


“Land between the rivers”
Between the Tigris River and Euphrates River
Fertile Crescent


Little rain
Silt from river

Flooding


Snow melt
Irrigation and drainage ditches
Allowed for systematic agriculture
 Abundance of food
 Allowed for large cities, civilization

 Assyria
 Akkad
 Sumer
The rampant flood which no man can oppose,
Which shakes the heavens and causes earth to
tremble,
In an appalling blanket folds mother and child,
And drowns the harvest in its time of ripeness.


Harsh climate and frequent famines
Polytheism (poly = many, theos = god)

Belief in many gods
 Nearly 3000 gods and goddesses

Humans obey and serve gods
 Work hard to keep them happy

Anu



Enki





Sky god
Father of gods, evil spirits, and demons
God of water
Created man
Assign roles to each god
Established civilizations
Enlil

God of wind and agriculture

3000 BCE

Established many cities in southern Mesopotamia
 Eridu
 Ur
 Uruk

City-states
 City and surrounding lands

Uruk (2700 BCE)
Walls 6 miles long
 Towers every 30-35 feet
 Population: 50,000
 Social stratification

 Small houses for peasants
 Larger buildings for city officials, priests, etc.
 Social identity

Mud-brick houses
Ur (2100 BCE)

Ziggurat


Massive stepped tower on which temple was built
Center of city
 Physically
 Economically
 Politically
Surplus food
stored in temple


Theocracy


Believed gods ruled cities
Priests and priestesses very powerful
 Divine authority

Kings
 Led armies
 Public works
 Organized workers
“You in your judgment, you are the son of Anu.
Your commands, like the work of a god, cannot
be reversed. Your words, like rain pouring down
from heaven, are without number”
-- Anonymous Sumerian


Farming
Industry
Textiles
 Pottery
 Metalworking

Trade

 Copper

 Weapons
 Jewelry
Import
 Tin
 Timber

Export
 Fish
 Wool
 Barley
 Wheat
 Metal goods

Land

Wheel
 Invented around 3000 BCE
 Made transport much easier

Water

Seas and rivers

Nobles



Commoners






Royalty
Religious officials
Palace workers
Farmers
Merchants
Fishers
Craftsmen
Slaves

Cuneiform


Clay tablets
Stylus
 Tool for writing

Record-keeping


Trade records
Day-to-day activities

Scribes



Accounting and record-keeping
Educated males
Training




Sunrise to sunset
Copy texts
Probably boring
Very harsh
In the tablet-house, the monitor said to me:
“Why are you late?” I was afraid, my heart beat
Fast. I entered before my teacher, took my place.
My “school-father” read my tablet to me,
Said, “The word is cut off,” caned me.
He who was in charge of drawing said “Why when
I was not here did you stand up?” caned me.
He who was in charge of the gate said “Why
when I was not here did you go out?” caned me.
My teacher said “Your hand is not good,” caned me.
“What did you do in school?”
“I read my tablet, wrote it, finished
it; then my prepared lines were
prepared for me and in the
afternoon, my hand copies were
prepared for me

The Epic of Gilgamesh

Wheel


Potter’s wheel


Make pottery more easily
Sundial


Transport people and goods more easily
Keep time
Arch

Stronger construction

Metalwork


Bronze = copper + tin
Mathematics
60-base number system
 Geometry


Astronomy
Charted constellations
 Hour = 60 minutes
