1. The Revolving Door of Mesopotamia

2. Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia means: Mesopotamia means: “land between two rivers”
Civilization developed between The Euphrates and Tigris Rivers
By 3000 B.C. a number of civilizations established by the Sumerians

3. Map of Mesopotamia

4. Role of the Environment
Rivers provided the basics for exsistance
Water
Food
Sanitation

5. Role of the Environment
Problems with living hear a river valley?
Destroyed by frequent floods that ravaged entire cities
Communication amongst the various isolated cities was very difficult

6. Invention of Writing
Origins of Writing probably go back to te ninth millennium B.C.
4th millennium – realized that drawing tokens was easier than making tokens
Result was the development of cuneiform:
“wedge-shaped”
Pictographic system

7. Cuneiform

8. Sumerian Inventions Wagon wheel Potter’s wheel (shape containers)
Number system
12 month calendar
Metal plow
Sail
Some of the earliest known maps
New architecture

9. Sumer, B.C.

10. Sumerian Society
Sumer was different from all other earlier civilizations
Advanced cities
Specialized workers
Complex institutions
record keeping
Advanced technology
Developed city-states
Food surplus > increased population > expanded trade > expansion of Sumerian society

11. Sumer Society Polytheistic - believed in many gods
Wrote myths (Epic of Gilgamesh)
Priests and kings were at the top
Slaves were at the bottom
Women probably couldn’t attend school but had many other rights
Advances in mathematics
Number system based on 60 (60 seconds = 1 minute)

12. From Sumerians to Babylonians
The Sumerians city-states eventually fell to foreign invaders (2000 B.C.)
The Akkadians:
Semites – nomaidc people from the Arabian Peninsula that migrated to Mesopotamia
Sargon I ( B.C.E.) unites all Mesopotamia (created first empire)
Under Sargon I
Akkadians adopted Sumerian religion and farming

13. Sargon’s Empire

14. Babylonian Empire Located in modern day Syria
Conquered many parts of old Sumer (including Babylon)
Hammurabi –created a law code with harsh punishments
Borrowed heavily from Sumerian culture
After Hammurabi’s death Babylon declined

15. Hammurabi of Babylon, 1792-1750 B.C.E

16. Hittites A strong army with chariots Conquered Babylon in 1595 B.C.E.
Borrowed from Mesopotamian and Egyptian culture
Had a law code less harsh than Hammurabi’s
Lasted until about 1200 B.C.E

17. Assyrians Started to gain strength about 900 B.C.E Powerful army
Treated conquered people cruelly
Large empire with good roads
Collapsed about 612 B.C.E

18. Chaldeans Defeated the Assyrians in about 612 B.C.E
Descended from Hammurabi’s Babylonians
At its height during the rule of Nebuchadnezzar ( B.C.E)
Spent a lot of money on Babylon
Built Hanging Gardens
Empire collapsed in 539B.C.Wafter being defeated by Persians

19. Hanging Gardens of Babylon

20. Persians Cyrus (conquered from the Nile to the Indus
Darius I (son is Xerxes)
Administered the empire using satrups (governors)
Tolerant of those who were conquered
Increased trade and build roads
Lost to the Greeks in 480 B.C.E