River Valley Civilization along

Nile and Tigris

Pre-history

Pre-historic = before written records

Two periods of pre-history to know

Paleolithic

Neolithic

Paleolithic

(Old) Stone age period

• Stone primary material for tools

Hunter-gathers

Nomadic lifestyle

Neolithic Age

(New) stone age

• Stone still primary tool material

• Agriculture

• Domestication of animals

• Some settlement

• Some nomadic groups

Civilization

A form of culture, characterized by cities, specialized workers, complex institutions, record-keeping

and advanced technology

To be a civilization, society must have a majority of these:

Cities Specialized labor

Government Science & tech

Religion Art

Taxes Social classes

Written l

Ancient River Valley Civilisations

MESOPATAMIAN CIVILIZATION

A region of the Middle East arching across the northern part of the Syrian Desert and extending
from the Nile Valley to the Tigris and Euphrates rivers

ANCIENT MESOPOTAMIA is known for?

Oldest known civilization

Ziggurat (right)

Hanging gardens

Cradle of Human Civilization

MESOPATAMIAN TIMELINE
1. Sumerians (3000 B.C. - 1800 B.C.)

2.Babylonians ( 1800 B.C. - 1200 B.C.

3. Assyrians (1200 B.C. - 539 B.C.)

4. Persians (539 B.C. - 330 B.C.)

Sumerians (3000 B.C. - 1800 B.C.)

Sumerian Testimony
Invented construction of arches using clay bricks that supported heavy wall openings for
doorways and windows.

Ziggurat

Walled Cities

Plow

Invented language

Invented Tax System

Wheeled vehicles

Trade Relations

Sumerian City
Sumerian houses faced away from crowded streets. Instead, they faced onto courtyards where
families ate and children played

Sumerian city streets were considerably narrow

UR CITY BIRD EYE VIEW

 ZIGGRUTS

The Evolution of Writing

Sumerians invented the earliest known form of writing called cuneiform using a reed pen to
make wedge-shaped marks on clay tablets.

Sumerian scribes went through years of difficult schooling to acquire their skills.

Scribes
Writing first began in Sumerian cities. The first schools were set up in Sumer over 4,000 years ago.
Sumerian schools taught boys the new invention of writing. Those who graduated became
professional writers called scribes. Scribes were the only people who could keep records for the
kings and priests. Boys that wanted to be scribes had to attend school from the age of 8 to the age
of 20

Scribes were the few Mesopotamians who knew how to read and write. Being a scribe was an
extremely difficult job because in total, there were hundreds of different hieroglyphs to remember.

A scribe's job was highly regarded in Ancient Mesopotamia. Although being a scribe was
rewarding, the training could take as long as twelve years.
 Economic: trade and farming
Sumerians (Mesopotamians) were known to trade with the Egyptians and the Indus Valley
civilizations.

In later years, these trade routes became Silk Road.

Success and Decline

Sumerians were best at:

Adapting to the environment

Effective government and social organization to deal with problems

Decline:

Constant warfare for 1000+ years, weakens cooperation and the Sumerian
civilization

Eventually allow nomads to scale city walls, loot the streets, and conquer the cities
2. Babylonians ( 1800 B.C. – 1200 B.C.)
A Semitic people who spoke Akkadian, conquered Mesopotamia in about 2000 B.C. Its
capital, Babylon, was on the Euphrates River

About 1790, the king of Babylon, Hammurabi, brought the empire (much of Mesopotamia)
under his control and established the first written laws, criminal and civil.

Testimony Of Babylonians
Hanging Garden

Hammurabi

Criminal and Civil Laws

Mathematical Calculations

HANGING GARDEN

CITY OF BABYLONIAN
 The ancient city of Babylon, under King Nebuchadnezzar II, must have been a wonder to the
traveler's eyes. "In addition to its size," wrote Herodotus, a historian in 450 BC, "Babylon
surpasses in splendor any city in the known world."

Herodotus claimed the outer walls were 56 miles in length, 80 feet thick and 320 feet high.
Wide enough, he said, to allow a four-horse chariot to turn. The inner walls were "not so
thick as the first, but hardly less strong." Inside the walls were fortresses and temples
containing immense statues of solid gold.

MESOPOTAMIAN LAWS
Code of Hammurabi

“eye for an eye tooth for a tooth”

HAMMURABI CODE
Hammurabi was not the author of the code. Most of the laws had been around since
Sumerian Times, but Hammurabi wanted everyone in his empire to know the legal principles
his government would follow.

He had artisans carve nearly 282 laws on a stone pillar for all to see.

This was the first time a ruler attempted to solidify all of the laws that would govern a state.

3. Assyrians(1200 B.C. - 539 B.C.)

Assyrian Testimony
 Military Supremacy
 Feared Warriors
 God Fearing
 Strong Administrative Contro
l

Social/Cultural Testimony
Writing

Hieroglyphics

Papyrus – writing surface (paper)

Rosetta Stone

• Discovered in 1799
 • Clue to deciphering hieroglyphics

EGYPTIAN CIVILIZATION

Economic Testimony
 Nile River helped unify Egypt and promote trade

Reliable transportation between Upper and Lower Egypt

During Middle Kingdom, dug canals from Nile to Red Sea

Trade with Mesopotamia and Indus river valley civilizations

Wealth from new trade used for public works projects

HISTORY
Egyptian civilization arose a bit after Mesopotamia.

