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Ancient Mesopotamia
The Cradle of Civilization
Essential Questions
1) What are the “building blocks” of a civilization?
2) What were some of the major Mesopotamian
inventions?
3) What is the significance of Hammurabi’s
Code?
Vocabulary
• Irrigation = method of bringing water to a field from another place to water
the crops
• City-state = independent state made up of city and the land and villages
surrounding it. Like a mini country.
• Artisan = skilled workers who made metal products, cloth or pottery
• Cuneiform = Early system of writing made up of wedge-shaped characters
• Scribe = record keeper
• Empire = group of many different lands under one ruler
Ancient River Civilizations
Leading to a Civilization
Domestication of plants and
animals
Farming
Surplus of food, specialization of
jobs, settling in villages, trading extra
food, larger population of people
BUILDING A CIVILIZATION
What is a civilization?
•
A complex society which contains:
– Cities
• areas of large populations
– Organized Government
• leaders and system of laws
– Art
• examples: paintings, sculptor,
architecture. Distinctive to that
culture
– Religion
• could be more than one in the
civilization. Could be
polytheistic (belief in many
gods) or monotheistic (belief in
one God).
– Writing
• System of writing to keep track
of records and write down laws
– Class Division
• How one is viewed by society.
Could be based on wealth, job,
family, etc.
River Civilizations
• First civilizations arose in river valleys
– Good farming conditions
– Easy to fish
- Good for travel and trade
- Fresh drinking water
Mesopotamia
• In Greek it means “the land between the rivers”
– The Tigris and Euphrates Rivers
• The earliest known civilizations arose here around
10,000 years ago.
• Mesopotamia was also known as the “Cradle of
Civilization” and “The Fertile Crescent”.
• Mesopotamia climate is very hot and dry
• In the spring, the rivers would flood, leaving behind rich soil
– Irrigation is the method of bringing water to a field from
another place in order to water the crops.
Irrigation Canal
City-states
• A city-state is like a mini country or state. They were independent and
included the city and the land and villages surrounding it.
• City-states were isolated by their geography and would fight over land
Religion
• The Mesopotamians believed in many gods
– Polytheism – the belief in many gods
– Monotheism – the belief in only one God
• They believed the gods controlled nature and human activity
Absu: Babylonian, god of the underwater
ocean. Usually seen as a concept rather than
a being.
Marduk: Babylonian, god of magic. Main
god of the pantheon, although he isn’t the
chief. Killed Tiamat and used her body to
create the earth and sky out of respect for
her battle prowess.
Ashur: Babylonian, god of war.
Enten: Sumerian, god of winter. His
name means “winter.”
Huwawa: Sumerian, god of the cedar
forest, killed by Gilgamesh and Enkidu.
Ishum: Babylonian, god of fire.
• Built grand temples, called ziggurats, to
please their city-states patron god.
Social Classes
• In ancient Mesopotamia, everyone fit into a
certain class based on wealth and power
– Top = Kings, priests/priestesses
and government officials
– Middle = artisans, merchants,
farmers, fishermen
– Lower = slaves (prisoners of war,
criminals, debtors)
Standard of Ur
Mespotamian Contributions
• Writing system (greatest contribution)
– Cuneiform – Sumerian system of writing which
used “wedge-shaped” characters
• Literature
– Wrote epics (long poem about hero)
– Example: Gilgamesh
• Wheel
– The wheel was NOT invented by “cavemen”
• Plow
– Used in farming to dig up the soil
• Sailboat
– Used the wind to move the boat
• 12 month calendar based on the moon
Game Board
• Royal game of Ur
– Lasted hundreds of years until conquered by Hammurabi, a
Babylonian king
• Hammurabi, famous for his code of laws that were written down
• Hammurabi’s Code
– Set of laws that governed most aspects of life.
– Were carved onto 8 foot tall stone stellas for all to see
– Included “eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth”
Development of Writing