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Life in Neolithic Communities Why did the Agricultural Revolution Occur? • Obvious advantages • Climate change leads people to abandon hunting and gathering in favor of agriculture or pastoralism • Great Ice Age Ends: • Temperate lands become exceptionally warm between 6000BCE-2000BCE • Allows people to adopt agriculture • Shortages in Middle East caused dry spell; population growth also could be a factor for food production • Wild grains are not as accessible unlike in Australia, Americas, and Northern Eurasia Disadvantages to Being a Farmer • Work longer and harder • Clear and cultivate land • Guide herds to pastures • Guard herds from predators • Diet is less varied and nutritious • Shorter in height; • Likely to die at an earlier age than Paleolithic • More exposed to Diseases Advantages to Being a Farmer • Less likely to starve • Can store food between harvests • Small surplus = higher survival rate during natural crisis (e.g. drought) • Organized around kinship • Marriage • Nuclear families start to emerge • How did Farmers displace Foragers? • Gradual infiltration; non-violent • A generation could have repopulated all of Europe between 6500-3500BCE Society (S) • Farming communities expand through kinship and marriage • Parents and children lived in separate households • Lineages (clans) – acted together to defend common interests/land. • Patrilineal- trace descent through the father • NOT PATRIARCHY (rule of men) • Matrilineal- trace descent through the mother • NOT MATRIARCHY (rule of women) • Most early farmers lived in small villages (these continue to grow) • Towns have grander dwellings and ceremonial buildings • A place to store food until next harvest Society (S) • Farmer’s usually made most of their buildings, tools and containers during their spare time • In larger communities, craft specialists created buildings, tools, and containers. • Examples of Complex Neolithic Societies: • Jericho (West Bank of Jordan River)—located near a natural spring • Evidence of complex buildings and forts • Mud-brick dwellings rectangular buildings with plastered walls and floors • Catal Huyuk (Central Turkey)—32 acres • Mud-brick rooms with elaborate decorations • No defense wall • Entered homes through ladders (holes in the room) Create a PERSIAN Chart for: Catal Huyuk • Traded obsidian (volcanic rock) • Other crafts: pottery, woven baskets, cloths, leather, wood • House sizes varied • No evidence of social classes • No centralized political structure • Crops: emmer wheat, barley, vegetables • Animals: pigs, goat, sheep • Still ate wild foods (acorns, wild grains, game animals) PERSIAN Chart Cont’d • Wall Paintings (similar to cave paintings) still reveal importance of hunting • Men are buried with weapons of war and hunting • For every 2 homes, there is a religious shrine • Horned bulls, female breasts, goddesses, leopards, handprints • More plump female deities (gods) > male deities • Rituals: burned legumes, grains, and meat for offerings • No evidence of live animal sacrifice • Metal-Working is popular during late Neolithic Period PERSIAN Chart, Cont’d • Catal Huyuk used copper and lead—in other parts of the world, people started using silver and gold • Do not replace stone tools or weapons • Used for decoration or ceremony … does this mean status?? • Created extra food for non-farmers (preists and artisans) Religion (R) • Burial sites start to emerge • Early ancestor worship • Example: Ancient city of Jericho • Food Gatherers’ religion centered on sacred groves, springs, and animals. • Pastoralists religion: worship the Sky God • Controlled rain and its migration • Farmers religion: Earth Mother (female) – source of new life Megaliths (A) • Big Stone • Discovered in Egyptian desert • Burial Chambers used during Neolithic Period for ancestors, calendar circle, and pairs of upright stones that frame the rising sun on the summer solstice. • Important: cycle of the seasons • Example: Stonehenge in England • ~2000BCE • Communal burial chambers Mesopotamia Use PERSIAN Chart to take notes! Mesopotamia – Near Geographic • Land between the rivers • Located between the Euphrates and Tigris River • Originates in the mountains of eastern Anatolia (Modern Turkey) and empties itself to Persian Gulf • Current day Iraq • Even though Agriculture existed in the Fertile Crescent, it did not arrive in Mesopotamia until 5000 BCE • Farming depended on