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1,il .!x WasAncient Sumer a Civiltzation? 5.1Introduction In thelastchapter,you readaboutthe rise of Sumeriancity-states.In this chapter, you'll takea closerlook at Sumerianculture. Like an archeologist, you'llconsider evidenceto try to answera questionaboutthe distantpast. Thequestion is this:WasSumera civilization? until about150yearsago,archeologists had no ideathat the Sumerian people hadlived at all. Then,in the mid 1800s,archeologists beganfinding artifacts in the areawe call Mesopotamia.They dug up tablets,pottery,and theruinsof cities.They were surprisedto find writing in a languagethey had never seenbefore. By studyingartifacts,archeologists havelearneda lot about Sumer. Oneartifact is called the Standard of Ur. It was found where theancientcity of Ur once stood. Youcan seethe standardon theopposite page.It is madeof woodanddecoratedwith pieces of shellandlapis lazuli, a semiprecious bluestone.It shows Sumerians in times of peaceand war.Artifactslike this one can tell usa greatdealaboutdaily life in ancient Sumer. Wenowknow that the Sumerians had a complexsociety. Some of thethingsthey invented, liketheplow and writing, are stillinusetoday.But can we callSumer a civilization?Let's consider theevidence. WasAncientSumera Civilization? 4l 5.2 Gharacteristics of Civilization social structure theway a civilization is organized technology the useof tools andotherinventions for practicalpurposes 42 Chapter5 As you learnedin the last chapter,Sumerwas a challenging place to live. It had hot summers,little rain, and rivers that flooded the plains.Yet the sumeriansovercamethesechallenges.They built complex irrigation systemsand large cities. By 3000 B.c.E., most Sumerianslived in powerful city-stateslike Ur, Lagash, and Uruk. But can we say that the Sumerianshad createda civilization? To answerthis question,we needto think about what civilization means.what characteristicsmake a culture a civilization? Historiansname severalsuchcharacteristics,including these: . a stable food supply, so that the people of a society have the i food they needro survive I . a social structure with different social levels and jobs I . a systemof government,so that life in the society is orderly I ' a religioussystem,which involves a set of beliefs and forms I . :t;:;;:':rvetoped cutturethat includesarrs such as painting, I 5.3Stable Food Supply Civilizations needa stablefbod supply.A complexsocietycan thrive onlyif its membershavethe fbod they needto survive. Sumerians inventedtwo thingsto help them createa stable foodsupply. You alreadyknow aboutone of theseinventionstheir complexirrigationsystems.The Sumeriansbuilt networks ofcanals, dams.and reservoirsto providetheir cropswith a regular supplyof water. Theirsecondinventionwas the plow.A plow is a tool for tilling(turning) the soil to prepareit for planting.Befbrethe plow was invented, t'armersusedanimalhornsor pointedsticksto poke holes in theearth.Then they would plant seedsin the holes.This wasa veryslow way to f'arm.Farmersneededa fasterway to prepare thelandlbr planting. TheSumerians madethe first plow out of wood. One end was bent forcuttinginto the groundto turn the soil. Farmerspushed pulledtheplow alongthe groundthemselves, and or they used animals suchas oxen to pull it. S u me ria ninsv e n t etdh ep lo w . T o d a yf a, miliein s lra q(a n c ie n t S u me r) s t illf a rmt h ela n du s i n g p lo ws . o x -d ra wn WasAncientSumera Th ismanandchildarestanding i n th eruinsoftheancient city of U ruk. status importance 44 Chapter5 5.4 Social Structure Civilizationshavea complexorganization,or socialstructure. A socialstructureincludesdifferentjobs and sociallevels.People at higherlevelshavegreaterstatus than others. Archeologistshavefound evidencethat severalclassesof peoplelived in Sumer.At the top was an upperclass,which includedpriests,land owners,and governmentofficials.These peoplehad the largestand most luxurioushomes,nearthe center of the city. Their houseswere two storieshigh. Evidencesuggests theyhad whitewashed mud walls. In the middlewas the commonclass.This includedmerchants and craftspeople. The crafispeopleincludedhighly skilled