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Mesopotamia

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Cradle of CivilizationIn the heart of modern-day Iraq, between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, lies a dry, fl at, hot plain. It offers little to attract a casual tourist. But buried under sandy mounds on this vast plain are the remains of Mesopotamia, “the land between two rivers.” Scholars call Mesopotamia “the cradle of civilization.” It was there that cities fi rst developed into civilizations: human communities with well-organized

societies, economies, and political and re-ligious systems.

Long before the cities, however, bands of humans searched the plain for plants and animals to eat. About 12,000 years ago, some of these hunters and gatherers dis-covered that the seeds they had been eat-ing could be planted to grow more food. These people began to settle in villages, growing crops and domesticating animals. Some of the fi rst permanent settlements were at the foot of the mountains east and north of Mesopotamia. When the soil was

d CIVILIZATION IN MESOPOTAMIA began with the Sumerians, who started building cities in southern Mesopotamia around 3500 BCE. The Sumerians invented an early form of writing called cuneiform. Around 2350 BCE, Sargon

MESOPOTAMIA’S ANCIENT CIVILIZATIONS

C. 4500 BCE: The pottery-mak-The pottery-mak-The pottery-mak-The pottery-mak-ing Ubaid people ing Ubaid people ing Ubaid people ing Ubaid people settle southern Mesopotamia. They develop irri-gation.

C. 3500 BCE: Walled Sumerian city-states emerge in emerge in emerge in emerge in southern southern southern southern Mesopotamia.Mesopotamia.Mesopotamia.Mesopotamia.

C. 3100 BCE: The Sumerians The Sumerians The Sumerians The Sumerians invent cuneiform writing, making record-keeping possible.

C. 2600 BCE: Gilgamesh is king of the king of the king of the king of the Sumerian city of Sumerian city of Sumerian city of Sumerian city of Uruk.Uruk.Uruk.Uruk.

C. 2350 BCE: The Akkadian king Sargon the king Sargon the king Sargon the king Sargon the Great conquers and unifies the city-states of Sumer.

1792 BCE: Babylon grows powerful under King Hammurabi, King Hammurabi, King Hammurabi, King Hammurabi, who creates a who creates a who creates a who creates a code of laws for code of laws for code of laws for code of laws for his realm.his realm.his realm.his realm.

1115 BCE: The Assyrian Empire arises in northern Mesopotamia.

811 BCE: Queen Semiramis rules Assyria.rules Assyria.rules Assyria.rules Assyria.

the Great conquered the Sumerian city-states. The vast territory ruled by Sargon’s central government, with all its varied people, made up Akkad, Mesopotamia’s first empire. Next came the Babylonian Empire; its capital,

Babylon, lay northwest of Sumer on the Euphrates River. The Babylonians cre-ated a 12-month calendar. Babylon was conquered by the Assyrian Empire, which arose in northern Mesopotamia along the Tigris River. The

Assyrians used chariots in battle and excelled at warfare. Eventually, Mesopotamia came under the rule of the Persians, who controlled much of the region for about 1,000 years.

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worn out, the farmers moved onto the plain, where the soil was nourished by the annual overfl ow of the rivers. There was little rain, so farmers needed to channel river water to irrigate the fi elds. Irrigation projects required cooperation, planning,

u TODAY, THE

once-flourish-ing cities of Mesopotamia are reduced to mounds of brick rising from the arid soil, like

u MESOPOTAMIA is part of an area called the Fertile Crescent. Some of the earliest civiliza-tions developed here, along the banks of the Tigris and Euphrates.

Both rivers have their sources in the mountains of northeastern Turkey and drain into the Persian Gulf. This map shows the area today.

and leadership. Villages grew into cities and then city-

states, which sometimes warred with one another, following their leaders’ call. For thousands of years, civilizations rose and fell on the plain of Mesopotamia.

HOUSE MODEL

BILL OF SALE

WATER PITCHER

r MESOPOTAMIA had few natural resources; stone, wood, and metal were scarce. There was, however, abundant clay. Buildings were constructed of mud bricks, writing was done on clay tablets, and the earliest sculptures were made from clay.