irrigation due to hot/dry climate Irrigation and Farming Practices (S, I, N) • Irrigation = artificial provision to crops • Why? Natural Springs could be sudden and violent and came at the wrong time of the year • Floods changed course of rivers • Learned to construct canals to carry water to their fields • Farmers are using ox-drawn plows to turn over the earth with a funnel attached to it—funnel measured amount of seeds into furrow • Barley = main crop • Date palms = food, fiver, wood • Garden plots = vegetables • Reed plants could be woven into mats, baskets, huts, boats, etc. • Fish-dietary staple • Herds of sheep • Goats = wool, milk, meat • Donkeys = originally domesticated in NE Africa Sumerians and Semites • Sumerians = people living in Mesopotamia at the “start” of the historical period • Written evidence exists • Created framework of civilization • Dominated Mesopotamia from 4th and 3rd Millennia BCE • Semitic = family of related languages long spoken across parts of western Asia and Northern Africa. • • • • Include: Hebrew, Aramaic, Phoenician, modern Arabic Lived in peace with Sumerians—adopted culture and succeeded in their society By 2000BCE became politically dominant Akkadian (language) dominated Sumerian (even though culture was still Sumerian) • Other Groups: Kassite (mountain people), Elamites, Persians (Iran) Cities, Kings, and Trade (S, P) • Villages and cities • Cities evolved from villages • City-State = a small independent state consisting of an urban center and the surrounding agricultural territory. • Farmers = food • Urban residents = specialized in crafts, pottery, art, clothing, weapon, tools, etc. • Other jobs = serving gods, administrative duties • Farming families banded together for protection • Worked together: shared tools, inter marriage • Trade • • • • Specialists depended on surplus of food Cities collected crop surpluses from villages and provided rural districts with military protection Uncultivated land (e.g. desert) was a buffer zone Disputes: land, water, moveable property Irrigation System (I, S) • Opened new land to agriculture by building and maintaining irrigation networks. • Canals brought water to fields from rivers • Dams raised water levels • Drainage ditches carried water away from flooded fields before it became harmful • Successful operation = large number of people to work together • Other examples of coordination: • Harvest • Sheep shearing • Fortification walls • Large public buildings • Warfare Religious Leaders and Political Leaders (P, R) • Not much information about Political institutions • Evidence of assembly (sort of like a council) • Two centers of Power: • 1. Temple • 2. Palace of the King • Each city had 1+ centrally located temple that housed a cult of the deity (deities) who watched over their community • Cult = set of religious practices • Temples had a lot of land and stored gifts from worshippers • Leading priests played a big role in political and economic affairs Religious and Political Leaders (P, R) • Lugal (Big Man)—modern day version of a king • 3rd millennium BCE • Sumerian cities • Theory: certain men chosen by the community to lead armies extended their authority during peacetime in key judicial and rituals functions • Temple location = heart of the city • Priests and temples = cool because of wealth and religious mystique • Gradually become dependent on the palace • King becomes earthly representative of the deity Religious and Political Leaders (P, R) • Responsibilities of the king: • • • • • • • Upkeep and building of temples Proper performance during ritual Maintaining city walls and defenses Extending/Repairing irrigation channels Guarding property Rights Warding off outside attackers Establishing justice Early Regional Empires: Sargon • City-states start dominating others • Sargon = ruler of Akkad (city) • First to unite many cities under one kind and capital • Had 4 successors of a span of 120 years • Razed walls of conquered cities • Installed governors backed by garrisons of Akkadian troops • Gave land to soldiers to ensure loyalty • Cuneiform = system of writing in Sumerian to express their own language • Akkadan state falls – we don’t know why (2230BCE) • Sumerian language and culture remain dominant Early Regional Empires: Third Dynasty of Ur • 2112-2004 BCE • 5 kings – flourished for a century through marriage and conquest • Were not as extensive as Akkadian • Had tight control by rapidly expanding