Introduction to Ancient Civilizations
Mr. D’Orazio, PA @ 71
Mesopotamian Civilization 3100 BCE – 539 BCE
• Mesopotamia ~ “Between
the Rivers” in Greek.
• Series of civilizations that
lived between the Tigris
and Euphrates rivers
around present-day Iraq.
• The area around these
rivers is known as the
“Fertile Crescent”
Mesopotamia – Important People
Sargon (2300 -2215 BCE)
• King of Akkad who first
united the various
settlements in
Mesopotamia under one
government.
• Among the first rulers to
create a unified, multiethnic empire.
Mesopotamia – Important People
Hammurabi (1792-1750 BCE)
• King of Babylon who wrote
one of the first written
codes of law in history –
The Code of Hammurabi.
• His laws were among the
first that protected the
weak from abuse by the
strong.
Mesopotamia – Important People
Ashurbanipal (685 -627 BCE)
• King of Assyria who was
known as a lover of
learning.
• His library at Nineveh
housed thousands of
written documents on
tablets.
• The library is now at the
British Museum, London.
Mesopotamia – Important People
Nebuchadnezzar II (634-562
BCE)
• Last of the great
Babylonian kings.
• Primarily known as a
military leader.
• His Hanging Gardens of
Babylon were one of the
seven wonders of the
ancient world.
Mesopotamia – Important Contributions
The Wheel
• Invented in Mesopotamia
about 5000 years ago.
• Originally three pieces of
wood tied together with
leather and wooden rods.
• It made transportation and
farming easier and quicker.
Mesopotamia – Important Contributions
Development of Writing
• A kind of symbol writing called
Cuneiform developed from
picture writing.
• A series of wedge shapes in
soft clay that were hardened
into tablets.
• First used for making lists,
cuneiform became used for
letters, records, contracts,
legal documents and
eventually literature.
Mesopotamia – Important Contributions
Mathematics
• Used a number system based
on 60 and developed the
concept of zero.
• Today’s 360-degree circle and
60-minute hour come from
Mesopotamia.
• They also knew basic
geometry and had an
approximate value for pi (π)
Mesopotamia – Important Contributions
Astronomy
• Early astronomy
developed from the
observations of
Babylonian priests.
• They believed the
movement of the stars
could forecast (predict)
events on Earth.
Mesopotamia – Important Contributions
Cities
• After the development of
agriculture, villages developed
along the Tigris-Euphrates
rivers.
• These later became city-states,
which had an urban center,
surrounding villages, and
farmland.
• The most famous cities
included Ur, Uruk, Nineveh
and Babylon
Mesopotamia – Important Contributions
Architecture
• Each city erected a temple
to their particular god.
• The largest were stepped
structures called Ziggurats
made of mud brick.
• Structures similar to the
ziggurat can be seen in
pyramids in Egypt and
temples in Central
America.
Mesopotamia – Important Contributions
Kingship
• Early city-states developed
government based around a
king.
• The king was believed to be
appointed by the gods. The
gods also give the king his
power.
• Kings served as military
leaders, magistrates,
administrators and servants to
the local god.
Mesopotamia – Important Contributions
Written codes of law
• Early kings needed written
laws to ensure justice and
equal protection.
• Hammurabi’s code is
among the best preserved
of these early law codes.
• Laws dealt with contracts,
wills, business dealings,
and crime and punishment
Egyptian Civilization 3100 BCE – 30 BCE
• Egypt – Greek word
• Egyptians called their land
Kemet – “Black land””
• Series of kingdoms that
developed along the Nile
River Valley in present-day
Egypt.
• Egypt flourished by managing
the waters of the Nile through
flooding and irrigation.
Egypt – Important People
Khufu (2589–2566 BCE)
• Early Egyptian
pharaoh (king)
• Mostly known for
construction of the
Great Pyramid and the
Great Sphinx at Giza
Egypt – Important People
Hatshepsut (1508–1458 BCE)
• One of the few women to
become pharaoh of Egypt
• She is usually depicted in
mens clothes.
