1. The Birth of Civilization1
The Birth of Civilization

2. The Birth of Civilization
Early Humans and Their Culture
Early Civilizations in the Middle East to about 1000 B.C.E.
Ancient Near Eastern Empires
Early Indian Civilization
Early Chinese Civilization
The Rise of Civilization in the Americas

3. A carved or etched limestone statue
A carved or etched limestone statue, from about 2500 B.C.E., believed by scholars to be a king or a priest from Mohenjo-Daro in the Indus valley in present-day Pakistan.

4. Early Humans and Their Culture

5. Early Humans and Their Culture
The Paleolithic Age
The Neolithic Age
The Bronze Age and the Birth of Civilization

6. Culture Group ways, taught over generations Behavior Material things
Courtship
Child-rearing
Material things
Shelter
Tools

7. Culture (cont’d) Ideas, institutions, beliefs
Language and dexterity facilitate culture
Culture enables human adaptation

8. Paleolithic Age 1,000,000-10,000 B.C.E. (Old Stone Age)
No plant cultivation
Hunter-gatherers
Small nomadic tribes
Little control over nature
Some evidence of religious faith and use of magic
Division of labor by sex

9. Map 1–1. Early Human Migrations.

10. Wondjina.
Wondjina. An image depicting cloud and rain spirits from Chamberlain Gorge in western Australia, painted perhaps 12,000 years ago.

11. Çatal Hüyük
Çatal Hüyük. The diagram reconstructs part of Çatal Hüyük on the basis of archaeological findings.

12. Neolithic Age 10,000-3500 B.C.E. (New Stone Age)
Agriculture
Domestication of animals
Transition from nomadic lifestyle to a more settled agricultural existence
Greater control over nature

13. Neolithic Age 10,000-3500 B.C.E. (New Stone Age) (cont’d)
Invention of pottery
Population growth > cities
Catal Huyuk
Jericho

14. Early Civilizations in the Middle East to about 1000 B.C.E.

15. Defining Civilization
Urbanization
Social change
Growth in population
Technological and industrial change
Bronze metallurgy
Long-distance trade
Symbolic communication (writing, art)

16. Mesopotamian Civilization
Tigris and Euphrates Rivers
Politically fragmented
Sumerian and Semitic languages
Akkadian influence
Sargon and unification
Naram-Sin and the victory stele

17. Mesopotamian Civilization (cont’d)
Babylonian dominance
Hammurabi (r )
Law code

18. Mesopotamian Culture Writing Mathematics Cuneiform
Writing restricted to an educated elite
Mathematics
Sexagesimal system (units of 60)
Astronomy

19. Mesopotamian Culture (cont’d)
Religion
Polytheistic
Nature gods
Pessimistic view of life and afterlife
Slavery

20. Egyptian Civilization
Importance of the Nile River
Upper Egypt (south) – Nile valley
Lower Egypt (north) – Nile Delta
Unification and trade
Security and optimism
Extraordinarily long political history
Unification 3100 B.C.E.
Absorption into Roman Empire 30 B.C.E.

21. The Old Kingdom – 2700–2200 B.C.E. Pharaoh was a god on earth
Maat – ideal of order, justice and truth
Pyramids
Pharaonic tombs
Represented power and wealth of Egypt

22. Later Kingdoms Middle Kingdom 2025-1630 B.C.E.
Power of the pharaohs more limited
Second Intermediate Period
Arrival of Hyksos
New Kingdom, B.C.E.
Military expansion and empire
Tutankhamun – wealth of the New Kingdom

23. Egyptian Culture Language and literature Religion Hieroglyphs
Polytheistic
Amun, Re
Akhenaten’s monotheism - Aten

24. Egyptian Culture (cont’d)
Worship and the afterlife
Clear view of afterworld
Book of the Dead
Mummification

25. Egyptian Society Women Control over property Divorce
Equal legal protection
Hatshepsut – powerful female pharaoh

26. Egyptian Society (cont’d)
Slaves
First numerous during Middle Kingdom
Black Africans and Asians
Increases during expansion of New Kingdom
Hebrews enslaved

27. Map 1–2. The Ancient Near East.
Map 1–2. The Ancient Near East. Two river valley civilizations thrived in the Ancient Near East: Egypt, which was united into a single state, and Mesopotamia, which was long divided into a number of city-states.

28. Akkadian Victory Stele
Akkadian Victory Stele. The victory stele of Naram-Sin, king of Akkad, over the mountain-dwelling Lullubi, Mesopotamian, Akkadian period, ca B.C.E. (pink sandstone). The king, wearing the horned helmet denoting divine power, strides forward at the head of his army. This is one of the finest sculptures to survive from the Akkadian period. Louvre, Paris, France. The Bridgeman Art Library International Ltd.