metalworkers.They workedwith suchmetalsas gold, silver,tin, lead, copper,and bronze.With thesematerials,they madeswordsand arrowheads fbr the army.They madetools like plows and hoes fbr farmers.They also madeluxury items,suchas mirrorsand jewelry,for the upperclass. The commonclassalso includedfarmersand fishermen.They lived in small,mud-brickhousesat the edgeof the city. Farmers often workedto build or repairthe irrigationsystems.In timesof war. they were fbrced to servein the army. At the very bottomof the socialstructurewere slaves.They lived in their owners'homesand had no propertyof their own. I ure. )ople SE )nter lgests lants etalead, and 'es rd they ners esof ey / n. 5.5 Government All civilizations havea systemof government to directpeople'sbehavior and makelif'eorderly.Sumeriancity-states were ruledby kings.The Sumerians believedthattheirkingswerechosenby thegodsto rr.rlein theirplace.This beliefmadetheirkings verypowerful.It also helpedstrengthenthe socialorder,since Sumerians believedthey rnustobeythe will of the gods. Sumerian kingsenfbrcedthe laws and collectedtaxes.They builttemplesand madesure inigation werernainsystems tained. A ki nga lsoled his citystate's army.Atl the city-statcs needed armiesbecausethey wereconstantly fighting over landboundaries and the use of water.Leadingthe anny wasoneof theking'smost jobs. important chariot a two-wheeled p u lle db y a h o rs e v e h ic le scribe a person whowrites A Sumerian arrny included bothprofessional soldiersand temporary citizen-soldiers. Some werefbot soldiers. Others drovechariots, wheeled vehiclespulled by horses. Kingshadofficialsunder them to helpthem with their duties. Governorsruled over outlying towns.Scribes helped recordlaws. The Sumerians were the first people to developa system ofwrittenlaws. Onespecialgroupof offlpatrolledthe canals.They cials looked fbr damageand made sure farmersdidn't takewater illegally. Aki ng lo o ks outfromhispalace walls overthecity-state he rules. WasAncientSumera Civilization? 45 5.6 Religion ziggurat an ancient Mesopotamian templetower Thisis a reconstruction of the ziggurat thatonceroseoverthe ancientcityof Ur. All civilizationshavea religioussystem.A religioussystem includesa set of beliefs, usually in a god or gods,togetherwith forms of worship. In Sumer,religiousbeliefs influencedevery part of daily life. Sumerianstried to pleasethe gods in all things, from growing crops to settlingdisputes.Religion bound them togetherin a common way of life. Sumeriansexpressedtheir religious beliefs by building temples and religioustowerscalledziggurats. It was the king's duty to build and maintainthe ziggurats.The towers were made of mud bricks and locatednear temples.They were so large that they could be seenfrom 20 miles away.Some were as high as eight storiesand as wide as 200 feet. The Sumeriansbelievedthat the gods lived in the ziggurats, and they built specialtemplesat the top for them. Outsidethe ziggurat,they attacheda long staircaseso the gods could climb down to Earth. Kings and priestsstood inside the tow&s to ask for the gods'blessings. Sumerianstatuesalso expressedtheir religious beliefs. Many of thesestatueswere detailedand lifelike. They showedpeople worshippingthe gods,often with their eyes gazingupward.The Sumeriansbelievedthat the gods were pleasedwhen people showedthem devotion,or love and obedience. Often Sumerianshad many kinds of religiousceremonies. musiciansplayedat theseceremonies. Someceremoniesmay haveinvolvedhumansacrifice,the ritual killing of a personas an offering to the gods. a a S p a d n at al lr S br p( in te lo gr ln ar SN Wr m stl stl m, inr st( hc ho va Th bu mt to 46 Chapter5 5.7The Arts I h )oml- de hat S ] S, nb sk tny rle the I }S All civilizationshavea highly developedculture,includingthe arts.Artsincludecreativefbrms of expressionsuchas painting, architecture, and music. Thereweremany kinds of artistsand craftspeople in Sumer. Sumerian metalworkersmade practical objects,like weapons andcups.Theyalsomade decorative items,suchas minorsandjewelry. Sumerian architects designedtemples andziggurats. Musicwasanother important art in Sumer.The Sumerians believedthat music broughtjoy to rhe godsand people alike.Musiciansplayed instruments and sangduring temple ceremonies. They wrote lovesongsand entertained guests at feasts. Musicians playedmany instruments, includingdrums andpipes.One favorite was a smallharp calleda lyre. Lyres werewoodeninstruments made ofa soundbox and $rings. A woodenbar held the $ringsin placeat the top. Lyre makers oftendecoratedtheir instruments with precious stones andcarvingsmadeof horn, Thesedecorationsshow howmuchthe Sumerians valued music. Thisfancy lyrehastheheadof a bull decorating itssoundbox.A musician wouldstrumthestrinos toplay musical notes. WasAncientSumera Civilization? 