ASSYRIA, 1995

10th Anniversary Symposium of the Neo-Assyrian Text Corpus Project
Helsinki, September 7-11, 1995
General Information
The Neo-Assyrian Text Corpus Project will turn an incredible 10 years at the end of 1995. We find this an occasion to celebrate and are organizing an anniversary symposium entitled “Assyria, 1995,” to be held in Helsinki, September 7-11, 1995.

The title of the symposium only hints at its scope. We plan to bring together leading experts in Assyrian studies to consider the past, present and future of our discipline in a spirit of cooperation. To this end, the program of the symposium is planned to be a combination of public lectures, scholarly papers, workshops, informal meetings and social events within a carefully coordinated overall plan. The public lectures are meant to illustrate the impact of the past decade’s dramatic progress in Neo-Assyrian studies on our understanding of Assyrian history and culture. The scholarly papers will present the latest on the research front, while the workshops will serve as a forum for planning and coordination. We are arranging a public exhibition on the State Archives of Assyria and Assyrian art in the Finnish Science Center, Heureka from September 8, 1995 to December 31, 1995.

Our call for papers received an overwhelming response. While the program is now full and no further papers can be accepted, additional participants are of course welcome. Accommodation at the expense of the symposium can unfortunately be provided for only those who have already returned their registration forms or informed us of their intention to attend, but we will be glad to send letters of invitation and to help finding inexpensive lodging for any interested colleague. All inquiries regarding the symposium should be directed to

whiting@cc.helsinki.fi
or
ramattila@cc.helsinki.fi
Papers and Lectures
In order to guarantee a functioning timetable and to avoid parallel sessions, we have assigned a maximum 30-minute time limit for the scholarly papers, with a norm of 20 minutes set aside for the paper itself and ten minutes for discussion. Speakers are free to make use of these time brackets according to their needs with the understanding that longer papers will inevitably result in shorter discussions. We realize, of course, that in specific cases 30 minutes may not be enough and are not opposed to longer papers in principle. However, exceeding the 30-minite maximum time limit is possible only by prior arrangement. The length of the public lectures will be 45 minutes, unless otherwise agreed. Speakers wishing to modify the title of their paper/lecture should inform us as soon as possible.

All the scholarly papers will be collected into a symposium volume to be published in the SAA Studies series, while the public lectures will be collected into a separate monograph on the Assyrian Empire. Details regarding the submission of abstracts and the preparation of manuscripts will follow later.

Workshops
There are now 4 workshop sessions scheduled as part of the symposium program. Each workshop has a concrete practical goal which can be reached only provided that the sessions are carefully prepared in advance. The preparatory work will be coordinated by the respective chairmen, who will prepare preliminary agenda and other relevant material based on input received from those wishing to participate. This will be worked into a draft document, which will form the basis of the workshop session and will be distributed to the participants before the beginning of the symposium. The workshops and their chairmen are:
Workshop 1 — Historical Geography of Assyria
S. PARPOLA • parpola@cc.helsinki.fi
Workshop 2 — Chronology of PC Eponyms
R. WHITING • whiting@cc.helsinki.fi
Workshop 3 — Creation and Management of Electronic Cuneiform Data Bases
D. OWEN • dio1@cornell.edu
Workshop 4 — Desiderata in the Study of Assyrian Economy and Society
K. VEENHOF • assyrl@rullet.LeidenUniv.nl
Those interested in participating in the workshops should contact the chairman directly.
Accommodations
The Project has been able to arrange accommodations for all invited participants. All those for whom accommodations have been arranged have already been informed. Unless you have been told otherwise, all participants will be housed in the Uni Hostel Cubile located in the suburban campus of Viikki, c. 7 km from the center of Helsinki. Transportation to the center by metro and bus takes 20-25 min. This accommodation is free for all invited participants but accompanying persons will have to pay a fee of FIM 500 (c. $100). The rooms will be available for a full week from Wednesday, September 6, 1995 until 12:00 noon on September 13, even though the conference officially ends on Monday, September 11. We believe this arrangement, with most participants lodged in the same premises, will greatly facilitate informal contacts outside the official program and thus contribute to the success of the meeting. The premises of the Cubile are complete apartments including bedrooms, kitchenettes, and bathrooms.
Sunday excursion
The excursion to Porvoo arranged by the symposium on Sunday will include a two-hour cruise through the archipelago on a romantic old-time ship, sightseeing in the old city, lunch in an 18th-century restaurant, and return to Helsinki by bus. The cost of the day’s outing (including lunch) is currently calculated to be about FIM 200 (c. $40) per person.
Shopping, sightseeing, meals, transportation etc.
The price level in Helsinki is moderate in comparison with other western European capitals. In addition to shopping and sightseeing in the city proper, we suggest that you take advantage of your stay and visit also the scenic southern coast of Finland (including the old capital Turku) and/or the neighboring countries. Tallinn, the capital of nearby Estonia, is just 60 km south of Helsinki, and day excursions to the other side of the Gulf of Finland by hydrofoil are available at very moderate cost. Lunch at the University mensa currently costs between 20 and 30 marks. The cost of transportation between Viikki and the University for the conference week would be about FIM 100 according to today’s rates. Further information giving details of local conditions, transportation, and check-in procedures will be available in late spring of 1995.

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