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Ancient Civilizations
Running from
3500B.C.E. to C.E.500
MESOPOTAMIA
• Where was it located?
• What was it known for?
• What happened to it?
“The Fertile Crescent”
• A piece of land stretching from eastern
Mediterranean sea to the Persian Gulf
• Located between Tigris & Euphrates Rivers
• Its soil is rich, great for farming.
• This area is shaped like a “crescent”.
• Mesopotamia (Land between the rivers) lies
to the east
• Mediterranean section les to the west
The Sumerians
4000 BC- 1st people in Fertile Crescent
Settled in Lower Mesopotamia
Built “City-States”
1st to use wheeled vehicles in trade,
farming, warfare
• 1st to use the arch in buildings
• Invented first system of writing“Cuneiform”- wedge-shaped writing
• Decoded by Sir Henry Rawlinson-1846
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Worshipped many gods
Kings were treated as gods
Gilgamesh and the great flood
King Sargon
Skilled Builders & Artists
Army was supplied with weapons
Metals, stones, & wood were obtained by
trading
• Studied math & science ( a year has 360
days)
Ziggurats
Babylonian Empire
(2000 B.C.E.)
• First to build temples to honor their gods
• Hammurabi’s Code (law)
Hammurabi Law Code shows:
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1. A stern sense of justice – The code had the principle of "an eye for an eye"
and demanding severe punishment for crimes - bribery, theft, dishonest
weights and measures, and damage to another's property.
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2. A sharp division of classes – The code provided harsher punishment for an
offense against a noble or priest than for the same offense against a common
person - an artisan, merchant, farmer, or slave
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3. A fair treatment of women - Permited them to own property and engage in
business. However, the code strictly regulated the behavior of women. It
expected a woman to remain in her husband's home and be dependent on him.
A husband, however, had a legal duty to support his wife. The code also gave
a father nearly unlimited authority over his children. The Babylonians believed
that an orderly household headed by a strong father was necessary for a stable
empire.
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4. An advanced business society- established regulations for protecting
property and business contracts, limiting interest on loans, and setting wages
for workers.
Other Babylonian contributions:
• Astronomy- lunar calendar, 12 month year,
7 day week, 24 hour day.
• Arithmetic- based on number 60
– 60 minute hour, 360 degree circle
Hittite Empire ( 1750 B.C.E.)
• Conquered from modern day
Turkey
• Among the first to use iron for
weapons & tools
• Signed the first treaties with other
groups like Egyptians
• System of law that required
payments of fines for crimes or
wrongdoings
Phoenicia Empire
(“Traders”)
( 1200 B.C.E.)
• It became strong because Egyptian and Hittites were
fighting each other
• Traded goods all over the Mediterranean, spreading
their goods & ideas and those of whom they trade with
• Carthage- greatest city
• Invented a 22 symbol alphabet that was around sounds
-later used by Greeks and later became roots of what we
use today
• Developed artistic skills ( carving ivory & stained glass)
Hebrew (1200-600 B.C.)
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Never had a large empire
Monotheism
History written in Old Testament
Exodus
Ten commandments
Recorded the Bible
High moral behaviors, set new standards
Prophets fought for justice of the weak & poor
Saul, David, Solomon- strong rulers
Solomon’s temple at Jerusalem
Hebrew’s end
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Solomon’s death- kingdom splits
Civil wars
63 BC becomes part of Roman Empire
Jerusalem destroyed
1948 AD – Israel re-born again
Assyrian Empire
(1350 B.C.E.)
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1100-650 BC
Excellent soldiers
Calvary, iron weapons
Cruel leaders of those conquered
• Built first system of roads
• Began provincial governments
• Established first library
• Conquered by Chaldeans and Persians
The NEW BABYLONIAN EMPIRE
• Chaldeans of Babylonia come in
• Nebuchadnezzar II (mentioned in the Bible for the first
time)- rebuilt city of Babylon
• He built “Hanging Gardens” –one of the 7 wonders of the
ancient world.
• Astrology, movement of planets & stars effects human life,
creation of the “zodiac”
• Astrology lead to the discovery of Astronomy
• 561 BC Nebuchadnezzar dies- empire declines,
• 539 BC Persian Empire comes in
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Persia Empire
( 550 B.C.E.)
Modern day Iran descendents
Cyrus the Great
Conquers Asia Minor & Fertile
Crescent
Divided huge empire into provinces
“Satraps”
Built roads & canals to improve
trade
Conquered by Alexander the Great
(Greece)
Zoroasterism
• Zoroaster- started Zoroasterism
-1 god “Ahura Mazda in battle with evil forces
of Ahriman
-Humans make decisions on which side
-One day Ahura Mazda will win and judge all
humans
-Good go to Heaven, evil go to Hell
- “Avesta” ( a religious book based on the
beliefs of prophet Zoroaster)
Review for early civilizations
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See Powerpoints
See Mesopotamia packet
See unit outline handout
Know your vocabulary
Egypt (3000 B.C.E.)
• Only civilization to continue to today
• 2700-2100 Old Kingdom:Great Pyramids
& Sphinx are built
• 2100-1800 Middle Kingdom: Irrigation &
canals built; conquered by invaders
• 1600-1100 New Kingdom: conquered
many lands, became a great empire,
begins to decline
Egypt
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Made paper from papyrus
Invented the calendar
Built Great Pyramids
Invented shaduf ( a crane-like
device)
• Used a loom to weave cloth
• Invented hieroglyphics
Ancient Greece
(500 B.C.E.)
The Golden Age of Athens
Or
The Golden Age of Pericles
Contributions of Greece
• First democracy
• Scientific approach
to medicine
• First dramas
• Rules of Geometry
• Philosophy
• Literature & Poetry
• Written Histories
• City-States/voting
• Hippocrates
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Euripides & Sophocles
Euclid & Elements
Socrates, Plato, Aristotle
Homer & Sappho
More Contributions of
Greece
• Studied & classified plants
• Created magnificent buildings &
sculpture
• Architecture uses columns
(Doric, Corinthian, and Ionic)
Democracy
• Democracy- a form of government in
which the people rule
• Direct Democracy- citizens participate
directly
in passing the laws
• Representative
Democracyrepresentatives
are chosen to represent the people
Democracy
• Only males 18 or older can
attend assembly & vote
• No women
• No slaves
• No males from other countries
Peloponnesian War
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Between Sparta & Athens
Fought for control of Greece
Lasted 27 years
Sparta won!
Sparta v Athens
• Women equal to men
• Taught to be loyal to
the state & obey
orders
• Mandatory military
service for 60 years
• Loyalty over all else
• Subservient women
• Taught to question
existence (philosophy)
• Choice of occupations
• Logic First &
foremost
King Philip II of Macedonia
Defeated the Greek city-states after they were
weakened by the Peloponnesian War.
He united all the city-states under one rule,
along with Macedonia.
Philip II was murdered (awwwwww…)
Alexander the Great
• Became king after his father
was murdered
• Between age 20 & 22, he defeated King
Darius and the Persian Empire
• Alexander’s Empire was now largest in
the world! ( It extended from Greece to
India, including Alexandria in Egypt)
• He died at age 32.
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_Civilizations/Sumerians/sumerians.html