Objectives Discuss meaning of GRAPES Locate geographical features

Objectives: • Discuss meaning of GRAPES • Locate geographical features of Mesopotamia • Describe GRAPES characteristics of Mesopotamia • Locate, label geographical features of Egypt on a map

River Valley Civilizations

There were four primary river civilizations that developed between 3500 – 500 BCE

Mesopotamia and the Fertile Crescent

Geography: Mesopotamia means “Land between two rivers” • The Tigris and Euphrates Rivers provided rich soil and water for farming **flooding was dangerous and unpredictable! • The Zagros Mountains and the Syrian desert provided protection from invaders The Fertile Crescent is the arc of fertile land between the Mediterranean Sea and Persian Gulf

Religion - Mesopotamia • The Mesopotamians worshipped many gods and goddesses which means they were POLYTHEISTIC • They constructed huge pyramids called ziggurats to worship their gods • Sumerians had a negative view of the afterlife where their souls would wander in the land of no return

Religion: Mesopotamia • Rulers were believed to be divinely chosen –the gods appointed them to rule • This is called a theocracy - rule by a religious authority • The earliest rulers in Mesopotamia were priests Can you name a modern-day theocracy?

Achievements: Mesopotamia • Cuneiform= first written language • Made using clay and a stylus and has wedge-shaped characters • Characters are based on pictograms

More Cuneiform:

Achievements: Mesopotamia Two important written documents come from Mesopotamia: 1. The Epic of Gilgamesh 2. Hammurabi’s Code Both were written in cuneiform and translated

Achievements: Mesopotamia The Epic of Gilgamesh is possibly the oldest story ever written -Was found on clay tablets and tells the story of a king (Gilgamesh) and a man (Enkidu) who fight an evil God named Humbaba -The man is mortally wounded and Gilgamesh realizes that men are not immortal

Achievements: Mesopotamia The Code of Hammurabi= code of laws established by Hammurabi of Babylon when he conquered Mesopotamia What might we learn about Mesopotamia by looking at its laws?

Hammurabi’s Code The laws were carved onto a basalt (stone) slab called a stele. • It included laws for commerce • Harsh punishments including, “an eye for an eye” • It contained different rules for different social classes • It even set forth rules and punishments for marriage

plow bronze weapons irrigation system

Political: Mesopotamia First ruled by kings as independent city-states City-state= a city and its surrounding territory that acts as an independent political unit Then, Mesopotamia was ruled as empires What is an empire? What factors would lead one civilization to conquer another? These empires would develop from within Mesopotamia: 1) Akkadian 2) Babylonian 3) Assyrian 4) Neobabylonian What were the functions of these ancient governments?

Economy: Mesopotamia • Based primarily on agriculture – 90 percent of the people were farmers • Evidence of trade along rivers, and with Egypt • Artifacts revealed metal work in bronze, gold and copper

Sumerian Society: Mesopotamia Priests and Kings Scribes Wealthy merchants Commoners Slaves

Society - Continued Why were priests in the upper classes of society? Priests communicated and made offerings to the gods. Since the gods controlled the people’s fate, priests were very important. • Sumerian women had more rights than women in later civilizations but it is believed that they were not educated.

Geography - Egypt • The Nile flows north and empties into the Mediterranean Sea • The fertile marshy land of lower Egypt is called the Nile River Delta • This area of rich soil was good for farming. • The deserts provided protection from invaders The lower part of the river became known as Lower Egypt

A NASA Satellite Image of the Nile River Delta

The Nile: The longest river in the world at 4, 100 miles long.

• The Egyptians were polytheistic – there were 2, 000 gods and goddesses Religion - Egypt Isis • Sun god Re was very important as were river and land deities, Osiris (god of the dead), Isis and Horus Osiris

Religion - Egypt Pyramids were built as the final resting place for pharaohs who, according to Egyptian beliefs, would rule again through their spirit in the afterlife

The Egyptians believed in an afterlife When an Egyptian died, his soul was judged by the god Osiris. They also believed that they could bring whatever they needed in the afterlife with them The body had to be recognized so it was mummified Worldly goods such as jewelry, pottery and gold were buried with the body Religion- Egypt

Achievements - Egypt Hieroglyphicspictographic language system Egyptians also developed a paper -like product called papyrus It came from reeds that grew in the Nile River delta

Papyrus

Political- Egypt -The First Dynasty arose around 3100 BCE -King Menes united Upper and Lower Egypt into a single kingdom -The capital was Memphis Upper Egypt Lower Egypt United dynasty

Political: Egypt Strong centralized government = peace and prosperity, strong economy, and a stable, ordered society Features of Egypt’s political system: • Divine rule: Pharaohs were god-kings • Pharaohs were absolute rulers: guided by Ma’at or order and harmony through truth and justice • A Vizier was a royal advisor who was in charge of the government bureaucracy • The bureaucracy consisted of many departments to carry out the functions of government • Pharaohs were also the religious leaders Religious rule = theocracy

Political - Egypt, Continued Strong kings or pharaohs and bureaucratic governments would continue in each of the three time periods, maintaining the unity of Egypt for 2000 years. Dynastieshereditary rule was common

Economic- Egyptians • farmed along the narrow strips of land bordering the Nile River • traded along the Nile (Nubia) and into Mesopotamia • Paid taxes to the pharaoh in the form of crops and forced labor on building projects • Made paper from papyrus • Linen clothing

Economic Trade goods included gold, ivory, cattle, granite blocks, paper and linen

Egyptian Society Pharaoh, queen, royal family Vizier, landowners, government officials priests, army commanders, scribes Merchants, artisans Peasant farmers Unskilled laborers later, slaves. The largest group of people fell into this category. Egyptians could move up or down in society and slaves could buy their freedom. To win the highest positions, one needed to be able to read and write.

