Copper Stone Age

8/9/2019 Copper Stone Age

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CIVILIZATION BEGINS: THE COPPER-STONE AGE, 3600-2800 B.C.

"The beginning is the most important part of the work." [Plato, The Republic]

I. OverviewA. First Civilizations in

1. Tigris-Euphrates River valleys2. Nile River valley3. Indus River valley

A. Metals1. Copper2. Bronze

A. Fundamental Problems of Large Societies1. Government2. Food3. Workemployment4. How to improve life5. Preparation for afterlife6.

Conflict with other societies

A. Major Bronze Age Civilizations1. Middle Eastern river valleys2. India3. China

A.Neolithic Revolutions beginnings of village life beginning about 8000B.C.E. stone tools were made by polishing rather than chipping, making themstronger and capable of cutting more deeply. New tools seemed to be a response

to the needs of the domestication of plants and animals, which coincided with theNew Stone Age.

1. Domestication of animals 10,000-7,000 B.C.

a. Domesticated animals and plants brought about byclimatic changes and population growth

b. earliest domesticated herd animal was the sheep


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i. tamed about 9000 B.C. in ZagrosMts of northern Iraq

ii. Goat probably domesticated c. 7,500B.C.

By taming animals and providing for their needs, herders were able to control the supply of meatmuch more effectively than hunters. The ability to select a time for slaughter meant that meatproduction could be scheduled to meet the needs of a village.

"Along with experiments in planting grain came attempts to control animals. By taming animals

and providing for their needs, early herders discovered that they could select the time forslaughter and thus control the supply of meat much more effectively than could hunters."

[Western Civ.: Origins and Traditions, p. 5.]

1. beginnings of agriculturea.

wheat and barley because of brief period of ripeningb. people relying on what and barley had to do three things

i. schedule movements stopped when grain wasripening

ii. must be able to transport harvestiii. must provide storage facilities

When these factors competed with other needs, people were encouraged to try and plant grainwhere they wanted to be rather than where grass grew wild.

"After the Ice Age, people in southwestern Asia took the first steps toward agricultre byharvesting wheat and barley wild grasses that had become more common as the climatechanged. Because gatherers have to schedule their movements to fit the demands of the grain

(stopping for a harvest when the grain ripens, transporting and storing it until it can beconsumed), people were encouraged to try to plant grain where they wanted to be, rather than

where the grasses grew wild.

"The transition from wild to domesticated grain was slow. The ears of most wild grain becomebrittle as the ripen; when harvested with flint sickles, the ears would have shattered and most of

the grain fallen to the ground. However, a small percentage of wild grain has tougher ears whichwould not have shattered, so that the grain could have been carried back to a village. There,

whether spilled or deliberately planted, it created new stands of tougher-eared plants thateventually became domesticated grain." [Western Civ.: Origins and Traditions, pp. 4-5.]

a. First step toward agriculture wild Barley harvested aroundMesopotamia plain by 9,000 B.C. harvested with bare hands or

simple flint sickle


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a. Ali-Kosh early farming community in foothills of southwesternIran 7500-5000 B.C. obtained resources from four zones

i. open plaina.

domestic sheep and goatsb. Auroch

c. Onagerd. Gazellee. Gerbilsf. Nonita lizardg. Wild Cat (Trigoncella)h. Weasel (Procepis)i. Hyaenaj. Canary grassk. Weeds

ii. Barley Fields

a. Rye Grass

b. Aegilops

c. Wheat

d. Wild oats

e. Bandicoot rat

f. Wild Alfalfa

g. Milk Vetch

iii. marsh

a. Wild boar

b. Duck

c. Turtle

d. Goose

e. Swamp plants

f. Heron


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3. protecting storedgrain from mice

Archaeologists have uncovered the ruins of a 6,000-year-old city in Syria, a find that suggests

that urban civilization rose earlier than previous believed.

Scientists from the University of Chicagos Oriental Institute found a protective city wall under ahuge mound in northeastern Syria known as Tell Hamoukar. The wall and other evidence

indicated a complex government at an early date

Until the discovery in 1999, the only cities dating back to 4000 B.C. were in the south in

Sumeria, in southern Mesopotamia.

The discovery at Hamoukar, dating from the same period, suggests that ideas behind cities mayhave predated the Sumerians.

Among the features indicating the site was a full-blown city, not just a town: thin, porcelain-likepieces of pottery indicating a sophisticated manufacturing technique, and huge cooking ovens (acommercial bakery), big enough to feed large numbers of people, and the oldest known brewery..

There also were stamps or seals) to make impressions in wet clay like primitive hieroglyphics used to make tokens that served as records for trade transactions. These seals, which range

from simple stones with incised marking to ornate, beautifully carved figurines, were used formaking impressions in clay to seal and identify food and trade goods. The seals suggest a

hierarchy of authority with several layers of bureaucracy a sure sign of civilization.

If Hamoukar was developing into a city at the same time as the Sumerians were building cities,

its possible that ideas for urban development came from an even earlier culture. [AP, May,2000] and Thoms H. Maugh II (L.A. Times)

II. Primitive Culture and CivilizationA. Culture a peoples way of life that complex whole which includes

knowledge, belief, art, morals, law, custom and any other capabilities and habitsacquired by man as a member of society. "The ways of living built up by a group

and passed on from one generation to another." "A culture is the way of life of agroup of humans. The group may be a primitive tribe, a large nation, or peoples of

diverse origins sharing a civilization that spans a continent or rims an ocean." [Alf

J. Mapp, Jr, The Golden Ages: Discovering the Creative Secrets of RenaissanceFlorence, Elizabethan England and Americas Founding,p. 9.] The culture of aparticular group is its total way of life. It includes all the things the group as a

whole thinks, believes, and does. It includes its art, literature, religion,philosophy, sports, clothing, politics, customs, and habits. Culture may refer to a

country, region of the world or racial group. A culture that is especially large andcomplex is called a civilization. "the ways of living built up by a group and

passed on from one generation to another." "Culture consists of what a group of


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people eats, wears, speaks, and believes. It also includes how they wage war,

view art, use technology, and bury their dead. Culture is, especially, how a

group of people views themselves in relation to others." Culture creates

discernable patterns that not only aid in understanding civilizations, but also

in comparing and contrasting those civilizations. It is neither superior nor

inferior it is simply different and unique. All culture is acquired, either byinitiation or through the inheritance, imposition, or absorption of other

cultures. It is through an understanding of the multiplicity of world cultures

that the keys to unlocking the shackles of bias and prejudice are found and

help a person learn the nature of mankind."

1. Skills2. Techniques3. Cumulative grows by

a. Discovery finding something that existedpreviously but was not known to manb. Invention rearranging materials or ideas so as toproduce something new

c. Diffusion spread of parts of one culture toanother culture

d. Building traits of one culture on anotherA. Characteristics of a Primitive Society

1. Controls small area of land2. Illiterate

a. no written literatureb. oral history

1. Few leaders little specialization1. Nomadic or agricultural village society2. Trade by barter

"There is nothing so fragile as civilization and no high civilization has long withstood the

manifold risks it is exposed to." [Havelock Ellis]

"What is civilisation? I dont know. I cant define it in abstract terms yet. But I think I

can recognize it when I see it." [Kenneth Clark]

" civilisation requires a modicum of material prosperity enough to provide a little

leisure. But, far more, it requires confidence confidence in the society in which one lives,


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belief in its philosophy;, belief in its laws, and confidence in ones own mental powers. [It

requires a] belief in law and discipline. Vigour, energy, vitality: all the great civilisations

or civilising epochs have had a weight of energy behind them. People sometimes think

that civilisation consists in fine sensibilities and good conversation and all that. These can

be among the agreeable results of civilisation, but they are not what make a civilisation,

and a society can have these amenities and yet be dead and rigid." [Kenneth Clark]

"A human form of culture in which many people live in urban centers, have mastered the

art of smelting metals, and have developed a method of writing." [Perry Rogers, Western

Heritage, 5th

ed.]

"Civilization is a subdivision of culture, denoting a way of life distinguished by complex

advances in the arts, sciences, and technology, and in which there is sufficient

diversification of labor to permit a significant number of people to pursue knowledge as

well as (or instead of) game and to cultivate the mind as well as the earth." [Alf J. Mapp,

Jr., The Golden Ages, p. 9.]

A civilization is a large and complex culture with systems of transportation and

communication. It is run by an organized government that makes and keeps the laws. A

civilization often has its own written language, religion, literature, and art. There are large

buildings , and at least some of the people live in cities [civilization is derived from theLatin word for city]

Civilization: "a human form of culture in which many people live in urban centers, have

mastered the art of smelting metals, and have developed a method of writing."