• Her 22-year reign was
marked by growth in trade
and massive building
projects.
Egypt – Important People
Thutmose III (1481–1425
BCE)
• Became pharaoh on the
death of his stepmother
Hatshepsut.
• He was ancient Egypt’s
greatest military leader
• Egypt’s empire stretched
from Syria to present-day
Sudan.
Egypt – Important People
Tutankhamun (1341–1323
BCE)
• Became pharaoh at nine
and died at eighteen.
• The discovery of his tomb
in 1922 made ancient
Egyptian culture extremely
popular.
• Probably the most famous
pharaoh in the world.
Egypt – Important People
Rameses II (1303 – 1203
BCE)
• Also known as Rameses
the Great.
• Most powerful and
successful pharaoh in
Egyptian history.
• Mentioned in the Biblical
story of the Exodus.
Egypt – Important Contributions
Heiroglyphics
• Heiroglyphs – Greek for
“Sacred Carvings.”
• They were a form of
picture writing developed,
in part, from earlier
Mesopotamian script.
• Contained over 700
symbols for sounds, letters
and words.
Egypt – Important Contributions
Papyrus
• Papyrus was a reed that
grew along the banks of
the Nile.
• Egyptians wove strands of
papyrus to make a writing
material similar to paper.
• The word “paper” comes
from papyrus.
Egypt – Important Contributions
Calendars
• The Egyptians developed
a 365-day year divided
into 12 months.
• Such calendars enabled
Egyptians to date their
own written history.
Egypt – Important Contributions
Large-Scale Irrigation
• Egyptians depended on
the floodwaters of the Nile
to provide enough water
for their crops.
• They developed huge
irrigation projects to
deposit water and silt from
the Nile into Egyptian
farms and fields.
Egypt – Important Contributions
Mathematics
• Egyptians developed
geometry to determine
land boundaries and
build pyramids.
• They developed ways to
measure area, volume,
weight, and length.
Egypt – Important Contributions
Architecture
• Starting in the 4th century
BCE, temples and pyramids
towered over Egypt.
• They were designed as
tombs and storehouses for
the gods.
• They are great feats of
engineering, even by
today’s standards.
Egypt – Important Contributions
Shipbuilding
• Egyptians first built
canoes and barges made
of papyrus reeds.
• By 3000 BCE, they had
invented sails and begun
to build ships out of
wooden planks.
Egypt – Important Contributions
Public Administration
• Egyptian government ran
smoothly thanks to the work of
hundreds of clerks and civil
servants known as scribes.
• They assisted tax collectors in
keeping records of what
everyone owed.
• The scribes would then
distribute the money to various
government projects, keeping
accurate records of how the
funds were spent.
Egypt – Important Contributions
Religion and the Afterlife
• Egyptian religion
emphasized life after death.
• They developed the process
of mummification to
preserve the body for the
afterlife.
• Organs were kept in special
jars, which Egyptians
believed protected them for
eternity.
Greek Civilization 800 BCE – 140 BCE
• A group of competing citystates crowded in presentday Greece and among the
islands of the Aegean Sea.
• Their language, art,
architecture, philosophy,
science, literature and
culture spread across the
Mediterranean and beyond.
Greece – Important Political/Military leaders
Solon (638-558 BCE)
• Helped lay the
foundations for
Athens’ democracy
Cleisthenes (570-508 BCE)
• Known as the father of
Athenian Democracy
Greece – Important Political/Military leaders
Miltiades (550-489 BCE)
•
Olympic charioteer and
Athenian general
against the Persians at
Marathon in 490 BCE.
Leonidas (540?-480 BCE)
• King of Sparta who
bravely led 300
Spartans against the
Persians at
Thermoplyae in 480
BCE.
Themistocles (524-459 BCE)
• Athenian politician and
general responsible for
the Athenian navy.
• Led the Greeks at
Salamis in 480 BCE.
