Chapter OneFoundations of Civilization

Prehistory-3000 B.C.

Section Three

Beginnings of Civilization

Farmers began cultivating lands along river valleys and producing surplus, or extra, food.

Surpluses helped populations expand.

As populations grew, some villages swelled into cities.

The Neolithic Revolution turned nomads into farmers. It took surpluses of agricultural products to create the first

civilizations.

What Are the Basic Features of Civilization?

A civilization is a complex, highly organized social

order. Historians have identified eight basic features found

in most early civilizations.

Early civilizations began near rivers.

River Valley Civilizations

The earliest civilizations developed along rivers in Mesopotamia, Egypt, India, and China.

cities

job specialization

art and architecture

public works

complex religions

social classes

writing

central governments

The eight basic features found in most early civilizations are:

evidence of cities

Ston

The Neolithic

city of Catalhoyuk,

in central Turkey,

dates back to 7400 B.C.

evidence of cities In the New World, the domestication of plants and

animals occurred independently of Old World

developments.

By 1500 B.C., Neolithic cultures based on the

cultivation of corn, beans, squash, and

other plants led to the rise of the Inca and Aztec civilizations.This is Machu Picchu in Peru’s Andes Mountains

evidence of central governments

The earliest governments were

patriarchal. Fathers governed their families; and from the family to

the tribe, from the tribe to the nation -

governments were extensions of that

patriarchal authority.

evidence of central governments

Cuneiform tablets, like this one from the ancient city of Nuzi in northern

Iraq, recorded laws that codified the

patriarchal structure of early civilizations.

Such laws allowed childless

couples to adopt a male servant who

would become their heir.

A father was required to find a wife for his sons and arrange marriage contracts for the daughters

evidence of central governments

Zhengzhou, in Central China’s

Henan province, is the site of an archaeological

study of a palace from the early Shang Dynasty (1600 B.C. to 1046 B.C.).

evidence of writing

Pictographs are signs or symbols that represent words or phrases. The

earliest forms of writing were pictographs, like these

on a clay tablet from 4th century B.C. Sumer.

evidence of writing

These are some modern pictographs.

evidence of writing

Akhet is the Egyptian hieroglyph representing the place where the sun rises and sets. It is

often translated as “horizon.”

Pictographs like these from ancient Egypt are the earliest

known form of writing.

evidence of writing

Egyptian hieroglyphics used pictographic and alphabetic elements. The football shapes in the image on the left represent the “s” and “r” sounds.

evidence of writing

These Maya glyphs (at left) were created in stucco.

These are Egyptian hieroglyphs inscribed

on clay. (below)

evidence of writing

This is the scapula of an ox with

an inscription from the

Shang dynasty. This is an oracle bone pit at the

Shang Dynasty capitol at Henan.

evidence of writing

The Code of Hammurabi

was inscribed in cuneiform on stele, like this one, and

placed in public so that

everyone could see it.

evidence of writing

Scribes had to undergo training.

Scribes became members of a

privileged élite who might look with contempt

upon their fellow citizens. An ancient Egyptian scribe from

around 2400 B.C.

evidence of social classes

Hammurabi’s 8th law

If any one steal cattle or sheep, or an ass, or a pig or a goat, if it belong to a god or to the court, the thief shall pay thirtyfold therefor; if they belonged to a freed man of the king he shall pay tenfold; if

the thief has nothing with which to pay he shall be put to death.

Penalties for breaking the law varied according to the social class of the offender and the victim.

evidence of social classes

In ancient Egypt, a

person’s social class was

determined by his practical

distance from the pharaoh.

evidence of complex religions

In the Neolithic Period, early civilizations like the

Sumerians and the Egyptians had polytheistic religions, or religions with many gods, like the many gods of Greek and Roman

mythology.

This carving shows the Sumerian sun god

Shamash being visited by a king and two other gods.

evidence of complex religions

Egyptian religious practice centered on the pharaoh, the king of Egypt. Although a human, the Pharaoh was believed to be descended from the gods.

