the birth of civilization
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The Birth of Civilization. Western Civ. I Introduction. Answer This Question. What are some ideas that people today have about early human life?. Answer This Question. What might lead people to view prehistoric humans in this way?. Answer This Question. - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
The Birth of Civilization
Western Civ. IIntroduction
Answer This Question Answer This Question
What are some ideas that people today have about early human life?
Answer This Question Answer This Question
What might lead people to view prehistoric humans in this way?
Answer This Question Answer This Question What evidence might lead scientist to
conclude that prehistoric peoples were just as intelligent as present-day people?
Historical RecordHistorical Record People living in the past left many clues
about their lives.
These clues include both primary and secondary sources in the form of books, personal papers, government documents, letters, etc.
Historians call all of these clues together the historical record.
Answer This Question Answer This Question Think about all the activities you were
involved in during the past 24 hours. List as many of these activities as you can remember.
For each activity on your list, write down what evidence, if any, your activities might have left behind.
Review your list and answer the Review your list and answer the
following…following… Which of your daily activities were most
likely to leave trace evidence behind?
What, if any, of that evidence might be preserved for the future? Why?
What might be left out of an historical record of your activities? Why?
What would a future historian be able to tell about your life and your society based on evidence of your daily activities that might be preserved for the future?
So, What Is Civilization?Characteristics of CivilizationCities, Money and Institutions
Technology, Food and LanguageSpecialized Occupations and Government
Civilization Is Comprised of Many Civilization Is Comprised of Many
CharacteristicsCharacteristics
CitiesMoneyInstitutionsTechnologySurplus Food
Written Language
Specialized Occupations
Form of Government
The Birth Of CivilizationThe Birth Of Civilization Earliest civilization
arose in the Middle East
Located near abundant waterways and fertile fields
Mesopotamia emerged 3500 B.C. as the first recorded civilization
Civilization is a complex way of life
CitiesCities Cities
Were comprised of people who were no longer farmers but skilled workers
Cities had a recognized form of government
MoneyMoney Money/Economy
Goods were traded with local and foreign markets
Money was developed as a means of exchange
Economies developed as cities trade their surplus goods or resources with others
InstitutionsInstitutions Institutions
Organizations created to pass on a people’s belief’s customs, ideas and arts
Religion provided people with a belief system
Education passed on a ideas and arts
TechnologyTechnology Technology
Introduction of metal tools and weapons changed how people lived
Surplus Food Large production of
agriculture provided opportunity for people to specializes in a skill
Written LanguageWritten Language
Specialized Occupations Lead to the
development of artisans, tradesmen, government officials and soldiers
Written Language Emerged to record food
inventories, soldier pay and communication with other kings
Why Do Civilizations Why Do Civilizations Collapse?Collapse?
Dependence on foreign resources
Overpopulation which strains a governments ability to maintain revenues, low surpluses and resources
Internal strife caused by famines, epidemics, state breakdowns, decay of society and overpressiveness
The First Civilizations
The Mesopotamians, 3000-1000 B.C.The Sumerian and Akkadian Period, 2800-2150 B.C.
Mesopotamians, Mesopotamians, 3000-1000 B.C.3000-1000 B.C.
Mesopotamia originally not suited for human settlement
Humans must modifications to the region
Mesopotamia means between “the two rivers”
Tigris and Euphrates Rivers
120° summers and only 10 inches of rainfall a year
Mesopotamians, Mesopotamians, 3000-1000 B.C.3000-1000 B.C.
The region that was located along the waterways in Mesopotamia was called the Fertile Crescent
Fertile Crescent had yearly deposit of fertile silt that provided rich topsoil
Rivers provided abundance of fish and attracted animals
Mesopotamians, Mesopotamians, 3000-1000 B.C.3000-1000 B.C.
Bronze Age born with smelting of copper and tin
Swamp marshes around rivers produced reeds for fuel and swamp mud made bricks
Abundance of plants provide food for domestic animals
Mesopotamians, 3000-Mesopotamians, 3000-1000 B.C.1000 B.C.
Mesopotamia lacked resources like stone, lumber and minerals
Humans adapted to region by using river ways to move natural resources
The development of sailed boats and the wheel helped in movement of resources across water and land
Villages settled along river ways and lead to the development of urban areas around 3,000 B.C.
Region in constant struggle because of water ways and location
Mesopotamians, 3000-1000 Mesopotamians, 3000-1000
B.C.EB.C.E Religion
Polytheistic any religion that recognizes more than one god
Ziggurat an ancient Mesopotamian temple which served as a temple, government offices, and a storehouse for grain
Worshipped gods for protection, help and no hope for an afterlife
MesopotamiansMesopotamians.. Social structure
developed in city states Military and religious
leaders became social and political elites
Skilled workers Slaves and peasants
worked for elites Male dominance in family
MesopotamiansMesopotamians Economy
Trade routes developed along the water ways
Both the Tigris and the Euphrates reached different markets because of their locations
Cities along river ways became heavily involved in commerce
The SumeriansThe Sumerians Large city states
develop like Ur, Uruk and Kish
They were constantly at war for water, trade routes and influence
Developed a large trade in textiles, animals, stone and bronze
Sumerians considered the earliest civilization
Akkadian Period, Akkadian Period, 2800-2150 B.C.E.2800-2150 B.C.E.
