and cultural landscapes...
at Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
.
Career
A native of BaghdadBaghdad
Baghdad is the capital of Iraq, as well as the coterminous Baghdad Governorate. The population of Baghdad in 2011 is approximately 7,216,040...
, Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
, she was educated in Europe and the United States. She received her Master of Arts and doctoral degrees (Ph.D. 1989) in art history and archeology from New York University
New York University
New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...
's Institute of Fine Arts.
Prior to her appointment at Columbia University, Bahrani taught at the University of Vienna
University of Vienna
The University of Vienna is a public university located in Vienna, Austria. It was founded by Duke Rudolph IV in 1365 and is the oldest university in the German-speaking world...
in Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, State University of New York at Stony Brook
State University of New York at Stony Brook
The State University of New York at Stony Brook, also known as Stony Brook University, is a public research university located in Stony Brook, New York, on the North Shore of Long Island, about east of Manhattan....
, and was a curator in the Metropolitan Museum of Art
Metropolitan Museum of Art
The Metropolitan Museum of Art is a renowned art museum in New York City. Its permanent collection contains more than two million works, divided into nineteen curatorial departments. The main building, located on the eastern edge of Central Park along Manhattan's Museum Mile, is one of the...
's Near Eastern Antiquities Department from 1989 to 1992.
On May 25, 2004, Bahrani was appointed to work with the Coalition Provisional Authority
Coalition Provisional Authority
The Coalition Provisional Authority was established as a transitional government following the invasion of Iraq by the United States and its allies, members of the Multi-National Force – Iraq which was formed to oust the government of Saddam Hussein in 2003...
as Senior Consultant for Culture. She has stated that her objective will be to continue the reconstruction of the Iraq National Museum and the Iraq National Library and to identify new opportunities for training and study abroad.
Books
Dr. Bahrani has written three books:- Rituals of War: The Body and Violence in Mesopotamia, New York (2008), ISBN 978-1-890951-84-9
- The Graven Image: Representation in Babylonia and Assyria, University of Pennsylvania Press (2003), ISBN 0-8122-3648-3
- Women of Babylon: Gender and Representation in Mesopotamia, Routledge (2001), ISBN 0-415-21830-6