Download Mesopotamia

Mesopotamia
• Many historians believe that the earliest
civilizations began in a region known as
Mesopotamia.
• Mesopotamia was an ancient region in the
eastern Mediterranean between the Zagros
Mountains and the Arabian Plateau
• Mostly modern day Iraq
• Parts of Iran, Syria and Turkey
• Mesopotamia was a
collection of many
separate civilizations
and small city-states
• Mesopotamia is a
region, not a united
empire such as Egypt,
Greece and Rome
Ancient Cities
Map of Mesopotamia
Ancient Cities
• Mesopotamia is located mostly in which
modern day country?
• Was Mesopotamia a collection of several
small city-states or a united empire?
The Fertile Crescent
• Mesopotamia is often referred to as the
Fertile Crescent, because of the valuable
farmland surrounded by desert
• The valuable farmland allowed ancient
hunter-gatherers to settle in Mesopotamia
and eventually develop cities
The Fertile Crescent provided some of the best farmland
of the ancient world
Impact of the Tigris and Euphrates
• Mesopotamia means “between two rivers” in
Greek
• Tigris and Euphrates River
• When the Tigris and Euphrates would flood,
the floods would leave behind silt for farming
• The floods of the Tigris and Euphrates were
also destructive and unpredictable
• Devastating floods would regularly wash away
top soil and destroy villages
• Villages had to work together to channel
water to the fields and store water for the dry
season
• Why is Mesopotamia often referred to as the
Fertile Crescent?
• What allowed ancient hunter-gatherers to settle
in Mesopotamia and eventually develop cities?
• What does Mesopotamia mean?
• What was one positive of the floods of the Tigris
and Euphrates?
• What were two dangers of the Tigris and
Euphrates?
The Cradle of Civilization
• Mesopotamia is also referred to as the “Cradle
of Civilization”
• Many important developments occurred in
Mesopotamia
• 12 month
calendar
• agriculture
• astronomy
• chariots
• common tools
• domestication of
animals
• hours, minutes,
seconds
•
•
•
•
•
irrigation
leather tires
math
rise of the city
sophisticated
weaponry and
warfare
• the arch
• the plow
• the sail and
sailboats
• trade
• wheel
• wheeled vehicles
• wind power
• writing
• Why is Mesopotamia often referred to as the
“Cradle of Civilization”?
• What were at least 6 important developments
that occurred in Mesopotamia?
Writing
• An early form of writing, called cuneiform,
developed in Sumer, a civilization in
Mesopotamia
• Cuneiform is the earliest known writing
system
• Cuneiform carved wedge-shaped characters
onto clay tablets using a stylus
• What is cuneiform?
Literature
• The Epic of Gilgamesh was the oldest written
story in the world.
• The Epic of Gilgamesh tells the story of
Gilgamesh, a powerful Sumerian king.
• The Epic of Gilgamesh was the oldest written
story in the world.
• The Epic of Gilgamesh tells the story of
Gilgamesh, a powerful Sumerian king.
– adventures
– encounters with gods, spirits and demons
– search for immortality
Epic of Gilgamesh and the Cedar Forest
Math
•Math developed in Mesopotamia for many
reasons, largely related to farming and
trading
•creating a lunar calendar
•measuring plots of lands
•tokens for trading
•taxation
• Sumerians and Babylonians used number
system based on 60
•Babylonian numbers used a true placevalue system, where numbers in the left
column represented larger values
•Tablets were found showing students
practicing arithmetic and geometry in
ancient Babylon
•Evidence of
Mesopotamian’s
influence on math today
•360 degrees in a circle
•180 degrees in a triangle
•60 minutes in a hour
•60 seconds in a minute
•12 months in a year
•dice
Economy
• Most people in Mesopotamia grew crops and
raised livestock
• In addition to farming, Mesopotamia relied
heavily on trade
• Mesopotamians traded fish, wool and wheat
for materials not available in Mesopotamia,
including lumber
• Other common jobs in Mesopotamia included
scribes, healers, artisans, weavers, potters,
shoemakers, fishermen, and teachers
• The most powerful people in Mesopotamia
were the kings and priests
Religion
• Mesopotamians
were polytheistic,
meaning they
worshipped many
gods
• Citizens were
expected to honor
the gods through the
jobs they performed
every day
• Mesopotamians also
prayed, offered
sacrifices and built
temples to please
the gods
• A ziggurat is pyramidshaped temple that
soared towards the
heavens, common in
Sumerian civilizations
• At the top of the
ziggurat stood shrines
to the chief god or
goddess of the city
Cities and Government
• Mesopotamia also gave birth to the world’s
first cities
• Most cities developed their own governments,
becoming city-states
• Kings were the leaders of the government
• A king was responsible for protecting the
people, overseeing farming and making laws
Hammurabi the Lawgiver
• Around 1790 B.C.,
Hammurabi took steps to
unite the Babylon empire by
publishing the Code of
Hammurabi
• The Code of Hammurabi was
the first important attempt by
a ruler to write down the laws
of the kingdom
Goals of Hammurabi’s Code:
• Protect the weak
• Eliminate evil doers
• The Code of
Hammurabi called
for strict justice, an
eye for an eye, tooth
for a tooth and a life
for a life
– “If a son strike his
father, his hands
shall be cut off.”
– “If he break
another man’s
bone, his bone
shall be broken...”
Mesopotamian cities
• Mesopotamian cities were well planned
• At the center of the city was the temple
• Since water was the
most important
resource, most cities
were built along a
river
• Irrigation ditches,
canals and aqueducts
were used to move
water throughout the
city
• Since Mesopotamia
lacked stone and
lumber, sun-dried clay
bricks as well as reeds
were commonly used
for construction
• Walls were built
around the city to
protect the people
from attack
– Ishtar Gate
• Mesopotamians made many advancements in
architecture
• Mesopotamians also created the world’s first
columns, arches, and roofed structures
• Hanging Gardens
• Tower of Babel