The most important ancient artefacts in the world and what they tell us - Irving Finkel Returns

Dr Irving Finkel is curator of Mesopotamian artefacts in the British Museum, One of the very few people who can read Cuneiform as though it were the morning paper. He is regarded by many as one of the national treasures of the British Museum and the only one with a cult following. TIMESTAMP 00:00 Irving Finkel 01:45 What are the most important artefacts in the British Museum? 01:58 The Lewis Chess Pieces 03:58 The Rosetta Stone 06:05 The Portland Vase 07:00 The Royal Game of Ur 17:56 How accurate is the Bible? 22:00 The Flood of the Bible and the Flood of Mesopotamia 30:10 Have you ever played Santa Claus? 32:10 What the very oldest inscription says 42:07 Is writing in China or India older than Cuneiform? 44:10 Are Egyptian Hieroglyphics older? 48:00 Sumerian number systems 52:10 The labyrinth motive 56:55 The meaning of burial objects 01:02:02 The waiting room for souls in the nether-world 01:05:20 Should the British Museum return the Elgin Marbles? 01:07:29 How would you start learning Cuneiform? 01:13:14 Has AI been used to help translate Cuneiform? 01:19:52 What wisdom have you personally learned from the Babylonians? 01:22:00 The diary project