1. Unit 2 – First Civilizations
Unit Overview
Students will examine the rise of First Civilizations and defining components such as increased agriculture, the concept of state, centralized rule, advances in technology, art and organized religion.

2. Key Concepts/Objectives – Students should comprehend and provide examples of the following:
Foundational civilizations arose in a variety of geographical and environmental settings where agriculture flourished such as Mesopotamia, Egypt, Norte Chico, Mohenjo-Daro, Shang and Olmec.
The first states emerged within core civilizations.
Strong states were often led by a divine ruler
More favorably located states expanded - Mesopotamia, Babylon and the Nile Valley.
Culture (laws, language, literature, religion, monumental art).played a key role in unifying states.
Political and religious elites promoted arts and artisanship (Illustrative example of art and artisanship required such as sculpture, painting, wall decorations, weaving, etc.)
Systems of record keeping arose in all early civilizations and were eventually diffused.
States developed legal codes, e.g. Code of Hammurabi, that benefited the rule of governments.
Emergence of influential religions - Vedic religion, Hebrew monotheism and Zoroastrianism
Trade expanded from local to regional and trans-regional, with civilizations exchanging goods, ideas and technology. (Required examples - Egypt and Nubia, Mesopotamia and Indus Valley.)
Pastoralists were among the developers and disseminators of new weapons and transportation later adopted by agrarian societies.
Social and gender hierarchies intensified as states expanded and cities multiplied.

3. First Civilizations Sumer (Mesopotamia) 3500 BCE
Nile River (Egypt and Nubia) 3000 BCE
Oxus, or Amu Darya River – 2200 BCE
Mohenjo-Daro Indus Valley
China (Xia, Shang, Zhou) – 2070 BCE
Andes (Norte Chico) 3000 – 1800 BCE
Olmec Civilization – 1200 BCE
Activity: Working in small groups, perform micro-research (see organizational chart) on one of the early civilizations listed above. Upon doing so, present:
Geographic description
Approximate time span
Type of government
Means of organization or government
Examples of monumental architecture
Other artistic or scientific achievement
Religious or philosophic beliefs
Social structure
I. Something New: The Emergence of Civilizations
A. Introducing the First Civilizations
1. Sumer, Egypt, & Nubia: City states emerged in Sumer in Southern Mesopotamia around 3500–3000 B.C.E. and produced the first written language. Egypt developed along the Nile and had a clear territorial base, unlike the fluid city states of Mesopotamia. Egypt’s architectural monuments, such as the pyramids, are obviously very well known. Nubia developed as a distinct civilization further south on the Nile.
2. Norte Chico: From roughly 3000 to 1800 B.C.E. in a coastal area in central Peru, some twenty-five urban centers developed. While lacking rainfall, the area was watered by snowmelt-fed rivers from the Andes. These small cities engaged in specialized production, such as cotton nets, and exploited the rich fisheries. They did not develop farming based on grain but grew beans and fruit. Without protective walls or archeological signs of warfare, these cities seem to have been very peaceful. While they did not develop writing, they may have used knotted cords to record information. While isolated from the rest of the world, at some point maize from Central America arrived.
3. Indus Valley and Oxus: In South and Central Asia, two distinct cultures developed in the Indus Valley and in the Oxus Valley. The Indus saw the development of large and planned cities but did not produce lasting monumental architecture as in Mesopotamia and Egypt. Throughout the region there seems to have been a system of standardized weights and measures, as well as architectural style, but there is little indication of a political hierarchy or a centralized state. While environmental degradation led to the collapse of this civilization, some cultural patterns, such as religious rituals and yoga positions, remain to this day. Further north in the Oxus Valley, a culture emerged that blended both irrigated agriculture and stock raising with long-distance trade connections.
4. Xia, Shang, & Zhou: In China, a series of dynasties established cultural and political patterns such as the centralized state, the concept of the Mandate of Heaven, and a character-based writing system, that would last until the early twentieth century.
5. Olmec: Along the Gulf of Mexico, the Olmec civilization took shape around 1200 B.C.E. and set the cultural patterns for centuries in Mesoamerican, as seen by the survival of architectural styles, rituals, and ceremonial ball games.

