RIVER VALLEY CIVILIZATIONS

RIVER CIVILIZATIONS

Egypt and Mesopotamia

Omar San Martín. 1º ESO

SUMMARY UNIT

3. Egypt

2.Mesopotamia

1.Urban Civilizations

RIVER CIVILIZATIONS

Why do they develop in rivers?

RIVER CIVILIZATIONS

By 4,000 a.c. technological advances allowed the pobalciones to control the great floods of the rivers: canals, IRRIGATION, dams, etc. to improve fertility thanks to the silts deposited by the river. These towns became cities, which together with trade and wealth eventually became a CIVILIZATION: complex society in its organization, politics, stratification, technology and exploitation of resources with predominance of urban way of life. -MESOPOTAMIA: 3,200 a.c. between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers-EGYPT: 3,000 a.c. on the banks of the Nile-INDIA: 2,500 a.c. Harappa culture around the Indus river-CHINA: 2,000 a.C. Xia and Shang dynasties on the Yellow River

ESCRITURA

ORGANIZACIÓN POLÍTICA

MESOPOTAMIA

What does Mesopotamia mean?

The land between rivers

MESOPOTAMIA: Chronology and Geography

Located between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, this area is known as FERTILE CRETACEOUS, today Near East, coinciding with the present countries of Iraq, Lebanon, Syria and Kuwait Mesopotamia began with the SUMERIANS, who arrived from outside. They founded several CITY-STATES such as Ur, Eridú, Uruk or Umma. These cities competed for land and trade routes, with large walls and armies was a constantly conflict zone. In each city a HIGH PRIEST ruled, the highest administrative and military authority. Religion dominated all aspects of the voda of the Sumerians, and it was common to worship with tributes in temples to the gods of each city. When a city managed to dominate a large territory became an EMPIRE, the first was the ACADIAN EMPIRE (Acad) of the north, and over time they ruled different Ciduades of northern and southern Mesopotamia until the Persian conquest.

MESOPOTAMIA: Historical context

MESOPOTAMIA: SOCIETY AND ECONOMY

The SOCIETY in Mesopotamia was organized around cities, walled. With houses without windows but with a courtyard. -Mesopotamian women had some influence in society and economy. They could own property, exercise offices (priestess, scribe) and even intervene in trials. But they were judged harder than men. The ECONOMY was mainly agricultural and livestock, in addition to crafts and short- and long-distance trade.

MESOPOTAMIA: CULTURE AND ART

CULTURALLY it was an advanced civilization with:

• LUNAR CALENDAR based on astronomical observations for agriculture.

• MATHEMATICS (arithmetic and geometry), the need to properly register property and taxes developed but based on a SEXAGESIMAL SYSTEM (360o, 12 dozen-hand, 60 round number) that we still use today.

• WRITING, allowed a high level of education (privileged) and a bureaucracy with a great practical sense. Allowing the legacy of their knowledge to other later civilizations.

• RELIGION, were polytheists and each city added its own protective god to the hundreds of gods that personified all kinds of feuries and processes of nature. There were also spiritus or demons, which had human forms and behaviors. Mesopotamian gods and spirits had to be won by offering and ritual, which gave the temple and priests enormous power and wealth.

MESOPOTAMIA: Sculpture

SCULPTURE: In Mesopotamia there are three types of sculptures:

• RELIEF: Sculptures that protrude on a surface. They were executed in walls and doors.

• STELA: Commemorative reliefs, usually in stone, in the form of vertical monoliths.

• Freestanding sculpture: separated from another surface. Statues of gods and rulers in prayerful attitude.

MESOPOTAMIA: Architecture

ARCHITECTURE: characterized by the use of BRICK, ARCH OF HALF POINT and VAULT. So countless buildings were built, highlighting the non-religious PALACE, with numerous rooms where kings and their families lived. But the most outstanding is the reliquary building, or temple, the ZIGURAT: a pyramid created from the superposition of terraces, built in brick and with ramps for its ascent, through which passed the processions to reach the SANCTUARY on the last terrace, where the god/ goddess was. In addition to temple had economic (warehouse) and political functions in the decisions of the monarch and the city.

PALACE "The fortress of Sargon" II 707 BC.

Puerta de ISHTAR 575 a.c. (Babilonia)

Egypt

What do you know of ancient Egypt?

EGYPT: Chronology and Geography

EGYPT IS A GIFT OF THE NILE" Herodotus 450 a.c. Thus connected are the Egyptian culture and the river that allowed it, crossing the "red lands" of the Sahara and creating a narrow strip of "black lands" fertilizing an area of only 20 km wide but thousands of kilometres long. Unlike in Mesopotamia, Egypt was protected by deserts to the south, east and west, while the Mediterranean sea protected it to the north. Egypt was divided into two parts, UPPER EGYPT (white crown) and LOWER EGYPT (red crown).

