The Cosmopolitan Middle East The Seeds of Creativity

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The Cosmopolitan Middle East The Seeds of
Creativity
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Akkadian/ Early Babylonian Period (2350-1650 BC)
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Akkadian/ Early Babylonian Period (2350-1650 BC)

• Descendants of Shem
• Semitic language (Arabic, Hebrew, etc)
• Creative Contributions
• Standing army
• System of royal servants and landholders
• Poetry/epic
• Written law
• Governmental bureaucracy
• Mathematics

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Akkadian/ Early Babylonian Period (2350-1650 BC)

• Standing army
• Led by Sargon I the King of Akkad
• Conquered the Sumerians
• Expanded the empire greatly (paid the army from
  the spoils of war)
• New lands and territories that had to be
  controlled
• Royal servants given new lands
• Very loyal
• Created economic vigor in trade
• Created intelligent division of labor

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Akkadian/ Early Babylonian Period (2350-1650 BC)

• Poetry
• Epic of Gilgamesh
• About 2000 B.C.
• Oldest known literary document
• Account of King Gilgamesh
• Includes a flood story (similar to Bible)

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Akkadian/ Early Babylonian Period (2350-1650 BC)

• Written Law The Code of Hammurabi
• Developed by King Hammurabi (1700 B.C.)
• Great leader, ruled during the cultural pinnacle
  of the early Babylonian Period
• Personally supervised navigation, construction of
  temples, agriculture, and tax collection.
• First set of laws (predates Moses by 200 years)
• Brought uniformity to society
• Reduced resentment and possibilities for revolt
• Engraved on 8-foot stella (pillar)

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Code of Hammurabi Trial by ordeal

• "If a man has accused another of laying a death
  spell upon him, but has not proved it, the
  accused shall go to the sacred river, he shall
  plunge in the sacred river, and if the sacred
  river shall conquer him, he that accused him
  shall take possession of his house. If the sacred
  river shall show his innocence and he is saved,
  his accuser shall be put to death. He that
  plunged in the sacred river shall appropriate the
  house of him that accused him."

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Hammurabi Code vs The Bible

• Source God
• Religious Strong
• Capital crimes
• Murder (unless God delivered him)
• Smite or curse parents
• Steal man and sell him
• Killed fetus
• Adultery
• Justice Eye for eye or compensation
• Equality No differences
• Responsibility Repeated ox goring

• Source Existing laws
• Religious Little
• Capital crimes
• False accusation or witness
• Stolen temple goods
• Stolen child
• Assisted fleeing slave
• Adultery
• Justice Eye for eye or compensation
• Equality Changes by rank
• Responsibility Surgeon, home builder

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Akkadian/ Early Babylonian Period (2350-1650 BC)

• Governmental Bureaucracy
• Established by King Hammurabi
• Administrators paid by the government (local
  taxes), unlike Sargon Is.
• Could keep an eye on empire without expensive and
  continuous military entanglements.

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Akkadian/ Early Babylonian Period (2350-1650 BC)

• Mathematics
• Decimal and sexigesimal system
• 60 and 360 religious numbers
• Sexigesimal numbers today
• Circle
• Time
• Placeholder concept
• No Concept of Zero

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Hittites (1450-1200 B.C.)

• From Anatolia (present day Turkey)
• Creative Contribution
• Iron

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Hittites (1450-1200 B.C.)

• Iron
• Much harder and stronger than all former metals
• Found in natural state (soft)
• Gold and copper
• Bronze (copper with tin)
• Brass (copper with zinc)
• Iron required much higher temperatures
• Conquered Mesopotamia because of weapon strength
  (1650 B.C)
• Agricultural productivity higher when farming
  tools were made of iron
• Started the move from the Bronze Age to the Iron
  Age (1500 B.C.)

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Assyrians (900-626 B.C.)

