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Mesopotamia

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... builds the world's 1st empire from Syria-Persian Gulf, unifies ... The Egyptian Empire. Akhenaten came to the throne in 1363 B.C. His wife was Nefertiti ... – PowerPoint PPT presentation

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Title: Mesopotamia


1
Mesopotamia
  • Theocracy ruled by a god or his representatives
  • Mesopotamia modern Iraq
  • 1st place to change from a village into a city
    was in Sumer in Southern Mesopotamia in 3000 B.C.
  • Mesopotamian gods were believed to own cities and
    live in the temple in their cities.
  • Temple complex was not only the gods home. It
    also included farmland, schools and the multitude
    of animals required for sacrifice
  • Other civilizations who built plaza type
    structures Inca, Maya

2
Mesopotamia
  • importance of irrigation
  • a change in lifestyle. nomadic-gtsettled and
    hunter-gatherer -gtfarmer
  • roles of women and men
  • disparity between different classes

3
Mesopotamia
  • Definition of city-state
  • Differences between citizens of a city-state and
    people in hunter-gatherer societies
  • Responsibilities of the city-state
  • Careers

4
Mesopotamia
  • Writing 1st appears around 8000 B.C.
  • 2350 B.C Sargon builds the worlds 1st empire
    from Syria-Persian Gulf, unifies cities by means
    of religion
  • Enheduanna, daughter of Sargon high priestess
    and worlds 1st author circa 2350 B.C.

5
Mesopotamia
  • Religion Polytheistic culture worship of many
    gods vs. monotheistic culture like Christianity
    worship of 1 god
  • Temples local onesplain, impt ones constructed
    on Ziggurats, the high mud-brick tower which
    served as the base for a temple

6
Mesopotamia
  • Palacesmany modern conveniences
  • Social classes even slaves women had some
    rights
  • Daily lifefood, school
  • Moral values authority is necessary to prevent
    chaos
  • Afterlife gloomy

7
Gilgamesh Epic
  • Gilgamesh historical figure in Iraq
  • Gilgamesh Epic written on clay tablets between
    2150-2000 B.C.
  • Theme of close friendship between 2 young men.

8
Egypt
  • Pharaoh was a human king who was god on Earth.
    Instead of being a god of a particular city as in
    Mesopotamia, he was the high priest of the entire
    land and responsible for maintaining justice and
    order.

9
Egypt vs. Mesopotamia
  • fewer irrigation problems in Egypt
  • Not difficult to defend
  • Unified very early 3100 B.C, had system of trade
    and irrigation. No large cities like Mesopotamia.
  • Pharaoh central figure required to keep order.
  • Order main theme in religion, irrigation,
    cosmos. Some similarities to Mesopotamian rel.

10
Pharaohs
  • Role of pharaohs
  • Great pyramids built circa 2600-2200 B.C
  • Religious practices Pharaohs were worshipped as
    well as other gods
  • Afterlife

11
The Egyptian Empire
  • Akhenaten came to the throne in 1363 B.C.
  • His wife was Nefertiti
  • He attempts to impose monotheistic religion in
    Egypt.
  • Akhenaten chooses Aton/Aten to be main god
    instead of Amen
  • Tutankhamen comes to the throne 1347 B.C.
    reverses Akhenatens changes

12
Society and Family
  • Egyptians viewed themselves as a nation
  • Careers available
  • Calm lives, few wars, easy irrigation, steady
    supply of food
  • Interest in ancestors, no interest in politics or
    military life
  • High degree of freedom for women

13
Israel
  • The Israelites had 2 difft kinds of religious
    experience, intensely personal encounters with
    God such as the experiences of Abraham and Moses
    and sacrifices performed on behalf of the people
    by the priests
  • The God of Abraham and Moses was called Yahweh
  • Hebrews were a nomadic people.
  • Took the name Israelites later when they settled
    down and became a nation

14
Flood myths 1
  • Gilgamesh Epic about 2 friends Gilgamesh and
    Enkidu
  • Human life is precarious and the gods may allow
    it to lapse into chaos yet again.
  • Gods sent a flood because humans were too noisy!
    Utnapishtim built a boat, escaped flood and was
    granted immortality.
  • Gods are shown to be capricious and uncaring.

15
Flood myths 2
  • Similarities between flood in the Gilgamesh Epic
    of 2150 B.C. and the Noah story in Genesis
  • boat
  • some people and animals survive
  • dove
  • Differences between flood in the Gilgamesh Epic
    and the story in Genesis
  • flood sent because men were too noisy Gil flood
    sent because men were wicked Genesis
  • gods may flood Earth again Gil, God promises
    never to flood earth again Gen
  • similarity to Greek mythology

16
Flood myths 3
  • Deucalion and wife Pyrrha survive flood in an
    ark. Later, an oracle told them to cast behind
    them the bones of their mother (i.e., the stones
    of the earth). From these stones sprang men and
    women who repopulated the world.
  • Also similar to other Gk myths and to Gilgamesh
    Epic in that Utnapishtim and his wife were
    mortals who became immortal because of their
    deeds.

17
Reminder slide for previously-discussed material
on Greek myth in the Archaic Period and 1 new item
  • You should know these people/things
  • Homers Iliad and Odyssey
  • epic
  • Heinrich Schliemann in Troy and Mycenae
  • Sir Arthur Evans at Knossos, Crete
  • Hesiods Theogony, Works and Days
  • New item Homeric Hymns

18
Know these items from the late Archaic Era,
Classical Era and Hellenistic Era
  • Pindar 518-438 B.C.lyric poet (late Archaic
    period)
  • Tragedy performed at several festivals of
    Dionysus (Classical era)
  • Tragedians Aeschylus, Sophocles, Euripides
    (Classical era)
  • Apollonius of Rhodes Argonautica (Hellenistic
    era)
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