The Ashmolean

Iraq: Navel of the World

Country Life [8]

In this illustration from a late 12th-century manuscript from northern Iraq we can see a variety of agricultural activities: harvesting plants with a sickle, double digging, sieving and winnowing grain, and oxen pulling a harrow. In the top left hand corner a man is bringing refreshments to the workers.
[Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris]

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