MESOPOTAMIA’S ANCIENT CIVILIZATIONS

689 BCE: 689 BCE: 689 BCE: 689 BCE: The Assyrians conquer Babylon.

612 BCE: The Chaldeans and Medes sack and Medes sack and Medes sack the Assyrian the Assyrian the Assyrian the Assyrian capital Nineveh, capital Nineveh, capital Nineveh, capital Nineveh, ending the ending the ending the ending the Assyrian Empire.Assyrian Empire.Assyrian Empire.Assyrian Empire.

605 BCE: The Chaldean The Chaldean The Chaldean The Chaldean king Nebuchadnezzar II rebuilds Babylon.

539 BCE: The Persian king Cyrus conquers Cyrus conquers Cyrus conquers Cyrus conquers Babylon.Babylon.Babylon.Babylon.

this palace from Ur, an ancient Sumerian city. Ur was surrounded by branches, or tributaries, of the Euphrates River.

Over time, the waters of the Euphrates have shifted to the west; today, the river is 10 miles from the city’s ruins.

VASE


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Sumerians, Babylonians,Assyrians, and MoreThe history of Mesopota-mia is measured in millen-niums rather than centu-ries. The fi rst cities developed in the south around 3500 BCE. For the next 3,000 years, king-doms rose and fell, em-pires expanded and con-tracted, and outsiders conquered and were re-pelled. During that time, three dominant civiliza-tions held center stage at various times: the Sumeri-ans, the Babylonians, and the Assyrians. In brief, here are their stories.

The fi rst civilization developed in Sumer, the marshy area at the southern end of the fertile plain between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. Over time, the Sumerians converted their open villages into walled cities. As cities expanded their control, they became city-states ruled by strong leaders. One such leader, Sargon the Great, from Akkad, conquered all of Mesopotamia, ruling from c. 2334 to 2279 BCE. Sumerians developed a system of writing that could be used for different languag-es, enabling people to keep records and transmit knowledge. They also developed metalworking and were

early users of the wheel. Sumer, however, became weakened by constant warfare. It was overrun by invaders in 2006 BCE, and the region splintered into small kingdoms.

The city of Babylon inherited the culture of Sumer. Under Hammurabi (1792–1750 BCE), it became the seat of a strong central government and a great cultural and religious center. However, during the following centu-ries, Babylon was often invaded – by the Kassites and the Assyrians, for example. In 612 BCE, Babylon was dom-inated by Chaldeans. They, along with the Medes, crushed the Assyrian Em-pire. Chaldean king Nebuchadnezzar II (ruled 605–562 BCE) rebuilt Babylon into the greatest city in the world. Babylo-nians created the 60-minute hour, a calendar with 12 lunar months, and complex multiplication tables. Cyrus, king of Persia, conquered Babylonia in 539 BCE, ending its glory days forever.

This is a statue of King Gudea, who developed long-distance

trade in timber and metal objects.

A lion adorns a wall at the entrance to Babylon.

*From The Code of Hammurabi, King of Babylon by Robert Francis Harper, ed. University of Chicago Press, 1904.

Hammurabi took the throne of Bab-ylon in 1792 BCE. A skilled states-man and warrior, he united rival kingdoms and made Babylon the center of power. He claimed that the gods told him to write a set of laws, to bring justice to the land, so “the

strong should not harm the weak.” This was

the Code of Hammu-rabi. One of its laws said, “If a man destroy the eye of another man, they shall destroy his eye.” Another said, “If a son strike his fa-ther, they shall cut off his fi ngers.”*

SUMER 3500–2006 BCE

BABYLONIA 1792–539 BCE MAGNIFICENT

MESOPOTAMIANS Ishtar Gate, site of grand processions

Sumerians use mats to dry the marshes


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In hilly northern Mesopotamia, the small city-state of Assur slowly grew to become the powerful kingdom of Assyria. Using chariots, battering rams, and armored horses, the Assyrians conquered Babylon in 689 BCE, as well as other independent states. They uprooted the people they con-quered, enslaved them, and forced them into labor. These prisoners built the cities of Nineveh and Nimrud. The cities featured ornate palaces and temples and magnifi -cent sculptures. Their mighty walls had gateways fl anked by winged bulls or lions. They even had sewage systems. Kings Tiglath-Pileser III, Sennacherib, and Ashur-banipal II made the empire grow and opened trade links. However, in 612 BCE, Chaldean people from southern Babylonia, who had gained control of Babylon, joined the Medes people from Iran and sacked the capital Nineveh. The Assyrian Empire never recovered.

