He was Professor of Oriental History at the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago.[2] Among his doctoral students was Neilson C. Debevoise, later an influential historian of the Parthian Empire.
It is no easy task to write a history, especially one so involved as that of Assyria. Olmstead, if he has not done the task perfectly, has at any rate done it well. It has meant a tremendous amount of investigation and the reading of sources, many of them as yet untranslated. The author is one peculiarly fitted to his task both by training and by a considerable residence in the countries whereof he writes.
He has made large use of the actual words of the Assyrian writers themselves, thereby bringing to the reader something of the spirit of Assyria. This has meant the incorporation of a goodly portion of the Assyrian literature either in translation or paraphrase. The volume is profusely illustrated by almost 200 photographs, drawings, and maps, and very complete indexes add to its usefulness. Chronological charts would have made a welcome addition.
ALBERT EINSTEIN (1879 – 1955)