"Civilization is an interlude between ice ages" [Will Durant]

"Civilization is a movement and not a condition, a voyage and not a harbor. [Arnold

Toynbee]

A. Characteristics of a Civilized Society1. City civilization: civia (citizen) ofcivitas (city) urbanism

city design and building projects that require complex systems ofhuman mobilization and technological skill. The ascendance of

man from the hunter-gather level of existence to the sedentary

life of farming sets the stage for the growth of cities. Secure

with a constant food supply, people began to develop


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specialized skills since each individual no longer had to devote

most of his or her time to finding food. This development of

specialization created certain trades and society was better

equipped to expand and develop its repertoire for providing

food, shelter, housing, government, and creative outlets for its

increasing consciousness. This process has not yet stopped.2. Agriculture subordinate to city3. Relatively large population4. Controls large territory state government or polities right to

use force (army and police) arrange for international trade ,

alliances to ensure success of trade (Solomon and Hiram of Tyre)5. Separate, well-defined institutions

a. Government degree of political order and powerb. Economyc. Arts monumental architecture public

buildings and temples erected by king in name ofstate and financed by taxes and labor of lower

classes pyramids are evidence of the statesability to organize and direct massive projects

requiring thousands of laborersd. Crafts

1. Literate -- "Civilised man must feel that he belongs somewherein space and time; that he consciously looks forward and looksback. And for this purpose it is a great convenience to be able to

read and write." [Kenneth Clark] Writing is key to success complex societies require complex records paperwork produced

by scribes of bureaucracy

1. sophisticated metallurgy copper c. 5,500 B.C. metal smiths forbronze 3500-3000 B.C. employed by king to prepare for militarycampaigns spear points and arrowheads

2. A form of religion or theology establishment of religiouscenters

3. specialization of jobs occupational specialization4. class differentiation orstratification

"How did people learn to cultivate the jewel and ornament of the plain, the holy furrows

[where] grain grows? How did they learn to live in a well-supplied city, awesome in itsappearance, its temples rich with abundance, its laws perfected?" [Noble, Western

Civilization, I, p. 3, citing Sumerian poem fromHistory Begins at Sumer: Thirty-nine Firsts inMans Recorded History, 3

rdrevised edition by Samuel Noah Kraemer, Un. Of Penn. Press,

1981, pp. 91, 94.]


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"In the archaeological record the change to civilization comes when humans abandoned livingexclusively in small, isolated farming hamlets of a few acres and gathered themselves more

compactly into dense settlements based on significant food surpluses. Usually, though notalways, this meant the appearance of cities. More importantly were t the emergence of social and

economic specialization, the resulting need to exchange goods, and a more sophisticated political

organization -- consciously organized state which governs a well-defined territory.

The first states could mobilize sufficient labor to create monumental architecture in the form of

temples, palaces, and tombs. A new artistic outlook carefully represented man. And writingappeared for the purpose of keeping accounts and recording the great deeds of rulers.

Civilization entailed a great growth of the material equipment of mankind, but even moreimportantly he developed his intellectual capabilities which enabled him to live within the

complicated framework of civilized society. [Starr, Nowell,A History of the World, I, pp. 17-18.]

1. long-distance trade business contracts spread beyond kinship need for bureaucracy of the state to guarantee contracts and

maintain records Governments tried to improve the competitiveposition of their own businessmen. Traders often had a protected

status which allowed them to move freely within hostile societies.The states of the ancient world came to dominate increasingly

large territories and populations. The development of widespreadtrade networks supported by powerful armies helped build the

Assyrian, Persian, Greeks and Roman Empire

a. International diplomacy effort to improve position ininternational trade

b. tribute large quantities of goods transferred between regions plundering sacking of citiesc. economic ambassadors located in cities of trading partners

d. skilled artisans needed imported goods trade networks12. developed transportation system

13. standards of measurement (including currency) coinage c. 700 B.C. governments guaranteed weight of coin by stamping a mark into them

1. formal legal system system of judges and courts (king might becourt of last resort)

1. mathematics2. astronomy

A. Savage and barbarian most primitive of societiesIII. From Neolithic to Civilized Society


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A. Themes1. Influence of geography2. Cultural cross-fertilization3. Development of religion4.

Government characterized by dynasties or theocracies5. Development of writing

6. Conflict between nomads with superior military vs. Settlers withsuperior numbers

7. Technological innovationsa. Copper "Traces of metalworking appear as early

as 8000 B.C., when people simply cold-hammerednative copper. Later, beginning about 6500 B.C.,

metalworkers improved the hardness of copper byannealing it heating and then hammering and

shaping it. True copper metallurgy began about5500 B.C., when metalworkers started to smelt (or

heat) copper ores to obtain the usable copper. Overthe next several thousand years, craftsmen became

skillful in the use of other metals, including bronzeand gold." [Western Civilization: Origins and

Traditions, pp. 8-9.]b. Bronze Around 4000 B.C.E. copper began to be

mixed with tin to make bronze. This developmentoccurred around the Black Sear and in Southwest

Asia. Use of the metal allowed faster manufactureof a greater variety of tools than those of stone or

bone. Metal hoes, plows, and other implementsproved useful to both agricultural and nomadic

societies. This gave rise to a specialized artisans andencouraged trade because tin, in particular, was

difficult to find.c. Irond. Wheele. Potters wheelf. Boatsg. Third and second millennia in the eastern

Mediterranean and western Asia -- Bronze Age,' --

people mastered the technology of making bronze --alloy of copper and tin -- result, bronze frequently

replaced stone as a primary material for everyday,practical use

h. First millennium -- iron replaced bronze. [Noble,Western Civilization, I, p. 10.]


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1. Additions to Barnyard and Field agriculture became morecomplex after the domestication of wheat, barley, sheep and goats.

Additional animals and plants were brought under control. Mostwere used as new sources of food. Others for

a.

use in ritualsb. use in decorationc. for pullingd. for ridinge. for protection

1. Horse Ukraine or steppes by 3,000 B.C.a. meatb. milkc. pack animalsd.

important in warfare (chariots) by 1500 B.C.e. riding

1. chicken in Indus Valley by 2000 B.C. in Mesopotamia by 1400B.C.

1. geese by 3000 B.C. in Egypt2. Nubian wild ass by 3000 B.C.

a. foodb. pack animals

1. pigs by 6,500 B.C.a. meatb. nomads did not keep pigs because they are not

easily herded and are poorly adapted to aridconditions

1. cattle southeastern Europe and Anatolia by 6,500 B.C.a. meatb.

milkc. leather

d. oxen pulled plows1. dogs highlands around Mesopotamia c. 10,000 B.C.1. onions in Near East by 2500 B.C. also


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a. garlicb. leeksc. herbsd. lettucee. carrotsf.

beetsg. melons

h. sesame1. pulses and legumes by 6000 B.C.

a. peasb. lentilsc. vetchesd. chickpeas and horse beans added later

1.

Barley porridge and beer

1. Wheat two varietiesa. emmerb. einkorn

20 orchards 3000 B.C.

a. grapes wineb. olives oilc.

figsd. dates

e. pomegranatesf. almonds

"Agriculture became increasingly complex after the domestication of wheat, barley, sheep, andgoats, as people brought more and more plants and animals under control. Flax, peas, lentils,

beans, grapevines, olive trees, and new types of wheat and barley appeared in fields andorchards. Pigs, cattle, horses, asses, water buffalo, camels, chickens, geese, dogs, and cats joined

sheep and goats in pastures and barnyards. Although the earliest domesticates seem to haveprovided only primary products meat, hides, bones, and sinew the newer ones also

supplied milk, additional sources of food, and services pulling, transportation, protection oftheir owners and of herds, and use in ritual." [Western Civ.: Origins and Traditions, pp. 6-7.]

A. Early Neolithic Cultures1. Nile valley2. Mesopotamia


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A. Geographic Setting1. Dry region of Arabia2. Grasslands of Syria3. Fertile Crescent northward from Persian Gulf region from

Tigris-Euphrates River valleys, westward to the grasslands ofSyria, Eastern Mediterranean coast, Nile delta

A. Dangers of River Valleys1. Delta areas swamps2. Floods3. Wild animals poisonous snakes

A. Advantages of River Valleys fluvial civilizations1.

Fertile2. Fish

3. Birds4. Transportation

"The rivers yielded fish, a major element of the diet of the city's inhabitants. The rivers also

provided reeds and clay for building materials. Since this entire region lacked stone, mud brickbecame the primary construction material of Mesopotamian architecture. [McKay,A History of

World Societies,p. 14.]

"In the middle of the fourth millennium B.C. the climate of the Near East, which for some two

thousand years had been warm and humid, gradually changed and became cooler and drier.Irrigation agriculture had by then proved so efficient in southern Mesopotamia that immigrantsfrom the dry-farming plains and hills to the north migrated into the lower Euphrates valley,

where the number of village-size settlements sharply increased. The new hamlets, like the earlierones, were located along river banks, but they "tended to cluster around those Ubaid period

settlements which were both the abodes of the great gods upon whom all prosperity dependedand the centres of sizable agricultural communities. The need to feed a much increased and fast-

growing population challenged mans natural ingenuity, leading to the invention of the plow andalso to the sled for dragging grain, the chariot for carrying goods and the sail for water travel.

These technical innovations generated a large food surplus that could be stored, redistributed ortraded for raw material and luxury imports, "while other inventions such as the potters wheel

and the casting of copper alloys opened the era of industrial production."