Ashurnasirpal II captured wild

animals and brought them to

the city of Nimrud for display in the world’s fi rst zoo.

SUMER 3500–2006 BCE

BABYLONIA 1792–539 BCE

ASSYRIA 1115–612 BCE Warlike Assyrians are busy at work in a military camp

Bronze statue of Hammurabi, ruler of Babylonia


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Day-to-Day LifeThe ruins of Mesopotamia reveal more about kings and battles than about the ordinary citizens who lived there. Still, artifacts and ancient writings tell us something about the day-to-day lives of the people. What was it like to live in Mesopotamia?

WORKER STIRRING MILK

l MESOPOTAMIAN

cylinder seals combined beauty and usefulness. Carved in stone, they produced a raised image when rolled on moist clay. The image could be used to mark a merchant’s ship-ment or stamp an official document.

d HOUSES WERE made of the only abundant build-ing material, mud

r EARLY GARMENTS

were knee- to calf-length skirts, worn by women and men. Later, a shawl-like piece of wool was draped over one shoulder.

bricks. Square or rectangular, the houses were con-structed around

a central court-yard. Cities were mazes of narrow, winding streets. Some had drain-age systems, and some homes even had flush toilets. Trash, however, was thrown into the street until it piled up so high that steps had to be cut down toward doorways.

MESOPOTAMIAN FASHION

CITY ARTISANS

included potters, carpenters, metal workers, leather workers, basket weavers, and jewelers. They made both neces-sities and luxury items.


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l IN THE HOME, women spun sheep’s wool with hand-spin-dles. The thread was then woven into cloth, both for the family’s use and for extra income.

r SONS OF WEALTHY

families went to school from age six, mainly to learn to read and write cuneiform, the wedge-shaped writing inscribed on clay tablets. By copying texts,

l AT THE TOP OF Mesopotamian society were kings and their families. Next came large landowners, high-ranking gov-ernment officials, military leaders, and priests. The next rung of soci-ety held

u OUTSIDE OF CITIES,farmers raised cattle, sheep, goats, and pigs. These animals pro-vided wool, meat, skins for leather, and dairy products such as milk and butter. Farmers also grew wheat, barley, and mil-let in their fields.

WORKER STIRRING MILK

STRAINING MILK

STOOL CHURNING STRAINED CREAM

INTO BUTTER

COWSHED MILKINGA COW

CALF

they also learned about animals and plants, mathemat-

merchants, scribes, and crafts-people. Below them were farmers, hunt-ers, and herders. At the lowest level of society were enslaved people – military captives or citizens who had fallen into debt.

They planted fig, pomegranate, and other fruit trees. Their gardens were full of cucumbers, peas, onions, gar-lic, lettuce, lentils, turnips, and chickpeas.

ics, and literature. Girls learned cooking, spinning, and household management from their mothers or from the family’s enslaved servants. Some were taught cuneiform at home.

r SURPLUS CROPS and cloth were trad-ed for wood, gold, silver, and other natural resources Mesopotamia lacked. Traders traveled far, includ-ing to the African kingdoms of Egypt and Kush. Wood from Lebanon is being unloaded from this ship.


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Gods and DemonsSumerians, Babylonians, and Assyrians shared the same basic religious beliefs and gods, or deities, though the names were sometimes different. They be-lieved that human beings were created to serve the gods. Gods looked and act-ed like people but had supernatural powers. Spirits (good and bad) and de-mons also affected the lives of humans.

r TEMPLES, CALLED

ziggurats, dominat-ed Mesopotamian cities. Ziggurats were stepped, like some pyramids, and were several stories tall or taller. Babylon’s seven-story ziggurat, called Etemenanki, is thought to be the Tower of Babel referred to in the Bible.

u MESOPOTAMIANS

were buried with their special pos-sessions. In the royal tombs at Ur, excavators found jewelry (above),

THIS LITTLE GOD IS HOLDING A BUILDING PEG TO SECURE THE FOUNDATION OF A TEMPLE

ASTARTE, GODDESS OF LOVE

ABU, GOD OF VEGETATION

ISHTAR, GODDESS OF

LOVE

u MANY MESOPOTA-MIAN myths are echoed in the Bible. One tells of the gods’ deci-sion to destroy the world with a great flood, like

pottery, weap-ons, and makeup paints with the tools for apply-ing them. There was also evidence that servants had been buried alive with their masters, perhaps after being drugged or poisoned. This may have been done so that servants could serve their masters in the afterlife. In the pic-ture to the right, a dead nobleman is being placed on a stretcher, on which he will be carried to his grave.

the story of Noah and the Ark. One god warned a Sumerian king and gave him instructions for building a large boat to carry his family and live-stock. This myth may include some history. Scientists have found evi-dence of flooding that destroyed large areas of Mesopotamia more than once.

