The External Identification System of the Past

Ritik Malhotra

Near Eastern Studies R1B Lecture 4

Response Paper: Rituals of War (Ch3, Ch6)

The External Identification System of the Past

In chapter three of Zainab Bahrani’s Rituals of War, Bahrani presents an interesting depiction of what he calls the “mantic body” (75) in which he embodies (no pun intended) the belief and depiction of the human body as an entity in ancient times. Bahrani’s description of the body is highly detailed; however, an interesting concept arises when he discusses the “identity” that “certain elements of the body” contained (78) as it resembles a primitive system of identification through external, observable features.

Bahrani tells the reader about how “inorganic objects […] were all associated with the body and identity and could stand in for the person in a very real sense” (78). This concept brings closer attention to the value of the garments and external jewelry, ornaments, etc. that people wore because, according to Bahrani’s description, these elements were elevated to be symbolic of the people that wore them. This implies that these items were of such significance to the bearer that they were always worn and were worthy of being shown in public.

Interestingly, items on the body were also used in legal proceedings as forms of identification for the bearer (78). This idea of identification, however highly primitive in nature, was effective in associating a person to a face. While this seems like a useful tactic, it seems that it would’ve been easy to fool as items and garments are easily transferrable from one entity to another, which could have definitely been a mode of confusion for many people back in ancient times. Albeit this downfall of this system, it was still a unique way of identifying people and was a good first step at doing so.