1. The Indus Valley
Chapter 5
(pages )

2. Geography and Climate
Made up of the present day countries of India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh
Located on a subcontinent
Separated from the rest of Asia by the Himalayan mountains
The rivers of the Indus Valley were feed by snow melting from the mountains

3. Early Civilizations
The first farming villages were built on top of large mounds
Mounds were used to keep the villages above the flood waters
Some villages had large walls around them
Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro were two of the most important cities in the Indus Valley

4. Economy
People of the Indus Valley traded with people in nearby farming villages
Traded goods were: cotton, lumber, grain and livestock
Artisans produced goods made of bone, ivory, and shells

5. The City of Mohenjo-Daro
Mohenjo-Daro was a planned out city
Was built using a grid system-strait wide streets crisscrossed the city
Each city had a section set aside for government and religious ceremonies
They had a storage area for their grain
Many workers were paid in grain
The population at one point was 35,000 people
Most building were made of baked mud bricks
Only the wealthy people lived in the cities-everyone else lived in villages outside of the city

6. Homes and Innovations Some city homes had rooms for bathing
City homes sometimes had a well inside
They had brick drain pipes that ran along the city streets
The city also had a trash collection service
MD had a large public bathhouse that was 40 feet long and 8 feet deep
Likely the Harappans had a strong central government

7. Mystery and the End
The ending of the Harrapan civilization is still a mystery
Some cities may have lost their water supply-this also impacted trade
Possibly a natural disaster, earthquake, or monsoon caused an end to the civilization
Invasions may have also led to the downfall of this civilization

8. The Huang He Valley
Yu the Great is known as the legendary ruler of China who controlled the waters of the great flood
The Shang Dynasty ruled China for over 600 years
The Shang used bronze weapons and bronze tipped spears
Artifacts found by archeologists are: bronze containers, marble, jade, and silk

9. Ancient China
The ancient Chinese were polytheistic-ancestors pleaded with the gods to help living relatives
Gods were based upon nature and directions
The early Chinese used oracle bones to tell the future (made of dragon bones-really made of turtle shells or cow bones)

10. Ancient China Early Chinese writing consisted of characters
Shang writing or characters represented whole words
There were over 3,000 Chinese characters
The Qin dynasty standardized the writing of the Chinese-easier to communicate for all people

11. The Fall of the Shang The last Shang ruler was a tyrant
The Zhou overthrew the Shang claiming they had lost the mandate of heaven (the right to rule)
Evidence that the ruler had lost the mandate of heaven could be an earthquake, loses in battle, or failure of crops to grow

12. Ancient Civilizations of Mesoamerica
The Olmecs were the first civilization found in Mesoamerica
Olmecs lived along the Gulf of Mexico
They were polytheistic-the most powerful god was the Jaguar
They created large stone heads
Their houses were made of grasses and reeds

13. Olmecs (continued)
They developed a counting system and calendar to keep track of the floods
The Olmec cities developed into ceremonial centers
Known as the rubber people-first to harvest rubber from the rubber tree
The Olmec are known as the “Mother Civilization” of Mesoamerica

14. Mother Civilzation
Olmec culture spread throughout Middle America by means of cultural borrowing
Olmec ideas spread as other groups came in contact with them
Some Olmec innovations like the tumpline are still used today
The Mayan civilization was the first to borrow from the Olmec

15. The Mayan Civilization
The Maya started out as farmers but eventually built cities throughout the Gulf of Mexico region
They followed the Olmec gods and created two calendars (365 and 260 days)
The Maya improved the Olmec number system by adding zero
Mayan writing was made up of glyphs or picture symbols that represent objects, ideas, or sounds

16. The Mayan Civilization (continued)
The Maya made paper from the bark of wild fig trees
A Mayan scribe could made a codex, or hand lettered book of glyphs
The Mayan civilization lasted over 600 years