mesopotamia persiat metropolitan museum of art. heilbrunn timeline of art history – mesopotamia....

Mesopotamia

PERSIAT

Metropolitan Museum of Art. Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History – Mesopotamia. 2000. http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/ht/?period=02&region=wam

(Sept. 14, 2010)

Sargon

• Sharru-ken = the king is legitimate

• World’s first empire– Under his sons it extended from Anatolia to

Iran to Arabia to the Mediterranean

The British Museum – Mesopotamia. N.d.

http://www.mesopotamia.co.uk. (Sept. 9, 2008).

Farming

• How did they successfully grow crops like barley without a lot of rain and limited water?– Canals and irrigation ditches

• Water level controlled by regulators

• Farmers could only use an allotted amount of water (regulator turned on)

Ibid.

Gods

• “Gods control the world, are responsible for things in the world, including nature, and most acts that take place in daily life.”

• They protect cities.• They live in temples.• Priests take care of Gods (rituals).• Ordinary people make offerings to Gods.

– metal and stone objects, plaques, stone figures

Ibid.

Gods

Ishtar

Ea (Enki)

Human-headed bull from Sargon II’s tomb

Offerings

Metal object

Plaque

Stone figure

Special Privileges

• Carved stone figures represent elite worshippers– Taken to temples instead of being there

• Male and female figures

Ibid.

Male worshipper

Metropolitan Museum of Art – Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. 2000. http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/40.156 (Sept. 14, 2010).

Ziggurats

• Temples on platforms.

• Usually mud brick.

• They are the homes of Gods.– Higher than humans (stairways)

• Goes back to mountains – important in their mythology so maybe the temples had to be high for the Gods to see the mountains?

• Chief God of a city has a temple dedicated to it.

Ibid.

Ziggurat

Ibid.

Astronomy

• Babylonian scribes observed and recorded the movement of stars and planets.– Advised king on how these movements would

affect the calendar.• Calendar used for dating festivals and collecting

loans and taxes.

• Need to observe starts to know when to add extra month.

• Scribes advise king of how omens could predict future events.

Ibid.

Babylonian Calendar

The Schoyen Collection – Calendars and Almanacs. N.d.

http://www.schoyencollection.com/calendars.htm (Sept. 14, 2010).

Lists 12 months and good days

Pictograms

The British Museum – Mesopotamia. N.d. http://www.mesopotamia.co.uk. (Sept. 9, 2008).

CuneiformA script used to write different languages, such as Sumerian, Akkadian, Hittite, etc.

Ibid.

Scribes

Reed stylus

ScribeIbid.