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Mesopotamia
The Land Between Two Rivers
Uruk
known in the Bible
as Erech (now
Warka) \
Uruk was
Mesopotamia's and the World's first city
Timeline
Mesopotamia was ruled by four different empires
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Sumerian
3,500 BC – 2,300 BC
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Akkadian
2,300 BC – 1,900 BC
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Babylonian
1,900 BC – 1,300 BC
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Assyrian
1,300 BC – 612 BC
Geography
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Mesopotamia is a Greek
word meaning between the
rivers
Ancient Mesopotamia was
located between the Tigris
and Euphrates Rivers
Most of Mesopotamia was
located in present day Iraq
The hot dry climate was
mixed with seasonal
flooding from the rivers
http://www.wsu.edu/~wldciv/brians_syllabus/maps/map
labels1.html
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Mesopotamia
(Land of Firsts)
Mesopotamia is known as, “The Cradle of Civilization,”
because it was first in many things:
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First to invent the wheel
First to use sails on boats
One of first to make up a story
(Gilgamesh)
First to use cuneiform (writing)
First to use the calendar
First to use the seeder plow
First to give a number place value and
recognize the concept of zero
Agriculture
(The Fertile Crescent)
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Farmers turned the land
into a rich food growing
area by using irrigation
and the plow
Farmers grew wheat,
barley, dates, and other
vegetables and fruit
They raised goat, pig,
sheep and cattle
Irrigation created a
surplus of food which led
to the growth of cities
Surplus led to a
flourishing system of
trade
Economy
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The Mesopotamian plain was lacking in resources such
as metals, timber, stone, and grapevines, so the
Sumerians had to trade abroad to get them
At first, the Sumerians traded surplus barley for these
goods
Later, the Sumerians began to manufacture trading
goods that they could transport more easily, such as
cloth and bronze ornaments
The Mesopotamians made written contracts, loans and
created a credit system
They used a barter system
Trade Routes
The Beginnings of Writing
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The Sumerians were very good farmers.
They raised animals such as goats and cows
(called livestock). Because they needed to
keep records of their livestock, food, and
other things, officials began using tokens.
Tokens were used for trade.
Tokens
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Clay tokens came in
different shapes and sizes.
These represented
different objects.
Advancement
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With the development
of cities came a more
complex economy
and more complex
social structures.
Language
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Mesopotamians were the
first to use writing
(around 3,000 BC)
The system of writing
was called cuneiform
Cuneiform was wedge
shaped symbols pressed
into clay tablets
The Mesopotamians
wrote many myths
The most famous was the
epic poem called
Gilgamesh
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Writing allowed people to
keep records of their
transactions
People could send
messages with couriers to
far away lands without
traveling
Writing allowed people to
pass on their
accumulated knowledge
to future generations
Cuneiform Tablets
Cuneiform “Wedge”
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The earliest form of writing
dates back to 3300 B.C.
People back then would draw
"word-pictures" on clay tablets
using a pointed instrument
called a stylus. These "wordpictures" then developed into
wedge-shaped signs.
Religion
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The people of Mesopotamia believed in many gods
Each town was protected by its own, unique deity or god
The temple, the center of worship, was also the center of
every city
Around the year 2000 B.C., temple towers called ziggurats
were built to link heaven and earth
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Political structure an early form of
democracy
Frequent wars led to the
emergence of warriors as leaders
Eventually rise of monarchial
system
co-operation was the basis of
government
Followed leadership of god of the
city which was interpreted by a
council of leading citizens > or >
priests > or leader of the city (ie.
king)
Government
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The Mesopotamians had
written laws that everyone in
the empire had to follow
There were 282 laws created
by King Hamurabi
Known as Hamurabi's Code,
the laws were written in stone
and placed in a public location
The Mesopotamians believed
the gods called the king to
establish justice and order;
whoever disobeyed the king
disobeyed the gods
Social Organization & Daily Life
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The King held military
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powers.
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The Governors governed
the territories of the
kingdom. They were
generals and judges at the
same time.
The aristocracy were
priests and traders.
The peasants worked the
land.