Sargon I (2300 B.C.) conquered Sumerians and saw an empire that stretched from Persian Gulf to Mediterranean
Used religion to unify Sumerians and Akkadians
Considered History’s first Emporer.
Akkadian Period Akkadian Period From the Arabian
peninsula who spoke the semitic language (related to Hebrew and Arabic.
Abandoned most of their culture and absorbed a majority of the Sumerian culture.
Sumerian influencesSumerian influences Head of government
Lead to writing from pictographic to scrawling picture words on wet clay (known as cuneiform.)
Monarch-like Priest King was created that headed the military, judged disputes, and engaged in religious ceremonies.
Ruled through bureaucrats, namely priests who bore the responsibility of redistributing crops and record-keeping.
Sumerian influencesSumerian influences Law
Administered by centralized authority- the accuser brings the accused to court, and court determines retribution.
The Code of Hammurabi, a Babylonia Monarch will become the basis of law of all Semitic people for centuries.
earliest legal code known in its entirety
The code is set down in horizontal columns of cuneiform writing: 16 columns of text on the obverse side and 28 on the reverse.
The text begins with a prologue that explains the extensive restoration of the temples and religious cults of Babylonia and Assyria.
The divine origin of the written law is emphasized by a bas-relief in which the king is depicted receiving the code from the sun god, Shamash.
The quality most usually associated with this god is justice.
CODE OF HAMMURABI
CODE OF HAMMURABICODE OF HAMMURABI
The basis of criminal law is that of equal retaliation, comparable to the Semitic law of “an eye for an eye.”
The law offers protection to all classes of Babylonian society; it seeks to protect the weak and the poor, including women, children, and slaves, against injustice at the hands of the rich and powerful.
Sumerian InfluencesSumerian Influences Science and Math
To measure and count produce, calendars were created, consisting of 12 lunar months, (leap month every three years.)
As well, peoples of this region dabbled in Astronomy and the first human invention of the zodiac
The SumeriansThe Sumerians Sumerian Religion
Worshipped at a ziggurat, a large temple complex where daily government business was addressed
Government and religious beliefs replace loyalty to one’s tribe or clan
Ziggurat size was attempt to reach gods
Statue of god was worshipped there and it served a symbolic purpose
Sumerian influencesSumerian influences Polytheistic, powerful, and
anthropomorphic (human characteristics)
Invented astrology to predict behavior of the Gods.
Oriented in this world, no rewards or punishments after death. “wisps within a house of dust.”
Wars we seen as fighting amongst the Gods
Myths were created to discuss the origin of man.
Ex. Man came from a earth-like plant, or clay and was given life from the goddess Nammu.
Peasants would surrender their crops to appease the gods.
A system of writing developsA system of writing develops
The earliest form of writing dates back to 3300 B.C. People back then would draw "word-pictures" on clay tablets using a pointed instrument called a stylus.
These "word-pictures" then developed into wedge-shaped signs.
This type of script was called cuneiform (from the Latin word cuneus which means wedge).
Cuneiform, earliest written language, developed by accountants which was created by using a reed on a clay tablet
Scribes were the only people that knew how to read and write cuneiform
Used for inventory, payroll of soldiers, property ownership and correspondence between monarchs
WritingWriting
Scribes wrote on clay tablets and used a triangular shaped reed called a stylus to make marks in the clay.
Marks represented the tens of thousands of words in their language.
Who used cuneiform?*Not everyone learned to read and write.
*The ones that were picked by the gods were called scribes.
Boys chosen to become scribes (professional writers) began study at age of 8. They finished when they
were 20 years old.
Writing…Writing… Tokens are small geometric clay
objects (cylinders, cones, spheres, etc.) found all over the Near East from about 8000 B.C. until the development of writing.
The earliest tokens were simple shapes and were comparatively unadorned; they stood for basic agricultural commodities such as grain and sheep.
Origins of writing…Origins of writing… Two jars of oil would be
represented by two ovoids, three jars by three ovoids, and so on.
Thus, the tokens presented an abstraction of the things being counted, but also a system of great specificity and precision.
A specific shape of token always represented a specific quantity of a particular item.
For example, "the cone ... stood for a small measure of grain, the sphere represented a large measure of grain, the ovoid stood for a jar of oil." (Before Writing 161).
CuneiformCuneiform
CuneiformCuneiform
Egyptian CivilizationEgyptian Civilization The first settlements
in the Nile Valley began around 7,000 years ago
The first peoples to inhabit this region called their land Kemet, which means “ black lands.” This name comes from the rich black soil that was found there.
Geography and People of Egypt
Nile is the Longest River (4184 miles)
Without the Nile Egypt would be a Desert
River floods regularly and brings in fertile soil
Ancient Egyptians built reservoirs and used canals to carry water to fields.
Invented new technology and carefully planned and organized large irrigation projects.
Devised a calendar to predict floods
Excellent for transportation
Uniting EgyptUniting Egypt The farming villages
along the Nile gradually were united into two Kingdoms Upper and Lower Egypt.