Greece – Important Political/Military leaders
Pericles (495-429 BCE)
• Athenian statesman and general
who led Athens during her Golden
Age.
• Commissioned most of the
buildings on the Acropolis, including
the Parthenon.
• Expanded Athenian power across
the Mediterranean.
Greece – Important Political/Military leaders
Alcibiades (450-404 BCE)
• Athenian general during the second
half of the Peloponnesian War against
Sparta.
• Proposed a disastrous invasion of
Sicily that practically destroyed
Athenian power overnight.
• Changed allegiances several times,
from Athens to Sparta to Persia and
back to Athens.
Greece – Important Political/Military leaders
Alexander III (356-323 BCE)
• Macedonian king known as Alexander the
Great.
• Built one of the largest empires in the
ancient world by the age of 30.
• Tutored by Aristotle, Alexander worked to
spread Greek knowledge and culture from
North Africa to Central Asia.
• The years between Alexander’s reign and
the rise of Rome are known as the
Hellenistic Age, when Greece became the
cultural standard for the known world.
Greece – Important Leaders in Philosophy
Socrates (470-399 BCE)
-Among the most influential
Western philosophers.
- His ideas were mostly
written down by his student
Plato.
Plato (428-347 BCE)
- Student of Socrates who
expanded on his work in
philosophy, ethics, and
government .
Aristotle (384-322 BCE)
- Student of Plato who
wrote on a wide range
of subjects: philosophy,
science, government,
ethics, logic, etc.
Greece – Important Leaders in Science/Medicine
Hippocrates Medicine
Archimedes –
Science,
mathematics
Eratosthenes –
Mathematics,
geography
Pythagoras mathematics
Euclid –
Mathematics,
particularly
Geometry
Greece – Important Leaders in Arts/Literature
Homer - Poetry
Aeschylus Tragedy
Aristophanes Comedy
Euripides Tragedy
Herodotus - History
Sophocles Tragedy
Thucydides - History
Greece – Important Contributions
Language
• Greek developed from
Phoenician and other langauges
of the Mediterranean.
• For centuries, Greek was the
language of culture and learning
in the Eastern world.
• About 30% of words in English
come either directly or
indirectly from Greek,
particularly scientific, academic,
and mathematical terms.
Greece – Important Contributions
Mythology and Literature
• The Greek religion was the
basis for the Greek myths and
legends, the first great works
in Western literature.
• The Greeks perfected lyric and
epic poetry – poetry that told
stories.
• The greatest epic poems were
the Iliad and the Odyssey, both
written by Homer.
Greece – Important Contributions
Theater
• Some of the first plays were
performed in Greece.
• Thousands would gather in
large outdoor theaters to
watch performances of
tragedies and comedies.
• The greatest plays competed
in an annual competition in
Athens honoring the god
Dionysus.
Greece – Important Contributions
Sculpture and Pottery
• The Greeks created many
beautiful works of art.
• Greek sculpture began to
attempt to show the human
body in an accurate way.
• Greek pottery was both
beautiful and informational,
painted with stories from
mythology.
Greece – Important Contributions
Architecture
• The Greeks built beautiful
public buildings.
• The buildings were noted
for lavish use of columns,
harmonious proportions
and a sense of structural
balance.
• Greek architecture inspired
buildings throughout our
history.
Greece – Important Contributions
The Olympic Games
• The Olympic Games were first
held in 776 BCE at Olympia,
and held every four years for
the next 1100 years.
• Victorious athletes would
receive a laurel crown and
would be celebrated
throughout Greece.
• The modern Olympics began
in 1896 in homage to the
ancient games.
Greece – Important Contributions
Science and Mathematics
• Ancient Greek scientists and
mathematicians built on the
advances of Egypt and
Mesopotamia.
• Archimedes, Pythagoras,
Euclid and Eratosthenes
made new discoveries in
science and mathematics.
• Hippocrates is considered
the father of medicine.
