The Birth of Civilization
• Pre-History-period of millions of years
before writing
• 3000 BC: 1st Civilizations
– Mesopotamia
– Egypt
What Makes a Civilization?
• Effective and Lasting Gov’t
• Compelling Religious Beliefs
• Scientific Advancements
• Literature
• Art
Analogy of the Earth’s Lifespan
• Take a 24 hour time period
• Prior to humans: 23 hours and 58 seconds
• Civilization: .5 second
Paleolithic
• Old Stone Age
• Simple Tools
• Chipped Stone
• Hunters
• Gatherers
Lower Paleolithic Period
• 2,500,000 BC - 120,000 BC, approx-homo
erectus and hand axes
Middle Paleolithic Period
• 300,000 BC - 30,000 BC, approx
• Neanderthals
Upper Paleolithic
• 30,000 BC - 10,000 BC, approx
• First Modern Man; the Cro-Magnon
• Agriculture
• Origins of Language
Neolithic
• The New Stone Age
• Began in SW Asia (Middle East)
• Domestication of Animals
• Farming
• First Technology
• Ends with the beginning of the Bronze Age
Neolithic
• 3500 BC: The Wheel
• 3500 BC: The Plow
• Development of Villages
• Led by elders
• More children were born
• Women became the caretakers
• Religion associated with food production
Cradles of Civilization
• River Valleys in the Middle East-3500 BC
• In India + China-2500 BC
• Central America-500 BC
Mesopotamia
• “Between Rivers”
• Tigris + Euphrates Rivers
• Irrigation
• Complex Society
• Sumer + Ur: 2 major cities (SE Iraq)
Society in Sumer + Ur
• Priests were at the top-closet to God
• Kings: arose from battles over land +
water
• Eventually the King would overtake the
Priests in terms of power
• King-High Priests-Officers-Land Owners-
Merchants-Peasants
Writing
• Cuneiform
• Records
Science
• Math-multiplication, division, square root
• 60 minute hour
• 60 second minute
• 360 degree circle
• Hypotenuse
• Area
• Lunar Calendar-7 days
• Zodiac signs
Ziggurat
Society
• Polytheism
• Gilgamesh
• Science:
– 60 secs
– 60 minutes
– 360 degrees
– Hypotenuse
– Area
Babylonia
• 2400-1200 BC
• Sargon conquered Sumer
• Amorite Kings
• HAMMURABI
How do Civilizations Expand?
• Trade
• War
• Phoenicians: Mediterranean Trade
• Assyria: Empire Builders
• Persia: Empire Builders
Phoenician Trade Routes
Egypt
Egypt
• Mix of black, white, asian
• Nile River
• Upper Egypt-Valley
• Lower Egypt-Delta
• Pharoh-God/King
The Pharaoh
• The land of the Nile, Egypt, was the fief of
the son of the Sun God Re
• Aristocratic society
• Women: treated well
• Polytheism
The Three Kingdoms
• Old Kingdom: 2700 BC-Pharohs were at
the height of their power
• Middle Kingdom: Thebes
• New Kingdom: The collapse, egypt was
ruled by Libya, Persia, Greece, Rome,
• Society remained Egyptian in nature
Mummification
A mummy is a corpse whose skin
and dried flesh have been preserved
by either intentional or accidental
exposure to chemicals, extreme cold
or dryness, or airlessness.
The Pyramids
• http://www.guardians.net/egypt/cyberjourn
ey/dahshur/bentpyramid/bent1.htm
Giza Pyramid
• 476 feet high
• 760 feet wide at the base
• 2.3 million cut blocks of stone-5,000 lbs
each
• Polished Marble
Science
• Solar Calendar
• 3 weeks ten days each
• Medical Libraries & Schools
• Wind power
• Sailboats
Egypt Film:
Discuss
Phoenicia
• Modern day Lebanon
• Mediterranean Trade
• Conquered by Cyrus
Assyria
• 900-600 BC
• Ruled by force and terror
• Skinning
• Burning Alive
• Battering Rams
• First military state
• Destroyed themselves
Persia
Cyrus
• Built a great empire
• Was kind to his conquered subjects
• Respected local customs + religions
• Used governors to be his “eyes”
Persia
• Religion: similar to Christianity
• God: Ahura Mazda
• Devil: Angra Mainyu
• Zoroastra: “Golden Rule”
• Cuneiform: writing
• Corruption will lead to the decline of the
empire
• Conquered by…..
Alexander the Great
• Conquered most of the known world
• Tutored by Aristotle
Judaism
• One God
• Originated as a small Mesopotamian tribe
• Wandered to Palestine led by Abraham
• Fled to Egypt during a famine
• Oppressed by the Pharaohs
• Led by Moses back to Palestine
Israel
• Founded by Abraham
• Moses-escaped Egypt
• Yahweh-God
• 2 Kingdoms
– Israel
– Judah
– Toral
Judaism
• Yahweh-the 1 indisputable God
• The Creator
• David & Solomon-Great Kings
• Mount Zion-great temple
The Split
• Solomon dies-Kingdom split
• Israel-North
• Judah-South
• 722-Isreal destroyed by the Assyrians
• 587 Judah is sacked by the Babylonian
• The scattering of the Jews
The Jews as Scattered Peoples
587-330 BC
515-The Persians conquere Palestine &
invite the Jews back
Many do not return
Diaspora-living scattered
High priests ruled but under the authority of
the Persian Emperor
Hebrew Bible-Old Testament-Torah
Ten Commandments
The Ten Commandments