29. Babylonian World Map
Babylonian World Map Courtesy of the Trustees of the British Museum. © The British Museum.

30. The Code of Hammurabi
Click here to view The Code of the Amorite King Hammurabi (c BCE).

31. Document: The Code of Hammurabi

32. Document: The Code of Hammurabi (cont’d)

33. Chronology: Key Events and People in Mesopotamian History

34. Making Bread
Making Bread. A hallmark of the early river civilizations was the development of techniques to increase harvests. This statue from the Old Kingdom in Egypt (ca. 2700–2200 B.C.E.) shows a woman kneading dough for bread.

35. Pyramids at Giza
Pyramids at Giza. The three largest pyramids of Egypt, located at Giza, near Cairo, are the colossal tombs of pharaohs of the Fourth Dynasty (ca. 2640–2510 B.C.E.): Khufu (right), Chafre (center), and Menkaure (left). The small pyramids and tombs at their bases were those of the pharaohs’ queens and officials.

36. Map 1–3. The Near East and Greece
Map 1–3. The Near East and Greece, ca B.C.E. About 1400 b.c.e., the Near East was divided among four empires. Egypt extended south to Nubia and north through Palestine and Phoenicia. Kassites ruled in Mesopotamia, Hittites in Asia Minor, and the Mitannians in Assyrian lands. In the Aegean, the Mycenaean kingdoms were at their height.

37. Chronology: Major Periods in Ancient Egyptian History (Dynasties in Roman Numerals)

38. Seated Egyptian Scribe
Seated Egyptian Scribe. One of the hallmarks of the early river valley civilizations was the development of writing. Ancient Egyptian scribes had to undergo rigorous training but were rewarded with a position of respect and privilege. This statue from the Fifth Dynasty (ca. 2510–2460 B.C.E.) is of painted limestone and measures 21 inches (53 cm) in height. Musée du Louvre, Paris, © Giraudon/Art Resource, New York.

39. Book of the Dead
Scene from the Book of the Dead. The Egyptians believed in the possibility of life after death through the god Osiris. Before the person could be presented to Osiris, forty-two assessor-gods tested aspects of the person’s life. In this scene from a papyrus manuscript of the Book of the Dead, the deceased and his wife (on the left) watch the scales of justice weighing his heart (on the left side of the scales) against the feather of truth. The jackalheaded god Anubis also watches the scales, while the ibis-headed god Thoth keeps the record.

40. Document: Love Poems from the New Kingdom

41. A Closer Look: Babylonian World Map
What can we learn from this map about how the Babylonians saw the world around them and their own place in it?
Why do you think this map locates some of the Babylonians’ neighbors but ignores other important neighboring cultures?
Why has cartography remained so important throughout the ages?

42. Babylonian World Map
Babylonian World Map Courtesy of the Trustees of the British Museum. © The British Museum.

43. A Closer Look: Babylonian World Map
Is the subjectivity reflected here confined to this map, or is it a general characteristic of cartography throughout history?

44. Ancient Near Eastern Empires

45. Ancient Near Eastern Empires
Hittites, B.C.E.
Indo-European people
Powerful state
Invention of iron
Kassites
Later Babylonian empire
People of unknown origin

46. Ancient Near Eastern Empires (contd’)
Mitannians
Capital at Washukani
Chariot warfare and horse training

47. Later Near Eastern Empires
Assyrians
Semitic speaking peoples in the city of Assur
Expansion: B.C.E.
Powerful army
Conquered Mesopotamia, Syria, Palestine, Egypt
Well-structured empire
Civil war and collapse

48. Later Near Eastern Empires (cont’d)
Neo-Babylonians
Nebuchadnezzar and wonders of Babylon

49. Assyrian Palace Relief
Assyrian Palace Relief. This eighth-century B.C.E. relief of a hero gripping a lion formed part of the decoration of an Assyrian palace. The immense size of the figure and his powerful limbs and muscles may well have suggested the might of the Assyrian king. Giraudon/Art Resource, New York

50. Document: An Assyrian Woman Writes to Her Husband, ca. 1800 B.C.E.

51. Chronology: Key Events in the History of Ancient Near Eastern Empires

52. Early Indian Civilization

53. Early Indian Civilization
Geographic considerations
Himalayan mountain barrier
Indus River
Ganges River
West open to invaders
Political fragmentation