Towards the end of the millennium desiccation started to affect southern Mesopotamia. As theEuphrates carried less water, some of its tributaries went dry. The previously familiar landscape

of anastomotic watercourses and extensive marshes gradually disappeared to be replaced by anew landscape. This included bands of pal-groves, fields and orchards along the few remainingstreams and, in between, patches of steppe or even desert. Many villages disappeared, their

inhabitants regrouping themselves within and around the larger towns. Artificial irrigation


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developed to cultivate larger areas, "but the enormous common effort required to dig andmaintain big canals and the need for an equitable distribution of water considerably reinforced

the authority of the traditional town chiefs, the high priests. This, combined with the scarcity offertile land, brought about the concentration of power and wealth. This resulted in continued

technical progress, to spectacular architectural and artistic feats, to the invention of writing as a

means of recording transactions, but also to armed conflicts. Thus, the genesis of the city-statesof ancient Sumer, "with their fortified cities and well-defined territories, with their population ofpriests, scribes, architects, artists, overseers, merchants, factory workers, soldiers and peasants

and their religious rulers or war leaders." [Roux,Ancient Iraq,pp. 66-67.]

"Great nations write their autobiographies in three manuscripts, the book of their deeds,

the book of their words and the book of their art." [Ruskin]

IV. Lower Mesopotamia: City KingdomsA. Geographic setting

1. Mesopotamia (Greek origin) "Land between the rivers" --"Mesopotamia drew its life from the Euphrates and Tigris rivers.

Both have their headwaters in the mountains of Armenia in modernTurkey. Both are fed by numerous tributaries, and the entire river

system drains a vast mountainous region. Overland routes inMesopotamia usually followed the Euphrates because the banks of

the Tigris are frequently steep and difficult. North of the ancientcity of Babylon the land levels out into a barren expanse. The

desert continues south of Babylon and still farther south gives wayto a 6,000 -square-mile region of marshes, lagoons, mud flats, and

reed banks. At last, in the extreme south, the Euphrates and theTigris unite and empty into the Persian Gulf." [McKay, p. 13.]

"The area called Mesopotamia, which comes from Greek words meaning

between the rivers, lies between the Tigris to the east and the Euphrates to thewest. Both rivers rise in the Armenian highlands and flow southeast to the Persian

gulf. In their upper reaches, where the rivers lie far apart, the country is hilly androlling. This region is watered by a number of major tributaries of the great

streams as well as by winter rains, especially in the hills where early farmersraised their crops." [Chester G. Starr,Early Man,p. 76.]

a. Tigris (TY- grihs) fed by the waters from the Zagros Mountainsand the Armenian Highland

b. Euphrates River (yoo FRAY teez) fed by waters from theTaurus Mountains and the Highlands of Asia Minor and Armenia

"The geographical unity of Mesopotamia was matched in pre-Christian times by a striking

cultural unity. Within flourished a civilization which in quality and importance was onlyequaled by the civilization of Egypt. From roots set deeply in the darkness of prehistoric


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times, it slowly grew, blossomed in the dawning light of history and lasted for nearly threethousand years, remaining remarkably uniform throughout, though repeatedly shaken by political

convulsions and repeatedly rejuvenated by foreign blood and influence. The centres whichgenerated, kept alive and radiated this civilization over the entire Near East were towns such as

Ur, Uruk, Nippur, Agade, Babylon, Assur and Nineveh, all situated on or near the Tigris or the

Euphrates, within the boundaries of modern Iraq. At the beginning of the Christian era, however,the Mesopotamian civilization gradually declined and vanished . Some of its cultural andscientific achievements were salvaged by the Greeks and later became of [western] heritage;

the rest either perished or lay buried for centuries, awaiting the picks of archaeologists. Aglorious past was forgotten. In mans short memory of these opulent cities, of these powerful

gods, of these mighty monarchs, only a few, often distorted names survived. The dissolving rain,the sand-bearing winds, the earth-splitting sun conspired to obliterate all material remains, and

the desolate mounds which since concealed the ruins of Babylon and Nineveh offer perhaps thebest lesson in modesty that" is ever received from history. [Roux,Ancient Iraq, new ed., p. 3.]

1. Fertile Crescent "In this rough theatre of teeming peoples and conflictingcultures were developed the agriculture and commerce, the horse and wagon, thecoinage and letters of credit, the crafts and industries, the law and government, the

mathematics and medicine, the enemas and drainage systems, the geometry andastronomy, the calendar and clock and zodiac, the alphabet and writing, the paper

and ink, the books and libraries and schools, the literature and music, thesculpture and architecture, the glazed pottery and fine furniture, the monotheism

and monogamy, the cosmetics and jewelry, the checkers and dice, the ten-pinsand income-tax, the wet-nurses and beer, from which European and American

culture derive by a continuous succession through the mediation of Crete andGreece and Rome." [Durant, Our Oriental Heritage,p. 116] "The Fertile Crescent

is that wide belt of productive land which extends northwestward from the PersianGulf and then down the Mediterranean coast almost to Egypt. It forms a

semicircle around the northern part of the Arabian desert." [Burns and Ralph,World Civilizations, 4th ed., p. 25.]

1. Lower Mesopotamiaa. Fertile delta plainb. Karkheh River Elam

Elam: Ancient kingdom at the head of Persian Gulf, east of Babylonia, dating back possibly to

5th millennium B.C.; from c. 3000 BC, there was a conflict between Elamites, non-Semeticinhabitants of Elam, and the Sumerians and Akkadians; with its capital at Susa, The kingdom of

Elam flourished c. 1200-c. 640 BC, when it was absorbed by Assyria, which destroyed Susa.Susa later became one of the capitals of the Persian Empire of Cyrus the Great.

"The region of Elam is on the western edge of ancient Persia. The Zagros Mountains lie east

and north while the Persian Gulf is to the south and the Tigris River is on the west. The ancientcapital of the area is Susa. The region has been inhabited since before 3000 BC."


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Elam appeared in history when Sargon of Akkad subdued it about 2300 B.C. Soon, though,Elamites reversed the role, sacked Ur, and set up an Elamite king in Eshnunna. The Elamite

presence continued in Babylon until the time of Hammurabi about 1700 B.C."

"After Hammurabi, Kassites invaded Elam. Their rule lasted until about 1200 B.C. The next

century was the high point of Elams power. All of western Iran was theirs. Again theBabylonians brought Elamite power to an end. The Assyrian Ashurbanipal brought an end to theperiods of strength and weakness. He swept through the region in a series of campaigns and

captured Susa in 641 B.C. He may have moved some Elamites to Samaria at that time (Ezra 4:9).Earlier, Elam had incorporated Anshan, later home of Cyrus the Great, into the kingdom. As

Assyria weakened, Elam and Anshan became part of the kingdom of the Medes. Thus, theyparticipated, with the Babylonians, in the defeat of the Assyrian empire. Elam had little

subsequent independent history, but it continued to be part of the Medes and the Persiansempire" [Holman Bible Dictionary,p. 405.]

a. Early cities near Persian Gulfa. Tigris frequent floods melting of snows in the

mountains of the north (Armenian highlands

Caucasus Mountains) effect was to enrich thesoil with moisture and to cover it over with a layer

of mud of unusual fertility

1. Divisions of Mesopotamia reached from foothills of theArmenia Taurus Mts. in the northwest to the Persian Gulf in the

south. Bounded on the west by Great Syrian Desert, on the east bythe Zagros Mts.

a. Northern Mesopotamia Assyriab. Southern Mesopotamia Babylonia

i. Akkad in the northii. Sumer in the South

a. North of Mesopotamia mountains dividing itfrom Anatolia The Amaus (a-manus) Mts.

(Alma Dag) are in southern Turkey in Asia andform part of the Taurus Mts; the southern end is in

Hatay valley.

a. East Elamb. South Arabian Desertc. West Syrian grasslands

A. Role of Geography


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1. Natural barriers only in the north2. Easily invaded Geography played a major role in dictating the

relationship between the inhabitants of the river valley system andthe world beyond. "No natural barriers protected Mesopotamia. As

a consequence, those who first mastered the Tigris-Euphrates

Valley were constantly attacked by tough herders who lived in theZagros Mountains to the east, by formidable nomads of theArabian Desert to the west, and by hardy farmers from the plateau

land along the upper reaches of the rivers to the north. Theconstant assaults of these peoples had a significant effect on

Mesopotamian society, but they also made possible the spread ofMesopotamian influence outward into these more primitive areas."

[Harrison,A Short History of Western Civilization, 6th

ed., p. 6.]3. Flooding unpredictable

a. Legend of world floodb.

Annual flooding of the rivers from snows ofArmenian Mountains. Difficult to construct and

maintain an irrigation system in the broader plainarea of Mesopotamia. As a consequence, an

everlasting threat of flood , drought, and faminehung over the inhabitants of Mesopotamia, creating

an attitude of uncertainty and fatalism that isreflected in literature and art. [Harrison,A Short

History of Western Civilization, 6th

ed. P. 6]

1. Plentiful fooda. Rich silt and water controlled by irrigation

structures to produce grain, fruits, vegetablesb. fertile soil

In Mesopotamia wheat yielded, says Herodotus, two hundredfold the sower. Pliny wrote that it

was cut twice and afterwards yielded good fodder for sheep. There were also abundant palms andmany sorts of fruit.