Greece – Important Contributions
Government
• The first democracy developed
in Athens in the 6th century
BCE.
• Athenian males who
completed military training
could participate in the
government-about 20% of
Athens’ population.
• Athenian citizens directly
made government decisions
through voting. This is called
direct democracy.
Greece – Important Contributions
Philosophy
• Athens’ decline in the 300’s
BCE began the great age of
philosophy.
• Socrates, Plato and Aristotle
developed new ways of
understanding the world,
human relationships,
government, faith and ethics.
• Students today must still
master the ideas of the great
philosophers of ancient
Greece.
Roman Civilization 700 BCE – 600 CE
• A city along the Tiber
River in Italy, Rome built
the greatest empire in
ancient times.
• The Romans combined
Greek knowledge with
their own contributions in
architecture, science,
literature, military tactics,
law and government.
Rome – Important Political/Military leaders
Romulus and Remus
• According to legend, twin brothers
who founded the city of Rome about
753 BCE.
• Supposed descended from the
Trojans, they were raised by a wolf.
• Romulus would become Rome’s first
king. Rome is named after him.
Rome – Important Political/Military leaders
The Roman Republic (509-27 BCE)
• Rome’s system of government for
almost 500 years.
• A Senate and several lesser assemblies
represented the Roman people in
government.
• Elected consuls were the chief
executives of the republic.
• Many Roman institutions form the basis
for our own system of government.
Rome – Important Political/Military leaders
Gaius Marius (157-86 BCE)
• Roman General and politician often
called Rome’s third founder.
• Reformed the Roman army – began
Rome’s history as a military power.
• Used political influence and military
muscle to become elected consul 7 times.
• His era would start the end of the
Roman Republic and the shift towards
empire.
Rome – Important Political/Military leaders
Spartacus (109? – 71 BCE)
• Slave , possible ex-soldier and gladiator (fighter
for entertainment) from Thrace, or present-day
Bulgaria.
• Leader of the Third Servile War (73-71 BCE), the
largest slave rebellion in Roman history.
• The rebellion came very close to succeeding
before the slave army’s defeat in 71 BCE.
Spartacus’ body was never found.
• Spartacus’ story inspired slave rebellions and
independence movements throughout the world,
including the abolition movement in the US.
Rome – Important Political/Military leaders
Marcus Tullius Cicero (106-43 BCE)
• Orator, lawyer, philosopher and Roman
senator.
• Introduced Rome to the schools of
Greek philosophy.
• Introduced vast new vocabulary to the
Latin language.
• During the civil wars, became an
outspoken supporter of the Roman
Republic.
Rome – Important Political/Military leaders
Gaius Julius Caesar (100-44 BCE)
• Among the most influential Roman
statesmen and generals in history.
• Conquered Gaul (present-day France)
and invaded Britain.
• Eventually won a bloody civil war with
his rival Pompey Magnus, becoming sole
dictator of Rome.
• Assassinated by the Senate amongst
fears he was growing too powerful.
Rome – Important Political/Military leaders
Augustus (63 BCE-14 CE)
• Caesar’s adopted son, then known as
Octavian.
• Defeated his rival Mark Antony at the
Battle of Actium in 31 BCE.
• Senate made him princeps (First Citizen)
in 27 BCE, basically making him the first
emperor.
• Given the title “Augustus” (divine one),
he would found the Roman Empire and
begin 200 years of near-constant peace.
Rome – Important Political/Military leaders
Roman Empire (27 BCE – 476 CE)
• Form of government that replaced the
Roman Republic.
• In the beginning, the institutions of the
Republic still functioned normally, but the
real power lay with the emperor, known as
the princeps (first citizen), imperator
(commander) and pontifex maximus (high
priest).
• By about 280 CE, emperors ruled openly as
absolute monarchs.
Rome – Important Political/Military leaders
Trajan (53 – 117 CE)
• The first Roman emperor born outside Italy,
in present-day Spain.
• Commissioned a massive building program
in Rome, including Trajan’s Column, Trajan’s
Forum and Trajan’s Market.
