Unit 2 - Mesopotamia

Unit 2 - Mesopotamia Achievements

Warm-Up • 1. Silently enter class. • 2. Sit in assigned seat. • 3. Copy homework into agenda. • 4. Complete project and self/peer evaluation. You have 30 minutes from the tardy bell to work on your project.

Geography & Sumer Vocabulary Quiz 1. __________ a large arc of fertile land from the Persian Gulf to the Mediterranean Sea 2. __________ area of land between the Euphrates and Tigris Rivers 3. _______ mixture of fertile soil and tiny rocks 4. ___________ supplying water to an area of land 5. __________ human-made water way 6. ____________ more than needed 7. ___________ workers specialize in one job Silt Surplus Fertile Crescent Division of Labor Irrigation Mesopotamia Canals 8. ____________ a city and surrounding countryside 9. ______________ a legendary figure in Sumerian literature 10. __________ land with different territories and people under single rule 11. _____________ Akkadianemperor who ruled the world’s first permanent military 12. _____________ the belief in many gods 13. ______________ people who performed religious ceremonies 14. _____________ the division of society by rank or class Priests Social Hierarchy City-States Sargon Polytheism Gilgamesh Empire

Geography & Sumer Vocabulary Quiz 1. __________ a large arc of fertile land from the Persian Gulf to the Mediterranean Sea 2. __________ area of land between the Euphrates and Tigris Rivers 3. _______ mixture of fertile soil and tiny rocks 4. ___________ supplying water to an area of land 5. __________ human-made water way 6. ____________ more than needed 7. ___________ workers specialize in one job Silt Surplus Fertile Crescent Division of Labor Irrigation Mesopotamia Canals 8. ____________ a city and surrounding countryside 9. ______________ a legendary figure in Sumerian literature 10. __________ land with different territories and people under single rule 11. _____________ Akkadian emperor who ruled the world’s first permanent military 12. _____________ the belief in many gods 13. ______________ people who performed religious ceremonies 14. _____________ the division of society by rank or class Priests Social Hierarchy City-States Sargon Polytheism Gilgamesh Empire

Writing The Sumerians invented the world’s first system of writing - Cuneiform.

Cuneiform • The ancient Sumerians believed in education. Record keeping was very important to them. They wanted their sons to learn how to read and write. • Their written language began as pictographs, pictures of things that acted as words. Pictographs worked, but they were rather cumbersome. • Soon, the clever ancient Sumerians started to use wedge-shaped symbols for objects and ideas instead of pictures. • Today, we call this written language of wedge-shaped symbols cuneiform.

Writing • We know a great deal about the ancient Sumerian civilization from the written records they left behind in stone and clay. The ancient Sumerians kept excellent records and lists of things. • They listed their household goods. They listed their court activity. They listed their sales and purchases. They even kept a list of their kings that was updated from time to time, as new kings came to power.

Words • Some Mesopotamian words are still in use today. Words like crocus, which is a flower, and saffron, which is a spice, are words borrowed from the ancient Mesopotamians.

Gilgamesh • One of the best things the ancient Sumerians wrote down was a great story called The Epic of Gilgamesh. The Epic (long poem) of Gilgamesh is perhaps the oldest recorded story in the world. • It tells about the adventures of a king of Uruk, one of the city-states in ancient Sumer. King Gilgamesh may actually have existed. His name is on the list of Sumerian kings, a list we know about because the ancient Sumerians wrote it down.

Gilgamesh • According to the story, Gilgamesh was not just a hero. He was the first superhero! • He was part god and part human. He had many special powers.

Advances & Inventions • Advances and Inventions – Mesopotamians achieved in many forms of technology! • Wheel • Sailboat • Plow • Sewers • Bronze tools and weapons • Glass and Jewelry • Math • Science • Astronomers and the Lunar Calendar • Medicine • Frying pans • Razors • Cosmetic sets • Shepherd’s pipes • Harps • Kilns to cook bricks and pottery • Bronze hand tools like hammers and axes • Plow seeder

Math and Science Sumerian Calendar • They invented a system of mathematics based on the number 60. • Today, we divide an hour into 60 minutes, and a minute into 60 seconds. • Circles divided into 360 degrees. • Year into 12 months.

Science Calendars were created to keep track of the seasons – and more importantly – the Floods!

Art Lyre – plays music • The Arts – the Mesopotamians designed great building and numerous works of art! • Architecture – the study of building • Arch • Ziggurat • Music • Instruments • Sculptures • Jewelry • Cylinders

Ziggurat – with arches as doorways

Cylinders • A cylinder seal is a cylinder engraved with a 'picture story', used in ancient times to roll an impression onto a two-dimensional surface, generally wet clay. Cylinder seals were invented around 3500 BC. • Cylinder seals are important to historians as they often tell a story about a specific timeline and civilization. Images depicted on cylinder seals were mostly theme-driven, often sociological or religious

Seals and Cylinders

Unit 2 - Mesopotamia