1. Need for dikes and canals to control water led to elaborate politicalorganization The banks, or dikes, built by the Sumerians

protected their small mud huts and their growing crops from thefloods. In the summer, a hole in the dike could release water for

the crops. Long, extensive canals, were dug on the flat land. In thisway;, water was carried to what otherwise would have been barren

land.


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1. Semi-arid climate led to need for irrigation -- "combined floodperiods of the Tigris and Euphrates occur between April and June,

too late for winter crops and too early for summer crops problem was accumulation in flat, low-lying areas of the salt

brought by irrigation and collected in the water-table which lies

just beneath the surface. If no artificial drainage is installed andit seems that such drainage was unknown in antiquity fertilefields can become sterile in a comparatively short time." [Roux,

Ancient Iraq, new ed. pp. 6-7.]2. Need for timber, metals, and semi-precious stones led Sumerians

to begin exploitation of the Zagros and Amanus Mountains and todevelop more distant trade routs to Persia, Anatolia and Tilmum

(Bahrein)

8. Plain of Shinar between the riversa.

8000 sq. milesb. 40 miles wide

c. 7 inches annual rainfall"As the Two Rivers approach most closely to each other (originally about a hundred and sixty or

seventy miles from the Persian Gulf mud carried down by the rivers has since filled up thePersian Gulf, extending the land c. 160 miles) they leave the desert and enter a low plain of

fertile soil, formerly brought down by the rivers. This plain, at the eastern end of the FertileCrescent, is generally known as Babylonia. But during the first thousand years of its history it

was called the Plain of Shinar. It was hardly more than forty miles wide at any point andcontained probably less than eight thousand square miles of farm land. It lies in the

Mediterranean belt of rainy winter and dry summer, but the rainfall is nevertheless so slight (lessthan three inches a year) that the fields must be irrigated in order to ripen the grain. When

properly irrigated, however, the Plain of Shinar is very fertile, and so the chief source of wealthin ancient Shinar was farming. This plain was the scene of the most important and long-

continued of frequent struggles between the mountaineer and the nomad." [Robinson andBreastedHistory of Europe,pp. 40-41.]

"The Tigris-Euphrates valley had "the notable advantage of a limited area of exceedingly fertile

soil. the rivers provided excellent facilities of inland transportation and were alive with fishand waterfowl for a plentiful supply of protein food. The distance between the Tigris and

Euphrates rivers at one point was less than twenty miles, and nowhere in the lower valley did itexceed forty-five miles. Since the surrounding country was desert, the people were kept fromscattering over two great an expanse of territory. The result was the welding of the inhabitants

into a compact society, under conditions that facilitated a ready interchange of ideas anddiscoveries." [Burns and Ralph, World Civilizations, 4th ed., pp. 26-27.]


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"Another significant geographical aspect of Mesopotamia is its openness. To the south and westare the vast expanses of the Arabian desert, in which lived a semi-nomadic population of

Semitic-speaking peoples. From prehistoric times on these peoples entered Mesopotamia, and bythe time of Hammurapi they had become the ruling element. To the east and north were the

mountains of Iran and Armenia; the leaders in the first stage of civilization, the Sumerians, seem

to have come from somewhere in this direction. Traders could make their way down the Persiangulf to the Indus river in India. Up the rivers they sought wood, metals, stone, and otherresources. Mesopotamian civilization was far more receptive of external influences and spread

its achievements more widely over the Near East than did the secluded population of earlyEgypt." [Starr, Early Man, pp. 77-79.]

A. Climate1. Summer heat relentless temperatures up to 100 degrees F2. Humidity is relatively high3. tropical diseases4.

torrid winds from Indian Ocean

a. enervating to humansb. good for ripening date palm fruit

V. Neolithic Accomplishments in the Area, 7000-3000 BCA. At Jarmo pottery mills and reasonably large communityB. At Ubaid pottery and signs of advanced copper-using culture "The oldest

known settlements in the Land between the Rivers were made by people called

the Ubaidians (u-BAD-ians). This name was derived from the Tell el-Ubaid, a sitenear the ancient Sumerian city ofUr. Scholars believe that the Ubaidians probably

migrated from the highlands of Iran, to the east of the Tigris River, about 5000B.C., and that they were the first people to occupy the marshlands of southern

Mesopotamia.

The excavations of the site uncovered the remains of a village of mud-brickhouses having staircase to the roofs, ovens still containing shells of freshwater

fish, slings made from deer antlers, pottery decorated with geometric and animaldesigns, and a few weapons and tools made of copper. Archaeologist believe that

the inhabitants probably cultivated wheat and barley with the help of a simpleirrigation system. Small clay figurines found in the ruins may have represented

deities." [Howe, The Ancient World, p. 22.]


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"There is a controversy about who these Ubaid people were, whether they weredirect ancestors of the groups [seen] when writing was invented. And because

of the muteness of the archaeological record, it does not seem likely that thecontroversy will ever be resolved. It is sometimes termed the Sumerian Problem

because it involves the question of where the Sumerians, the first historically

attested group in the region, came from. Were theyUbaidians? It seems likely thatthey were because there are no major archaeological breaks after the Ubaid ."

[Snell, Life in the Ancient Near East, PP. 14-15.]

C. At Uruk (EE rek) Uruk period (c. 3750-3000 BC)1. wheel for pottery-making2. temple3. Invented earliest known writing cuneiform writing of

wedge-shaped signs on clay tablets 9c. 3500 BC) "The mostamazing achievement of the period, is the invention of writing.

This appears to have arisen as an aid to memory in connection withadministration. As early as 3300 B.C.E, we begin to get what we

call numerical notation tablets, small pillows of clay on whichthere are marks that seem to represent numbers. Sometimes

someone will have rolled his cylinder seal over the tablet, as ifsigning for receipt of this many of something. What exactly was

being received was not indicated, but if it was somethingimportant, as seems likely, the parties of greater Mesopotamia,

from Susa at the eastern edge of the Iraqi plain all the way up toHabuba Kabira, which now lies under Lake al-Assad in central

Syria. Sometimes in addition to numbers and sealings the tabletshad small tokens stamped in them. Perhaps the tokens made the

numbers more explicit and told exactly what was being counted. Itmay be that scribes eventually found it helpful just to draw the

tokens on the wet clay instead of trying to find the very one theywanted, and this may be the origin of writing." The writing system

ofUruk was already highly complex and had a great many signswhich suggests that there were earlier stages to the system. The

signs of the writing system are pictographic, that is, they are littlepictures of what is meant, but they are inscribed on the same clay

tablets as the numerical notation signs were, though some arebigger." Everything in the texts cannot be understood but theadministration ofUruk was "distributing a great variety of items,

probably as salaries to people who worked for the administration"[Snell, Life in the Ancient Near East, p. 16.]

4. buildings constructed of brick"A second settlement existed at Uruk from about 3500 to 3100 B.C., succeeding that of theUbaid people. At this site, archaeologists found several large buildings constructed on a high


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terrace with a stepped altar at one end. As Leonard Cottrell, a British journalist and writer,described these buildings, each included:

examples of what is now recognized as

the characteristic architectural decoration of

the Uruk period. This consisted of thousands

of little cones of baked clay roughly the

shape of a rifle cartridge. The tips of these

were painted in various colors and the cones

driven into the mud-brick wall, forming a

charming mosaic pattern. Originally, these

cones may have been invented to strengthen

the buildings, but later they were developed

as an architectural adornment.

[Leonard Cottrell, The Quest for Sumer(New York: G.P. Putnams, 1965), p. 84, in Howe, The

Ancient World,p. 22.]

1. Small statues show that stone was being imported1. first appearance of a trinket: the cylinder seal a small,

cylindrical bit of stone or other hard material that was carved so

that when rolled on soft clay, made a design2. colonies sent forth upriver into Syria and east to Susa

a. possible desire for permanent relation with tradingpartners to obtain stone and wood

b. abandoned toward the end of the periodc.

possibly part of a trade diaspora settlementsestablished only for trade

8. Uruk people were the first to use the wheel

A. AgadeA. Kish


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B. Use of gold, copper, bronze -- "The discovery of the casting of copper appears tobelong to the Ubaid-Uruk period in Mesopotamia about 3300 B.C., when small

flat objects such as axheads, arrowheads, and spearheads were made from openmolds. For casting I the round, molds of two or more parts were used. The cutting

edges of copper tools or weapons were hardened by cold-hammering, a treatment

which gave them the hardness, though not the tensile strength, of mild steel. Soonafter the introduction of copper metallurgy, copper alloys began to be use, themost common of which was the bronze ally of copper and tin. In fact it now

appears from recent archaeological discoveries that no true age of copperpreceded the Bronze Age anywhere except in Egypt, where the use of bronze did

not become widespread until about 2000 B.C. because tin ore does not occur inEgypt." [The 1994 excavation of a tin mining village in the central Taurus

Mountains, 60 mile north of the Mediterranean coastal city of Tarsus suggests thata local tin industry existed in the Near East as early as 2870 B.C. a fully-

developed industry with specialization of work.]C. Agrarian economic enterprise and creation of capital usually in hands of priestsD.