54. Indus Civilization 2500-1500 B.C.E.
Writing cannot be read
Larger area than Mesopotamia or Egypt

55. Indus Civilization 2500-1500 B.C.E. (cont’d)
Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro
Populations of over 35,000
Homogeneous archaeological sites
Centralized governments
Cities laid out in structured grids
Temples
Complex system of drains and sewers
Private houses with wells and bathrooms

56. Life in the Indus Civilization
Economy based on agriculture
Trade with Mesopotamia
Fine bronze and stone sculptures
Religion
Link to later Indian religious practices
Male image similar to Hindu god Shiva
Terra-cotta figurines of females

57. Life in the Indus Civilization (cont’d)
Passing of Indus Civilization, 1700 B.C.E.
Impact of Aryan invaders?
Flooding and ecological damage

58. Vedic Aryan Civilization
Aryan invaders – Indo-Europeans
Rig-Vedic Age B.C.E.
Vedas – source of most information
Aryan sacred texts
“Knowledge”
Rig-Veda
1028 Hymns to the gods
Aryans
“Nobles”
Central Asian origins

59. “Aryanizing” of North India
Vedic Aryans were semi-nomadic warriors
Horsemen and cattle herders
Aryans left their mark in the changes they left
New languages
Social organization
Techniques of warfare
Religious forms and ideas

60. Late Vedic Age 1000-500 B.C.E. Also known as Brahmanic Age
Dominance of priestly class or Brahmans
Literary classics
Written later (400 B.C.E. – 200 C.E.), but set during this period

61. Late Vedic Age 1000-500 B.C.E. (cont’d)
Mahabharata
World’s longest epic poem
Civil war between two Aryan clans
Ramayana
Adventures of legendary King Rama

62. Indus and Vedic Aryan Cultures
Map 1–4. Indus and Vedic Aryan Cultures. Indus culture likely influenced the Vedic Aryans, although the influence cannot be proved. Some scholars surmise, for example, that the fortified Aryan city of Hariyupiya, mentioned in later texts, may have been the same site as the older Indus city of Harappa.

63. Vedic Aryan Society Patrilineal society
Tribes ruled by raja or chieftain
Aryan society originally had simple division between nobles and commoners
Dasas were darker conquered peoples

64. Vedic Aryan Society (cont’d)
Later rise of four varnas or classes
Brahman – priest
Kshatriya – warrior or noble
Vaishya – peasant or tradesman
Shudra – servant

65. Vedic Religion Mixing of Aryan and Indus concepts
Upanishads – 800 B.C.E.
Religious texts – mature form of Hinduism
Topics like transmigration of soul after death
Various gods
Indra – god of war and storm
Varuna – guarded the cosmic order
Agni – fire-god of sacrifice and priests

66. Vedic Religion (cont’d)
Brahman
The transcendent principle of reality

67. Ancient Mohenjo-Daro.
Ancient Mohenjo-Daro. Like most cities of the Indus Valley civilization, Mohenjo-Daro was built principally of mud brick. The structures are laid on straight lines; streets cross each other at right angles. The impression is one of order, prosperity, and civic discipline. Borromeo/Art Resource, New York.

68. Mohenjo-Daro
Map 1–5. Mohenjo-Daro

69. Indus Stamp Seal
Indus Stamp Seal. Note the familiar humped bull of India on this stone stamp seal. © Scala/Art Resource, New York.

70. Early Indian Civilization
Indo-European
Mahabharata
Ramayana
Raja

71. Chronology: Ancient India

72. Early Chinese Civilization

73. Early Chinese Civilization
Neolithic origins 4000 B.C.E.
Yellow River basin
Yangtze, West, Red rivers
Agricultural revolution
Millet
Rice
Xia Dynasty, B.C.E.
May be legendary

74. Shang Dynasty, 1766-1050 B.C.E. Capital near Anyang
“Oracle bones” – divination
Three notable features of Shang Dynasty
Writing
Religious concept – “Deity Above”
Cosmology
Bronze
Social classes
Human sacrifice

75. Map 1–6. Bronze Age China during the Shang Dynasty
Map 1–6. Bronze Age China during the Shang Dynasty, 1766–1050 B.C.E. Anyang was a late Shang dynasty capital. Sian and Luoyang were the capitals of the Western and Eastern Zhou.