DEITIES ALLEY


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u TO INTERPRET THE

will of the gods, priests called Baru examined all sorts of signs, including the movements of stars and planets, weather, dreams, and the behavior

u MESOPOTA-mians believed in ghosts and demons. Ghosts of those who had not received a proper burial might haunt the living. The demon Pazuzu (above) brought

and organs of animals. This clay model of a sheep’s liver told the Baru what to look for in vari-ous places on the liver in order to foretell the future.

sandstorms from the

desert. Other demons lurked in dark corners or carried disease. Some good spirits acted as guardians and helped people to ward off evil spirits.

u ORDINARY PEOPLE and priests offered food and incense to the gods during special festivals. In Babylonian times, the most important celebration was an 11-day new year’s festival. It was held near the spring equinox, a time when the gods were thought to set people’s fates for the next year. Each day of the festival brought special ceremo-nies, including one in which a beheaded sheep magically absorbed the evil of the old year. The sheep was then thrown into the river so that the evil could float away with it.

ABU, GOD OF VEGETATION

Sargon the Great ruled from 2334 to 2279 BCE. He became the first empire builder by uniting northern and southern Mesopotamia. A legend tells that, as a baby, he was set adrift in a reed basket and found by someone who took him to the royal court, where he later rose to power. Similar stories were told about other Near Eastern leaders, including the biblical Moses.

MAGNIFICENTMESOPOTAMIANS

SICK PATIENT FATHER

PRIESTS HELPING TO CURE THE

PATIENT

GULA, GODDESS OF

MEDICINE


Nebuchadnezzar II, ruler of Babylonia from 605 to 562 bce, brought the capital city of Babylon back to its former grandeur – and then some! The Assyrians had de-stroyed the city around 689 bce, but Nebuchadnezzar re-built it. He decorated temples and palaces with lavish gold and silver ornamentation, making it the most magnifi-cent city of the day. His most

The Hanging Gardens of Babylonnoted contribution was a series of terraced gardens known as the Hanging Gar-dens of Babylon. Kept lush and green by a complex ir-rigation system, these gar-dens were considered one of the Seven Wonders of the World. Nebuchadnezzar may have built them to please his wife. She missed the forested mountains of Media, her homeland.


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Accomplishments of the MesopotamiansLong before the modern world ever knew about the splendors of Mesopotamia, it had benefi ted from the accomplishments of this long-lost world. The Mesopota-mians were the fi rst people known to study the skies, use the arch or the wheel, compile laws, and keep written records. Their legacy was passed down to us by the people they conquered and by the people who conquered them. Here are some of their achievements.

l MESOPOTAMIAN

builders were the first to use the arch, an advance that allowed door-ways and roofs to hold more weight.

r A HUMAN-HEADED,winged, four-ton bull sculpture is moved from a raft onto a sledge. It is pulled uphill by a chain of captives, over logs, or roll-ers, that serve as wheels.

u DO YOU LIKE SKATE-boards, rollerblades, and bicycles? We wouldn’t have any of

them without the Mesopotamians, who were the first to use the wheel

for transportation (perhaps inspired by their pottery wheels). Wheels helped animals pull heavy loads, and they made the battle chariot a for-midable weapon.

u THIS BOARD GAME

was played by Mesopotamians, but the rules have not been found. The 4,500-year-old clay, wheeled animal at right was most likely a toy.

l THIS MESOPO-tamian is care-fully studying a palm tree. Mesopotamians were great list makers, compiling descriptive lists of plants, animals, and minerals.

r MESOPOTAMIANS were the first to use baked-brick ovens, not pits of hot coals. Some ovens had cooking ranges for boiling and frying food.

