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MESOPOTAMIA FERTILE CRESCENT & MESOPOTAMIA Fertile crescent is a crescent shaped strip of fertile land that includes the eastern coast of the Mediterranean and arcs through Southwest Asia Mesopotamia is the land between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers The Tigris and Euphrates Rivers are the major geographical features of the Fertile Crescent and Mesopotamia. They start in the hills of what is now Turkey, and flow toward the southeast into the Persian Gulf. Like the Nile, the Tigris and Euphrates flooded often, usually once a year. Like the Nile, the flood of the T. & E. brought rich soil. Unlike the Nile flood, the time of the flooding of the T. & E. could not be easily predicted. It could come anytime between the beginning of March and the end of June. Also the amount of the flood of the T & E was unpredictable, and it could be violent and sudden. Our river is very predictable; the flood comes at the same time each year. Our rivers are less predictable and more prone to violent flooding Perhaps because their rivers were harsher and less predictable than the Nile, the people of Mesopotamia were generally not as optimistic as Egyptians, and saw nature & the gods as harsh and unpredictable Most of our gods are good and helpful to us. Our gods can be unpredictable and harsh. Like the Nile Valley, the land surrounding Mesopotamia & the Fertile Crescent was dry. However, it was not as dry and barren as the land around Egypt. It was not geographically isolated. . The land around us is desert. The land around us is dry, but not as dry and barren as the land around Egypt Whereas the history of Egypt is the story of one people in one place, the history of the Fertile Cresc & Mesopotamia is the story of conquest, empires & & change We’re protected from invasion We keep getting invaded, over and over again. “The invading herders have set fire to the crop lands surrounding several Sumerian villages. They have carried away the Silver and precious stones. They have shed blood in the palace of the ruler. They have removed the grain from the fields and villages, all of it that was under cultivation.” Like the Nile, the Tigris & Euphrates brought rich soil (silt) when they flooded. The lower (southeastern) part of Mesopotamia had especially rich soil. This part came to be called Sumer. The people of Mesopotamia build dikes to control to control the flooding and build an irrigation system to bring water in the dry season Irrigation & dike building resulted in a food surplus. They also required cooperation & organization, which pushed them toward civilization Early accomplishments: By about 3500BC, the people of Sumer made bronze, used the plow and the potters wheel. Soon they used wheeled vehicles. By 3100BC, they had invented writing. CUNEIFORM At first the Mesopotamians used pictographs. By 3100BC, these pictographs had evolved into a writing system called cuneiform, writing on wet clay. This was probably the world’s first writing CUNEIFORM Both cuneiform and hieroglyphics started as pictographs. The early pictographs of cuneiform were soon simplified into wedgeshaped symbols (cuneus means wedge-shaped). They had about 600 signs. Eventually, many different languages in the Middle East were written in cuneiform Sumerian writing was inscribed on wet clay tablets with a sharp reed called a stylus. (unlike hieroglyphics, which was carved on stone or written on papyrus. We use hieroglyphic writing on papyrus. We use cuneiform writing on wet clay tablets. ARCHITECTURE Sumerians had very little stone or wood. They built primarily from mud brick. ZIGGURATS Sumerian stepshaped temples were called ziggurats. They had a large base, and rose in large steps. On the outside was a staircase or ramp. At the top was a shrine to a Sumerian god. . Unlike Egyptian pyramids, they were not tombs. They were temples. They were believed to be the dwelling place of a god. The raised base was through to lift the temple closer to the gods. Only priests were allowed in the temple We build tombs called pyramids from stone We build temples called ziggurats from mud brick GREAT GREATZIGGURAT ZIGGURATOF OFUR URIN INIRAQ. IRAQ. SUMER – CITY-STATES Sumer was not a united country like Egypt. Sumer was a collection of “city-states”. A city-state is a small country, consisting of a city and the farmland around it which it controlled. There were a number of city-states in Sumer, including Ur., Uruk, Lagash, Eridu, Nippur and Kish. We have a single country under a single ruler We are a collection of independent city states with a common culture. SUMER CITY-STATES Each city-state had its own government. In earliest times the citystates may have been governed by priests, but as war became frequent, kings who were war leaders took control. They were regarded as closely connected with the gods, but were not usually thought of as gods themselves. Social classes: Kings & their families High Priests & Nobles Lower priests, merchants, artisans & scribes Peasant farmers Slaves. FARMING The majority of people were farmers They grew wheat, barley flax, dates & other fruits & vegetables They used irrigation & plows pulled by oxen They herded sheep & goats FARMING & TRADE Trade was very important because, probably more important than in Egypt, because they had very little stone or wood. They had to trade We have very little stone or to get these things. We have plenty of stone. We also have a lot of fertile land and food. wood. We have fewer metals than Egypt. We have fertile land and lots of mud. Merchants traveled by land or by water Merchants sometimes had agents in other cities. They sometimes they journeyed to other cities themselves They traded with other cities in Mesopotamia. They also traded as far away as Egypt and the Indus Valley EDUCATION Formal education was for boys who were trained to become scribes-men whose profession was to read and write. A school was called an edubba. They boys went to school early in the morning. They learned to write by copying religious books and poems. SUMERIAN NUMBER SYSTEM The Sumerian number system was based on 60a sexagesimal system They divided circles into 360 degrees (6x60) They divided an hour into 60 minutes and a minute into 60 seconds. Our system of hours, minutes and seconds is based on the Sumerian system. SUMERIAN RELIGION Polytheistic Anu/An-chief god-lord of heaven Enlil-god of air and storms Enki-god of water & wisdom Inanna/Ishtar-goddess of love Anu Enlil Enki Inanna/ Ishtar SUMERIAN RELIGION Believed that after death, the soul goes to a shadowy underworld (like Hades), where there is no reward or punishment. We see this belief expressed clearly in the “Epic of Gilgamesh”, which is the world’s oldest known written story. IMPORTANT INVENTIONS MADE IN SUMER Writing Plow (drawn by oxen) Wheeled vehicles (carts, wagons with wheels) Potter’s wheel Many historians think that bronze was also first invented here. CASE STUDY- EXCAVATION OF UR BY SIR LEONARD WOOLEY Ur was located on the banks of the Euphrates River About 30,000 people Excavated by Sir Leonard Woolley between 1922 and 1934. Gives us a picture of the life there in about 3000BC IMAGINE LIFE IN UR. Sir Leonard Wooley found over 1800 burials, including 16 “royal tombs”. Tomb of Queen Puabi was the only unlooted royal tomb. Buried with many servants, laid out in rows. Small clay cups— poison? Buried with many servants, laid out in rows. Small clay cups—poison? Crown of Queen Puabi Her attendants wore similar jewelry Lyre Ram in a thicket ZIGGURAT OF UR LIFE IN UR Agriculture in Ur took place outside the mud-brick walls surrounding the fields. Farmers used ox-driven plows to cultivate the fields. Irrigation ditches crisscross the fields. These were dug by farmers to bring water to the fields Government officials planned and directed the irrigation system. LIFE IN UR The houses were small, windowless, one-story boxlike houses of mudbrick. LIFE IN UR Artisans had shops Metal workers made bronze by mixing copper and tin. Potters used the potters wheel to make jars and bowls. LIFE IN UR In the bazaar, or market place, merchants did business under awnings. They traded farm products and artisans’ crafts. They did not have money. They used barter. LIFE IN UR The most important building was the ziggurat It means mountain of god. At the top, priests conducted sacrifices of goats and sheep, and other religious rituals. EPIC OF GILGAMESH-WORLD’S OLDEST WRITTEN STORY