4. Characteristics of First Civilizations
Rooted in Agricultural Revolution
Increased population density
Presence of important cities (Ex: Uruk, Mohenjo Daro, Harappa, & Teotihuacán)
Other attributes of first civilizations cited by text. (Familiarize yourself with the following vocab. & concepts)
Centralized rule
Stratification & hierarchies of power
Rise of elite; grandeur and opulence in life & death
Monumental architecture
Slavery, coercion, subordination
Impersonality of cities
Increased productive capacity
Competition
Organization, writing and accounting
Specialization - peasants & military
Patriarchy
I. Something New: The Emergence of Civilizations
B. The Question of Origins
1. Roots in Agricultural Revolution: While agriculture was essential to the rise of these civilizations, not all agricultural societies developed into civilizations. There is much debate over the missing factor that lead to increased social complexity.
2. Growing population density, competition, and subordination: Increased population growth led to increased population density, which resulted in both an increased need for cooperation and organization on public works projects such as irrigation but also increased competition and conflict over resources. Strong and organized state systems provided an obvious advantage. Losers were incorporated into these growing societies as a subordinated class.

5. MESOPOTAMIA

6. Mesopotamia – The Sumerians
Mesopotamian civilizations grew around the Euphrates and Tigris rivers, an area once known as the Fertile Crescent, and presently as Iraq.
The first of the great civilizations to arise in this area were the Sumerians (3200 BCE – 1900 BCE) who were ruled by strong monarchs.
Lacking in natural resources such as stone and timber, they relied upon mud brick architecture. Ziggurats – example of monumental architecture.
Impressive innovations - mathematical concepts of 6 and 360 degrees, hours divided into 60 minutes.
Cuneiform developed as a system of writing.
Epic of Gilgamesh – oral legend attributed to Sumerians and recorded by successor empires - sheds light on religious outlook.
Later Mesopotamian Civilizations included Akkadians, Babylonians, Assyrians.
Sumerian Cuneiform
Sumerian Ziggurat of Eanna

7. Activity relating to Doc. 2. 1 (p
Activity relating to Doc. 2.1 (p ) – In Search of Eternal Life (Analysis of the Epic of Gilgamesh)
Description of Assignment:
Students will develop a skit based upon the Epic of Gilgamesh, a story attributed to early Sumerian civilization.
Steps
Start by dividing roles, so students know what to look for in the reading as they prepare for their parts.
Read the excerpt from “The Epic of Gilgamesh” Doc. 2.1 (p ), and upon doing so, identify and discuss major themes from the reading as well as what it reveals about Sumerian religion.
Brainstorm ideas for a simple skit that encompasses the major ideas of the story, as well as the key figures.
Practice the skit once or twice. Focus on understanding rather than memorizing individual lines.
Present your skit.
Key Roles
Co -directors
Narrator
Gilgamesh – ruler of Uruk
Enkidu – part beast, part human, initially sent to subdue Gilgamesh
Enlil – chief god
Siduri – tavern owner (wise goddess)
Utnapishtum – only mortal granted immortality
Shamash – Glorious sun god
Ishtar – Goddess of Love
Adad – God of the storm
Anu – Lord of High Firmament
Other
Commoners
Places
Palace of Irkalla – afterlife, a dreary place
Temple of Blessed Eanna

9. Successor States to Sumer: Akkadians, Babylonians, Hittites and Assyrians
Strong successor states followed Sumer including the following:
Akkadians, whose king - Sargon forged an empire in 2300 BCE.
Babylonians, whose king Hammurabi (r. ca CE) formally codified preexisting laws “inspired by the chief god Marduk” into what became known as “Hammurabi’s code”.
Hittites, arrived in Mesopotamia from Asia Minor circa 1400 BCE. They lent knowledge of iron making to tools and weapons in Mesopotamia and went on to rule until around 1200 BCE, whereby they migrated and spread iron making skills other parts of Asia, Africa and Europe.
Assyrians, rose to power around 1350 BCE, and expanded across Mesopotamia by 1100 BCE. They also forged iron weapons, and were a threat for some 500 years. Chief god was Assur. They placed a premium on order. They had well planned cities and magnificent temples. Assyrian rule included strict domestic rules such as veiling and seclusion of women within the palace and in public. King Assurbanipal founded one of the world’s first libraries at Nineveh.
Babylonian Revival, took place after Assyrian king Assurbanipal died. In 622 BCE, Babylon’s 2nd king of the revived empire, Nebuchadnezzar, conquered the Assyrians. Nebuchadnezzar surrounded Babylon with a defensive moat and brick wall, 85 ft. thick. The main gate was dedicated to the goddess Ishtar, who was represented by lions. There were also dragons representing the god Marduk, and bulls representing the god Hadad. Additionally, Nebuchadnezzar may have built the famous Hanging Gardens of Babylon, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, though not found yet.
Hittite charioteer hunting, Louvre Museum, circa 9th century BCE