Egyptian Society continued Women had almost as many rights as men Women: -could own and trade property -were allowed to divorce -served as pharaohs -could not read or write Hatsepshut

Egyptian society enjoyed stability and cultural continuity because the kingdom was united and because of its political stability over long periods of time.

The river valleys were the “Cradles of Civilization. ” What do you think that means? They provided the baby civilizations what they needed to grow Each civilization made major contributions to social, political and economic progress

Geography: Why did the first civilizations begin in the river valleys? 1. Rich soil along the river banks was good for farming 2. River water provided irrigation for crops 3. Natural geographic features around the river valleys offered protection

What did they have in common religiously? Almost all were polytheistic (believed in many gods) One exception – The Hebrews were the first monotheists, believing in only one god

How were the River Valley Civilizations similar in their achievements? • Job specialization in each civilization led to advancements in farming technology and useful inventions like the wheel

Achievements Agricultural Surpluses Job Specialization Invention of: Wheel, sail, plow, irrigation systems Bronze tools

Achievements continued: Each had a writing system: • Cuneiform (Mesopotamia) • Hieroglyphics (Egypt) • India (has not been decoded) • China (Chinese characters) Hieroglyphics Cuneiform

What did the River Valley Civilizations have in common politically? 1. Usually governed as citystates (Meso) and empires (later Meso and Egypt) 2. Usually ruled by a single ruler with religious authority 1. priests= rulers in Mesopotamia 2. pharaoh=rulers in Egypt 3. Usually had written law codes (Hammurabi’s Code)

What is the impact of a strong ruler and government on a civilization? Brainstorm this with your neighbor.

What did the River Valley Civilizations have in common economically? Tigris River 1. Metal (example: tools and weapons) 2. Agricultural surplus (extra grain from harvests) 3. Trade along rivers and by sea (The Nile in Egypt and the Mediterranean Sea for the Phoenicians) 4. Cities (Memphis, Ur, Anyang) 1. Slavery (Not based on race) What was the impact on their economies?

What did the River Valley Civilizations have in common socially? 1. Hereditary rulers: Dynasties of kings and pharaohs Ruling power is passed to the son of the ruler. 2. Rigid class system where slavery was accepted. Social inequality.

Photo Credits Slide 1: http: //lh 4. ggpht. com/_Xfex. Fi. Ng. HVs/SBTmv. Yu. Op. OI/AAAAAf. I/bo. YW 9 JMe. Bv 0/CIM G 0116. JPG Slide 2: http: //acc 6. its. brooklyn. cuny. edu/~phalsall/images/riv-vall. gif Slide 3: http: //bibleworld. com/euphrates_turkey_sm. jpg Slide 4: http: //www. historywiz. com/images/neareast/royalstandardofurbox. jpg http: //www. utexas. edu/courses/classicalarch/images 1/2 ur-lyre 1. jpg Slide 5: http: //www. eastchester. k 12. ny. us/schools/ms/teachers/stabile/images/fertile 1. jpg Slide 7: http: //www. beautyworlds. com/cultureofiran/Jewelry. From. Royal. Tombs. Of. Ur. jpg http: //www. theancientweb. com/images/explore/Iraq_Sumer_Gold_Helmet. jpg Slide 8: http: //tomclarkblogspot. com/2011/01/earth-from-distance. html

Slide 12: http: //etc. usf. edu/clipart/19200/19279/cuneiform_19279_lg. gif Slide 13: http: //www. wired. com/gadgetlab/wpcontent/gallery/slates/cuneiform_660. jpg Slide 14: http: //thisfragiletent. files. wordpress. com/2009/06/gilgamesh_louvre. jpg? w=386&h=900 Slide 15: http: //www. foliosociety. com/images/books/illustrations/lrg/GIL_12748775780. jpg Slide 19: http: //www. digitaldesktopwallpaper. com/wallpapers/digitalwallpapers/1024 x 768/wood en-wheel. jpg http: //www. reflexivity. us/blog/sailboat. jpg Slide 20: http: //etc. usf. edu/clipart/21900/21917/plow_21917_lg. gif http: //upload. wikimedia. org/wikipedia/commons/8/80/Rudimentary_irrigation_system _Morocco. jpg http: //upload. wikimedia. org/wikipedia/commons/3/3 e/Middle_Bronze_Age_weapons. p ng