Ancient Civilizations
Jan 29, 2016
Ancient Civilizations
EconomicsCurrency, trade
Political Structure
Govt
Culture:Religion, writing,
literature, art, language,
technology, music, and architecture
Social StructureClass system,
gender relations
(Civilization Name)
Interactions:Humans and the
Environment
Use a whole sheet of paper to create this graphic organizer (can also use a chart) for the following civilizations:
•Mesopotamia•Egypt•Indus Valley•Yellow River (China)•Olmec & Norte Chico (use two different colors)
Rise of Civilization4th Millennium BCE
• New discoveries transformed permanent settlements into civilizations– Bronze– Writing– Strong Govt’s– Religion– Language
• First civilization emerged in Mesopotamia (modern day Iraq) c. 3500 BCE
Location of Early Civilizations
What environmental conditions were needed to develop the first civilizations?
Ancient Mesopotamia
Government• Initially, priest-kings rule
city-states– Sumerians (c. 3500
BCE)
• City-states evolve into empires– Acadians (c. 2334-2218
BCE)
• Land owning aristocracy dominated
• Developed formal legal codes
Religion
• Believed in 3,000 gods
• Goal: Appease gods to control nature
• Art and literature focus on gods and religion
• Built ziggurats
Society• Social stratification
– Hierarchy in class• Slavery was common
– One could become a slave through war, crime, or debt
– Slaves were used in temples, public buildings, or private homes
• Patriarchal– Plow based agriculture = need for
strong men– Specialized labor – leaves women
out of positions• Women could hold most occupations
– Laws support patriarchy• Divorce, property rights, etc• “Respectable” women forced to
veil in public– Women symbolic of nature?
• Makes them a source to “dominate” according to the argument of civilizations attempt to dominate over nature
Culture
• Hammurabi's Code– First codification of laws
• Epic of Gilgamesh– First known literary work– Contains story of great flood– Gives major insight into culture of
Mesopotamia
Economy
Science & Technology• Inventions: wheel,
sail, and plow
• Bronze metallurgy
• 1st system of writing– Cuneiform
• 1st number system– Based on units of
10, 60, & 360
• Astronomy
Ancient Egypt• Relatively isolated• Nile flooded regularly,
predictably– Provided rich soil, easy
soil to farm– Civilization regulated
flooding, surveying
• Control the Nile; control society
Government• Formed by 3000 BCE
– Unified territorial state
• Unified for most of history– Old (Early) Kingdom– Middle Kingdom– Late Kingdom
• Theocracy– Pharaoh was a god-king– Women could be pharaohs
• Hatshepsut (1473-1458 BCE)
Ramses II
Religion• Thousands of gods
– Gods have animal and human qualities
– Gods & goddesses
• Rulers viewed as god-kings
• Relatively egalitarian
• Believe in afterlife– Heaven & Hell
• A good/bad after life– Mummification– Pyramids & Temples
Society
• Social Stratification– Limited opportunity
for social mobility
• Slavery common• Women have more
rights– Could own property,
propose marriage, and demand a divorce
Culture• Hieroglyphic writing on
papyrus
• Mathematics– Geometry
• Calendar system– 365 days (off by 6 hours)
• Medicine
• Architecture– Showcase their math
skills
Ancient India & China
Indus Valley Civilization:Mohenjo-Daro & Harappa
Indus River Valley
• Cities emerge around 2500-2000 BCE– Larger territory than other
early civs• Culturally unified city-
states– Harappa and Mohenjo-
Daro• Extensive city-planning
– Unified:• Weights, measures,
architecture, building styles
• Mysterious ending– No signs of palaces, temples,
kings, tombs, or warriors– Environmental degradation?– Aryan invasion?
Indus River Valley
• Polytheistic religion– Influenced Hinduism
• Undecipherable writing system
• No standing army– No weapons found at
these sites• Advanced technology
– Plumbing systems– The Great Bath– AC (kind of)
– Cities in grid patterns• Apartment style
buildings• “cookie cutter” 2 br
houses for workers
Ancient China• Xia Dynasty
– Legendary…imaginary…(aliens)
• Developed in isolation along the Huang He (Yellow) River
• Shang dynasty emerged c. 1500 BCE– Warlike kings & landed
aristocracy dominate• Large division in class
– Cities surrounded by massive earthen walls
Ancient China
• Chinese Society– Family at center of society
• Extended-family structure
– Women were subordinate
• Chinese Culture– Believed spirits of family
ancestors could bring good fortune or disaster
– Oracle bones (right)• Wrote on them using pictographs
– Bronze & silk
Dynastic CycleMandate of Heaven
Rulers are chosen to rule by heaven (Considered Son of Heaven) and will continue to rule as long as heaven is pleased; if heaven is not pleased, heaven will pass the
mandate to another family
The Olmec• Olmec emerge in
Mesoamerica c.1400-400 BCE • Olmec zone is dense tropical
forest– High rainfall - over 300
cm/year• Agricultural based
– Maize, beans, squash The Triad
• Cities developed out of many chiefdoms– Become center for religious
ceremonies• Elaborate temples, alters,
pyramids, and tombs
• May be responsible for the first written language in Americas (900 BCE)
Olmec Government &
Society• Several city-states with
common culture• Social Hierarchy
– Highest rank is that of the chief
– Dominated by landed aristocracy
– Laborers forced to build temples, palaces, and drainage canals
Olmec Religion• Polytheistic
– Deities blended male & female, animal & human characteristics
• Feathered-serpent god (right)
– Shamans organized religious life
• Religion led to development of writing system and calendar
Olmec Art• Building of clay
pyramids and temple mounds
• Particular sculptural style– Jaguars – Fine jade carving– Colossal heads
Norte Chico• 3000-1800 BCE in Peru
– Same as Mesop./Egypt• Area consisted of 25+ urban
centers– Smaller cities– No defensive walls
• Little sign of warfare
• Less economic specialization• Based largely on fishing and trade• Not a “grain-based” civ.
• Polytheistic• Famous for monumental
architecture and weaving– No evidence of any art or ceramics
• No evidence of writing– Used quipu for record keeping (later
adapted by Inca)
Legacy of Ancient Civilizations
• Writing systems, religions, and technology was influenced the development of new civilizations and cultures
• Ancient civilizations decline by 1000 BCE– Subject to nomadic invasions
• Political and cultural centers shift to new geographical areas (except China)