FIRST HISTORICAL CIVILIZATIONS: MESOPOTAMIA · Egyptian Civilization - Nile River Indian...
Transcript of FIRST HISTORICAL CIVILIZATIONS: MESOPOTAMIA · Egyptian Civilization - Nile River Indian...
FIRST HISTORICAL CIVILIZATIONS: MESOPOTAMIA
Elena García Marín
Four early River Valley Civilizations Mesopotamian Civilization - Tigris & Euphrates Rivers
Egyptian Civilization - Nile River Indian Civilization - Indus River
Ancient China - Huang He (Yellow) River
Sumerian Civilization:Tigris & Euphrates Rivers
City-States in Mesopotamia
Geography of Mesopotamia Mostly dry desert climate in SW Asia (Middle East) Except in region between Tigris and Euphrates rivers A flat plain known as Mesopotamia lies between the two rivers It is called the Fertile Crescent because have a rich soil
SW Asia
(the Middle East)
Fertile
Crescent
City-States in Mesopotamia
Although all the cities shared the same culture
Each city had its own government, rulers, warriors, it’s own patron god, and functioned like an independent country
Mesopotamian cities were Ur, Uruk, Kish, Lagesh
At center of each city was the temple: a ziggurat (a massive, tiered, pyramid-shaped structure).
The Ziggurat at Ur was first excavated by British archaeologist
Woolley in 1923.
Mesopotamian religion
Mesopotamian warrior-god, gold figurine. (2.400-2.500 B.C.)
They believed in many gods - polytheism
Marduk, the Dragon god
Craftsmen and Peasants
Slaves
Scribes
Priests
King and nobility Mesopotamian Society
First Empire in Mesopotamia
3000 – 2000 B.C. the City-States began to war with each other.
Sargon of Akkad (2350 B.C.) He took control of the region, creating world’s first empire -
when several peoples, nations, or previously independent states are placed under the control of one ruler.
The Akkadian Empire lasted about 200 years, 2350–2150 B.C.
Babylonian Empire
They overtook Sumerians around 2000 B.C.
And they built capital, Babylon, on Euphrates river
The most famous king of Babylonian Empire was Hammurabi [1792-1750 B.C.]
Famous Code of Law “the punishment
fits the crime” and “eye for an eye”
He took all the laws of the region’s city-states and unified them into one code. This helped unify the region.
One of the first writing systems - Cuneiform
Mesopotamian culture
The Epic of Gilgamesh is, perhaps, the oldest written story on Earth. It is about the adventures of the cruel King Gilgamesh of Uruk.
It contains a “flood story” that predates the Hebrew Old Testament story of Noah by at least 2000 years. It was written on 12 clay tablets in cuneiform script.
Mesopotamian culture