KING SENNACHERIBWATCHES

BUCKET GANGKEEPS ROLLERS

WET

ROLLER

So,you want

anchovies with

that ?


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r MUCH OF OUR

modern number system is based on the number 10. It probably goes back to people count-ing on their 10 fingers. The Mesopotamians used this decimal system and a more complex one built around the base of 60. That one is reflected today in how we measure seconds, minutes, and hours, and also the degrees in a circle. Mesopotamians

were also the first to use place value in a number sys-tem and the first to invent a symbol that indicates noth-ing, or zero.

l MESOPOTAMIANS recorded the positions of bright stars. They named constella-tions and divided the sky into 12 sections, each named after a nearby constellation. Our names for the 12 signs of the zodiac are based on Latin and Greek translations of Mesopotamian names. Mesopotamian astronomers may have recorded the earliest sightings of Halley’s Comet.

d THE ASSYRIANS were probably the first to develop an armored “car” to use in battle. The battering ram

u ASSYRIANS USED

inflatable animal skins as personal floats to help them

u MESOPOTAMIANS were the first chemists. They used natural mate-rials to make such useful items as soap, herbal medi-cines, and dyes. By studying the soil and sand used in

r THIS LENS WAS made by Assyrians. It is the earliest known example of glass used for magnification.

smashed a hole in a city’s wall, while archers in the car’s tower fought off those defendingthe city.

cross a river, either to escape an enemy or to attack one.

pottery-making, they learned to make glass. They also discovered that cop-per and tin could be combined to make a stronger metal, bronze.

After her husband died (around 811 BCE), Queen Semiramis ruled the Assyrian Empire until her son was old enough to take the throne. Her husband had

destroyed Babylon in a military campaign. She restored it to its former magnificence. Semiramis extended the empire as far south as the Arabian Peninsula, and north to Turkey. Some people think she invented trousers,

which were useful for traveling in comfort on military campaigns. They also made it hard for an enemy to see if a horseback rider was male or female.


ROLLER

lu THE SUMERIANS probably invented stringed musi-cal instruments, such as the harp and lyre. Burial sites at Ur contain beautifully carved instruments, evidence of their popularity.

So,you want

anchovies with

that ?

Which of the accomplishments of the Mesopotamians do you think is most important?


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The Legendary Gilgamesh . . . Little is known about the real Gilgamesh, a Sumerian who ruled the city-state of Uruk, probably around 2600 BCE. Still, he is possi-bly the most famous of all Mesopotamians. He is the hero of stories fi rst told in the markets of Mesopotamia and later written down as one of the world’s fi rst ep-ics. Twelve tablets that tell parts of the tale were found at Nineveh in the library of the Assyrian king Ashurba-nipal. In these tales, Gil-gamesh is half god and half man. He is a great builder and warrior, but he’s not a perfect human being!

THE DEATH OF ENKIDU One adventure of Enkidu and Gilgamesh involves Gilgamesh’s attempt to make a name for himself by chal-

GILGAMESH SEEKS IMMORTALITY Gilgamesh travels across the waters of death to speak to the wise man Utnapishtim, the only human to have escaped death. GILGAMESH MEETS

ENKIDU When Gilgamesh’s people complain to the gods that he works them too hard building

Finally, Gilgamesh throws Enkidu. The wild man is

As Gilgamesh pre-pares to return to Uruk, Utnapishtim offers him a final secret. It’s a plant called “The-Old-Man-Will-Be-

lenging Humbaba, a guardian-demon. Humbaba pleads for his life, but Enkidu kills him. The gods decide Enkidu must die. Gilgamesh mourns his friend.

Utnapishtim tells Gilgamesh the story of the flood, in which the gods saved him and his family. He challenges Gilgamesh to stay awake for six days and seven nights. Gilgamesh fails.

walls around the city, the gods cre-ate the wild man Enkidu to challenge Gilgamesh. Enkidu and Gilgamesh fight.

impressed, and they become friends.

Made-Young.” Gilgamesh finds the plant, but a serpent carries it away. Thus, Gilgamesh is destined to die a mortal death.

GILGAMESHTAMES A LION CUB

*From The Epic of Gilgamesh translated by N. K. Sandars. Penguin Books, 1960.

