1 / 17

Early Civilizations

Early Civilizations. Mesopotamia. Map of Mesopotamia. Geography of Mesopotamia. Mesopotamia means: “the land between the rivers”. Tigris and Euphrates Rivers Modern day Iraq Fertile Crescent From the Mediterranean to the Persian Gulf Fertile soil Silt deposits, but little rain fall

garson
Download Presentation

Early Civilizations

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Early Civilizations Mesopotamia

  2. Map of Mesopotamia

  3. Geography of Mesopotamia • Mesopotamia means: • “the land between the rivers”. • Tigris and Euphrates Rivers • Modern day Iraq • Fertile Crescent • From the Mediterranean to the Persian Gulf • Fertile soil • Silt deposits, but little rain fall • Flooding • Irrigation and drainage ditches • Agriculture is only made possible through irrigation • Bases for a civilization • Constant warfare

  4. The Fertile Crescent

  5. The Sumerians and City-States • First to create civilizations. • Early City States began in 3000 BC. • Eridu, Ur, Uruk, Umma, and Lagash • Cities were surrounded by walls. • Mud bricks used to build. • Very limited wood or stone. • Stilled used today in the Middle East.

  6. Walled City

  7. The Sumerians and City States • Temples were the most important structures. • Religious, political, and economic center. • Gods ruled the cities. • Kings received power from the gods. • Economy was mostly agriculture. • Also included textiles, pottery, and metal work. • Trade with eastern Mediterranean and India. • 3 major social groups: • Nobles • Commoners • Slaves

  8. Culture of Mesopotamia • Cuneiform Writing System. • Wedge-shaped writing. • Helped educated the people. • Recorded history. • The Epic of Gilgamesh on a stone tablet

  9. Cuneiform Writing

  10. Culture of Mesopotamia • Mathematics. • Included geometry. • Based on units of 60. • Astronomy. • 12-month Calendar.

  11. Culture of Mesopotamia • Sumerian art work. Helmet Harp Board Game

  12. Religion of Mesopotamia • Theocracy • “religion rules politics”. • Everything was linked to the gods. • Polytheistic gods. • Au was the god of sky. • Enil was the god of wind. • Enki was the god of earth and water. • Niuhurgage was the god of soil, mountains, & vegetation. • Man was created to work for the gods. • Divination • “inspired by the gods” Enki

  13. Religion of Mesopotamia • Ziggurat • “temple to the gods”. Artist’s depiction of the ziggurat at Ur Modern day picture of what is left of the ziggurat at Ur.

  14. Empires of Mesopotamia • Constant wars occurred throughout Mesopotamia’s history. • Akkadians create the first empire. • Took control in 2340 BC. • Led by Sargon • Warring city-states returned in 2100 BC. • Short lived return of Sumerian rule.

  15. Empires of Mesopotamia • Hammurabi created a new empire in 1792 BC. • Created a new capital in Babylon. • Ended Sumerian politics. • Did not survive after his death.

  16. Empires of Mesopotamia • The Babylonian Empire

  17. The Code of Hammurabi • Strict laws. • Punishment was severe. • Severity depended on your social class. • “An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth”. • Consumer laws. • Land and trade laws. • Civil laws. • Marriage and family laws. • Largest category of laws. • Marriages were arranged.

More Related