The Land Between Two Rivers

1

• The Land Between Two Rivers

2
Climate

• Hot Dry
• Very Harsh
• Intense Rainstorms
• Temperatures often above 100 degrees Fahrenheit
• Would be desert if not for the rivers

3
Instructions

• Student Handout
• The Fertile Crescent

4
(No Transcript)
5
Geography

• Eastern part of the Fertile Crescent
• The northern part was referred to as Akkad and
  the southern part was Sumer.
• Irrigation (series of canals) made farming
  possible in this dry land
• Many floods, which carried great amount of silt
  allowed the soil to be constantly replenished
• Today, present day Iraq is mostly desert. The
  land that was once marshes and channels that
  provided food, protection and life to the people
  there, no longer exists.

• Greek word that means between two rivers
• It refers to the Tigris the Euphrates Rivers
• These two rivers flow into the Persian Gulf
• One of the worlds earliest civilizations that
  existed between 5000-539 B.C.E.
• Present day Iraq

6
(No Transcript)
7
(No Transcript)
8
Levees

• People were attracted to Mesopotamia Area because
  of the natural levees that occurred along the
  Euphrates River.
• Natural levees are embankments produced by the
  sediment that builds up after thousands of years
  of flooding.
• The levee surface slopes gently downward away
  from the river.
• Aside from protection, the silt and sediment was
  fertile, easily drained, planted, irrigated and
  cultivated.

9
(No Transcript)
10
(No Transcript)
11
Increased cultivated landIncrease in food
production, therefore, population increased.

• It was in this region that humans first abandoned
  their nomadic lifestyle and built permanent
  settlements.
• Mesopotamia was not a single civilization or
  culture.
• It was an area that was composed of several
  independent city-states, each with its own
  religion, laws, language and government.

12
Instructions

• Brainpop Time
• The Sumerians

13
The Sumerians

• The first group to inhabit Mesopotamia.

14
The Sumerians

• 4000 B.C.E.
• They lived in southern Mesopotamia in a number of
  independent city-states.
• Each consisted of a small city and its
  surrounding area.
• The rulers of these city-states constantly were
  at war with one another.

15
(No Transcript)
16
The Sumerians

• They used money, which made individuals wealthy.
• The head of the military would become King.
• War leaders evolved into hereditary rulers.

17
Social Structure
18
The Royal Standard of Ur
19
Ziggurat

• In the center of each city was a temple that
  housed the citys gods.
• A ziggurat was a step pyramid that was a
  religious temple.
• They were polytheistic, which means they believed
  in many gods.
• They believed that the gods controlled every
  aspect of nature and everyday life
• It was vital to obey the gods and keep them happy
  with daily offerings or the gods would send wars,
  floods, diseases to punish the people.
• The priest was the only one allowed in ziggurats
  therefore, he was very important.

20
(No Transcript)
21
Ziggurat at Ur

• Temple
• Mountain of the Gods

22
(No Transcript)
23
Cuneiform

• The earliest writing was based on pictograms,
  which were used to communicate information about
  taxes and crops.
• Ancient Sumerian record keepers marked
  pictographic symbols in soft pieces of clay with
  a pointed reed. The clay tablets were then baked
  to make them hard.
• Overtime, writing was changed into a script
  called cuneiform.
• Cuneiform means wedged shaped, because the marks
  in the clay were wedges.
• Not everyone learned to read and write. The ones
  that were picked by the gods were called scribes.
  Boys that were chosen to become scribes
  (professional writers) began to study at the age
  of 8. They finished when they were 20 years old.

24
(No Transcript)
25
Sumerian Scribes
Tablet House
26
(No Transcript)
27
(No Transcript)
28
Deciphering Cuneiform
29
Inventions

• Cuneiform
• The wheel, which was first used for pottery and
  then the 1st wheeled vehicles.
• They developed a number system based on the unit
  60. They divided the hour into 60 minutes and
  the circle into 360 degrees. They also developed
  basic algebra and geometry.
• The water clock.
• The 12 month calendar
• The plow
• The Sailboat

