Mesopotamia

Ancient civilizations have had profound effects of what we know as the modern world today. The primary purpose for anything that lives is to survive. Throughout history animals, plants and humans have adapted to their surroundings. All living things have changed throughout time. The thing that differs humans from rest is, humans are more cognitively advanced. Over the course of time the shape and size of the human skull has changed. The size of the human brain has increased, which has allowed humans to adapt more to their surroundings. To survive, humans were making tools for hunting and to cut with. The closer you lived to the equator the darker your skin may have been, so you could adapt to the intensity of the sun’s rays. If you lived further

The fertile land and its easy access to water from the Euphrates and Tigris rivers was what made it possible for agriculture to emerge. It then spread to other regions, enabling humans to settle in one place. The Sumerians also developed irrigation in order to regulate the flow of the water and to irrigate crops, making farming an easier task. The Sumerians developed the concept of time, with 60-second minutes, 60-minute hours and 24-hour days. The first form of writing was developed by the Sumerians, called cuneiform. It was used in trade, to keep track of the merchandise and debts. Mesopotamia’s technological innovations were the basis for the progression of technology. The Shang dynasty improved their bronze technology. Mass production of bronze items boomed during that time. The incorporation of bronze weapons and armor gave the Shang a great military advantage. They invented the yoke, harness, and spoked wheel. These inventions facilitated agriculture and transport. The Chinese also created a refined writing system with over 2000 symbols. Both Sumer and Shang China contributed to the development of today’s mathematics. The Sumerians first came up with the concept, needing an accurate system to keep count of the goods being traded, while the Chinese developed the decimal system. They also contributed to the way of life we have today. The Chinese created a 12 month calendar with 365 and 1/4 days, based on the

In Mesopotamia, people had no money so they traded barley, pottery, fish, and other foods and inventions they made. They needed a way to keep up with what they traded, so Sumerians created the first form of writing over 5000 years ago which they called Cuneiform. They used Cuneiform for business dealings such as trading barley, keeping records, and new ideas changed between different generations.

After weeks of working I made a total of three pottery pieces, the one that I spent most time on is a clay pot that was made to look like an ancient greece piece of art. They used as grave markers and many other useful things. Back in ancient Greek pottery was divided into four different areas. These areas are for storage and transport vessels, mixing vessels, jugs and cups, vases for oils, perfumes and cosmetics. Many believed that Greek pottery, unlike today's pottery, was only fired once, but that firing had three stages. When firing their art pieces the kiln was heated to around 920-950 °C. They technically decorated their pieces to tell a old story or to represent something, normally people in a darker shaded color. I chose this culture

The unpainted potteries called utility ware that is used as cooking pots, holding stew or mush made of corn, bean, dried squash and pieces of meat.

Mesopotamia was the land between two rivers, and it was part of the Fertile Crescent. The Fertile Crescent was a large arc of rich farmland, that goes from the Gulf of Persia to The Mediterranean Sea. Mesopotamia was a very fertile land that was perfect for farming, so opposing civilizations wanted control of this fertile land. This land referred to was fought for by three civilizations and, each took Mesopotamia within different time frames. When they did not have control of this land, they would all fight against the others to get it. The civilizations were the Sumerians, the Akkadians, and the Chaldeans. The Sumerians were the first civilization in Mesopotamia, just below the Akkadians, and the Chaldeans were not from Mesopotamia, they came from the Syrian Desert. There was another group of people, not within Mesopotamia, but in the Fertile Crescent, and they were called the Phoenicians.

Now that we have a starting point, the first question that comes to mind is, “What ideas were created in Mesopotamia?”One of the most fundamental inventions of Mesopotamia was Cuneiform. Cuneiform is the first recorded use of writing down symbols or words to mark history or make records. Something so basic could be overlooked but it is an astonishingly important invention. Everything that revolves around modern history, learning, etc. is based on Cuneiform. Why did the Mesopotamians use Cuneiform and why do we use it now? It makes it much easier to transmit information and ideas than by repeating by word of mouth. Repeating by word of mouth may have mis-communication along the way as people misinterpret or simply forget what was being said. The Greeks and Romans would modify Cuneiform and move from symbols into letters. Being able to read and right allows for much progress for a civilization by allowing people to not have to ask another person for information. This frees up time and labor to use on other

In Mesopotamia you can learn all about their religion and beliefs. Mesopotamians are polygamist which means they believe in many gods. Some of their gods are Aursh god of air, Anu god of heaven and sky, lord of constellations also father of the gods. They also believe in Enik god of the Abzu, crafts, water, intelligence, mischief and creation and divine ruler of the Earth and its humans. Nanna is the god of the moon, Utu god of the sun, Ereshkigal goddess of the underworld, Inanna goddess of fertility, love and war, Nabu god of wisdom and writing, Tammuz god of vegetation, Nanshe goddess of social justice and fish, Ninurta god of agriculture, Ninlil goddess of air. The mesopotamian didn’t just believe in gods they believed in demons created

As both civilizations existed within a close time period of one another, and are commonly studied together, it is fairly easy to observe the similarities between Mesopotamian and Egyptian cultures. On the contrary, it is also quite simple to see the differences between these two ancient civilizations, despite the fact that the nearly co-existed. One example that showcases the similarities between these civilizations is seen when looking focusedly at each from an environmental standpoint. It is clear they hold twin like qualities in that both were located near desert expanses.

An important technological advancement in the history of mankind was the invention of writing language. Known as cuneiform at the time, its origination hailed from a place in southern Mesopotamia called Sumer in 3500-3000 BCE. The process during its invention involved making markings in wet clay with a reed-like instrument. The reason for its invention was for the flourishment of commerce. The Sumerians needed a way to communicate with merchants and customers from between large expanses of land and sea. They used pictographs in order to scale the quantity of resources required in the trade and represent different objects. To communicate ideas more complex than financial transactions or lists and quantities, a more elaborate writing system was

Mesopotamia was a great place for a civilization because it was parked between two rivers which is also what Mesopotamia means. Because it was near not one but two rivers, Mesopotamia was able to be home to, and sustain a much larger number of people people than if it was only near one river. This is because there was significantly more water with which to irrigate farms, and as a result, a much larger amount of food could be produced therefore allowing civilizations within Mesopotamia to sustain even more citizens.

The civilization of ancient Mesopotamia rose in the valley between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. The rivers were good for fishing and a good source of water. Some say that this fertile crescent was the real garden of Eden. The natural barriers it had was the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. King Nebuchadazzar was the one who developed the civilization. Herodotus was quoted as saying the following: “ in addition to its size baby ion surpasses in splendor any city in the known world. The walls they made was fifty six miles in length eighty feet thick and three hundred twenty feet high. The doors were able to let four house carriages to turn though at the same time. The Sumerians invented a number system from one to sixty and writing called Cuneiform. Even though their writing was hard to understand

contact with the gods when statues of the gods were carried through the streets to be

Tr (of beliefs): both the egyptians and mesopotamians had empires with strong bases formed from their beliefs and polytheism, but the egyptians would take it to a new level. “In mesopotamia, kings were considered to be representatives of the gods. To the egyptians, kings were gods. The egyptian god-kings, pharaohs, were thought to be almost as splendid and powerful as the gods of the heavens.” (37) thus, creating a theocracy.

Discovery of clay tablets inscribed with cuneiform proved that the Mesopotamian civilization were able to communicate through written pictures and stylized signs, this was used for purpose of record keeping and schools to teach cuneiform.