4i 5.8 Technology 5 All civilizationscreate new firrms of technokrgy. \\'' or practicultools and inl'en- Ld tions. l'hc Surncriansr-nade .'\ sevcraltechnokrgical p( cl advances. "Gti The Surnerians'rnost i irnportantinvention was the il11 rvheel.The carliestexanrples CX of the whcel date back to t;.c.t,.Sunrerianpot3-5(X) it ab ters.or pottery rnakers.used CX whcels as a surfacelirr shap- fir ing clay into pots. Potters' AS whcels spun. flat sidc up. on all an axle. Sunreriansdiscov- ab ab ereclthat a whccl that was I'lippedonto its edge coLrldbe rollecltorward. Thcy used lie this clisco"'ervto create tl S whceled carts lirr larnrersand s) l chariotslbr the arnry.They SLI( built the whcels by clanrping drt re€ dri ne pieces ol' woocl togetl-rer. It r.roLrld hc hard t() inrasThismodelshowsa wheeled ine a rnure powerlirl invcntion thitn the wheel. Befirre the wheel. peoplc haclto clragtheir on flat-bottomcd carts called -uoods 'l'hc stLrckin tnucl.anclthcy cottldn't slcclgcsofietr army.Theywere pulledby a horse tledgc.s. -uot easierto move sLlpportheavv loacls.Wheeleclcarts lnacleit ntr"rch while a soldierstoodbehindthe Orcn could pLrllthree titnes ntore shield. soods ovcr long clistanccs. chariotusedin the SLimerian wcight on whecleclcarts than they coLtlclon sledges. ar ch an upside-down U-or V- sh a p ed structure thatsupp o r tswe ightaboveit,as in a 0 0 0 r way Anothcr tcchnologiculaclviutcewas the arch. Sutnerianarches bLlilt were invertcd (Lrpsideckrwn) U- or V-sliiipedstrLtctLlres abovc doorways.To build arches.the Sr:nteriitnsstltckedbricks rnacleo1'clayand straw so that they rose in stcpsfrom thc walls tuntilthey nret in the center. 5, ist Su plr ed an an on Arcl-rcsacldcdstfengthand heaLttyto Sumcrian bLrildings.Thev becanrea cornnrorlfcatLrreof tellple entrancesanclupper-class honres.Sonrc historianssay thc arch is thc Sr-rrnerians' -qreatcst architecturalachicvetnent. -ltt Chapter5 20 tur fir 5.9Writing ES :d p- be Lnd ng g- I A finalcharacteristic of civilizations is a highly developed writtenlanguage. The Sumerianscreateda written language called cuneiform. This namecomesfrom the Latin word for "wedge." The Sumeriansuseda wedge-shapedstylus (a sharp, pointed tool) to etch their writing in claytablets. Sumerians developedcuneiform around 2400s.c.e.The earliest examples of cuneiformshow that it wasusedto recordinformation about thegoodsSumerians exchanged with one another.At first,theymay have usedas many as2,000symbolsto standfor ideas andsounds. Over time, they were ableto reducethis numberto about 700. Cuneiform was basedon an earlier,simplerform of writing that pictographs. used Pictographs are symbols thatstandfor real objects, suchasa snakeor water.Scribes drewthesymbolswith a sharpened reedonwet clay.When the clay dried, themarksbecamea permanentrecord. GhapterSummary Sumerianculture a civilization? It had all the character- youreadaboutat the startof this chapter.The peopleof cuneiform writingthatuses we d g e -s h a pcehda ra c t e r s pictograph a symbol that stands for an object Thisreliefsculpture shows s c rib e us s in ga c la yt a b le t andstylus. createda stablefood supply. Their society had a com- ial structure.They had a systemof government,headkings.Theyhad a religioussystemwith priests,temples, They had highly developedarts, technologies, language.For thesereasons,historianscall Sumer theworld's first civilizations. 3y iancivilizationlastedabout1,500years,from 3500to B.c.n.Whathappenedto the Sumerians? What new culin Mesopotamia?In the next chapter,you'll WasAncient Sumer a Civilization? 49