Ancient Sumer
Discovery ‘Tells’ are found in the desert of Iraq Even after their discovery, Sumer is still considered to be a legendary, not actual, place. 1800s – Archaeology is still not very scientific: dig a hole in the ground and look for treasures. A lot of precious artefacts are likely thrown out in the dirt 1900s – Archaeology becomes much more scientific Sir Leonard Wooley becomes famous for his excavations at Ur, an ancient Sumerian city-state. Digging down into the depths of the tell, he hit a layer of silt 9 to 12 feet deep, indicating a major flood.
Sumerian City-States By 4000 BCE, populations were growing and villages became towns. By 3500 BCE, these towns had grown into cities. Such as Ur, Kish, Lagash, and Uruk (Erech) Whenever open warfare broke out, a city’s council of elders would elect a “lugal” (meaning ‘great man’ or ‘big man’) who would have absolute power.
The first Empire Around 2340 BCE, Sargon, in legend a gardener’s son, became the leader of Kish, and went on to conquer a number of other city- states. This first empire was centered in the city of Akkad, and the language of the empire was Akkadian. Later, his descendents were overthrown because of discontent and the city-state of Ur in the South became the most powerful city in the region.
Religion and Government These two components are inextricably tied Kings were careful to link themselves to all facets of their land’s religion and would turn to temple priests and councils of elders for advice. Sumerians believed in as many as 3000 to 4000 gods (polytheism). Of those, 4 were superior to the others – the gods of heaven, air, and water, and the goddess of earth. To honour these deities, the Sumerians built many temples and shrines. The grandest of these temples were known as ziggurats (“mountain of god”) The Kings maintained their high status in society by being the ones who are responsible for looking after the temples. This is in addition to being the one primarily responsible for the city’s defense, maintenance of city walls, raising of an army, and expansion of territory.
Society and the Economy The economy of Sumer is based in agriculture. Wheat, barley, and sheep (for wool) are the most important Society is broken into: (1) the ruling class which includes the most powerful families From these we get the priests, officials, and advisors (2) The commoners Most of whom are farmers; others are workers, artisans (craft- workers), traders, and lesser officials (3) Slaves These slaves did have rights – they could own land, marry free people, work for money (if they had time), and buy their freedom. Trade is the second most important activity after farming – it is trade that gives the cities in the region their wealth and influence. Grain, wool, and manufactured articles are sold to neighboring peoples for timber, ivory, and metals (all of which Sumer lacked).
Writing Sometime between 3500 and 3000 BCE, writing developed in Mesopotamia. First, written matters were simple matters Property ownership, lists of goods, etc. Gradually, Sumerian writing evolved into a tool to communicate not only business contracts and tax or military records, but also religious ideas, laws of astronomy, mathematics, and poetry. Sumerian writing is known as cuneiform (Latin for “wedge shaped”
Other Sumerian Achievements Tools of farming – irrigation, the pickax and the plow Tools for religion (tracking the celestial bodies) – phases of the moon, the equinoxes, and a 12 month calendar Tools for math – their numerical system based on the number sixty (60) divided the circle into 360° Tools for telling time – 60 is also how we, today, break down our minutes and seconds. The may have also devised the first wheel around 3500 BCE – what came first, the pottery wheel or the cart wheel, we may never know. Both gave Sumerians a strong trade advantage for some time.