30
(No Transcript)
31
Royal Tombs of Ur

• From 1922 to 1934, an archaeologist named C.
  Leonard Woolley excavated the site of the ancient
  Sumerian city of Ur
• City famed in Bible as the home of patriarch
  Abraham
• many great discoveries such as extravagant
  jewelry of gold, cups of gold and silver, bowls
  of alabaster, and extraordinary objects of art
  and culture
• opened the world's eyes to the full glory of
  ancient Sumerian culture
• Great Death Pit
• Found at Ur was a mass grave containing the
  bodies of 6 guards and 68 court ladies (servants
  of kings and queens)
• servants walked down into the grave in a great
  funeral procession
• they drank a  poisoned  drink and fell asleep
  never to wake again, choosing to accompany the
  kings and queens in the afterlife

32
Board Game From Ur
33
Musical Instrument
34
Mesopotamian Harp
35
(No Transcript)
36
The Akkadians
37
(No Transcript)
38
The Akkadians

• They were from the Arabian Peninsula.
• They were Semitic people. They spoke Semitic
  language related to languages similar to Arabic
  Hebrew.
• They formed their own country called Akkad.
• Sargon I conquered the Sumerians in about 2500
  B.C.E. He united Akkad Sumer into a nation
  called the Kingdom of Sumer.
• They adopted much of the Sumerian Culture. They
  had many clashes with the Sumerians.

39
Sargon of Akkad unified The Worlds First
Empire
40
Instructions

• Student Handout
• Mesopotamia
• The Sumerians
• Akkadians

41
The Babylonians
42
The Babylonians

• Henry Rawlinson of England helped find the key to
  understanding the Babylonian Language.
• About 1790 B.C.E. King Hammurabi conquered
  city-states in the Tigris-Euphrates valley and
  formed the Babylonian Empire
• Adapted and built upon the Sumerian Culture.
• Recorded their laws and customs in the Code of
  Hammurabi, which was the 1st major collection of
  laws.
• Believed in astrology and recorded data later
  essential to astronomy. They also made
  horoscopes.
• Scribes became leading citizens, as they were
  educated.
• Practices polytheism.
• Marduk God of Earth Anu God of
  Heavens
• Developed a 12 month calendar with 354 days.

43
Instructions

• Student Handout
• Babylonia

44
Babylonian Math
45
Babylonian Numbers
46
Babylonians
47
The Code of Hammurabi

• The 282 laws were engraved in stone and placed in
  a public location for everyone to see.
• Hammurabi required that people be responsible for
  their actions.
• Some of Hammurabis laws were based on the
  principle An eye of an eye, a tooth for a tooth
  This means that whoever commits an injury should
  be punished in the same manner as that injury.
• An example, would be if a son slapped his father,
  the sons hand would be cut off.
• The code did distinguish between classes of
  people. A persons punishment would depend on
  who was wronged.
• Consequences for crimes depended on rank in
  society (ie. only fines for nobility)

48
Hammurabis r. 1792-1750 B. C. E. Code
49
Hammurabi, the Judge
50
Instructions

• Student Handout
• Activity
• The Code of Hammurabi

51
Below are situations Hammurabi faced.  Decide
what you think to be a fair way to deal with the
problem.
52
What should be done to the carpenter who builds a
house that falls and kills the owner?

• Code 229
• If a builder builds a house for a man and does
  not make its construction sound, and the house
  which he has built collapses and causes the death
  of the owner of the house, the builder shall be
  put to death.

53
What should be done when a "sister of god" (or
nun) enters the wine shop for a drink?

• Code 110
• If a "sister of god" (nun) who is not living in a
  convent opens a wine shop or enters a wine shop
  for a drink, they shall burn that woman

54
What happens if a man is unable to pay his debts?

• Code 117
• If a man be in debt and is unable to pay his
  creditors, he shall sell his wife, son, or
  daughter, or bind them over to service. For three
  years they shall work in the houses of their
  purchaser or master in the fourth year they
  shall be given their freedom

55
What happens to the wine seller who fails to
arrest bad characters gathered at her shop?

• Code 108
• If bad characters gather in the house of a wine
  seller and she does not arrest those characters
  and bring them to the palace, that wine seller
  shall be put to death.

56
What should be done about a wife who ignores her
duties and belittles her husband?

• Code 143
• If the woman has not been careful but has gadded
  about, neglecting her house and belittling her
  husband, they shall throw that woman into the
  water

57
What should be done if a son is adopted and then
the birth-parents want him back?

• Code 185
• If a man takes in his own home a young boy as a
  son and rears him, one may not bring claim for
  that adopted son.

