I was reading through a post on r/geopolitics that started with the area known as the fertile crescent. The article mentioned that the time between the Sumerians and the Roman empire was greater than the length of time between the ancient Romans and modern times. Did scholars in Roman or other ancient societies study older civilizations the way we do? Was there a field of study devoted to it in those times? Did they show as much interest in understanding past societies as we do? If they did, how did their methods differ from our own?

The link from geopolitics for whoever may be interested. (posted by adventurelover) http://www.vox.com/a/maps-explain-the-middle-east