About 3100 B.C.E. the ruler Narmer (Menes) conquered lower Egypt and brought all of Egypt under his rule.
Built the capital city of Memphis
Narmer’s rule began the first dynasty and thus, the “Pyramid Age,” or “Old Kingdom”
Class System in Ancient
Egypt
PHARAOH-Earthly leader; considered a god
HIGH PRIESTS AND PRIESTESSES-Served gods and goddesses
NOBLES-Fought pharaoh’s wars
MERCHANTS, SCRIBES, AND ARTISANS-Made furniture, jewelry & fabrics for pharaohs & nobles, & provided for other needs
PEASANT FARMERS AND SLAVES--Worked in the fields and served the pharaoh
Religion Pharaoh was believed to be
a god as well as a monarch.
Belief in eternal life after death.
Relied on the Book of the Book of the DeadDead to help them through
the afterworld.
Practiced mummification, the preservation of the body for use in the next life.
Pyramid texts were written in Hieroglyphics (picture writings)
Religion Polytheism
Sun, stars, and the Nile were seen as god or as dwelling places of gods.
King of the Gods was Amon-Re, a Pharoh saw himself the son of the Sun God. Represented by a cartouche.
Worship of animals as cats and crocodiles
Out of interest…how to
mummify!
1. All of the internal organs, except the heart, were removed.
2. The body was packed and covered with natron, a salty drying agent, and left to dry out for forty to fifty days.
3. The body cavity was stuffed with resin, sawdust, or linen and shaped to restore the deceased's form and features.
4. The body was then tightly wrapped in many layers of linen with numerous amulets wrapped between the layers. The most important amulet was the scarab beetle, which was placed over the heart.
Old Kingdom (2575-2134 BC) 1st Intermediate- (2134-
2040 BC)- Chaos and disunity, rival aristocratic families (nomarchs) competed for the throne
Pharaohs organized a strong central state, were absolute rulers, and were considered gods. “Mu-at”
Pharaoh was seen as the son of the sun-god Amon-Re
Egyptians built pyramids at Giza. Built obelisks
Power struggles, crop failures, climate disasters and cost of pyramids contributed to the collapse of the Old Kingdom.
The SphinxThe Sphinx• Was it build doing the Old
Kingdom?
• How did it erode?
• A solar symbol, Body of lion=power, head=intelligence and consciousness
Middle Kingdom 2040-1640 BC
Re-establishment of Kingdom with Thebes as political center.
Culture and trade flourished 250 years. Known as the “Golden Age” More democratic, increase power of the Priests.
Large drainage project created arable farmland and Traders had contacts with Middle East and Crete.
During the New Kingdom, Egypt conquered Nubia.(Sudan)
Nubians served in Egyptian armies and influenced Egyptian culture.
Corruption and rebellions were common.
Hyksos (HIK-sahs) , combo of Indo-Europeans and Semites ruled Egypt for 100 years.
Known as the 2nd Intermediate period.
New Kingdom (1570) After overthrowing
the Hyksos (1570) a new dynasty was established
Pharaohs built an empire, conquered land eastward in Mesopotamia to the Euphrates
New Kingdom lasted about 500 years
Leaders… Queen Hatshepsut
(hat-SHEP-soot) (1473 BCE) 1st female leader set up large trade; built lots of temples.
Thutmose III (thoot-MOH-suh) (1490 BCE)- Led Military Expansion and Built Empire to its great size.
Change in religion? Amenhotep IV (ah-
mun-HOH-tep) (1300s BCE)
Wanted to worship a single god, Aton and reduce the power of the priests. Closed all temples
Renamed Akhenaten (“it is well with Aton”) and his wife, Nefertiti ordered the removal of all Gods.
Religion left little, impact as his son in law, King Tutankhamen destroyed all monuments to Aton.
The Decline… Rameses II (RAM-ih-
seez) (1304 - 1237 BCE) was Last effective ruler.
However, The Hitties (Located in Asia Minor “Turkey”) invaded, fight lasted for 20 years.
Rameses II married a daughter of the Hittites to helped to restore peace.
Invasions by Land and Sea
Egyptians Attacked by invaders called “Sea People” Philistines who did great destruction
In the east the tribes of Palestine often rebelled
In the west the vast desert no longer served as a barrier against Libyan raids.
After these invasions, Egypt never recovered its previous power.
The Egyptian empire broke apart into regional units and eventually fell to their neighbors.
By 332, Egypt is conquered by Alexandar the Great
Contributions… Developed a form of picture
writing called hieroglyphics (from the papyrus plant)
Doctors diagnosed and cured illnesses, performed surgery, and developed medicines still used today.
Developed 12-month calendar on which modern calendar is based.
Astronomers mapped constellations and charted movement of the planets.
Developed practical geometry.
Skilled in design and engineering.
Statues, paintings, and writings tell us about ancient Egyptian values and attitudes.
Developed painting style that remained unchanged for thousands of years.
Wrote hymns and prayers to the gods, proverbs, love poems, stories of victory in battle, and folk tales.
Built pyramids and other great buildings, such as temple of Ramses II.