Transcript Early Societies of the Tigris & Euphrates Valley

(Mesopotamia)
Jenny McCarthy
 Check your atlas and see if you can locate it.
 Check your atlas and see if you can locate it.
 Have you found it?
 Check your atlas and see if you can locate it.
 Have you found it?
 Does it look like this?
 Can you tell me what
Continent it can be found in?
 Mesopotamia is an area geographically located
between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers.
 Mesopotamia means the land between two rivers.
 Mesopotamia began as urban societies in southern
Iraq in 5000 BC, and ends in the 6th century BC.
 Why do civilisations settle beside rivers?
 Water
 Soil enrichment
 Food
 Fishing
 Even though there wasn’t a
constant supply of water to these
rivers, the soil was enriched and
extremely suitable for growing
crops.
 Farming and trade were the two
main aspects of the
Mesopotamian economy.
 Can you recall what ‘economy’
means?
 The people of Mesopotamia were known for their
metal-work, woollen textiles and pottery.
 Copper, tin and timber were imported and exchanged
for dried fish, wool and metal goods.
 Around 3000 B.C. the invention of the wheel was
created making transportation of goods easier and
quicker
 There were three major social groups in the Mesopotamian city
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states
The groups were the nobles, commoners, and the slaves
The Nobles included many of the royal and religious officials
The Commoners worked for palace and temple domain, they also
worked as farmers, merchants, and crafts people
The slaves worked in building buildings and also belonged to the
palace officials
 More than 90 percent of the people in Mesopotamia were farmers
due to the rich soil
 The most famous and important building
in the Mesopotamian city was the temple
dedicated to the gods and goddesses of the
city.
 The temple was called a ziggurat and was
built atop a massive stepped tower
 Houses were built by sun-dried bricks
 A small portion of buildings were made by
stone or wood
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Tools
Saws
Chisels
Hammers
Braces
Bits
Nails
Pins
Rings
Hoes
Glue
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Weapons
Arrowheads
Axes
Knives
Swords
Daggers
Clubs
Armour
 Were these civilisations technologically advanced?
 Well, you might be surprised.
 Writing system
 Number system
 First wheeled vehicles
 Irrigation systems
 Boats
 Calendar
 What they believed:
In Mesopotamia, each town and city was believed to be
protected by a god
The Mesopotamians believed that these pyramid
temples connected heaven and earth
At first, many religious events were held at the temple
but later as priesthood developed, the temple became
the centre of both religion and learning for the entire
community.
 One of the greatest
accomplishments of the
Mesopotamian people was the
invention of the earliest known
system of writing
They created written documents
by using a triangular-tipped
stylus to make wedge-shaped
impressions in soft clay
 In groups of 3, prepare a short presentation on
Mesopotamia.
Include the following
 It’s location
 It’s dependency on the Tigris & Euphrates rivers
 Skills and Crafts
 Information about roles in society
 Buildings
 Tools/Weapons/Technology
 Briefly explain it’s writing system