1. The Ancient Near East

2. Mesopotamia Mesopotamia “Between the rivers” Within “Fertile Crescent”
Little rainfall
Irrigation, canals  agriculture

3. Mesopotamia

4. Mesopotamia The Sumerians (ca. 3800-2400 BC) First great Mesopotamians
Settled in sparsely populated Fertile Crescent
Sumer
30 city-states
Common culture, trade
City-states often at war

5. Mesopotamia Early Accomplishments (ca. 3800-3200 BC) Inventions
Wheel
Plow
Agriculture
First orchards
Writing
Originally pictographs
Then CUNEIFORM (ca – ca BC)

6. Mesopotamia Government Pre-2800 BC: unknown, obscure
By 2700 BC  MONARCHY
Most often kings
Sometimes a queen (Ku-baba – r. ca BC)
Functions: legislators, representatives of the gods, promoters of “justice,” and patrons

7. Mesopotamia Hammurabi (r. 1792-1750 BC) King of the Amorites Conqueror
Capital: Babylon
Great legislator

8. Mesopotamia

9. Mesopotamia Code of Hammurabi Stele (ca. 1780 BC)
Cuneiform
Depicts Hammurabi and Shamash
“When the god Marduk commanded me to provide just ways for the people of the land in order to attain appropriate behavior, I established truth and justice as the declaration of the land, I enhanced the well-being of the people.”

10. Mesopotamia Code of Hammurabi 282 legal rulings
Lists crimes and “appropriate” punishments
“An Eye for an eye”
“196. If a man put out the eye of another man, his eye shall be put out.”
“197. If he break another man's bone, his bone shall be broken.”
Yet…
“198. If he put out the eye of a freed man, or break the bone of a freed man, he shall pay one gold mina.”
“199. If he put out the eye of a man's slave, or break the bone of a man's slave, he shall pay one-half of its value.”
Violent punishments!
Addresses morality, sexual relations, family relations, agriculture, etc.

11. Mesopotamia Mesopotamian Religion POLYTHEISTIC The gods The Afterlife
ANTHROPOMORPHIC
Immortal and powerful
Feared by their devotees
The Afterlife
Spirit travels to netherworld
No return

12. Statuettes of worshipers from the Square Temple at Eshnunna
Mesopotamia
Statuettes of worshipers from the Square Temple at Eshnunna
Ca BC

13. Mesopotamia Ziggurat “Mountaintop” or “height” Towering structures
Might be over 100 ft. tall
Mud-brick
Temple on top
Connected humans to divine
Cult statue of deity in temple
Nucleus of city

14. Mesopotamia
Nanna Ziggurat, Ur (Muqaiyir, Iraq), ca – ca BC

15. Mesopotamia Literature Epic of Gilgamesh (ca. 2500 BC)
Semi-divine king of Uruk
Journey with Enkidu
Enkidu dies  Gilgamesh begins search for immortality
Learns about great Flood, how to gain immortality
Fails in his quest
Enuma Elish (ca. 11th-cent. BC)
Origins
Cosmic battle between gods  creation
Enkidu and Gilgamesh

16. Mesopotamia
Questions?

17. Egypt The Nile Longest river in the world From Nubia  Nile Delta
Flooded annually  fertility  prosperity
“Backbone of Egypt”
Symbol of life

18. Egypt Geography Two Kingdoms Unified Kingdom (ca. 3100 BC) Upper Egypt
Lower Egypt
Unified Kingdom (ca BC)
Upper Egypt conquered Lower Egypt  one, unified state

19. Egypt The Pharaoh Egypt’s monarch Divine ruler
Offspring of sun-god
Ruled through bureaucracy
Worshiped after death
Pharaoh Tutankhamun (r BC)

20. Egypt Egyptian Religion Very spiritual people Polytheistic Gods
Sacred animals

21. Egypt The Afterlife Immortality Ka Judgment Mummification
Life force, “other self”
Lives on after death
Judgment
Dead person comes before divine tribunal
Heart weighed against feather
Mummification

22. Egypt
Mummies, British Museum, London

23. Egypt

24. Egypt
Mummy with amulets, Vatican Museums

25. Egypt
1932
1999

26. Egypt The Old Kingdom (2695–2160 BC) Unified Egypt
Centralized government under pharaoh
Period of creativity, originality

27. Egypt The Pyramids Why? Great Pyramids, Gizeh (ca. 2500 BC)
Pharaohs’ glory
Tombs
Great Pyramids, Gizeh (ca BC)
Near Cairo, west side of Nile
Thin layer of gold at top of each
Aligned with the stars?
Great Pyramids, Gizeh, Egypt
Tombs of Menkaure, Khafre, Khufu (ca BC)