bureaucracy • Obsessed with recordkeeping • Efficient central government: • Communication: messengers, nice road stations • Official calendar, standardized weights and measures • Uniform writing practices • Fall of Dynasty: • Nomad incursions + Elamite attack from the SE ended their reign Early Regional Empires: Babylon • Founded by Semitic Amorites • Hammurabi: launched military campaigns • Babylon becomes capital of “Old Babylonian” state • Stretches beyond Sumer and Akkad into north and northwest • Code of Hammurabi (18th c. BCE) The Code of Hammurabi (P) • Inscribed on a polished black stone pillar • Contained lengthy set of examples illustrating principals to use in cases • Three social divisions: • 1. the free, land owning class • 2. the class of dependent farmers and artisans (primary work force) • 2. slave class –employed in domestic service • Most offenses were met with severe physical punishments (even death) • Mostly reserved for slave class • Penalties depended on which class you belonged to Trade (E) • Conquests = need for vital resources • Alternative to conquest = trade • Long-distance commerce flourished in most periods • Evidence of using boats in rivers and sea trade found in 5th millennium BCE • Wool, barley, vegetable oil were exported for: • • • • • • wood from Lebanon and Syria Silver from Anatolia Gold from Egypt Copper from E. Mediterranean and Oman Tin from Afghanistan Precious stone from Iran, Afghanistan, and Pakistan Trade (E) • 3rd millennium BCE: • Merchants are primarily employed by the palace or temple • **these are the only two places that can finance, organize, transport and protect their goods** • Merchants exchanged surplus food from estates of kings or temples for raw materials luxury goods • 2nd millennium BCE: • More commerce came into the hands of independent merchants • Guilds appear = cooperative associations formed by merchants • Items are being bartered and value is being places to fixed weights and precious metal (silver) or measures of grain Mesopotamian Society (S) • Social Classes: • Urban civilizations = social divisions • Factors that enabled people to be wealthy: • • • • Rise of cities Labor specialization Centralized power Use of written records • Temple leaders, kings = controlled large agricultural estates • Palace admin collected tax • Elite class = a lot of land • Soldiers and religious officers get land for their service Slaves and Peasants (S) • Slavery is not prevalent or fundamental to economy at this point • Most slaves come from mountain tribes • Captured in war • Sold by slave traders • Couldn’t pay their debts • Not chained –but had a distinctive hairstyle • Compensated with food and oil in quantities proportional to their age, gender and tasks • Peasants lived in homes made of mud brick and reed (not durable) • Illiterate = no written record of their lives • Same thing can be said about life of women, most scribes were men • Few metal possessions Women (S) • After agriculture prevails H-G, women lose social standing and freedoms • Why were women valued in H-G societies? • Mesopotamia relied on heavy labor for food production (done by men) • More food = more kids women’s job/role • Since they were taking of kids all day, they didn’t have any specialized skills • Could own property, maintain control of dowry, engage in trade • Dowry: a sum of money given to the bride by her father to support her new home • Worked outside the home: textile factories, breweries, prostitutes, tavern keepers, bakers, fortune tellers Women (S) • Non-elite women stayed at home helped with • • • • • • Farming planted vegetable gardens cooked, cleaned fetched water tended the household fire wove baskets, textiles • Standing women steadily declines in 2nd millennium BCE • Rise of urbanized middle class and increase in private wealth • Laws favored men and husband rights • Men could take a second wife if first did not produce children • usually monogamous relationships, this changes in later Mesopotamian society • Marriage alliances arranged between families made women instruments for increasing family wealth • “God’s Bride” –early example of nuns Gods, Priests and Temples (R) • Gods • Sumerian gods embody religion • Semites equated their deities to that of the Sumerians • Same (or similar) rituals • Anthromorphic –gods were like humans in form and conduct • Thought gods had bodies and senses • Sought nourishment from sacrifice • Enjoyed worship and obedience