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The Institute is housed in an unusual Art-Deco/ Gothic building at the corner of 58th and University. The Museum has artifacts from digs in Egypt, Israel, Syria, Turkey, Iraq, and Iran. Notable possessions are the famous Megiddo Ivories, various treasures from Persepolis, the old Persian capital, a huge 40 ton human-headed winged bull from Khorsabad, the capital of Sargon II, and finally a monumental statue of King TutankhamunTutankhamun (alternate transliteration Tutankhamen , named Tutankhaten early in his life, was Pharaoh of the Eighteenth dynasty of Egypt ( 1334 BC/ 1333 BC 1323 BC), during the period known as the New Kingdom. His original name Tutankhaten means "Living I.

Even given unlimited resources and comparable archeological discoveries, the Institute's treasures could not be assembled today, since Middle Eastern governments no longer allow foreign archeologists to take home half of what they find — which was the typical arrangement the 19thAlternative meaning: Nineteenth Century (periodical ( 18th century — 19th century — 20th century — more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 19th century was that century which lasted from 1801- 1900. Events The Little Ice Age ended and early 20th19th century 20th century 21st century more centuries) Decades: 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s As a means of recording the passage of time, the 20th century was that century which lasted from 1901- 2000 in the sense of the Gre centuries, when most of the holdings were excavated.

Not only a museum, the Oriental Institute is, as its name suggests, a center of research on the ancient Near East. In addition to carrying out many digs in the Fertile CrescentThe Fertile Crescent is a region in the Middle East incorporating present-day Israel, West Bank, and Lebanon and parts of Jordan, Syria, Iraq and south-eastern Turkey. The term "Fertile Crescent" was coined by University of Chicago archeologist James Henr, OI scholars have made many contributions to our understanding of the cradle of civilization. In fact, the term "Fertile Crescent" was coined by OI head James Henry BreastedJames Henry Breasted ( August 27 1865 December 2, 1935) was born in Rockford, Illinois and was an archaeologist and historian. He was educated at the Chicago Theological Seminary, Yale University (MA 1891) and the University of Berlin (PhD 1894). He was t.

Among other projects, OI scholars are currently working on a 21 volume dictionary of AssyrianThe term Assyrian language can mean one of: Neo-Aramaic language: a language spoken in Israel, Syria, and Mesopotamia from perhaps 700 BC until now. Akkadian language: a language of the Semitic family spoken in ancient Mesopotamia., a dictionary of Hittite, and a dictionary of Demotic .