28. Egypt The Great Sphinx (ca. 2500 BC) Sphinx: lion, human head
65 ft. high
Guardian
Damaged

29. Egypt The New Kingdom (ca. 1550-1075 BC) Empire Capital: Thebes
Expansionist
Borders: Euphrates (East) to Nubia (South)
Demanded tribute from conquered
Capital: Thebes

30. Egypt Hatshepsut (r. 1479–1457 BC) Widow of Thutmose II
Regent to Thutmose III (stepson)
Declared herself pharaoh!
Headdress and kilt
False beard
“His” Majesty!
Peaceful reign
Building projects
Thutmose sought to destroy memory of her

31. Egypt

32. Egypt Decline of Egypt (ca. 1076 BC) Pharaohs lost power to priests…
Empire disintegrated
Prominent international role lost
Suffered invasions, occupations

33. Egypt Writing HIEROGLYPHICS Papyrus Common writing medium
Scrolls made from marsh plants, Nile

34. Egypt
The Rosetta Stone at the British Museum

35. Egypt
Questions?

36. Israel Israel AKA “the Hebrews” First recorded national history
Semitic
First recorded national history
Why study them?
Founders of “Western religious tradition”
MONOTHEISM

37. Israel The Patriarchs (ca. 2000-1500 BC) Abraham Isaac Jacob
From Mesopotamia
Semi-nomadic chieftain
One god says out of Mesopotamia  “Promised Land”
Isaac
Jacob
Twelve Tribes
Joseph
Famine  Egypt
Abraham and Isaac

38. Israel The Exodus and Sinai (ca. 1300 BC)
Israelites oppressed in Egypt
Moses led Israelites out of Egypt
Revolution?
Text says act of God
Moses and the Ten Commandments

39. Israel
1956
1998

40. Israel
2014

41. Israel The Exodus and Sinai (ca. 1300 BC) Journey through wilderness
Settle in Canaan
Historical process debated
Confederation of tribes
THE TEN COMMANDMENTS
Given at Sinai
Obligations before God
Conduct among Israelites

42. Israel Hebrew Religion Their god Cult Sacred text: TORAH YHWH
Creator, redeemer of Israel
No images!
Cult
Tabernacle
Altars
Male priesthood
Holy days
Sacred text: TORAH
“The Law,” AKA Pentateuch

43. Israel
1981

44. Israel United Monarchy in Israel (ca. 1020-928 BC) Hebrew Kingship
King not divine
YHWH’s servant, vassal
Bound by Law
David (r BC)
Shepherd, mercenary
Musician
Expansion, conquest
Jerusalem
SOLOMON (r BC)
Centralized monarchy
Temple
Israel at its zenith

45. Solomon’s Temple, Jerusalem
Israel
Solomon’s Temple, Jerusalem
(Built ca. 965 – 928 BC)

46. The Jewish Heritage Divided Kingdom (928-722 BC)
Had been ruled by kings in Judah
Kingdom of Israel
Idol worship
Conquered by Assyria (722 BC)
Kingdom of Judah
Monotheism, but “relapsed” into polytheism
Conquered by Neo-Babylon ( BC)

47. Israel
Questions?

48. Persia The Persian Empire (559-331 BC) The Medes and the Persians
Indo-European
Arrived in western Iran ca BC
Cyrus the Great (r BC)
Conquered Medes (ca. 550 BC)
Conquered Babylon (539 BC)
Founded largest empire up to that point
King Cyrus the Great

49. Persia

50. Persia The Persian Army Ruled by warrior aristocracy Army
300,000 soldiers
10,000 Immortals
Core military group
Infantry
Cavalry
First great navy

51. Persia The Persian King “King of kings” Had khvarna
Brilliant in appearance!
Bound by rule of law and nobility
King Darius I (r BC)

52. Persia Ruling the Empire Tolerant, humane rule
Empire divided into 20 satrapies
Capitals: Persepolis and Susa
System of roads
Royal Road: Western Iran to Anatolia (1,600 miles)
Main language: Aramaic

53. dedicated to Supreme Creator
Persia
Persian Religion
Initially polytheism
Zoroastrianism
Prophet: Zarathustra (ca. 1, BC)
Taught ethical, inward-looking religion
Dualistic (Light vs. Darkness)
Magi
Open-air fire altar
dedicated to Supreme Creator

54. Persia
Questions?

55. The Ancient Near East The Ancient Near East Common themes emerging?
Differences?