Perfection of writing technique but not distinct literatureE. Ruled effectively by kings and priests

F. Religious beliefs and concepts attempting to explain creation and lifeG. Gradual improvement in agricultural methodsH. Growth of trade and commerceI. Expansions of individual cities wars with neighboring citiesJ. states or kingdoms developed

"Excavations at Jemdet Nasr have uncovered remains of still another group of people who, likethe Uruk people, probably migrated from the area now known as Iran. Between 3100 and 2900

B.C, these people made pottery with a characteristic latticework design and created figurines ofcut stone." [Howe, The Ancient World, p. 23.]

VI. Sumeria

A. Arrived in Mesopotamia between 4000 and 3000 B.C. "Between 3500 and 30000B.C., a people known as the Sumerians developed the first great civilization in theTigris-Euphrates valley ." [Howe, The Ancient World, p. 23.] There is no such

thing as a Sumerian race neither in the scientific nor in the ordinary sense

of the term.

1. Settled on plain of Shinar The Garden of Eden is derivedfrom the Sumerian edin meaning plain or open country

2. Came froma. East from Persiab. Northern mountains via Elamc. origins are obscured. language unrelated to any known tongue


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"At a very early period, possibly before 4000 B.C., some of the Highland peoples migrated andsettled on the Fertile Crescent. Among them the earliest people clearly revealed by the

excavations in the Plain of Shinar were called Sumerians." There race is still unknown. "Some of

them appear on the monuments with shaven heads and without beards, but the monuments showthat there were other Sumerians who wore beards and did not shave their heads. Long before3500 B.C. they had begun to reclaim the marshes around the mouths of the Two Rivers. They

finally held the southern portion of the Plain of Shinar, and this region at length came to becalled Sumer." [Breasted,Ancient Times, pp. 141-142.]

"Why they eventually left the highlands for Mesopotamia is unclear. The cause may have been

population pressure, competition for good land, or soil exhaustion." [Noble, WesternCivilization, I, p. 10]

"Whether they came up the Persian Gulf by sea or down from the hills by land, their woolen

garments and cloaks seem to suggest origins in the mountains of eastern Iraq or western Iran.They called themselves the black-bearded people, but their race, or mixture of races, remainsobscure. So does their language, which is neither Semitic nor Indo-European but agglutinative,

and has no known affinities. They shared the city states of Mesopotamia with Semitic-speakingpeoples of unknown geographical origin (not necessarily nomadic), in a duality more intricate

than plain opposition, for race and language did not always coincide; though on the wholeSumerians predominated in the south and Semitic speakers farther up the rivers." [Grant, The

Ancient Mediterranean, p. 36.]

The Sumerian language is unrelated to any other but it is the source of the words for "abyss" and"Eden."

"The Sumerian language is agglutinative, which means that it is formed of verbal radical

modified or inter-connected by the apposition of grammatical particles. As such, it belongs to thesame category as numerous dialects spoken from Hungary to Polynesia, though it bears no close

resemblance to any known language, dead or living. The Sumerian literature presents pictureof a highly intelligent, industrious, argumentative and deeply religious people, but offers no clue

as to its origins. Sumerian myths and legends are almost invariably drawn against a backgroundof rivers and marshes, of reeds, tamarisks and palm-trees as though the Sumerians had always

lived in that country, and there is nothing in them to indicate clearly an ancestral homelanddifferent from Mesopotamia." [Roux,Ancient Iraq,pp. 81-82.]

A. Mixed with nativesA. Established cities by 3000 BC

"Arnold Toynbee suggested that the Sumerian civilization evolved to meet the challenges ofliving in the "jungle-swamp" created by the Tigris and Euphrates rivers." [Howe, The AncientWorld, p. 23.]


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"The civilization of Mesopotamia is built upon clay." [Hecataeus, 5th

century Greek geographer]

D. The Sumerian Problem for some the Sumerians came to Mesopotamia during the Urukperiod; for others they were already there in Ubaid times at the latest.

"True, the Sumerianw

ritingappears for the first time at the end of theU

ruk period, but this doesnot imply that the Sumerian language was not spoken before. Again, there are in ancientMesopotamian literature place names that are neither Sumerian nor Semitic, but do they

necessarily represent the traces of an older and exclusive population? As for the change inpottery style which marks the beginning of the Uruk period it was probably due to mass

production rather than to foreign invasion or influence. In fact, in all respects the Uruk cultureappears as the development of conditions that existed during the Ubaid period. In any case if

the Sumerians were invaders where did they come from? Some have sought their origin in themountainous countries to the east of Mesopotamia where they arrived by land or by sea, while

others believe that they came from Anatolia following the Euphrates down to its mouth; but thearguments afforded in favour of these theories are not very convincing. Furthermore

numerous archaeological excavations has revealed anything resembling, even vaguely, theUruk and Jemdad Nasr cultures; nor have they produced any inscription written in Sumerian

which of course would be the only decisive evidence. In these circumstances, why not turn toMesopotamia itself?

" many material elements of the Sumerian civilization mud-brick buildings, coloured wallsand frescoes, stone vases and statuettes, clay figurines, seals, metal work and even irrigation

agriculture originated in northern Iraq during the sixth and fifth millennia B.C., and theexcavations at Choga Mami have established a definite link between the Samarra culture and the

partly contemporary Eridu and Hajji Muhammade cultures, now recognized as the early stages ofthe Ubaid culture. To equate the Samarrans with the Sumerians, or even the Ubaidians, on the

sole basis of their pottery and extraordinary statuettes would be unacceptably rash, but there islittle doubt that the first settlers in southern Mesopotamia were in some way related to, or at least

influenced by, their northern neighbors. And the Samarrans, in turn, might have descended fromthe Neolithic farmers of Hassuna orUmm Dabaghiya. Thus the more we try to push back the

limits of our problem the more it thins out and vanishes in the mist of prehistory. One is eventempted to wonder whether there is any problem at all. The Sumerians were, a mixture of

races and probably of peoples; their civilization was a blend of foreign and indigenouselements; their language belongs to a linguistic group large enough to have covered the whole of

Western Asia and much more. They may therefore represent a branch of the population whichoccupied the greater part of the Near East in early Neolithic and Chalcolithic times. In other

words, they may have always been in Iraq, and this is all we can say. The much discussed

problem of the origin of the Sumerians may well turn out to be the chase of a chimera."

[Roux,Ancient Iraq,pp. 82-84.]

VII. Sumers Cities civilization centered in some 12 independent city-states


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"About 3500 B.C. the peoples of southern Mesopotamia began to build urban centers. These firstcities were supported by the increased food production of commercial agriculture, based on

extensive irrigation, and by improved technologies such as metallurgy. Ranked social classesemerged: craft specialists, bureaucrats, and farmers all were ruled b the kings of cities and the

priests of the temples. A government bureaucracy controlled the irrigation systems essential to

the cities survival. The pattern of settlement changed from one of many small independentvillages to one of larger, complexly structured cities ruled by kings and surrounded by scatteredvillages." [Western Civilization: Origins and Traditions, p. 9.]

A. Agriculture1. Date palms Hecataeus, the 5th-century Greek geographer,

visited Mesopotamia "speculated that the people must have had360 uses for the date-palm tree, which was the only species of tree

that grew along the river banks. The fruit of these trees providednutritious food, while vinegar, thread, fuel, and fodder for animals

were derived from the leaves and trunk." [Howe, The AncientWorld, p. 24.] "The hot and humid climate of southern

Mesopotamia and the availability of ample water supplies in thatregion were conditions highly favourable to the cultivation of

the date-palm which grows along rivers and canals, ""its feet inwater and its head in the scorching sun' in the words of an Arabian

proverb. ... as early as the third millennium B.C. there were in thecountry of Sumer extensive palm-groves, and that artificial

pollination was already practised."" [Roux,Ancient Iraq, new ed.,pp. 8-9.]

2. Olives3. Grapes4. Wheat5. Barley main cereal, since it tolerated a slightly saline soil6. Livestock sheep, goats, cows "The Iraqi plain might seem a

forbidding environment in which to raise animals, but human

beings brought down from the foothills many of the domesticatesthat they had there and learned to use their labor and their products

in the plain too,. Sheep and goats especially could be pastured onthe margins of the cultivated land and on fallow fields in ways that

complemented the growing of plants. Children, who would nothave been useful in the fields, may have tended the sheep andgoats so that in terms of the human labor involved such herding

was complementary to sedentary agriculture. Doubtless to settlerson the plain exchanged products with nomads, people who

followed their flocks from place to place where grass was to befound. Sometimes nomads were major sources of social tension,

though that is not evident around 3100 B.C.E." [Snell, Life in theAncient Near East, p. 22.]