*

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. . . and the Origins of Writing It is said that “history begins at Sumer” because history is the written record of events, and around 3100 BCE the Sumeri-

l SINCE MESOPO-tamia had few trees for making paper, writing was scratched on clay tablets. This chart

r ASSYRIAN KING

Ashurbanipal (668–627 BCE) founded the first national library, at Nineveh. Clay tab-lets were stored on shelves in baskets. Catalogs were

r THE BABYLONIAN

map of the world is the earliest known world map. A copy is shown here. Made 2,700 years ago, it shows the Euphrates River

r WITH WRITING came the desire to send a letter. In Mesopotamia, that could be done! The Mesopotamians invented the earliest example of a postal envelope. A letter was writ-ten on a small clay tablet and

SMALL CLAY TOKENS, PROBABLY

symbolizing items such as grain or sheep, were an early form of a bill that went with shipments. The tokens were put into clay spheres. The spheres had cylinder seals rolled over them to show records.

enclosed in a clay envelope with the name and address of the recipient.

Enheduanna, daughter of Sargon the Great, learned to read and write at an early age. When she was a teenager, her father made her high priestess to Nanna, the moon god of Sumer. She held the position for 25 years, expressing her reli-gious feelings in poems. Besides penning a series of 43 hymns to the temples of Sumer and Akkad, she wrote a cycle of poetry to the moon goddess Inanna. Enheduanna is the first author to be known by name.


ans invented writing. Of course, they didn’t start by writing history. Their earliest writing kept track of business transactions.

shows how cuneiform writ-ing developed, from early picto-graphs (picture writing) to later symbols.

prepared that listed the contents and locations of the various baskets.

(parallel lines in the circle), crossed by Babylon (top rectangle in the circle), and nearby countries (small circles).


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How We Know What We KnowWhen Babylon fell to the Persian king Cyrus in 539 BCE, Mesopotamia’s glory days came to an end. As the centuries passed, people remembered less and less of Mesopotamia’s achievements. Once-glorious cities were buried in the sands. Cuneiform was replaced by other types of writing. Ancient Greek historical writing and the Old Testament kept alive an awareness that Assyria and Babylon had existed. But Sumer had died out long before

these later civilizations. It was completely forgotten.

The Persian rulers were followed by the Greeks, the Arabs, and the Turks. When Britain defeated Turkey in World War I, the land became part of the British Empire and was given the new name of Iraq. The Arab natives of Iraq fought for indepen-dence, which they won in 1932. More than a century before that, however, schol-

ars and adventurers had begun to redis-cover Mesopotamia.

u IN 1811, BRIT-ish business agent Claudius Rich, sta-tioned in Baghdad, visited the ruins of Babylon. He sur-veyed the site,

ur�PAUL-EMILE Botta became French consul at Mosul in the Otto-man (Turkish) Empire in 1843. He swore to fi nd the lost cities of Assyria. While ex-cavating at Khor-sabad, he uncov-ered the remains of the great pal-ace of Sargon II. Later, Englishman Austen Henry La-yard unearthed palace treasures, such as this winged bull.

l IN 1877, French diplomat Ernest de Sarzec was assigned to the port of Bas-ra, which is at the head of the Persian Gulf. Alerted by an of-fi cial to an inter-esting site called Telloh, Sarzec decided to ex-plore. Between 1877 and 1878, he found many inscribed tablets and cylinder seals. Sarzec had discovered the remains of a Sumerian city. At the time, the very existence of a Sumerian culture was questioned by some scholars.

l AN ENERGETIC scholar, Gertrude Bell had the job of controlling archae-ological digs in Iraq during British rule of the area. She granted permits only for single sites with well-defi ned limits. Her work put an end to random treasure hunting.

u FROM 1922 TO 1934, Sir Charles Leonard Woolley led a joint excavation team from the Brit-ish Museum and the

made sketches, and dug up cunei-form tablets. This is considered the beginning of Mesopotamian archaeology.

University of Penn-sylvania. Its goal was to explore the ancient city of Ur. Woolley did some remarkable detec-tive work when he discovered pieces of gold near a hole in the ground. He poured plaster into the hole, and it hardened in the space, which had been left by the de-caying wood of a harp. The plaster cast made possible this reconstruction of the harp.