58
What should happen to a boy who slaps his father?

• Code 195
• If a son strikes his father, they shall cut off
  his hand.

59
How is the truth determined when one man brings
an accusation against another

• Code 2
• If any one bring an accusation against a man, and
  the accused go to the river and leap into the
  river, if he sink in the river his accuser shall
  take possession of his house. But if the river
  prove that the accused is not guilty, and he
  escape unhurt, then he who had brought the
  accusation shall be put to death, while he who
  leaped into the river shall take possession of
  the house that had belonged to his accuser

60
The Epic of Gilgamesh

• A long, narrative poem, The Epic of Gilgamesh, is
  one of the oldest works of literature in the
  world Epic Poem.
• The poem tells of a great flood that covers the
  earth may years earlier.

• The story details the exploits of King Gilgamesh
  and his companion, Enkidu.

61
Gilgamesh
62
Gilgamesh Epic TabletFlood Story
63
The Chaldean Empire
64
The Chaldean Empire

• 612 B.C. 538 B.C.
• Known as The Neo Babylonia Empire
• Suffering under the Assyrians, the city of
  Babylon finally rose up against its hated enemy,
  the city of Nineveh, the capital of the Assyrian
  empire, and burned it to the ground.
• Conquered the Phoenicians.
• Forced a large part of the Jewish population to
  relocate. Numbering possibly up to 10,000, these
  Jewish deportees were largely upper class people
  craftspeople. This deportation marks the
  beginning of the Exile in Jewish history.
• Near one the rulers palaces were the famous
  Hanging Gardens built by King Nebuchadnezzar II.

65
The Hittites
66
The Hittites

• 2000 B.C.
• Lived in Central Turkey
• Their culture was greatly influenced by the
  Babylonians
• They were the first to make iron tools and
  weapons, thus credited with starting the Iron Age
  in Western Asia.
• There were many miles between the city-states and
  many city-states maintained their own language
  and religions.
• The city-states often fought among themselves
  until Labarnas became king.

67
The Hittites

• Made peace with Ramses II of Egypt in the 1st
  Peace Treaty.
• Warlike People.
• One the earliest people to ride horses.
• Their laws were considered the fairest of the
  time. Their law tried to compensate the person
  who was wronged.

68
Sophisticated Metallurgy Skillsat Ur
69
(No Transcript)
70
Instructions

• Student Handout
• The Hittites

71
The Assyrians
72
The Assyrians

• 100 BC. - 612 B.C.
• Named after its original capital Ashur.
• Were the first to outfit armies entirely with
  iron weapons. And were the first to have a
  standing army (career soldier).
• To besiege cities, they devised new military
  equipment moveable towers battering rams.
  For 500 years they terrorized the region, earning
  a lasting reputation as one of the most warlike
  people in history.
• They used chariots, which allowed them to move
  quickly. They had archers and a cavalry.

73
The Assyrians

• They terrorized their enemies by deliberately
  employing cruelty violence. They dammed the
  rivers leading into Babylon. This deprived the
  Babylonians of water.
• Women had to be veiled when they appeared in
  public.
• They divided their empire into provinces, which
  had their own governor that was responsible to
  the king. The governor reported directly back to
  the king sending reports by messengers on
  horseback- the first mail delivery system.
• Founded one the 1st libraries

74
Instructions

• Student Handout
• The Assyrians

75
The Persians
76
The Persians

• In 539 B.C., Babylon fell to the Persian armies
  of Cyrus the Great.
• Located in present-day Iran
• The Persians were tolerant of the people they
  conquered. They respected the customs
  religious traditions of the diverse group in
  their empire.
• The real unification of the Persian Empire was
  accomplished under the Persian emperor Darius,
  who ruled from 522486 BC

77
The Persians

• A skilled organizer, Darius set up a government
  that became a model for later rulers.
• He divided the Persian Empire into provinces,
  each headed by a governor called a satrap.
• Each satrapy, or province, had to pay taxes based
  on its wealth and resources.
• Special officials, the eyes and ears of the
  king, visited each province to check on the
  satraps.