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7. Dairy Frieze forming part of a decoration on the front of a littletemple of cow-goddess showing a dairy near ancient Ur (c. 3000

B.C.) "It was originally mounted on a plank, edged above andbelow with a strip of copper. The figures themselves, however, are

carved from pieces of shell or limestone and mounted in a thin

layer of black bitumen which filled the space between the strips ofcopper. Above is part of a frieze of marching bulls, while below isthe dairy scene. At the right two cows, each with her calf before

her. According to Sumerian custom the milking was done frombehind, and the dairyman, therefore [is] seated behindthe cow

he is milking. This milking is going on in a cow-yard, of which thegate is seen near the middle, behind the left-hand cow. At this gate

two calves are represented with only the fore quarters showing, toindicate that they are coming out of the gate and are only halfway

out. At the extreme left four dairymen are at work with the milk.The man at the left plunges his arm deep into a tall pointed jar in

order to dip out the last of the milk it contains. Two men in themiddle are engaged in pouring the milk through a strainer into a jar

on the ground. With his back to the gate the last man sits on asmall, square stool while he rolls about on the ground a large jar

which serves as a churn and is placed on its side in order that itmay more easily be rolled about to produce the agitation of the

cream which results in butter. [University Museum of Philadelphia,in Breasted,Ancient Times, p. 143, fig. 83.]

8. emmer9. sesame10.vegetables and fruits

a. pomegranatesb. grapesc. chickpeasd. lentilse. beansf. turnipsg. leeksh. cucumbersi. watercressj. lettucek. onionsl. garlic

1. Meatsa. dried fishb. muttonc. pork


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d. duckProsperity came to Mesopotamia, according to Sumerian legend, when the gods "made the ewegive birth to the lamb [and] the grain increase in the furrows."

The Sumerians began almost immediately to create an agricultural system based on irrigation.Their efforts were successful, resulting in a growing population, a need for more farmland, andpressure to extend the irrigation system. The challenge was met by the organization of relatively

large and complex city-state communities in which the authority to plan and manage anirrigation-based agricultural system was concentrated in the hands of a small circle of rulers. By

3000 BC. many rich and populous city states had been built on the swampy, flood-threatenedland of Sumer." [Harrison, p. 8.]

One Mesopotamian text described a farmer as "the man of dike, ditch, and plow."

" control of the Tigris and Euphrates was key to developments in Mesopotamia. The rivers

frequently rose in terrifying floods that washed away topsoil and destroyed mud-brick villages.To survive and protect their farmland, villages along the riverbanks had to work together. Evenduring the dry season, the rivers had to be controlled to channel water to the fields." [World

History, p. 32.]

With the help of irrigation, the Sumerians grew wheat, barley, vegetables like onions and leeksand dates. The water also was used by the farm animals donkeys, cows, goats, pigs, and

sheep. With good soil and water from the rivers and the use of an ox-drawn plow, the people ofSumer were able to produce a surplus of grain. Grain was then transported on wagons with

wheels a great technological improvement. This surplus of grain was the foundation of thecities of Sumer. [Chapin, Chronicles of Time, p. 38.]

18th

century B.C. farmers almanac containing explicit guidance to ensure a successful crop."The almanac begins with instructions for the inundation of the farmers field, probably in May

or June, preparatory to plowing, and describes each important step to be taken until the grain isharvested, winnowed and cleaned. In moistening the field for plowing, for example, the farmer is

told to keep a sharp eye on the openings of the dikes, ditches and mounds [so that] when youflood the field the water will not rise too high in it . Let shod oxen trample it for you; after

having its weeds ripped out [by them and] the field made level ground, dress it evenly withnarrow axes weighing [no more than] two thirds of a pound each. The correct seeding procedure

is also described in detail, and the farmer is cautioned to keep your eye on the man who putsin the barley seed. Let him drop the grain uniformly two fingers deep. If the barley seed does

not sink in properly, change your share, the tongue of the plow. Finally, the farmer is warnednot to let the barley bend over on itself but to harvest it at the moment [of its full] strength."

[Kraemer, Cradle of Civilization, Time-Life, p. 80.]

"To channel and collect the flood waters, the officials of the ziggurats directed the engineeringand building of a system of earth banks, canals, and underground reservoirs. During the long, dry

summer months, the water was then distributed to the farmers fields and the herders grazinglands. Due to these cooperative efforts, the Sumerians were successful in averting flood disasters


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and in developing a thriving agriculture. Farmers grew wheat, barley, dates and millet. Herdsmenraised pigs, goats, cattle, and sheep, from which they derived hides and wool for leather- and

textile-making as well as food." [Howe, The Ancient World, p. 24.]

"Eventually, with the development of a good irrigation system, the immigrants and their

descendants turned the marshes and swamps, the dry plains and sand dunes of southernMesopotamia, into rich farming soil. Nature, nonetheless, was never to be taken for granted inthis land of extreme heat, scorching winds, and flash flood. Nor could the people of

Mesopotamia afford to ignore the outside world. They depended on foreign trade for mineralsand timber while, at the same time, they became uneasily aware that the neighboring peoples of

the mountains and deserts welcomed the opportunity to conquer their cities." [Noble, WesternCivilization, I, p. 10.]

"If we conjure up in our minds eye one of these city-states, we should find ourselves first

walking down a high road with fields stretching out on either side. Man now has imposed orderupon nature. The roads are relatively straight, the fields are carefully marked out by the use of

geometry, and here and there drainage and irrigation canals cut their regular courses. Farmingwith stone hoes and wooden plows is still hard work, despite the use of oxen; but the rewards of

barley, wheat, and vegetables are relatively sure. Shepherds in the pastures watch the sheep andcattle, which are carefully registered n the temple accounts; groves of date palms and fruit trees

stud the landscape." [Starr, Nowell, A History of the World, I, pp. 20-21.]

A. Appearance of Cities from 3500 to 3100 BC, the population increaseddramatically in the cities of Sumer. With the surplus food, more people were able

to tun to occupations other than farming. Specialists began to produce items suchas bricks. The potters wheel was invented; this in turn started the mass

production of pottery in the cities. The period after 3000 BC is also called theBronze Age because workers began to produce stronger metals.

1. Narrow streets2. Temples3. Walls the wall ofUruk was five-and-a-half miles long and had

over nine hundred towers "Look at it still today: the outerwall

where the cornice runs, it shines with the brilliance of copper; andthe innerwall, it has no equal. Climb upon the wall of Uruk

[Erech]; walk along it, I say; regard the foundation terrace andexamine the building; is it not burnt brick and good?"[Gilgamesh]

[Kraemer, Cradle of Civilization, Time-Life, p. 79.]4. Large gates5. Ziggurat temple tower6. Simple houses flat-roofed, mud-brick houses of ordinary people

thick-walled compound consisting of several windowless roomswith shoulder-high doors arranged around an open court.


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"Since Sumer had no good stone or timber for building, the people adapted the materials at handto their purposes. To build small homes, they bundled reeds together to form columns. Each

bundle was tied securely for a length of several feet, but the tops were left untied. The bottomswere then set into shallow holes in the ground in two parallel rows, and the tops were bent and

tied together to form arches. Crosspieces of bundled reeds were lashed into place and the

framework was roofed over with reed mats." [Howe, The Ancient World, p. 23.]

The houses of the citizens were "bare rectangular structures of sun-dried brick, each with a court

on the north side, and on the south side of the court a main chamber from which the other roomswere entered. At first only a few hundred feet across, the town slowly spread out, although it

always remained of very limited extent. Such a town usually stood upon an artificial mound ."[Breasted,Ancient Times, p.150.]

" while an ordinary member of the working class dwelt in a humble, single-story house of

mud-brick, a farmer, merchant, scribe or artisan whose services had earned him prosperity abovethe average lived in comfortable circumstances. Remains of homes of fairly well-to-do Sumerian

citizens found atU

r and dating from around the 20

th

Century B.C. reflect a surprisingly highstandard of living, and they differ only in minor details from most of their later Assyrian and

Babylonian counterparts."

"Such a house in its day was a two-story structure made of the kiln-baked and sun-dried brick,

neatly whitewashed inside and out and well-insulated against the blazing Mesopotamian sun bywalls that were sometimes as much as six feet thick. From a small entrance vestibule one stepped

down into a brick-paved court provided with a central drain to carry off water during the winterrainy season. Opening off the court were the doors to the ground-floor rooms. The number of

these rooms might vary from house to house, but typically they consisted of a chamber whereguests were received and entertained, and where they might spend the night; a lavatory; the

kitchen with its fireplaces and utensils of clay, stone and copper; a servants room and a generalworkroom that probably also served as a storeroom. There may also have been on the ground

floor a small chapel where the household gods were worshipped, and below some houses weremausoleums for the burial of the family dead.

"A flight of stairs led up to the second story, where a wooden gallery about three feet wide, and

supported by wooden poles, ran around the courtyard, leading to the familys private livingquarters. A ladder probably gave access to the flat or slightly sloping roof, on which the family

often slept on clear summer nights. The house was simply but comfortably furnished with bedsand couches, chairs and tables, and there were wood or wickerwork chests for storing clothes.