• His military conquests of Dacia and
Mesopotamia stretched the empire to its
greatest extent.
• Still today considered amongst Rome’s
greatest emperors.
Rome – Important Political/Military leaders
Diocletian (244-311 CE)
• Started to move the empire away from
traditional institutions towards an absolute
monarchy.
• Complete re-organization of the
government and the military, helping the
Empire to last at least another century.
• Was the only Roman emperor to retire
voluntarily. He spent his last years tending
his gardens in his palace in present-day
Croatia.
Rome – Important Political/Military leaders
Constantine the Great (272-337 CE)
• The first Roman Emperor to convert to
Christianity.
• The Edict of Milan of 313 proclaimed
religious tolerance throughout the empire.
• Established a new capital at Byzantium in
Turkey, later known as Constantinople.
• Convened the Council of Nicaea in 325,
which helped develop Christianity as the
official religion of the empire.
Rome – Important Leaders in Arts/Literature
Plautus - Drama
Horace - Poetry
Terence - Drama
Ovid - Poetry
Virgil - Poetry
Seneca - Philosophy
Rome – Important Leaders in Arts/Literature
Tacitus - History
Livy – History
Pliny the Elder – History/Science
Suetonius - History
Pliny the Younger – History
Rome – Important Contributions
Law and Legal System
• Rome’s first legal code, the Law
of the Twelve Tables, was
written around 450 BCE.
• This code developed into a
complex body of laws that have
influenced legal systems in
Europe and the United States.
• The Romans also developed a
system of courts, judges, jurors
and lawyers that is still in use
today.
Rome – Important Contributions
Republican government
• Rome’s first real government
was a republic, where officials
represented the people.
• The Senate and other
assemblies prevented one
individual from gaining too
much power.
• The US system of government is
based to a large extent on the
Roman model.
Rome – Important Contributions
Military Organization
• For centuries, the Roman
army was considered the
greatest in ancient history.
• Roman armies were well
organized and disciplined
with professional soldiers.
• Roman military strategies
became models for future
military commanders, even
today.
Rome – Important Contributions
Alphabet and Language
• Latin was the official language
of the Romans.
• The Roman alphabet became
the basis for the alphabets of
many European countries.
• Italian, Spanish, French,
Portuguese and Romanian all
developed directly from Latin.
• Almost 60% of the words in
English come from either Latin
or a language related to Latin.
Rome – Important Contributions
Architecture and Engineering
• The Romans perfected the arch
and invented concrete.
• They built arched bridges,
domed roofs, and monumental
public buildings.
• Wherever the Romans went,
their architects and engineers
built massive projects.
• Many of these buildings are still
standing, and still being used.
Rome – Important Contributions
Water Supply – City Planning
• Aqueducts carried water long
distances to supply Roman
cities with water for fountains
and bathhouses
• Roman cities had apartment
buildings similar to modern
buildings, with five or six floors.
• Rome was filled with markets,
shopping centers and even fast
food restaurants.
Rome – Important Contributions
Road System
• A vast system of paved
roads bound the empire
together.
• The roads stretched for over
50,000 miles (80,450 km)
across Europe, North Africa
and the Middle East.
• Roman roads became the
basis for Europe’s modern
road and rail network.
Rome – Important Contributions
Calendars
• The Julian Calendar was Rome’s
primary calendar.
• The year was divided into
twelve months, many named
after various gods and
Emperors.
• January = Janus, a two-faced
god.
• March = Mars, god of war.
• July = Julius Caesar
• August = Augustus.
Rome – Important Contributions
Christianity
• Christianity was originally a sect, or
group, of the Judaism. It was
based on the teachings of a Jewish
religious leader named Jesus.
• Missionaries such as Paul used
Roman cities and Roman roads to
spread the new faith across the
empire.
• By 395 CE, Christianity became the
official religion of the Roman
Empire.
• Today, it is one of the largest
religious movements on Earth.