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u In 1835, British soldier Hen-ry Rawlinson risked his life many times. He was studying writings 300 feet up a cliff face in Behistun, Persia (left). By comparing writing in three lan-guages – Old Per-sian, Elamite, and Babylonian – he eventually broke the code. His work enabled later schol-ars to read Akkadi-an cuneiform and thus Sumerian.

u UntIl Iraq’sformer leader Sad-dam Hussein began a project to drain the marshes near the Persian Gulf, Marsh Arabs lived there in homes made of reeds, much like Mesopo-tamia’s earliest res-idents.


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Imagine that you are a reporter in ancient Sumer. A Sumerian has built the first wheeled cart. Compose a narrative story announcing this innovation. Invent details: Tell your readers who built the cart and how that person expects the invention to affect people’s lives.

WRITE A NARRATIVE

CREATE AN ADVERTISEMENT

Activities

Suppose you are a Mesopotamian trader. Choose something that you trade and create an advertisement for your business. Your ad must help persuade people to buy the goods you are selling. Provide details to convince them.

Mesopotamia_18-19.indd 18 3/10/17 4:09 PM

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HSS 6.2 Students analyze the geograph-ic, political, economic, religious, and social structures of the early civiliza-tions of Mesopotamia, Egypt, and Kush.

6.2.1 Locate and describe the major river systems and discuss the physical settings that supported permanent settlement and early civilizations. 6.2.2 Trace the devel-opment of agricultural techniques that per-mitted the production of economic surplus and the emergence of cities as centers of culture and power. 6.2.3 Understand the relationship between religion and the social and political order in Mesopotamia and Egypt. 6.2.4 Know the significance of Hammurabi’s Code. 6.2.9 Trace the evolu-tion of language and its written forms.

Historical and Social Sciences Analysis Skills:

Chronological and Spatial Thinking 3. Students use a variety of maps and documents to identify physical and cultural features of neighborhoods, cities, states, and countries and to explain the historical migration of people, expansion and dis-integration of empires, and the growth of economic systems.

CALIFORNIA STANDARDS

• The region once known as Mesopotamia is a stretch of land along and between two large riv-ers, the Tigris and the Euphrates.

• In Sumer, city-states emerged as centers of culture and power. Each city was surrounded by a wall pro-tecting it from enemies.

• In Mesopotamia, religion and kingship were intertwined. Mesopotamians believed in many different gods – a religious system known as polytheism.

• Mesopotamians created technology used in every area of life. Their paved roads made travel easier.

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Ancient EgyptPyramids, pharaohs, mummies, and gods: This once-powerful civilization left behind breathtaking monuments and priceless treasures. Discover the people and practices that make Ancient Egypt so alluring to the historians who have uncovered the mysteries of this ancient civilization.

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Editor: Jennifer DixonArt dirEction: Hopkins/Baumann, Brobel DesigndEsignErs: Ian Brown, Ed Gabel, David Ricculli, Jeremy RechPhoto rEsEArch: Ted Levine, Elisabeth MorganActivitiEs WritEr: Marjorie FrankProofrEAdEr: Paula Glatzer

fAct-chEckEr: Nayda Rondon, Amy McIlwaine

Author: Lois Markham, James WallerAuthor tEAm LEAd: Amy K. Hughes

PrEsidEnt And cEo: Ted LevinechAirmAn And foundEr: Mark Levine

World’s Early PeopleMesopotamiaAncient EgyptArchaeology Language Ancient HebrewsEarly GreeksGreece’s Golden AgeAncient Persia

Ancient IndiaIndian Empires Ancient ChinaEarly RomansRoman EmpireChristianity and Rome’s LegaciesOlmec and MayaCivil Rights

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on thE covEr: Ur-Ningirsu, Prince of Lagash. Alabaster figure, c. 2100 bce. Art Resource: Erich Lessing.