Rugs covered the floors and colored hangings decorated the walls." [Kramer, Cradle ofCivilization, Time-Life, p. 85.]

"Burnt bricks were in general reserved for the houses of gods and kings, though this was byno means the rule, and the vast majority of ancient Mesopotamian buildings were simple mud

bricks. The roofs were made of earth spread over a structure of reed mats and tree-trunks and thefloors of beaten earth sometimes with a coating of gypsum. A coat of mud plaster was also

usually applied to the walls." [Roux,Ancient Iraq,p. 19.]


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"The houses with their thick walls were relatively comfortable, being cool in summer and warmin winter, but they required constant attention. Every summer it was necessary to put a new layer

of clay on the roof in anticipation of the winter rains, and every now and then the floors had to beraised. The reason for this was that rubbish in antiquity was not collected for disposal but simply

thrown into the street, so that the street level gradually rose higher than the floor level of the

house that bordered it, allowing the rain and the filth to seep in. Earth was therefore brought intothe rooms, rammed over the old floors and covered with another coat of plaster." [Roux,AncientIraq,p. 19.]

"Each city-state consisted of a densely populated central community featuring mud-dried brick

buildings surrounded by impressive walls and of adjoining agricultural land controlled by thecity." [Harrison, p. 8]

"For more elaborate structures, the Sumerians used bricks made of clay, and they soon learned to

bake and glaze the bricks to make a more durable material. Although baked clay was not an idealmaterial for large structures, they found that they could greatly increase the height and width of

their buildings by creating arches in the walls and adding support columns" [Howe, The AncientWorld, p. 23.]

"Their settlements of low huts, at first of plaited reeds (wattle) and then of mud brick, creptgradually northward, especially along the Euphrates, for the banks of the Tigris were too high for

convenient irrigation. These people learned to control the spring freshets with dikes, to distributethe waters in irrigation trenches, and to reap large harvests of grain. They were already

cultivating barley and wheat, which were the two chief grains in Western Asia as they were inEgypt. They already possessed cattle, as well as sheep and goats. These animals played such

an important part in the life of the Sumerians that one of their important goddesses had the formof a cow, and they believed that she protected the flocks and herds. sculptures in her temple

nearU

r show interesting pictures of the dairy industry among the Sumerians of nearly 3000B.C. Oxen drew the plow, and horses and donkeys pulled wheeledcarts and chariots. These

Sumerian chariots are the earliest known wheeled vehicles, and the wheel as a burden-bearingdevice appeared here for the first time. Not long after 3000 B.C. horses from the northeastern

mountains were already known, although they continued to be rear for nearly a thousand years.At the same time metal had also been introduced, and the smith had learned to fashion utensils of

copper, but he had not yet learned to harden the copper into bronze by admixture of tin."[Breasted,Ancient Times, p. 142.]

"Sumerian cities were often rectangular in shape, surrounded by high, wide walls. Inside the city

gates were broad avenues used for religious processions of victory parades. The largest buildingswere ziggurats (ZIHG uh rats), pyramid-temples that soared toward the heavens. Their sloping

sides had terraces, or wide steps, that were sometimes planted with trees and shrubs. On top ofeach ziggurat stood a shrine to the chief god or goddess of the city.

"Rulers lived in magnificent palaces with spacious courtyards. Most people, though, lived in tinyhouses packed in a tangled web of narrow alleys and lanes. Artisans who practiced the same

trade, such as weavers or carpenters, lived and worked in the same street. These shop-linedstreets formed a bazaar." [Ellis, World History, p. 33.]


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"Sumerian cities were surround by walls. Uruk, for example, was encircled by a wall six mileslong with defense towers located along the wall every thirty to thirty-five feet. City dwellings,

built of sun-dried bricks, included both the small houses of peasants and the larger buildings ofthe city officials, priests, and priestesses. Although Mesopotamia had little stone or wood for

building purposes, it did have plenty of mud. Mud bricks, easily shaped by hand, were left to

bake in the hot sun until they were hard enough to use of building. People in Mesopotamia wereremarkably creative with mud bricks. They invented the arch and the dome, and they built someof the largest brick buildings in the world." [Spielvogel, World History, the Human Odyssey,

p. 25.]

"In the third millennium B.C. both Sumer and Akkad were divided into political units which wecall city states. Each city-state consisted of a city, its suburbs and satellite towns and villages,

and of a well-defined territory comprising gardens, palm-groves and fields of barley and wheat.The open steppe between irrigated areas served as pasture land. The average surface of a city-

state is unknown, but one of the largest, Lagash, is said to have measured some 2,880 squarekilometres and to have numbered 30,000-35,000 people." [Roux,Ancient Iraq,p. 130.]

"The city-states included the cities and the surrounding supportive villages and farms, united

under a single government. Just like those who lived within the city walls, those who livedseveral miles away in small villages identified with the city trading there, paying taxes, and

attending religious functions. Farmers in the Mesopotamian city ofUruk, lived within the citywalls and walked an hour or so to their fields nearby. As the city grew in population and area,

from approximately three and a half to ten miles in radius, outlying villages and fields wereincorporated to supply the citys needs, and farmers participated in civic affairs." [Fields, The

Global Past, I, pp. 68-69.]

1. Houses were close and divided by twisting, narrow, blank-walledstreets

1. lanes with shops of artisans, smiths, potters, etc "bazaar" " amaze of narrow passages shielded from the blazing sun by awnings

and lined with booths. Here the city dweller could choose his dailygroceries from a wide variety of foodstuffs . Here too, he could

find displayed alongside the pots, clothing, and other localproducts such imported luxuries as ivory combs from Indian or

carnelian beads from Iran. Woolleys findings at Ur also indicatethat there may have been restaurants in the vicinity of the bazaar

where shoppers could pause for a dish of fried fish or grilledmeat." [Kraemer, Cradle of Civilization, Time-Life, p. 80.]

2. streets most were narrow, winding lanes, unpaved anduntended. Nor was there any municipal sewage or garbage disposal

system; all refuse was flung lustily from the close-packed, mud-brick houses into the street, where it accumulated until it rose

above the level of the thresholds" [Kraemer, Cradle of Civilization,Time-Life.]


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3. public square "Here there were many entertainments andamusements wrestling matches, games of chance, recitations by

professional storytellers and the like to tempt the schoolboy toloiter on his way to classes. As for the restless, pleasure-bent older

citizen, there was the roistering tavern where he could enjoy" his

local brew. [Kraemer, Cradle of Civilization, Time-Life.]

A. Canals1. Drain off excess water after flooding floods from melted snows

of Armenian mountains2. Bring water to fields for irrigation

A. Political History of the Valley -- "The valley of the Tigris and Euphrates resembles a wide, shallow trough with few natural defenses, crisscrossed by two

great rivers and their tributaries, and easily encroached upon from any direction.

Thus the facts of geography tended to discourage the idea of uniting the entirearea under a single head. Rulers who had this ambition did not appear, untilabout a thousand years after the beginnings of Mesopotamian civilization, and

they succeeded in carrying it out only for brief periods and at the cost of almostcontinuous warfare. As a consequence, the political history of ancient

Mesopotamia has no underlying theme local rivalries, foreign incursions, thesudden upsurge and equally sudden collapse of military power these are its

substance. Against such a disturbed background, the continuity of cultural andartistic traditions seems all the more remarkable. This common heritage is very

largely the creation of the founding fathers of Mesopotamian civilization, Sumerians after the region of Sumer, which they inhabited, near the confluence of

the Tigris and Euphrates." [Janson,History of Art,p. 70.]

Evolution of a system in which the temples and the nobility shared power in each city and then asystem of monarchy.

" in the early stages of the city-states, priests and priestesses played an important role in

ruling. The Sumerians believed that the gods ruled the cities, making the state a theocracy.Eventually, however, ruling power passed into the hands of kings." [Spielvogel, p. 25.]

"The complexity of urban life that emerged in southwestern Asia before 3000 B.C. fostered anew form of political and social organization called the state. The unique feature of the state is

government an elaborate bureaucracy run by elite social classes, which manages power tomaintain public order and to sustain an economic network. This organization has characterized

much of western culture." [Western Civilization: Origins and Traditions, p. 10.]

1. Theocracy (rule by priests) en (lord implying secular andreligious functions)


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a. Patesi or high priest ensi (governor) written asPA,TE, SI

b. all land owned by patron deity of the cityc. Patesi ruled by divine right for the deityd.

Supervised

i. canal maintenanceii. irrigation

iii. surplus food and goods"Records on clay tablets indicate that the governments of the city-states werecentralized from a very early time. The ruler of each city derived his authority

from the fact that he was considered to be the representative of the god whoowned the land. This form of government is known as a theocracy. As stewards of

the god, the ruler and his officials allocated land to users, supervised the

collection of grain, and directed the maintenance of the irrigation system. Theylived and worked within a walled enclosure of the ziggurat and wielded enormouspolitical and economic power over the lives of the ordinary people." [Howe, The

Ancient World, p. 26.]

