How Does A Civilization Come Into Existence?

The Mesopotamian Civilization
How does a civilization come into existence?

1) Civilization is an advanced stage or system of social development.
2) When primitive humans evolved over a period of thousands of years, settled down and became cultured, a
civilization was born.
3) Cultured people have refined interests and tastes, special artistic skills and improved lifestyles.
Their Important Features of a Civilization
1) Settled life
2) Surplus food production
3) Town planning, residential buildings and monuments
4) Governing bodies and laws
5) Special crafts and skills
6) Language and script
Why did earliest civilizations flourish on river banks?
1) There was abundant water supply to support large settlements.
2) Land was fertile and crops grew in plenty, giving people adequate free time to devote to creative
activities and other occupations.
3) Rivers also acted as means of transport to carry people and goods from one place to another. As a result,
trade increased, leading to the growth of towns and cities.
The Mesopotamian civilization
Mesopotamia in Greek means 'the land between two rivers', is a broad, fertile valley between the rivers
Tigris and Euphrates in West Asia. These two rivers run parallel to each other, depositing alluvial silt
along the lower reaches of the plain. For centuries, nomadic tribes from outside poured into this valley.
This civilization flourished from around 3500 BCE to 600 BCE. Generally acknowledged as the oldest
civilization in the world, this civilization came to light as late as the first quarter of the 20th century.
Why is Mesopotamia is called the cradle and grave of many civilizations?
Around 3500 BCE, the Sumerians developed the world's first advanced civilization. This civilization
flourished for about 1,500 years and was then absorbed by the Babylonians and, then the Assyrians.
Various civilizations rose and fell in this region. Hence, Mesopotamia is called the cradle and grave of
many civilizations.
Explain the main characteristics of the Mesopotamian civilization
Town Planning
1) The cities were not as well-planned as the Harappan cities, but followed a uniform pattern.
2) The city was divided into three main parts-the sacred area, the walled city on a mound and the outer town.
3) The sacred area had the temple-tower or ziggurat dedicated to the god of the city. There were smaller temples
dedicated to other gods. This area also had the storehouse and the offices.
4) People lived in the walled city and in the outer town. Houses were built along the streets. Each house had a
central courtyard with rooms around it.
Architecture
1) The Mesopotamians introduced architectural form such as arches, columns, domes and vaults.
2) Their temple towers were made from sun baked bricks. They looked like man-made mountains soaring high
above the ground. They were many storeys high and were decorated with tiles, precious stones and marble.
These temples were also used as observatories, schools, granaries and trade centres.
3) The Mesopotamian architects also built big cities, canals and dams.
4) The Hanging Gardens of Babylon is a brilliant specimen of Mesopotamian architecture.
Society
The Mesopotamian society was divided into three classes.
1) The upper class consisted of the members of the royal family, priests and high officials.
2) The middle class consisted of farmers, artisans and traders.
3) The lower class consisted of slaves.
Family Life
1) The father was the head of the family and enjoyed special privileges.
2) The rights of women were protected.
3) Children were brought up very strictly and boys were sent to schools to study reading, writing and arithmetic.
4) Girls were trained in dance and music.
Occupation
Agriculture: How is the modern world indebted /how did they revolutionize the evolution of human society.
1) Agriculture was the main occupation of the Mesopotamians.
2) The Euphrates and Tigris rivers were their main sources of water supply.
3) They built a highly developed irrigation system to ensure a steady supply of water throughout the year. They
built dykes to control floods.
4) To increase agricultural yield, they invented the ox-drawn plough.
5) They used the wheeled wagon for transportation of goods.
6) They cultivated wheat, barley, pulses and fruits.
7) The Mesopotamians domesticated animals such as cows, goats, sheep and donkeys.
Art and Craft

1) Specialized skills such as pottery, weaving and metalwork (jewellery, armour and statues) began to develop.
2) The discovery of metal objects, statues, gold and silver ornaments and pottery is proof of the technical
knowledge and skill of the artisans in Mesopotamia.
Trade – How trade and commerce increased the prosperity of the civilization?
1) Stone, timber and metal ores were scarce in Mesopotamia so these commodities were traded for the produce
from the fields.
2) Food grains and finished products were exported to the Mediterranean countries and Egypt.
3) Seals found in the Indus Valley sites show that the Mesopotamians also had trade relations with India. They
kept records of their business accounts on clay tablets. Thus… trade and commerce….
Religion
1) The Mesopotamians believed in many gods. Every city had its own special god.
2) They worshipped the forces of nature like the sun, the rain, the moon and the stars.
3) The king was the chief priest and the representative of God on earth.
4) The kings appointed priests to look after the temple or the ziggurat.
Script - How did scripts give an insight into the Mesopotamian civilisation?
1) The Mesopotamians invented and developed a system of writing known as cuneiform.
2) They wrote from left to right with a stylus (a sharp pen made of reeds, bone and sometimes of metal).
3) They wrote on the smooth, soft surface of clay tablets which were then baked in fire and hardened.
4) Each tablet was like the page of a book. Several such clay tablets comprised a complete book.
Mathematical Skills
1) The Mesopotamians were highly skilled mathematicians. They had a special sign for the number 'one'.
2) If they wanted to write five, they would repeat the sign of 'one' five times.
3) They counted in tens and sixties.
4) They also used the figure 60 as the unit to measure time.
5) They were the first to divide an hour into 60 minutes and a minute into 60 seconds. A year was divided into 12
months.
6) Days and nights were divided into two equal halves consisting of 12 hours each.
Legal System
1) Hammurabi, the king of Babylon, compiled a code of law dealing with every aspect of human life.
2) These laws protected the poor and the weak and safeguarded the rights of women.
3) This code of law, written on a stone slab, is one of the oldest legal codes known to humans.
DECLINE OF THE MESOPOTAMIAN CIVILIZATION
1) Our modern civilization can be traced back to the Mesopotamians. The vibrant culture declined and was
gradually forgotten due to various reasons.
2) The Euphrates River, the lifeline of this great civilization, unexpectedly changed its course. The inhabitants
slowly abandoned the site.
3) Winds and sandstorms eroded the walls and the monuments, burying the treasures of this great civilization
beneath a sandy desert plain.
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OBJECTIVES
• Mesopotamia -Greek-'the land between two rivers' - between the rivers Euphrates and
Tigris.
• Ziggurats - temple-towers - Sumerian city of Ur.
• Cuneiform - wedge-shaped script
• Stylus was a sharp pen made of reed, bone or sometimes metal.
• Bronze Age, areas around the Indus Valley in the Indian subcontinent, the Nile Valley
in Egypt, the valleys of Tigris and Euphrates in Mesopotamia and the valleys of Huang
He (Hwang Ho) and Chang Jiang (Yangtze) in China had become centres of
civilization.
• The earliest and the most advanced urban culture that flourished on the lower valley of
the Euphrates is known as the Sumerian civilization. On the north western side of
Sumer were regions called Babylonia and Akkad, and the highlands in the north were
called Assyria.
• Hanging Gardens of Babylon were built by King Nebuchadnezzar II. The gardens were
built to cheer up Nebuchadnezzar's wife. She came from a place where the land was
green, rugged and mountainous and found the flat, sun-baked terrain of Mesopotamia
depressing. The king decided to recreate her homeland by building an artificial
mountain with rooftop gardens!
• The Mesopotamians - first to cultivate wheat.

How Does A Civilization Come Into Existence?

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The Mesopotamian Civilization

How does a civilization come into existence?

Art and Craft

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