HORUS SET THOTH KHNUM HATHOR SOBEK RA AMON PTAH ANUBIS OSIRIS ISIS

evidence of complex religions

Stone statues are believed to have had religious meaning. Statues of

pregnant women suggest that early people worshiped

earth-mother goddesses. This is Mut, one of Egypt's earliest mother goddesses

Early people began

burying their dead with care, suggesting a belief in life after death.

evidence of complex religions

This is a Maya temples in Chichén Itzá on the Yucatán

Peninsula in southern Mexico.Temple I, Tikal,

Guatemala

The Temple of the Cross pyramid at the Maya ruins of Palenque in the

state of Chiapas in Mexico.

This is a corridor with an

irrigation canal at the royal quarters

of Phaistos on the

island of Crete.

Many Neolithic

public works projects

were meant to improve

irrigation for agriculture.

Much of that

evidence is lost.

evidence of public works

Mohenjo-Daro was built around 2600 B.C. It had a central marketplace, with

a large central well. Individual households or

groups of households obtained their water from

smaller wells. Waste water was channeled to covered drains that lined

the major streets.

evidence of public works

This is the Great Bath at Mohenjo-Daro in Pakistan’s Indus River Valley. It is 39 feet long.

evidence of public works

These are Russian

photographers atop the Great

Pyramid at Giza in 2013.

Climbing the pyramids is

illegal.

When surpluses allowed Neolithic

tool makers recreational time,

some began to create works of art.

evidence of arts and architecture

evidence of art and architectureThis is the reconstructed

facade of the Great Ziggurat of Ur, near

Nasiriyah, Iraq. Below, U.S. soldiers climb the ziggurat

in 2010.

evidence of job specialization

This Neolithic grindstone was used for processing grain.

Reliable food sources led to job specialization. Food surpluses allowed societies to support leaders, artists, craftsmen,

priests, scribes, and soldiers because it wasn’t necessary for everyone to grew his own food.

Musicians were trained in schools and formed an important

professional class in Mesopotamia.

evidence of job specialization

Some ancient Egyptians were

craftsmen, doctors, lawyers,

engineers, military leaders,

scribes, and priests, but

most people were farmers.

A flat, copper chisel used for stone work in

Ancient Egypt

Ancient Egyptians invented the Chorobates like the one

above. A Chorobates helped engineers to create level

structures.

Cultural Diffusion

Cultural diffusion is the spread of ideas,

customs, and technologies from one people to another. In the Neolithic period,

cultural diffusion occurred through

migration, trade, and warfare.

Cultural DiffusionPeople was discovered in about 9000 B.C. in the Middle East. A

copper pendant was found in northern Iraq that dates to 8700 BC.

Just like agriculture, copper smelting was

invented locally in several different

places.

Cultural Diffusion

Gunpowder technology followed the same routes as the Mongol invasions of the Middle East and Europe.

Gunpowder emerged in

China in about 900

A.D. In 1000 A.D.,

the Chinese invented the flame thrower.

and now…

some more final exam questions…

Which geographic feature had a major influence on the development of both Egyptian and

Mesopotamian civilizations?

a) cool temperatures

b) mountains

c) locations near a strait

d) river valleys

Which geographic feature had a major influence on the development of both Egyptian and

Mesopotamian civilizations?

a) cool temperatures

b) mountains

c) locations near a strait

d) river valleys

Which is a characteristic shared by the Ancient Egyptian Civilization, Ancient Mesopotamian

civilizations, Ancient Indus Valley Civilization, and Ancient Chinese Civilization?

a) Anyone who wasn’t wealthy was a slave.

b) Each had an organized religion.

c) They used the same coins for money.

d) They spoke the same language.

Which is a characteristic shared by the Ancient Egyptian Civilization, Ancient Mesopotamian

civilizations, Ancient Indus Valley Civilization, and Ancient Chinese Civilization?

a) Anyone who wasn’t wealthy was a slave.

b) Each had an organized religion.

c) They used the same coins for money.

d) They spoke the same language.

The most common farming feature shared by all river civilizations of the ancient world was

a) using cattle for work.

b) designing and using irrigation in fields.

c) the practice of sifting grain from a screen.

d) the use of plows only made from stones.

The most common farming feature shared by all river civilizations of the ancient world was

a) using cattle for work.

b) designing and using irrigation in fields.

c) the practice of sifting grain from a screen.

d) the use of plows only made from stones.