An electronic publishing project designed to enhance the study of the history and culture of the ancient Near East has been awarded a $27,000 planning grant by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.
Led by Paul M. Gherman, University Librarian at the Heard Library of Vanderbilt University, the project will likely be named ETANA (Electronic Tools and Ancient Near Eastern Archives) and includes the participation of the American Oriental Society, the American Schools of Oriental Research, Case Western Reserve University, the Cobb Institute of Archeology, the Oriental Institute (University of Chicago), the Society of Biblical Literature, Vanderbilt University Press and the Heard Library at Vanderbilt. Other interested organizations may be invited to participate as the planning process proceeds.
Collectively these organizations represent over 7,000 scholars world wide who are interested in the academic study of the ancient Near East. Details of the project are to be developed in the planning process, but the overall sense and goal of the project is to provide scholars with better access to a wide range of both retrospective and current resources on the ancient Near East and to the technology to develop such resources. Each of the participants brings certain strengths and interests to the project which promises to be a focal point for all scholars working in ancient Near Eastern studies.