PicturE crEdits: Alamy: Chronicle: p.2 bottom center (Gilgamesh), p.17 (Darius monument); Interfoto: p.2 middle right (Sargon the Great), p.9 bottom right (Sargon the Great); Lanmas: p.2 middle right (Assyrian palace); Lebrecht Music and Arts Photo Library: p.2 bottom right (Semiramis); Walker Art Library: p.3 middle left (Assyrians besieging a city); Mary Evans Picture Library: p.3 bottom left (Nineveh), p.16 upper right (Nineveh), p.16 bottom center (Gertrude Bell); North Wind Picture Archives: p.3 center (Ancient Babylon); bilwissedition Ltd. & Co. KG: p.3 bottom center (King Cyrus); www.BibleLandPictures.com: p.4 bottom left (Code of Hammurabi); Luis Dafos: p.19 bottom (Tigris River). Art Resource: Erich Lessing: p.2 left (Ubaid), p.3 lower right (bill of sale), p.3 lower right (lion-rhyton), p.3 bottom center (vase with goat), p.3 bottom right (house model), p.6 bottom right (male figure), p.7 upper right (cedar transport), p.8 bottom center (figure of a god), p.8 bottom right (Ishtar, goddess of love), p.8 bottom right (goddess Astarte), p.9 bottom left (goddess Gula), p.9 bottom left (Pazuzu), p.12 bottom left (24 squares of Ur), p.13 top left (Ashurnazirpal assaults a city), pp.12–13 bottom (Ashurnazirpal II in Nimrud), p.13 middle right (Assaradon), p.13 bottom right (the music-stele), p.12 bottom center (studying palm tree), pp.14–15 center (Gilgamesh

tames the lion), p.15 bottom center (Babylonian map), Musee de Louvre, Paris: p.15 top center (clay tokens), Erich Lessing: p.15 bottom right (King Ashurbanipal); Scala: p.4 center (Gudea, king of Lagash), p.7 (milking scene), p.13 top right (bronze chariot), p.8 bottom right (Abu); British Museum, London: p.5 right (Ashurnasirpal II), p.6 left (greenstone seal impression), p.16 upper center (winged bull), p.13 bottom right (queen’s lyre); The Morgan Library & Museum: p.6 left (seals and tablets); Werner Forman: p.8 upper left (Mesopotamian jewelry); SEF: p.12 top right (Sumerian wheel), p.18 top (Sumerian wheel); HIP: p.15 top right (cuneiform tablet and envelope). Biblioteque National, Paris: p.16 lower right (Ernest de Sarzec). Bridgeman Images: Look and Learn: p.2 bottom center (King Hammurabi); Louvre, Paris, France: p.7 top right (Elamite woman spinning), p.7 middle right (cuneiform script); Biasioli: pp.8–9 top (Etemenanki); Roger Payne: p.15 middle right (Enheduana). British Museum, London: p.13 top center (Assyrian lens). Getty Images: G. Dagli Orti: p.2 middle left (cuneiform tablet), p.4 bottom right (King Hammurabi); PHAS: p.12 middle left (Ishtar Gate); De Agostini/Archivio J. Lange: p.16 middle left (ruins at Babylon). Granger Collection: p.2 bottom left (Sumerian walled city); p.6 bottom left (palace and Khorsabad); p.8 bottom left (Noah’s Ark); p.9 middle right (clay model of a sheep’s liver); p.12 bottom left (toy animal); p.16 bottom left (bull’s head); p.17 top right (Henry Rawlinson). Mary Evans Picture Library: p.13 bottom center (heavens). National Geographic Creative: H.M. Herget: p.4 lower right (Ishtar Gate), p.4 upper center (drying marsh land), p.5 top (Assyrian military camp), pp.6–7 top (making cylinder seals), p.8 right (burial), p.9 top right (priests stand beside sick boy), pp.12–13 center (men haul a statue in Nineveh). Science Source: George Gerster: p.3 top left (palace at Ur), p.17 center middle (Marsh Arabs). Shutterstock: jsp: p.4 bottom (lion on a Babylonian wall); khd: p.12 top right (lion hunt); Kamira: p.13 center (clay tablet); Fejas: p.18 bottom (vase cartoon); Vladimir Zhoga: p.19 top center (Japanese hieroglyphs); LuFeeTheBear: p.19 top left (archaeologist); JJ_SNIPER: p.19 top right (ancient Egyptian statue).

originAL iLLustrAtions:Acme Design Company: Inflatable Skins, p.13; Pictograms to Cuneiforms, p.15. Gary Hallgren: Map, pp.4–5; Mesopotamian Society Diagram, p.7.

Michael Kline Illustration: Cartoons, Cover, p.9; Map, p.3; The Story of Gilgamesh, p.14.

Wood Ronsaville Harlin, Inc.: The Hanging Gardens of Babylon, pp.10–11.

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