Transcript Mesopotamia Ch. 3

Dating Events
BC= Before Christ
 AD= Anno Domini (In the year of our
Lord)
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BCE= Before Common Era
 CE= Common Era
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Why the change?
We are presently 2014 AD or CE.
Something that happened 1,000 BC
happened how long ago?
Mesopotamia
Ch. 3
You and your classmates are on a deserted island. Would you be a
civilization?
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1. Would you have a government? If yes,
please describe.
2. What one item would each person bring and why?
3. What jobs would each person on the island do?
How does this make an economy?
4. What would you be wearing and how would you get
the needed materials?
5. What skills do you possess that would contribute to
your group?
6. Would your group get along? Why or Why not?
7. How long do you think you would survive? Explain
why.
8. What would I find on your island in two years?
Explain why.
What is a civilization?
Writing System
 Government
 Religion
 Towns
 Permanent shelters
 Food producers
 Technology
 Able to adapt to or change environment
 Specialization of labor
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The invention of Agriculture
changed the way people lived.
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Agriculture (Farming)
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Growth of Cities
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Division of Labor
(Specialization)
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Trade
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Writing and Mathematics
I. Rise of Sumer
 Civilization
began here in 3500BC Why?
 Tigris and Euphrates Rivers
 Life
– First writing system-Cuneiform
– Controlled their environment
 Used
irrigation
 Levees
 Used mud bricks for
Sumer continued
– City states formed
 City
with surrounding farmland
 Cities made of mud brick
 Ziggurat (Temple)
 Walls built around cities
– Religion
 Polytheistic
 Had
to please gods
 Kings served as religious leaders
Ziggurat – Holy Mountain
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Click on the pictures for more information on ziggurats.
Sumerian Religion
Sumerians
worshipped
many gods, not
just one. This
belief in many
gods is called
polytheism.
“Poly” means
many and
“Theism”
means gods.
The picture above shows a ziggurat.
Ziggurats were the main temples used to
worship the gods of a city. Ziggurats were
built in the center of the city. They had steps
and ramps, and it was believed that the gods
descended to the Earth using the ziggurat as a
ladder.
A Sumerian City
Sumerian city
streets were so
narrow that you
could hardly get a
cart through them.
Sumerian houses
faced away from
crowded streets.
Instead, they faced
onto courtyards
where families ate
and children played.
Narrow Streets
Courtyard Area
Ziggurat- Mountain of God
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What is an Empire?
Why would someone want to rule an
Empire?
World Conquerors
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Alexander the Great
Napoleon
Charlemagne
Julius Ceasar
Atilla the Hun
II. Mesopotamian Empires
Advantages vs Disadvantages
People for army
 More tax money
 More natural
resources
 Trade opportunities
 Job opportunities
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Waste disposal
 Defense
 Helping needy
 Protecting borders
 Governing over the
people fairly
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Empires con’t
 Hammurabi-
– Babylonian Empire
– Wanted people happy under his rule
Improved irrigation systems
Adopted Sumerian language and religion
Government housing program
God of Babylon became main God
Code of law established
Hammurabis Code Review
Ishtar Gate- Babylon’s main
entrance
III. Contributions of the Ancient
Mesopotamians
Writing System
 Schools
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– Learn writing and math
Wheel- see next page
 Sail
 Plow
 Calendar
 Tools made of bronze(copper and tin)
 Literature- story of Gilgamesh
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– Searching for immortality
24 hour day, 60 minutes, and 60 seconds
 Game backgammon
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2. Invention of the Wheel
Up till now, it is still a mystery as to who invented the wheel and when the
wheel was invented. According to archaeologists, it was probably invented
in around 8,000 B.C. in Asia. The oldest wheel known however, was
discovered in Mesopotamia and probably dates back to 3,500 B.C.
This wheel was believed to have been made by the Sumerians. It was made
of planks of wood joined together. The picture below briefly describes the
stages of development of the wheel.
Stage one: Early men placed rollers beneath heavy objects so that they
could be moved easily.
Stage two: Early men began to place runners under a heavy load, which
they discovered would make it easier for the load to drag. This was the
invention of the sledge.
Stage three: Men began to combine the roller and the sledge. As the
sledge moved forward over the first roller, a second roller was placed under
the front end to carry the load when it moved off the first roller. A model of
a sledge with such rollers is in the Smithsonian Institution.
Stage four: Soon, men discovered that the rollers which carried the sledge
became grooved with use. They soon discovered that these deep grooves
actually allowed the sledge to advance a greater distance before the next
roller was needed to come on!
Thus, in Stage five: The rollers were changed into wheels. In the process
of doing so, wood between the grooves of the roller were cut away to form
an axle and wooden pegs were fastened to the runners on each side of the
axle. When the wheels turn, the axle turned too in the space between the
pegs. The first wooden cart was thus made.
Stage six: A slight improvement was made to the cart. This time, instead
of using pegs to join the wheels to the axle, holes for the axle were drilled
through the frame of the cart. Axle and wheels were now made separately.