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Agenda 10-11 & 12-11
•Nile River Foldable due next block day.
Focus 10-11 & 12-11
1. What were the places of worship
for the people of Mesopotamia?
ziggurats
2. What was their writing called?
cuneiform
Get out Guided Reading 3-1
worksheet from last week!
ZIGGURATS
BABYLONIAN ZIGGURAT
Sumerian Religion
Sumerians
worshipped many
gods, not just one.
This belief in
many gods is
called
polytheism.
“Poly” means
many and
“Theism” means
gods.
The picture above shows a ziggurat. Ziggurats were
the main temples used to worship the gods of a city.
Ziggurats were built in the center of the city. They had
steps and ramps, and it was believed that the gods
descended to the Earth using the ziggurat as a ladder.
Sumerian Mythology
Sumerian myths, or stories, explained people’s beliefs.
Sumerians believed that a person must keep the gods happy by
going to the ziggurat and praying to them. They believed that
the gods would reward them for good service. They also
believed that the gods would punish the people who made them
angry.
ziggurat
Hammurabi’s Code
The laws of Babylonian king Hammurabi are
among the oldest recorded. These laws were
engraved on a huge stone pillar that stood in a
temple in Babylon. At its top is a carved picture of
Hammurabi receiving the code of laws from the
god, Marduke. Hammurabi claimed the gods called
on him “to make justice visible in the land.” He was
to “destroy the wicked person and the evil-doer, so
the strong may not injure the weak.” The laws
cover a wide range of offenses in each area.
Hammurabi tried to choose laws that were fair,
important to his people, and that did not conflict
with each other. However, different standards of
justice applied to different people.