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Sports, games and
entertainment were part of
their everyday life
Boxing and wrestling were
popular sports
Board games were also
popular
The kings were famous
hunters of lions, elephants,
ostriches, wild bulls
Harps and lyres were played
Hammurabi’s Laws
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Divided society into 3 classes:
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Nobility
Commoners
Slaves
Rules for marriage and divorce.
Women had to accept as well as parent permission
with dowry.
Protected welfare of women and children
Sumerians
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“Land of the lords of brightness”
social, economic and intellectual basis
Irrigated fields and produced 3 main
crops (barley, dates and sesame seeds)
built canals, dikes, dams and drainage systems
develop cuneiform writing
invented the wheel
Abundance of food led to steady increase of population (farm, towns,
cities)
first city of the world
Developed a trade system with bartering: mainly barley but also wool
and cloth for stone, metals, timber, copper, pearls and ivory
Individuals could only rent land from priests (who controlled land on
behalf of gods); most of profits of trade went to temple
However, the Sumerians were not successful in uniting lower
Mesopotamia
Akkadians
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Leader: Sargon the Great
Sargon unified lower Mesopotamia (after conquering Sumerians in
2331 BCE)
Established capital at Akkad
Spread Mesopotamian culture
However, short-lived dynasty as Akkadians were conquered by the
invading barbarians by 2200 BCE
Babylonians
KING HAMMURABI’S BABLYON
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• Babylonians reunited Mesopotamia in
1830 BCE
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• central location dominated trade and
secured control
• YET AGAIN, Mesopotamia was not
unified for long…
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(6th Amorite king) who conquered
Akkad and Assyria (north and south)
He build new walls to protect the city
and new canals and dikes to improve
crops
Economy based on agriculture and
wool / cloth
individuals could own land around
cities
Artisans and merchants could keep
most profits and even formed guilds /
associations
Grain used as the medium of
exchange > emergence of
measurement of currency: shekel =
180 grains of barley; mina = 60
shekels
Mina was eventually represented by
metals which was one of first uses of
money (but it was still based on
grain)
Hammurabi’s Legacy: law code
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10th century BCE, Assyria emerged as dominant force in the
north
City of Assur- became important trading and political centre
After Hammurabi’s death, Babylon fell apart and kings of Assur
controlled more of surrounding area and came to dominate
Made conquered lands pay taxes (food, animals, metals or
timber)
Rule by fear as kings were first to have a permanent army
made up of professional soldiers (estimated 200 000 men)
Made superior weapons of bronze and iron
iron changed lifestyles in Mesopotamia in weapons and in daily
life ie. replaced wooden wheels and applied to horse drawn
chariots
• Assyrian reunited Mesopotamia and
established the first true empire
• However, states began to revolt and
ONCE AGAIN, Assyrian Empire collapsed
by late 7th century BCE
• By 539 BCE, Mesopotamia part of the
vast Persian Empire (led by Cyrus the
Great)
• Persian Empire dominated for 800 years
until Alexander the Great
Mesopotamian Banquet
Gilgamesh
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Gilgamesh is an ancient story or epic
written in Mesopotamia more than
4000 thousand years ago
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Gilgamesh is the first known work of
great literature and epic poem
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Epic mentions a great flood
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Gilgamesh parallels the Nippur Tablet,
a six-columned tablet telling the story
of the creation of humans and animals,
the cities and their rulers, and the
great flood
ANALYSIS
Gilgamesh and the Nippur tablet both
parallel the story of Noah and the Ark
(great flood) in the Old Testament of
the Jewish and Christian holy books
Modern science argues an increase in
the sea levels about 6,000 years ago
(end of ice age)
the melting ice drained to the oceans
causing the sea level to rise more than
ten feet in one century
Art
Art
Who was the best?
Sumer
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Closely tied to
environment
Irrigation
techniques for
farming
wheel
Trade- bartering
Writing- cuneiform
Religion tied to
government as
priests and kings
made decision for
gods
ziggurats
Babylon
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Production of food
through farming
Private ownership
of land vs
ownership by the
gods
Developed
mathematics and
calendar system
and system of units
for currency
Hammurabi’s law
code
Assyria
Kings conquered
lands to create
empire of Assyria
 Cooler climate could
produce crops with
little irrigation
 Deposits of ore
allowed for
development and use
of iron
 Assyrian army
became most
effective military
force
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