10. Description of Assignment:
Students will analyze and draw inferences from Hammurabi’s Code (Doc. 2.2, p )
Steps
The class will break into four groups – each group being responsible for one of the following sub-topics:
On Crime, Punishment and Justice
On the Economy
On Class and Slavery
On Men and Women
Students within each group will take on different social roles – nobles, merchants, peasant farmers, women and slaves - and then read their section.
Students will share reactions to some of the laws (from perspective of their roles) with group.
One person per group will record different reactions to specific laws.
That person will share reactions (and refer to specific passages) to the laws with the class at large.
The class will conclude by drawing general inferences to each group’s reactions.

11. EGYPT

12. Key Rivers
Water is a precious resource in the Middle East. The arid region boasts only a few major river systems including:
The Nile River, which originates in central Africa (Lake Victoria) as the White Nile and is joined by the Blue Nile flowing out of Ethiopia (Lake Tana).
The Euphrates and Tigris, that make up the region once called Mesopotamia. Each of these rivers start in Turkey, traverse Syria, and flow out of Iraq into the Persian Gulf.
The Jordan River, which flows out of Lebanon and divides Israel from both Syria and Jordan.

13. Ancient Egypt
Upper and Lower Egypt united around 3100 BC by Pharaoh Menes; est. capital of Memphis.
“Period-ization” (categorization of historical time periods) of Ancient Egyptian history
Old Kingdom – 2134 BCE; characterized by pyramid building
Middle Kingdom 2040 – 1633 BCE; characterized by expansion to Kush in south, but then loss of power to Hyksos
New Kingdom – 1085 BCE – expansion into present Syria and Euphrates
Government – bureaucracy headed by semi-divine pharaoh, advised by viziers
Script – hieroglyphics
Monumental architecture – Pyramids, necropolises
Class structure – nobility, merchants, peasants, slaves
Religion - belief in afterlife, preservation of body.
Portrait of Raherka and Mersankh

14. The Pyramids at Giza
The pyramids at Giza were built during the Old Kingdom. The largest, the Pyramid of Khufu ft (w) x 481 ft (h) - was finished around 2560 BC. It consists of some 2.3 million blocks of stone, each weighing about 2 .5 tons, peasants quarried the stone, sent it on barges along the Nile, and pulled it onto sleds, whereby it was constructed with the use of ramps.
Khafre’s pyramid with Sphinx at foreground was built circa 2520 BC. and Menkaure’s pyramid circa 2504 BC.
Photos - Abraham

16. The Might of the New Kingdom Era
Egypt’s New Kingdom was characterized by strong rulers and expansion.
It’s first female ruler – Hatshepsut (r BCE), promoted trade with the eastern Mediterranean. She was actually a co-regent, or ruler with her stepson Thutmose III (r BCE – 1425 BCE), who extended New Kingdompower to its height circa 1450 BCE into present day Syria and the Euphrates River.
Another powerful ruler was Ramses II (r BCE – 1213 BCE). He regained control of Syria and waged battles against the Hittites, which ended in “the first peace treaty”. He also exacted gold from Nubia which Egypt ruled at this time.
Egypt’s power faded after 1100 BCE. Both the Assyrians and Persians conquered the Nile River valley, and in 332 BCE, the last Egyptian dynasty fell to Greek rule, replaced by Roman rule in 30 BCE.
Enrichment: See the PBS special on Egypt’s New Kingdom -
Life size statue of Hatshepsut – Metropolitan Museum of Art