of humanity • Mesopotamians feared their gods—thought they were responsible for natural disasters and wanted to make them happy State Religion (R) • There is record of public/state-organized religion • Cities built temples and showed devotion to deities who protected the community • The temple precinct with a high wall contained the shrine of the chief deity • Had open air plazas, chapels for lesser gods, housing, dining facilities • Offices for priests and other staff • Ziggurat—a massive pyramid stepped tower made of mud bricks • Function and symbol is unknown Temple (R) • god’s residence • Cult statue inside = life force of deity • Priests knew and met every need of the divine image • Babylonian Creation Myth – humankind is created from the blood of a vanquished rebel deity in order to serve gods • Babylon = chief god = Marduk Priests (R) • Priesthood was hereditary (passed down to sons) • Families lived on rations of food from deity’s estates • Status for priests depended on where they were in the line—also in their specialized function • Highest priest = central acts in rituals • Other jobs for priests • • • • • Make music for the gods Exorcising spirits Interpret dreams Examined the organs of animals (to predict the future) Reading patterns in the rising smoke Religion of the Common People (R) • Do not know as much: did commoners have access to temple? • Amulets = small charm meant to protect the bearer from evil • Lots of evidence of amulets = widespread belief in magic • Headaches were caused by demons • Giving gifts to the gods gave information about the future • Elite and commoners came together during festivals • New Year’s Festival – spring time in Babylon (new agricultural cycle); 12 days Technology and Science (T) • Technology • techne = skill or specialized knowledge • Refers to tools and machines that humans use to manipulate the physical world • Wheeled carts and sled like platforms dragged by cattle were used to transport goods • In the south—boats and barges dominated (near the river) • In the north—donkeys were chief pack animals for overland caravans before the the camel came around 1200BCE • Mesopotamians imported metals—skilled in metallurgy • Metallurgy = concerned with the properties of metals and their production and purification • Bronze = refining ores containing copper and alloying them with arsenic or tin Technology and Science (T) • Bronze was poured into molds, producing tools and weapons • Sharper, likely to break and easily fixed • Clay was used to make dishes and storage vessels (4000 BCE) • Potter’s wheel: a revolving platform spun by hands or feet • Made it possible for rapid production of vessels with precise and complex shapes • Mud Bricks = dried in the sun/baked in the oven (more durable) • Primary building material • Needed practical knowledge of engineering and architecture • RWC: reed mats that Mesopotamian builders laid between the mud-brick layers of ziggurats served the same stabilizing purpose as girders would today. Writing (T, A) • Writing is a broader category of technology • Arrived in Mesopotamia before 3300 BCE • Originated from a system of tokens used to keep track of property (sheep, cattle, cart wheels) • People couldn’t keep track as wealth accumulated and commercial transactions increased • Eventually they just used pictures—which were written symbols • Each symbol represented an object and could also stand for the sound of the word for that object if the sound was part of a longer word Writing (T, A) • Pressing the point of a sharpened reed into a moist clay tablet • Cuneiform (wedge-shaped) • Years of training and practice • Old Babylonian period—more people can read and write due to growth of private commerc • Writing = primary proof of legal actions • Texts were written about political, literary, religious and scientific topic • Cuneiform = not a language; form of writing • Developed for Sumerian language and adapted Warfare (P) • Nonprofessional militias of able-bodied men • Powerful states built up armies of well trained, well-paid, full time soldiers. • Early 2nd millennium BCE horses appeared in W. Asia • Horse-drawn chariot is popular • Chariots with a driver and archer could easily over power enemies Math and Science • Used a base-60 number system • This is origin of the seconds and minutes we use today • Advances in the mathematics and careful observation of the skies made the Mesopotamians sophisticated astronomers.