River Valley Civilizations

Guiding Question: What role did the physical environment play in the development of Sumerian civilization?

Mesopotamia is located in the Middle East.

Mesopotamia - The Land Between Two Rivers

Mesopotamia was a place where many cities began to grow. As its name suggests, Mesopotamia was located between two rivers. The two rivers were the Tigris River and the Euphrates River.

Mesopotamia was located in the Middle East, and surrounded by desert. People came to Mesopotamia because the soil between the two rivers was very fertile.

Mesopotamia was located in what is now the country of Iraq.

•Mesopotamia was part of a larger region called the Fertile Crescent.

•This area had fertile soil and was where many civilizations started.

•The shape is somewhat similar to a crescent (think of a crescent roll, or a crescent-shaped moon).

The Cradle of Civilization

When a newborn baby begins life, he or she is placed in a cradle. Mesopotamia is called the cradle of civilization because the first civilizations began there, about 5,500 years ago (in 3500 B.C.)

City-States Formed Along the Rivers

•Many city-states formed along the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers in Mesopotamia.

•The Tigris River forms the eastern boundary of Mesopotamia, and is 1,850 Km long.

Tigris River

•The Euphrates River forms the western boundary of Mesopotamia, and runs approximately 2,800 Km long.

Euphrates River

•Each City State had their own form of government. Eventually, they each had their own kings.

City-States Formed Along the Rivers

•The region where the two rivers meet was called Sumer. The people who lived in the Sumer region were called Sumerians.

City-States Formed Along the Rivers

Why Did These Cities Develop?

Due to the fertile soil in Mesopotamia, farming was very successful. In fact, people were able to create surpluses of food.

This meant that some people could stop farming and begin doing other things, like building a city.

As cities began to develop, people began to worry about others who might come and invade their city. They wanted to protect themselves from enemies, so people in Mesopotamia built walls around their cities.

Why Did These Cities Develop?

Sumerian Writing •Writing first began in Sumerian cities. The first schools were set up in Sumer over 4,000 years ago.

•Those who graduated became professional writers called scribes.

•Scribes were the only people who could keep records for the kings and priests. Boys that wanted to be scribes had to attend school from the age of 8 to the age of 20.

Cuneiform – “Wedge Shaped” Writing

Scribes used a sharp point called a stylus to etch words into clay tablets. These tablets have been discovered by archaeologists and looked at by historians.

•Sumerian writing is called “Cuneiform”. They made wedge shaped impressions on clay tablets, which were baked in the sun.

Deciphering Cuneiform

We know from our studies so far that the Sumerians invented the first written language (Cuneiform).

What are two other important inventions made by the Sumerians? Why were they able to make more technological innovations than earlier humans?

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You have 5 minutes to write your answer in complete sentences.

Bellringer

A Sumerian CitySumerian city streets were so narrow that you could hardly get a cart through them.

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

Narrow Streets

Courtyard Area

Sumerian Cities

On hot nights, people slept outdoors on the top of their house’s flat roof.

Sumerians had a form of light at night. They burned oil lamps.

Sumerians even had plumbing! Clay pipes that were buried underground carried their waste away. Inventions like plumbing wouldn’t come around for another thousand years in other parts of the world!

Sumerian Religion

Sumerians worshipped many gods, not just one. This belief in many gods is called polytheism. “Poly” means many and “Theism” means gods.

They believed gods ruled the cities, making the state a theocracy (government established by the authority of the gods)

The picture above shows a ziggurat. Ziggurats were the main temples used to worship the gods of a city. Ziggurats were built in the center of the city. They had steps and ramps, and it was believed that the gods descended to the Earth using the ziggurat as a ladder.

ziggurat Gods

Sumerian Mythology

Sumerian myths, or stories, explained people’s beliefs. Sumerians believed that a person must keep the gods happy by going to the ziggurat and praying to them..

They believed that the gods would reward them for good service. They also believed that the gods would punish the people who made them angry.

Waters of Wisdom

Sumerians believed that the world floated on an ocean of fresh water called Apsu. This was ruled over by Enki, the god of water. In places the waters of

Apsu burst through the earth to form rivers, which Sumerians thought were the source of all wisdom. Enki therefore became the god of wisdom itself. It was

Enki who warned humankind of the great flood described in Sumerian mythology and in the bible.

The Downfall of the Sumerians

Each of the Sumerian city-states had a ruler, and these city-states began fighting each other. They fought over land and the use of river water.

Since the Sumerians were constantly at war with each other, they became weak. By 2000 BC, Sumer was a weakened area, and by 1759 BC, Sumer was conquered by another group of people - the Babylonians, who were from the north.

Excavation of Royal Cemetery at Ur

The ancient city of Ur was excavated by C. Leonard Woolley between 1922 and 1934.

Much of his focus was on the Royal Cemetery, estimated to be from 2600 and 2450 BC. Among these were 16 'royal tombs'

Revealed evidence of the deaths of people thought to have been sacrificed at the time of the ruler's death.

One tomb, called the "Tomb of Death" or "Great Death Pit" held over seventy bodies.

This photograph and the previous one show the progress of the excavation, undertaken from 1933-1934. The large-scale excavation removed 13,000 cubic meters of soil and involved over 150 workers.

Excavation of Royal Cemetery at Ur

These tombs were PACKED WITH TREASURE!!

What kind of treasure? Let’s find out.

Head Dress of Queen Puabi

The most splendid grave at Ur belonged to Queen Puabi and her 23 attendants.

She was buried with golden necklaces and headdresses that show the skills of Sumerian jewelers and goldsmiths.

Puabi was about 40 years old when she died. She was probably a priestess and a member of the royal family.

Bull Headed Lyre

One of the bodies buried in the Great Death Pit near Queen Puabi was draped over a lyre, the bones of her hands placed where what would have been the strings.

Music seems to have been extremely important to Early Mesopotamia. Many of the graves in the Royal Cemetery contained musical instruments, and quite possibly the musicians that played them.

The people buried at the Royal Cemetery were members of the elite classes, who held important roles in the temples or palaces at Ur.

Ostrich Egg Shaped Bowl

Evidence suggests that feasts were associated with royal tomb burials. Many of the banquet attendees still hold a cup or bowl in their hands.

Statue of Ram Caught in Thicket

Each of the statues recovered from Ur's Great Death Pit was a goat standing on its hind legs, framed by gold branches with rosettes.

Bodies of the goats are made from a wooden core applied with gold and silver; the goat's fleece were constructed from shell in the lower half and lapis lazuli in the upper. The goats' horns are made of lapis.

The Standard of Ur

“War side”

The Standard of Ur

“Peace side”