17. Egyptian Views on the Afterlife
Traditionally, Egyptians worshipped local gods. By the Middle Kingdom, the god Amon, was associated with the Old Kingdom sun god – Re. A “new god” Amon-Re became prominent.
Egyptians paid more attention to the god Osiris. By legend, Osiris had once ruled Egypt, but was slayed by his brother Set. The slain body of Osiris was restored by his wife Isis, and Osiris went on to become the god of the dead and “judge of souls” entering the underworld. Osiris was also regarded as “God of the Nile”, and Isis was revered as the benefactor to Egyptian women of skills such as farming, weaving and childrearing.
Egyptians also believed in eternal life. Yet, each soul would first be ferried across a lake of fire to the Hall of Osiris. Then, each soul would be weighed against the “feather of truth”. Sinners would be fed to the crocodile shaped “Eater of the Dead”, others would enjoy eternal life in the “Happy Field of Food”.
Excerpt from the Book of the Dead from the Papyrus of Ani. Ani’s heart is being weighed against Maat, feather of truth. Anubis, the jackal headed guardian of the feather looks on.
Tutankamen’s Funerary Mask (L) and Sarcophagus (R), Museum of Cairo. Egyptian’s believed that if judged properly by Osiris, the body would be of use in the afterlife. Thus, extensive efforts were made to preserve the body, and accompany burial with personal artifacts.

18. Ramses the Great Temple, Abu Simbel
This temple was completed circa 1257 BCE on the west bank of the Nile in the land of Nubia. The temple was dedicated to the gods Amon-Re and Re-Horakhte. All four figures are believed to be those of Ramses and stand around 67 feet high. On Feb. 22 and Oct. 22 the sun’s rays fully light the interior chamber.
Photo - Abraham
Amazing Fact: From the entire temple complex was cut apart and elevated 200 feet to protect it from the rising waters of Lake Nasser.

19. Isis Temple
Isis Temple
Isis and Tutankhamun

20. Karnak Temple at Luxor
Luxor with Mosque in Background
Abraham

21. Read the following and discuss:
Activity: Students will analyze sources pertaining to Egyptian views on the afterlife.
Steps
Read the following and discuss:
Doc. 2.3 “A Pyramid Text” (p. 98 – top of page)
Doc. 2.4 “Book of the Dead” (p. 98 – bottom of page)
Visual scene (slide) from the Book of the Dead
Upon reading, students will draw inferences about Egyptian views of the afterlife.
Activity: Students will analyze and discuss sources pertaining to Egyptian society.
Portrait of Paneb (p )
Doc. 2.5 “Be a Scribe” (p. 100 – 101)
Upon reading, discuss: Taken together, how do these documents deepen your understanding of Egyptian society?
Raherka and Mersankh
Reunion de Muses

22. LIFE ALONG THE NILE TODAY

23. Nile Feluccas – Traditional Sailing vessels
Nile Feluccas – Traditional Sailing vessels. Pictured - old and new feluccas
Abraham

24. Egyptian Fellahin or farmers
For centuries, Egypt was known as the “gift of the Nile”.
Egyptian Fellahin or farmers
Abraham

25. Life Along the Nile
Nubian – Southern Egypt
Photos - Abraham

26. Views of Cairo
Photos Abraham

27. Khan al-Khalili Market or Souq, Cairo
Abraham

28. Khan al-Khalili Market, Cairo
Cairene
Luxor, Egypt
Abraham

29. Aswan, Egypt
Abraham

30. Making Flat Bread
Veiled Women in Cairo

31. INDUS RIVER CIVILIZATION

32. Indus River Civilizations
India’s earliest civilizations rose along the Indus river. The “sub-continent” was impacted by monsoons from the southwest in the summer, and monsoons from the northeast in the winter.
Key cities were Mohenjo-Daro and Harrappa.
Indus River architecture was characterized by standardization of weights, measures and the use of mud bricks.
Deforestation and reliance upon sea water (high salinity) contributed to environmental degradation.
The caste system was a unique form of social stratification.
Temple Ruins, Mohenjo-Daro

33. Warriors (Kshatriyas) Merchants (Vaisyas) Peasants, farmers (Sudras)
The Vedic Age
Around 1500 BCE, nomadic peoples known as Aryans from the Caucasus area settled in the Indus Valley. They forced earlier inhabitants south.
The Aryans told sacred stories and chants, later recorded into The Vedas, after they developed the language of Sanskrit. They also revered, or worshipped cattle.
Another legacy of the Aryans was the stratification (separation) of people into social classes, or castes.
Priests (Brahmins)
Warriors (Kshatriyas)
Merchants (Vaisyas)
Peasants, farmers (Sudras)
Untouchables, a sub-caste
Stone Ruins - Mohenjodaro (above).
Woman sweeping the street. What caste does she belong to?

