3.4 The Phoenicians
The Phoenician People The Phoenician civilization began on the border of the Fertile Crescent On the coast of the Mediterranean Sea It was made up of city- states like Sumer
The Phoenician People The Phoenician People Sailors Traded goods all around the Mediterranean Sea Dominated trade in the region
The Phoenician People The Phoenician People Origins Developed in Canaan Frequently Egypt ruled Canaan When Egyptian rule ended around 1150 BC Phoenician city-states emerged City-states were ruled by priest-kings and leading merchant families or an assembly
The Phoenician People The Phoenician People Farming and Manufacturing The Lebanon Mountains meant there was little flat land for farming Phoenicians were famous for making purple cloth The dye was made from snails It was a very highly sought trade item They also made pottery, glass and metal objects Used the trees from the mountains to make wood objects like furniture
The Phoenician People Phoenician Traders traded with others to get the natural resources they didn’t have Imported many items like: Gold Silver Tin Copper Iron Ivory Precious stones
The Phoenician People The Phoenician People Phoenician Traders Manufactured these items into other goods to export like: Bronze and silver bowls Iron tools and weapons Gold jewelry
The Phoenician People The Phoenician People Phoenician Traders Also exported some of their own natural resources like: Pine and cedar logs Wine Olive oil Salt fish
The Phoenician People Phoenicians and the Sea Location was the key Close to Africa, and Europe At the end of the Asian land trade routes Mediterranean people depended on the Phoenician traders
The Phoenician People Phoenicians and the Sea Navigation Became expert navigators Sailors knew the trade winds and sea currents 1st people to use the North Star for navigation Used the North Star to determine location How does this relate to Latitude?
The Phoenician People Phoenicians and the Sea Navigation Became expert navigators Sailors knew the trade winds and sea currents 1st people to use the North Star for navigation Used the North Star to determine location How does this relate to Latitude?
The Phoenician People Phoenicians and the Sea Navigation Exploring Unknown Waters Sailed west along North Africa And along southern Europe Made it all the way to Iberia (Spain and Portugal today) Passing Iberia put them into the Atlantic Ocean Britain to the north West Africa to the south
The Phoenician People Phoenicians and the Sea Navigation Why did they do this? Obtained metals like silver for cheap Traded it to Greece and Asia for a huge profit
The Phoenician People Phoenicians and the Sea Colonies and City-states Many places along the Mediterranean coast were good for harbors Some of these had fertile lands nearby Phoenician farmers began to settle in these spots These became colonies When Phoenicia was attacked by the Assyrians many Phoenicians migrated to the colonies
The Phoenician People Phoenicians and the Sea Colonies and City-states Some of these colonies became powerful city- states One, Carthage would battle Rome for supremacy of the Mediterranean Rome would win and completely destroy Carthage
The Phoenician People Legacy of the Phoenicians The Greeks and the Romans absorbed some of the Phoenician ways This is cultural diffusion Spread of Culture Because the Phoenicians traded all over the Mediterranean they also spread their ideas, beliefs, ways of dress, technology, etc. --------CULTURE They also spread the culture of other peoples When the Phoenicians disappeared some of their ideas stayed Greeks used their weights and measures The Greek culture then spread to other places
The Phoenician People Legacy of the Phoenicians The Alphabet The #1 legacy of the Phoenicians Replaced cuneiform 22 symbols – each for a consonant sound Much easier to remember than hundreds of symbols (Chinese has over 5000) If you traded with the Phoenicians you had to learn the system Greeks later added the vowels Around 100BC the Romans adopted the system – this is basically our alphabet today