78
The Persians

• Like Hammurabi, Darius adapted laws from the
  people he conquered and drew up a single code of
  laws for the empire.
• By setting up a single Persian coinage, Darius
  created economic links.
• Zoroaster guided religious beliefs and also
  helped unify the empire. He rejected the old
  Persian gods. Instead, he taught that a single
  wise god, Ahura Mazda, ruled the world.

79
(No Transcript)
80
The Phoenicians
81
The Phoenicians

• 1200-800 B.C.
• Prospered on the Mediterranean coast north of
  Palestine.
• Their chief cities were Tyre Sidon
• They gained fame as sailors traders
• They made glass from coastal sand.
• From a tiny sea snail, they produced a widely
  admired purple dye, called Tyrian purple. This
  became their trademark and the favourite colour
  of royalty.

82
The Phoenicians

• The words Bible Bibliography come from the
  Phoenician city of Byblos.
• Due to their sailing skills, the Phoenicians
  served as missionaries of civilization, bringing
  eastern Mediterranean products and culture to
  less advanced peoples.
• Replaced the cuneiform alphabet of 550 characters
  with a phonetic alphabet, based on distinct
  sounds, consisting of 22 letters.

83
(No Transcript)
84
The Hebrews (Israelites)
85
The Hebrews (Israelites)

• They recorded events and laws in the Torah their
  most sacred text.
• To the Hebrews, history and religion were
  interconnected.
• According to The Old Testament,, the male leader
  of the Hebrews was Abraham (2000 B.C.).
• Abraham changed peoples belief in many gods to
  one God called Yahweh.

86
The Hebrews (Israelites)

• According to the Torah, the Hebrews had lived
  near Ur in Mesopotamia. About 2000 B.C., they
  migrated, herding their flocks of sheep and goats
  into a region known as Canaan (later called
  Palestine).
• Abrahams grandson was Jacob, who was known as
  Israel and that is where the term Israelites
  comes from.
• The Book of Genesis tells that around 1800 B.C. a
  famine in Canaan forced many Hebrews to migrate
  to Egypt (led by Jacobs son Joseph). There,
  they were eventually enslaved. In time, Moses,
  the adopted son of the pharaohs daughter, led
  the Hebrews in their escape, or exodus, from
  Egypt.

87
The Hebrews (Israelites)

• For 40 years, the Hebrews wandered in the Sinai
  Peninsula. After Moses died, they entered Canaan
  and defeated the people there, claiming for
  themselves the land they believed God had
  promised them.
• By 1000 B.C., the Hebrews had set up the kingdom
  of Israel. Among the most skillful rulers of
  Israel were David, Saul and Solomon.
• Saul was the 1st king of the Israelites.
• According to Hebrew tradition, David was a humble
  shepherd who defeated a huge Philistine warrior,
  Goliath. Later, David became a strong, shrewd
  king who united the feuding Hebrew tribes under a
  single nation.

88
The Hebrews (Israelites)

• Davids son Solomon, turned Jerusalem into an
  impressive capital. He built a splendid temple
  dedicated to God, as well as an enormous palace
  for himself. King Solomon won praise for his
  wisdom and understanding. He also tried to
  increase Israels influence by negotiating with
  powerful empires in Egypt and Mesopotamia.
• The kingdom of Israel paid a heavy price for
  Solomons ambitions. His building projects
  required such heavy taxes and so much forced
  labour that revolts erupted soon after his death
  about 930 B.C. The kingdom then split into Israel
  in the north and Judah in the south.

89
The Hebrews (Israelites)

• Weakened by this division, the Hebrews could not
  fight off invading armies. During their
  captivity, the Hebrews became known as the Jews.
• In time, Hebrew beliefs evolved into the religion
  we know today as Judaism.
• The Ten Commandments Laws set out both
  religious duties toward God and rules for moral
  conduct toward other people.

90
(No Transcript)
91
(No Transcript)
92
The Lydians
93
The Lydians

• 8th Century B.C. to 546 B.C.
• Known for their coins (made of gold and silver),
  which became the first monetary system in the
  ancient world.
• Great traders that sparked a commercial
  revolution.
• Croesus, the king, was thought to
• be the richest king in the ancient world.

94
Instructions

• Student Handout
• Mesopotamia
• Crossword Puzzle
• Name the Kingdom