34. Activity: Read p. 103-107 “Considering the Evidence”
Upon doing so, explain what the artistic pieces reveal about what existed and what was lacking in Indus civilization.
Unicorn Seal, Mohenjo-Daro
“Dancing Girl”, National Museum, New Delhi. Circa 2500 BCE, out of bronze using “lost-wax” method

35. OXUS OR AMU DARYA

36. Oxus and Amu Darya Civilizations (2200 BCE – 1700 BCE)
In what is now northern Afghanistan and southern Turkmenistan – the Oxus, or Amu Darya civilization began. Economically it relied on both irrigation and stock raising, as well as trade with pastoral nomads. It encompassed oasis cities.
Distinctive qualities were its architecture, complex burial techniques, ceramics and seals, though it lacked a system of writing.
Through trade, it was linked with China, the Indus River Valley and Persia, and became an area of economic and cultural exchange.
Socially, nobles and men ranked high.
Recommended Video: The Asia Society: Homeland Afghanistan
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37. CHINA

38. Beginnings of the Human Story in China
China’s vast mountain and deserts in the west resulted in a concentration of the population in the eastern parts country – especially in the Huang He (Yellow) and Yangzi River valleys.
The presence of hominids in China can be traced back as early as 1.5 million years ago, “Peking Man” or homo erectus, while homo-sapiens is believed to have appeared in China some 40,000 t0 50,000 years ago.
By 5,000 BCE farming (wheat, millet) and domestication of dogs, pigs in n. China. Rice cultivation and domestication of water buffalo in Yangzi river valley by 3,000 BC.

39. Mythological Beginnings
Chinese civilization lacks both a universal creation story, and the concept of a creator god responsible for all life. Chinese mythology draws upon many accounts, dated from the 4th cent.– 2nd cent. CE
Themes most prevalent include:
Existence of primeval elements (vapor), and the later separation into yin and yang
Separation of earth from sky and a finite world picture – heaven above; earth below
Earthly life stemming from a semi-divine being - Pan Gu, who himself was born from a cosmic egg
Human life being shaped from either the semi-god Nu Wa (female) or along with her consort Fu Xi, (“the first man and woman”)
Yin and Yang
Pan Gu
Nu Wa and Fu Xi.

40. Jade Emperor who presides over heaven and the four poles.
Culture Bearers
Chinese folklore credits many “culture bearers”, turned semi-divine. Among them:
Jade Emperor who presides over heaven and the four poles.
Huang Di –Yellow Lord”, first of pre-dynastic rulers, ( BCE)
Fu Xi – first man, ox tamer, discover of writing (i.e. multi-functional)
Yu the Great – tamed the rivers, taught flood and irrigation control
Sui- Jen – fire driller
Qu Ling – the river god
Shen Nung – farmer god
Jade Emperor, Ming Dynasty, unidentified artist, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, MA
Huang Di – Yellow Emperor
Fu Xi – The Ox Tamer

41. Neolithic “late Stone Age”
3200 – 2500 BCE -Yangshao culture (present Shaanxi, Guanxu provinces). Known for geometric designs and images of animals.
In the east, (Liaoning province), Hongshan culture (3200 BCE) - fine jade as did the Liangzu culture (Jiangzu province).
At Hemedu (south of Shanghai), neolithic peoples built homes on stilts and wove baskets.
Yangshao pottery
Yangshao funerary jar, burnished earthenware
Gansu Province 2nd–3rd mill. Century. Arthur M. Sackler Foundation
Jade ax - Shandong

42. Dynastic Rule and the Mandate of Heaven
For centuries, China was ruled by a ruling family with an emperor, or “Son of Heaven” at its head. The dynasty held onto power so long as it possessed the “Mandate of Heaven”, a sort of divine rule granted in turn for ruling in the interests of the people.
Xia BCE–1600 BCE
Shang BCE–1046 BCE
W. Zhou BCE-771 BCE
E. Zhou BCE – 256 BCE
Warring States 475– 221 BCE
Qin BCE–206 BCE
Han 206 BCE – 220 CE
Three Kingdoms CE
Sui CE–618 CE
Tang 680 CE – 918 CE
Song 960 CE–1279 CE
Yuan (Mongol) 1279 CE–1368 CE
Ming CE CE
Qing (Manchu) CE CE

43. Shang 1600 – 1046 BCE The Shang era is noted for:
Origins of writing system
Use of oracle bones
Bronze technology/weaponry
Practice of ancestral worship
A map of Shang dynasty China
Shang vessel – U. of Washington
Oracle Bones (National Library of China)

44. Chinese Writing
Dates back to the Shang era. (2nd mill. BCE).
Based on pictographs - characters representing objects, and ideographs combinations of pictographs used to represent ideas.
Question: What challenges might a logographic system like written Chinese pose compared to a phonetic system, in which letters represent sounds?

