1. Aim: Was the ancient Middle East the cradle of civilization?
Do Now: What is going on with these statues??
NY State Standards 2, 3
Common Core Standards RS 3, 4, 5, 7, 9, WS 1, 2

2. I Geography of Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia means the land between two rivers; the Tigris and Euphrates (in modern Iraq).
Mesopotamia is often called the Fertile Crescent due to its rich soil.
The Tigris and Euphrates rivers flood yearly like Egypt. *Unlike Egypt, their floods are less predictable. This caused the people of Mesopotamia to fear their gods.
TIGRIS RIVER

3. II Mesopotamian Government
Sumer was the first Mesopotamian civilization. Sumer was a collection of city-states, each ruled by a King. Similar to ancient Egypt, Mesopotamian city-states had developed a bureaucracy. Different government officials regulated taxes, irrigation, public works, etc…
In the center of each city-state was the ziggurat (temple). All of the buildings were built of sun-baked mud brick. Each city-state was surrounded by a protective city wall.
A city-state is a city that governs itself.

4. Mesopotamian Government Continued…
C) In 2300 BCE King Sargon of Akkad attacked Sumer. He created the Akkadian Empire, one of the first empires in the world. After his death, his empire quickly fell apart.
An empire is a group of states that is under the control of a single authority. Unlike individually ruled city-states, an empire has a centralized government.

5. Mesopotamian Government Continued…
D) In 1790 BCE Hammurabi, King of Babylon, conquered most of Mesopotamia. He created the Code of Hammurabi; the world’s first known written law code.
Code of Hammurabi:
300 laws carved into a stone pillar
Displayed in public
Included civil and criminal laws
Punishments were specific to the crime. However, the punishment was also based on your social status and wealth. (The lower your status, the harsher the penalty)

6. Mesopotamian Government Continued…
E) In 1400 BCE the Hittites (from Asia Minor) settled in Mesopotamia. They brought with them the knowledge of iron working.
A Hittite iron helmet.

7. Mesopotamian Government Continued…
F) By 1100 BCE the Assyrians conquered Mesopotamia. King Assurbanipal founded one of the world’s first libraries.

8. Mesopotamian Government Continued…
F) In 626 BCE King Nebuchadnezzar conquered the Assyrian Empire, and began the Neo-Babylonian Empire… out of… you guessed it… Babylon!
He conquered Jerusalem, destroyed the first Jewish temple and forced many Jews leave Jerusalem for Babylon.
He rebuilt the city walls of Babylon, including the Ishtar Gate. It is covered in blue tile, with images of lions.
He built the Hanging Gardens of Babylon for his wife.
A design from the Ishtar Gate

9. Recreation of the Ishtar Gate

10. Recreation of the Hanging Gardens of Babylon

11. III Achievements of Mesopotamia
A) By 3200 BCE Sumerians invented cuneiform, a true writing system. They marked clay tablets with a stylus (sharp pointed tool).

12. The Development of Cuneiform
Before the appearance of writing in Mesopotamia, there were small clay tokens that were used for counting goods. People started putting clay tokens into a large, hollow clay container (bulla) which they then sealed up. However, once sealed, the problem of remembering how many tokens were inside the container arose. To solve this problem, the Mesopotamians started impressing pictures of the clay tokens on the surface of the clay container with a stylus. Eventually only the symbols were used… writing!

13. Achievements of Mesopotamia Continued…
B) Mesopotamians were using the wheel by about 3,500 B.C. They used the potter’s wheel to throw pots and wheels on carts to transport both people and goods. This invention had an impact on ceramic technology, trade, and warfare in the early city-states.

14. Achievements of Mesopotamia Continued…
C) The Sumerians developed the earliest known number system. They divided space and time by units of 6. D) Like the Egyptians, Sumerians studied astronomy, and created a 12 month calendar.
*We still use Sumerian math!
60 degrees in a circle
60 seconds in a minute
60 minutes in an hour
Below is a Sumerian star chart
The Sumerians also gave us the 12 signs of the Zodiac! Unlike astronomy, astrology is not science. Rather, astrology is the belief that the positions of the stars affect our lives.

15. Achievements of Mesopotamia Continued…
E) The Epic of Gilgamesh may be the oldest written story on earth!
Written in cuneiform
About a Sumerian King
It contains a story of a great flood, eerily similar to the story of Noah and the Ark!
F) Irrigation canals, dykes & dams

16. V Religion in Mesopotamia
A) Mesopotamian religion was polytheistic. Abraham began the monotheistic religion of Judaism in Mesopotamia. However, the majority of Mesopotamians remained polytheistic. Mesopotamians kept their Gods happy with offerings and ceremonies. If you were wealthy, you had statues built in your image and placed in the ziggurat to pray for you. B) Unlike Egypt, Mesopotamians believed the afterlife was misery. This was because the flooding of the Tigris and Euphrates was not very predictable. C) Priests performed ceremonies on top of ziggurats.
“The house where one goes in and never comes out again… the place where they live on dust and their food is mud…” – Epic of Gilgamesh
One burial chamber in the city-state of Ur contained the bodies of 74 sacrificial victims!
Above are statues made to pray 24/7! On the left is a royal headdress of a female Queen found in the royal burial at Ur.

17. US Soldiers Climbing the Ziggurat at Ur

18. Mesopotamia Period 1 through 600 BCE
Sumerians
3200 – 1900 BCE
Invented cuneiform writing.
Akkadian Empire
2300 – 2150 BCE
Sargon attacked Sumer and created one of the world’s first empires.
Babylonian Empire
1790 – 1595 BCE
King Hammurabi created the world’s first written law code.
Hittites
1650 – 1200 BCE
Expert iron craftsmen.
Assyrian Empire
1350 – 609 BCE
King Assurbanipal created a world famous library.
Neo Babylonian Empire
626 – 539 BCE
King Nebuchadnezzar built the Hanging Gardens of Babylon for his wife.

19. Scene of a bombing north of Baghdad Jan 6, 2012
Focus Questions
How did geography affect ancient Mesopotamian civilizations?
Describe Mesopotamian religion. How does it compare to ancient Egyptian religion?
Choose any 4 laws from the Code of Hammurabi. For each
- explain the law
- is it just for its time?
- is it just today?
4. What were the 2 most important achievements of Mesopotamia?
Scene of a bombing north of Baghdad Jan 6, 2012

20. Key Vocabulary Akkadian Empire Ishtar Gate Aryans
King Assurbanipal’s Library
Asia Minor
King Hammurabi
Assyrian Empire
Neo-Babylonian Empire
Babylonian Empire
King Nebuchadnezzar
City-States
King Sargon
Cuneiform
Mesopotamia
Epic of Gilgamesh
Sumerians
Euphrates River
Tigris River
Fertile Crescent
Ziggurat
Hammurabi’s Code
Zoroastrianism
Hanging Gardens of Babylon
Hittites