76. Oracle Bone
Oracle Bone. Inscribed oracle bone from the Shang Dynasty city of Anyang.

77. Chinese Writing
Chinese Writing Source: Tables by A. Craig; calligraphy by Teruko Craig.

78. Chinese Writing
Chinese Writing Source: Tables by A. Craig; calligraphy by Teruko Craig.

79. Chinese Writing
Chinese Writing Source: Tables by A. Craig; calligraphy by Teruko Craig.

80. Bronze Vessel from the Shang Dynasty
Bronze Vessel from the Shang Dynasty. The little elephant on top forms the handle of the lid. Wine was poured through the spout formed by the big elephant’s trunk.

81. Western Zhou, 1050-771 B.C.E. Shang fall to Zhou from western China
Continuation of Shang patterns
Change in notion of political legitimacy
Mandate of Heaven
Withdrawn from wicked Shang
A moral will
Heaven increasingly seen as an abstract metaphysical force
Western half of empire falls to barbarians

82. Eastern Zhou 771-256 B.C.E. Move to eastern capital of Luoyang
Spring and Autumn period
Warring States period,

83. Eastern Zhou 771-256 B.C.E. (cont’d)
Rise of large territorial states
Expansion of population and agricultural lands
Rise of commerce
New kind of army
Cavalry and professional commanders
China on verge of unification

84. Map 1–7. Early Iron Age Territorial States in China during the Sixth Century B.C.E.
Map 1–7. Early Iron Age Territorial States in China during the Sixth Century B.C.E. After the fall of the Western Zhou in China in 771 B.C.E., large territorial states formed that became increasingly independent of the later Zhou kings.

85. Document: Human Sacrifice in Early China

86. Chronology: Early China

87. The Rise of Civilization in the Americas

88. The Rise of Civilization in the Americas
Land bridge between Siberia and Alaska
Last ice age
Human crossing
Initially hunters and gatherers

89. The Rise of Civilization in the Americas (cont’d)
Neolithic revolution
Many parts of Americas poor in animal resources
American production of plants providing protein much greater than in Europe
Cultivation of maize in Mexico by 4000 B.C.E.

90. Population in the Americas
Four areas of dense settlement
Pacific Northwest
Dependent on fish instead of agriculture
Mississippi valley
Maize agriculture
High level of social and political integration
Collapsed before European contact

91. Population in the Americas (cont’d)
Mesoamerica
Andean region of South America
Strong, long-lasting states

92. Mesoamerican Civilization
Pre-Classic, 2000 B.C.E.–150 C.E.
Also known as Formative period
Olmecs
Capitals – San Lorenzo and La Venta
Origins of writing
Classic, C.E.
Maya and Teotihuacán
Post-Classic, C.E.
Maya, Toltecs, and Aztecs

93. Chronology: Early Civilization of Mesoamerica
Chronology Early Civilizations of Mesoamerica

94. Map 1–8. Civilization in Mesoamerica and the Andes.
Map 1–8. Civilization in Mesoamerica and the Andes. Both Mesoamerica and the Andean region of South America saw the development of a series of civilizations beginning between 1500 and 1000 B.C.E.

95. Andean Civilization Complex agricultural region
Early Horizon period, B.C.E.
Chavín de Huantar
Early Intermediate period, 200 B.C.E. – 600 C.E.
Moche and Nazca
Middle Horizon period, c. 600 C.E.
Huari and Tiahuanaco

96. Andean Civilization (cont’d)
Later Intermediate period
Chimu
Rise of Inca state, fourteenth century

97. Chronology: Early Civilization of the Andes

98. Review Questions
How was life during the Paleolithic Age different from that in the Neolithic Age? What advances in agriculture and human development had taken place by the end of the Neolithic era? Is it valid to speak of a “Neolithic Revolution”?

99. Review Questions
What defines civilization? What are the similarities and differences among the world’s earliest civilizations?

100. Review Questions
What general conclusions can you draw about the differences in the political and intellectual outlooks of the civilizations of Egypt and Mesopotamia? Compare especially Egyptian and Mesopotamian religious views. In what ways did the regional geography influence the religious outlooks of these two civilizations?

101. Review Questions
Why were the Assyrians so successful in establishing their Near Eastern Empire? How did their empire differ from that of the Hittites or Egyptians? In what ways did this empire benefit the civilized Middle East? Why did the Assyrian Empire ultimately fail to survive?

102. Review Questions
How does the early history of Indian civilization differ from that of the river valley civilizations of China, Mesopotamia, and Egypt? What does the evidence suggest were the social, economic, and political differences between the Indus civilization and the Vedic Aryan civilization?

103. Review Questions
What were the stages of early Chinese history? What led each to evolve toward the next?

104. Review Questions
From the appearance of civilization in the Americas, what can you conclude about the factors that give rise to it?