45. Vessel from Lady Han’s tomb
Shang Tombs and Artifacts
Shang tombs and artifacts reveal a good deal about Shang culture. The possessions in the tomb of Lady Hao, likely a wife of King Wu Ding (ca BC), contained the most intact collection of objects of all the Shang Tombs.
Shang vessel, Anyang
Lady Hao’s Tomb
(Online Visual Sourcebook of China
Vessel from Lady Han’s tomb

46. Pillars of Chinese Civilization
Agriculture
System of Writing
Confucianism
System of Government (emperor, dynasty and bureaucracy)

47. Character - Forever Strokes and Stroke Order
Individual strokes are learned before complete characters
Note: both stroke order and direction are important
Character - Forever
(Chineseoutpost.com)

48. Ancestral Veneration
The emphasis on veneration, or respect of one’s ancestors pre-dates the teachings of Confucius in Chinese society. Why might ancestral worship have played such a large role?
Qing emperor Daisan
Arthur Sackler Gallery
12th century Qing Ming Festival Zhang Zeduan

49. The Warring States Period
The latter part of the Zhou period was known as The Warring States Period (474 BCE – 221 BCE).
Some 70 states competed for the Mandate of Heaven. The most powerful proved to be the Chu, Qi and Qin. The Qin would eventually conquer their rivals and unite China.
L. Bronze weapon and R. Crossbow with mechanical trigger.

50. Norte Chico
The civilization of Norte Chico arose on the coast of central Peru from 3000 BCE to 1800 CE.
This arid region lied in the Supe River valley. Its capital was Caral, which boasted monumental architecture in the form of earthen mounds used for ceremonial purposes as well as residential compounds.
Economically, it depended upon a fishing industry and trade with inland peoples for squash, beans, guava and cotton , with its only import being maize from Mesoamerica (Strayer).
Lacking in pottery and a system a writing, it relied quipus, knotted chords for counting. Yet it “lit a cultural fire in the Andes”, and paved the way for greater civilizations such as the Incas.
Above: Amphitheater at Caral ( and knotted quipu (archeologyabout.com)

51. OLMEC

52. Olmec Civilization 1. What is this statue, and where is it located?
This statue is one of seventeen large figures in the territory of the ancient Olmec civilization in Mesoamerica. At six feet in height and seven feet in width and with very specific facial features, they represent individual Olmec rulers.
2. What do you think was the purpose of these statues?
At this massive scale, these statues were not only supposed to impress the spectator with the size and powerful presence of the represented rulers; they also marked the rulers’ unmovable claims on the territory since these facial statues were too big to remove.
3. Consider the work involved in the creation of these statues. What does this tell us about the authority of these rulers?
Carving these massive heads out of rock must have required considerable work and skill. These rulers’ authority was considerable enough to compel the creation of these monuments and demand a very personal representation of power in their territories.

53. Mesoamerica: Olmec Civilization

54. Original Seven Wonders of the Ancient World
The Pyramids of Giza, Egypt Built: About 2,600 B.C. Massive tombs of Egyptian pharaohs, the pyramids are the only ancient wonders still standing today. Hanging Gardens of Babylon, Iraq Built: Date unknown Legend has it that this garden paradise was planted on an artificial mountain, but many experts say it never really existed. Temple of Artemis at Ephesus, Turkey Built: Sixth century B.C. This towering temple was built to honor Artemis, the Greek goddess of the hunt.
Statue of Zeus, Greece Built: Fifth century B.C. This 40-foot (12-meter) statue depicted the king of the Greek gods. Mausoleum at Halicarnassus, Turkey Build: Fourth century B.C. This elaborate tomb was built for King Mausolus. Colossus of Rhodes, Rhodes (an island in the Mediterranean Sea) Built: Fourth century B.C. A 110-foot (33.5-meter) statue honored the Greek sun god Helios. Lighthouse of Alexandria, Egypt Built: Third century B.C. The world's first lighthouse used mirrors to reflect sunlight for miles out to sea.