• Creative contribution
• Torture
• Creativity can be good or bad
• Extremely vicious
• Entire cities surrendered because of fear
• Conquered Mesopotamia from within the territory
  of old Babylonian empire
• Capital was Ninevah (Jonah story)
• Captured the 10 tribes and carried them northward
  (721 BC)
• Defeated by the Babylonians and Medes (626 BC)

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EgyptCreativity for Eternity
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Egypt

• Began about 3500BC
• Independent for 2000 years
• 31 dynasties
• 4 great kingdoms or periods
• Old Kingdom
• Middle Kingdom
• New Kingdom
• Late Period (non-independent)
• Geography was a blessing and a downfall

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Geography and Stability

• The Nile River
• Predictable and gentle flooding
• Replenished the soil, thus allowing for 3000
  years of continual planting
• Consistent flood times
• Consistent flood amounts
• Planned irrigation
• Allowed for enough crops for a very large
  population

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Geography and Stability

• Isolation
• Only realistic route for an invader is over the
  Isthmus of Suez
• Egypt able to defend it
• Egypt was not influenced by outsiders for 1000s
  of years
• Even when Egypt became dominated by outside
  rulers, it held onto its own laws, culture,
  religion and kings.

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Creativity

• Creativity and Change
• Old Kingdom was uniting and conquering
• Temples and religion demanded creativity
• Surplus of labor. The Pharaoh put them to work on
  elaborate construction projects.
• Stagnant but Stable
• Middle and New Kingdoms
• Fear of upsetting the profitable system, Egypt
  stopped creativity
• Delicate balance between gods, nature, and
  choices of the people
• Pharaohs lost the ability to bring change

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New Kingdom (1550 - 1050 BC)

• Began with overthrow of the Hyksos. The pharaoh
  knew not Joseph (Exodus 18)
• Ended with the Third Intermediate Period, led by
  foreign rulers and internal fighting
• Creativity
• Temples
• Luxor and Karnak
• Strong pharoahs

Luxor
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Karnak Temple
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New Kingdom (1550 - 1050 BC)

• Strong Pharaohs
• Akhenaton (monotheistic)

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New Kingdom (1550 - 1050 BC)

• Strong Pharaohs
• Queen Hatshepsut

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New Kingdom (1550 - 1050 BC)

• Strong Pharaohs
• Rameses II (military)
• Moses' enemy?

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New Civilizations

• Nubia
• 3100 B.C.E. 350 C.E.

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Nubia

• Located in Nile valley from Aswan south to
  Khartoum
• Forms a link between tropical Africa and the
  Mediterranean world.
• Natural resources included
• Gold, semi-precious stones, copper.

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Development of Civilization

• Spurred by need for
• Irrigated Agriculture
• Trade with Egypt
• Nubian and Egyptian culture developed through
  mutual influence and borrowing.

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Trade and Occupation

• Early Nubia carried out trade with Old Kingdom
  Egypt
• Northern part of Nubia was occupied by Egypt
  during Middle Kingdom period

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Kingdom of Kush

• Kingdom of Kush developed in southern part of
  Nubia by 1750 B.C.E.
• Kush noted from metalworking and construction
• Egypt invaded Kush during New Kingdom period.
• Resulted in Egyptian occupation that exploited
  Nubian laborers

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Kushite Pyramids
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Kingdom of Meroë

• 800 B.C.E.-350 C.E.
• This kingdom ruled Egypt as the 25th Dynasty.
• Nubian Kingdom had a capital at Napata.
• Napata period characterized by Egyptian cultural
  influence.
• In 4th century, moved capital to Meroë.
• Better for agriculture and trade

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Meroë

• Ruling dynasty of Meroë practiced a matrilineal
  family system
• Queens were very influential
• Dominated trade routes
• Used reservoirs to catch rainfall
• Became important center for iron smelting

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Decline of Meroë

• Shift in trade routes
• Rise of kingdom of Aksum
• Depredations of camel-riding nomads