Menes – first ruler of a united Egypt

The Old Kingdom 2660-2180 B.C.

The Middle Kingdom 2080-1640 B.C.

The New Kingdom 1640-1075 B.C.

Old Kingdom 2660-2180 B.C

Polytheistic- deities associated with objects and emotions

Capital at Memphis

Pyramids-final resting place for pharaohs

Hierarchy-royal family and nobles, middle class, and lower

class

Massive Public Works-building of the pyramids

Pyramids at Giza

Papyrus-record keeping on first paper

Middle Kingdom 2080-1640 B.C
Hyksos nomads swept into Egypt with horse drawn chariots.

New Gods emerged.

Bronze weapons, superior military techniques.

Egyptians learned from “Hexas” and came back to power

New Kingdom 1640-1075 B.C
Egyptian rule reestablished.

Women were also given a share in the power.

First time Egypt empire expanded out of its geographical

issolation.

Hatshepsut-encouraged trade instead of war

Term “Pharaoh” is first used

Akhenaten

KING TUT-unimportant rule, but famous

Capital moved to Thebes

EXPANSION OF Territories
Akhenaten

KING TUT
HIEARCHY OF PEOPLE
 Hierog
lyphics

GEOGRAPHICAL ADVANTAGE
Advantage over Mesopotamian civilizations: Nile River very
predictable in flooding. Tigris/Euphrates Rivers very
unpredictable.
Flooding
• Yearly flooding in July
• Rain and melted snow traveled from central-east
Africa

What happened when a Pharaoh died?

When a pharaoh died, the body was preserved by
people called embalmers.
Embalmers took the body to the Beautiful House- the
name of where they worked.
They removed some of the inner parts of the body first.
The organs were taken out and stored in containers
The heart was left in the body however, so that it could
be weighed in the afterlife
Then they rubbed the body with special ointments and
wrapped it tightly with bandages.
When a body had been treated in this way it was called
a mummy.
The mummy was put in a coffin. The coffin was the same
shape as the body, and had a carved , painted face on it.
A funeral was held by a Priest in the temple.
The coffin was then taken to the pharaoh’s tomb.
The pharaoh was buried with all their possessions, for
use on the journey to the next world.
The Egyptians believed that mummification preserved
the body of the deceased and ensured their survival
forever.
They did not take out the heart because it was believed
to be the intelligence and emotion of the person. The
Egyptians
thought the brain had no significant value, so they took
it out. The body was packed and covered with natron (a
 salty drying agent). After this the body was left for 40-50
days. 

Pharaohs and Queens

Who were the Pharaohs?
They were the kings or Queens of Egypt. They were
the head of the government and high priest of every
temple. The pharaoh owned all of Egypt. He or she
decided what was right or wrong and their word was
law. The people of Egypt considered the pharaoh to be a
half-human and half-god.

Priests
Priests were very important people in Egyptian times.
Besides serving the gods, priests did many other jobs,
such as teaching, or even helping with the harvest.
Priests had to be pure and clean. They shaved their
heads and bodies and washed four times a day

COMPRESSION
EGYPT MESOPOTAMIA
 GEOGRAPHY
Mesopotamia vs. Egypt

EGYPT MESOPOTAMIA
-- Regular, predictable flooding -- Irregular, unpredictable flooding
of Nile of Tigris and
Euphrates
-- Hot region, but not as hot as
Mesopotamia -- Hot, dry region
-- Valley surrounded by desert -- Open plains location meant
meant isolation (initially), frequent invasion
low danger of attack
 RELIGION
ADMINSTRATIVE
● Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia vs. Egypt vs. Egypt
Egypt
Mesopotamia
Gods as benevolent and
Gods as violent,
predictable
unpredictable
Rituals stressing
Ritual stressing sacrifice
regularity and cyclical
to appease gods
nature of life
Afterlife dark, dusty,
Afterlife orderly,
predictable, pleasant
Egypt Mesopotamia
Local kingdoms unified in City-states unified by
3100 BCE by MENES Sargon of Akkad, but
Centralized government unstable unity
Few cities; mostly ritual Imperial rule
centers
Similarities/Differences . Cities focus of civilization;
Rulership shifted from large, urban populations
upper to lower Egypt Rulership shifted from
●(Thebes
*Both were& Memphis) city-state
religious but Egypt displayed moretothrough
city-state
Law word of Pharaoh through conquest
their art.
First written law
● *Both had slaves, Egypt was much harsher, in
Mesopotamia you could buy your freedom back.
● *Both shared a social stratification system with land
owners at the top and peasants at the bottom.
● *Both relied heavily on the Rivers for survival
● Urban centers became the center piece for both
civilizations.
● Mesopotamia brought innovations to Egypt and Egypt
improved on those.
● Both had a passion for art, astronomy, mathematics,
and religions.
● Both had writing systems, for law, commerce, and
communication.