"Each Sumerian city was really an independent city-state. A city state consisted ofthe city and the surrounding lands. Each city-state had its own ruler. The city-

states were rivals for land, power, and trade. Conflicts on rights to water and landfrequently arose.

In the early history of Sumer, the highest priest, the priest-kings, had supreme

power over the city residents and the people living in the nearby countryside. Thepriests had power because the Sumerians believed that the land of the city-state

was owned by the gods. The priests, therefore, ruled on behalf of the gods. Thiskind of government, where the ruler is considered a god or the ruler represents

the gods, is called a theocracy. In the theocracy of Sumer, the priests owned thetemples and part of the land of both the city and the rural area. They collected

rents and taxes from the people for the use of the land.

The priests were the keepers of learning. They and their assistants knew how to

measure land, use a calendar, and tell time. More importantly, they knew how tocontrol the irrigation system. They made sure that the canals and dikes were kept

in good repair." [Chapin, Chronicles of Time, pp. 38-39]

"Each Sumerian city-state had its own local god, who was regarded as its kingand owner. It also had a human ruler, the steward of the divine sovereign, who led

the people in serving the deity. The local god, in return, was expected to plead thecause of his subjects among his fellow deities who controlled the forces of nature

such as wind and weather, water, fertility, and the heavenly bodies. Nor was the


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idea of divine ownership treated as a mere pious fiction; the god was quiteliterally believed to own not only the territory of the city-state but also the labor

power of the population and its products. All these were subject to his commands,transmitted to the people by his human steward. The result was an economic

system that has been dubbed theocratic socialism, a planned society whose

administrative center was the temple. It was the temple that controlled the poolingof labor and resources for communal enterprises, such as the building of dikes orirrigation ditches, and it collected and distributed a considerable part of the

harvest. All this required the keeping of detailed written records. Hence thetexts of early Sumerian inscriptions deal very largely with economic and

administrative rather than religious matters, although writing was a priestlyprivilege." [Janson, p. 71.]

a. ability to writeAround the palace-temple complex and supported by income from the city-states

agricultural establishment developed specialists whose skills were needed toconduct the numerous rituals honoring the deity and to plan and oversee the city-

states economy. Here, too, were cultivated the arts, architecture, writing,learning, and trade all serving to glorify the patron deity and his or her city and

to lift the level of life far above that prevailing in Neolithic villages." [Harrison, p.8.]

1. When one city state conquer another victorious high priest became king of thestate lugal(great man) gal= great; lu=man term also used in the senseof master and usually translated king

a. One of the first lugals about whom much is known was Eannatum(c. 2900 B.C.) of Lagash

b. Another early ruler of Lagash, Urukagina (c. 2700 BC?) was asocial reformer Urukagina usurped power as lugal of Lagash

about 2400 B.C.? and promulgated so many reforms in the interestof the oppressed common people that he has been called the first

social reformer in history. "Urukaginas inscriptions begin witha description of the abuses which since time immemorial, or so it

seemed, had been undermining the original divinely decreed wayof life. It is Urukaginas view that all the leading elements in

society priests, administrators, powerful men, and even the ensi(governor) and his family were guilty of acting each for his

own benefit. Particularly noteworthy among the many resultingabuses -- partly because Urukagina seems to have taken greatest

pride in eradicating it was the seizure of the property and eventhe persons of debtors by temple officials working in collusion

with corrupt judges (maskim) of special interest also isUrukaginas use of a contract theory of government to justify both


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"It was a land where geography was an obstacle to unification and where the scarcity of freshwater led to quarrels among cities over water rights. Separated from each other by desert and

swampland, the twelve Sumerian cities were jealous and particularistic, even though they hadmuch in common: language, literature, arts and sciences, and even religion (no small matter in a

society that was deeply religious). These cities, nonetheless, were rivals sometimes

friendly, often at war and were always stubbornly independent." [Noble, Western Civilization,I, p. 10.]

1. Council of elders early period (c. 3000-2700 B.C.)a. "The council probably was involved in day-to-day

governance"

b. membership probably restricted to landed elite1. Assembly of the people early period (c. 3000-2700 B.C.)

a.

Called less frequentlyb. appointed and removed kingsc. approved wars even over the objection of the

councild. served as courtse. degree of freedom of speech is unknownf. how open in membership is not known

1. Emergence of monarchy mid 3rd millennium B.C. "big man"orlugalor "governor" (ensi)

a.

military emergency probably led to centralized ruleunder a monarchb. inter-city warfare was chronicc. first and foremost a warriord. claimed to be representative of the gods "When

the Sumerians had established themselves in theirnew homeland, trade turned into imperialism on a

scale which for the first time brought the militarismand aggression of major powers as far as the north-

east corner of the Mediterranean. Shortly after 2400BC the Sumerian monarch of the south

Mesopotamian town ofUmma claimed divinesanction for his rule from the lower to the upper

sea perhaps the Persian Gulf and theMediterranean respectively. Even if this was less an

accomplished fact than an unfulfilled hope, theboast implied a historic and sinister assertion of

universal monarchy, or at least international


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acceptability as an arbiter." [Grant, The AncientMediterranean,p. 36.]

e. sponsored irrigation worksf. raised fortification wallsg. restored templesh.

signed peace treatiesi. leading role in feasts, processions and otherreligious ceremonies

j. male god in the Sacred Marriage ritek. built splendid palaces "All had a square central

courtyard surrounded by chambers on three sidesand communicating on the fourth side, with a long,

rectangular room which probably served as anaudience hall. Two parallel thick walls separated by

a narrow corridor surrounded the building. In Mari,the palace contained numerous ritual installations

suggesting royal chapels. In Kish, a second buildingalongside the palace included a spacious hall with

four central mud-brick columns and a pillaredloggia." [Roux,Ancient Iraq,p. 134.]

l. In Ur and Lagash kings wife could be a power.In Girsu she managed the affairs of the temple of

the goddess Babam. Earliest 2700-2600 B.C.

i. Enmebaragesi of Kishii. Agga succeeded Enmebaragesi

iii. Gilgamesh ofUruk1. Divine kingship theory "Humanity, however, was but a great,

rather stupid flock. It needed shepherds, rulers, priestly kingschosen and appointed by the gods to enforce the divine law. At

some remote date, therefore the exalted tiara and the throne ofkingship were lowered from heaven, and from then on a

succession of monarchs led the destinies of Sumer and Akkad onbehalf of and for the benefit of the gods. Thus was justified the

theory of divinely inspired kingship, current in Mesopotamia fromthe third millennium onwards." [Roux,Ancient Iraq,p. 107.]

i. Royal cemetery at Ur1. human sacrifice2. presence of magnificent objects,

ornaments and weapons3. theory more than monarchs: "they

were gods, or at least they


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represented the gods on earth and, assuch, were entitled to take their court

with them into another life, a life nodoubt incomparably more enjoyable

than that of the human beings"

i. general trend towards a gradual separation of thePalace from the Temple

8. Evolution of kingship theory

a. original political system of Sumer primitivedemocracy

b. monarchy developed comparatively latec. warrior chief (lugal) formerly elected by an

assembly of citizens for short periods of crisis took

power permanently reflected in creation mythdescribing the election of Enlil to the rank ofchampion of the gods for a specific purpose

waging ward. local assemblies composed of elder existed in Early

Dynastic Sumer probably merely consultativebodies summoned by the rulers on rare occasions

e. No clear-cut evidence in the Sumerian tradition of aperiod when the city-states were ruled by collective

institutions

"Sumerians viewed kingship as divine in origin. Kings, they believed, derived their power fromthe gods and were the agents of the gods. Regardless of their origins, kings had power. They led

armies, supervised the building of public works, and organized workers for the irrigation projectsupon which Mesopotamian farming depended. The army, the government bureaucracy, and the

priests and priestesses all aided the kings in their rule. As befitted their power, Sumerian kings,their wives, and their children lived in large palaces." [Spielvogel, p. 25.]

"As Mesopotamian city-states grew and demand for greater public works increased, efficient

political organization became essential. The growth of government, therefore, paralleled urbangrowth. Initially, cities were ruled by councils, usually composed of wealthy elders. Eventually

the role of king developed, particularly because of increased hostilities between cities thatencouraged people to look to a strong military leader. The kings authority grew out of three

primary responsibilities: military, civic, and religious. The kings military responsibility gavehim authority to lead the army against enemies and to defend the city against attack. The kingscivic responsibility gave him authority to raise taxes, to care for the peoples well-being through

public works, and to keep the peace through the enforcement of customary and newly developinglaw codes. The kings religious responsibility gave him authority as high priest to oversee all

religious practices. The kings role as high priest and lawgiver legitimized his rule." Field, TheGlobal Past, I, p. 70.]


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E. Early Sumerian Cities, 3000 BC

1. Ura. far southb.

access to Persian Gulfc. Genesis 11:31 "Terah took his son Abrah, hisgrandson Lot, the son of Haran, and his daughter-in-

law Sarai, Abrams wife, and they set out fro

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Copper Stone Age