Introduction: New Lines of Enquiry for Composite Artefacts?

The complex relationship between environment, materials, society and materiality with reference to the composite artefacts in the ancient Near East is the topic of this book. On the one hand are the objective and natural attributes of materials, possibly exalted from their transformation: a form of fascination immanent in all kinds of technical activity which promotes the transition from the ordinary into an 'extra-ordinary' realm, imbuing the object with new meaning.