During the IV Millennium a.c. neolithic villages prospered in oases, gradually with GREAT HYDRAULIC WORKS (irrigation, canals, dams) were creating until they created big cities. Over time two great kingdoms were created, the Lower and ALto Egypt, until in 3100 a.c. the king NARMER unified into a single imprio. The 3,000 years of hisotira of ancient Egypt can be divided into 4 periods: OLD EMPIRE-MIDDLE EMPIRE-NEW EMPIRE-LATE EPOCH (LOW EPOCH) all separated by times of instability, invasions and external conquests. The ruler was known as PHARAOH (great house) considered a god. It concentrated political and religious power, but ruled with officials, VISIRES (ministers) and NOMARCAS (Nomos/provinces), also priests and military.

EGYPT: Historical context

EGYPT: SOCIETY AND ECONOMY

The SOCIETY was strongly HIERARCHICAL, with the Pharaoh at the top, under him were the priests and viziers, above the officials and scribes. Below the craftsmen and merchants who had better status than the peasants. While the slaves were the lowest category. In addition, the family was a basic institution being very important for the necessary funeral rites. -The women depended on their father or brother. However, they had more freedom than in other societies of the time, being able to manage and dispose of goods, engage in handicrafts (textiles) and agriculture. We know women with great power, viziers and scribes, while the wives of the pharaohs exercised a great influence, especially in the dynasty. And even became Pharaoh

EGYPT: SOCIETY AND ECONOMY

The ECONOMY was mainly agricultural and livestock, in addition to crafts and short- and long-distance trade. And the NILE was the source of everything, agriculture and livestock for its waters and silts, trade and transport for its navigation. It will be its floods and the silt (mud) that deposited what allowed a fruitful and abundant agriculture. Cereals, vines, legumes and flax were the typical products. But this great empire had LONG-DISTANCE TRADE relations with other kingdoms of the time, Meospotamia, Feocia, Nubia, Libya, Creata and Greece, with whom they traded agriculture for precious stones or crafts, wood, slaves and metals. Their houses were built of adobe bricks (straw and mud) and wooden roofs and palm leaves, and usually had a hall, dining room, bedroom, pantry and patio for cooking, but not often the furniture.

EGYPT: CULTURE AND ART

Culturalemtne as an agricultural society astronomy and mathematics were necessary. They had a SOLAR CALENDAR (12 months of 30 days, 360, and 5 days of worship to the gods, 365) and used a DECIMAL SYSTEM similar to ours for accounting trade and taxes.

• RELIGION, they were polytheists and their gods had generally animal heads. Each city had a protective god and there were changes depending on the ruling city. Moreover, the religion was so important that there was a POWER STRUGGLE between the priests and the pharaohs.

Egyptian society believed in the afterlife, so funeral rites were very important. According to his religion after death the god Anubis accompanied the souls (the KA) until the other life. There the Ka had to pass several tests to reach the last test, THE JUDGMENT OF OSIRIS. To make sure that the Ka would reach the afterlife they had to MUMMIFY the corpses (embalming them). The entrails removed were placed in Canopic Vessels, and they had to memorize the BOOK OF THE DEAD to pass the tests of the afterlife.

Amenofis IV cambió su nombre a AKENATÓN. Creando la primera religión monoteista adorando al dios ATÓN

EGYPT: Sculpture

SCULPTURE: with a clear religious and funerary purpose. Usually made of stone (wood and clay for more humble scenes), the sculptures try to show greatness and solemnity, with clear sagas of HIERATISM, SYMMETRY and HIERARCHY OF SIZE. They could range from a simple statuette, to the large and monumental ones like the temple of Ramses II, the Sphinx or the colossi of Mmemnon.

EGYPT: Painting

PAINTING: The painting was used to decorate palaces, temples and tombs. It was a MURAL PAINTING done on fresco (water-diluted paint on plaster), although it was also used in the low snow. We also have many examples on papyrus, for example to illustrate the book of the dead. It was used to reenact the myths of the same book, political propaganda and everyday life (music, fishing, etc.) CHARACTERISTICS: CONTOURS (lines) are painted in a PROFILE CANON (body, limbs and face of profile but eye and trunk of front), the COLORS ARE FLAT (there are no leftovers or volume), and there is a DIFFERENCE IN SIZE according to importance.

EGYPT: Architecture

ARCHITECTURE: with the intention of enduring above all, Egyptian monumental architecture is characterized by the use of STONE, that’s why we have come so many contrary to the Mesopotamian adobe, the COLOSALISM (enormously grandiose), and ROOFING lintels (straight and flat roofs). The main ones were religious and funerary: TEMPLES dedicated to a god, only priests entered, the most famous are those of Karnak and Luxor. Although the SPEOS excavated in the rock are also known as the Hatsosut or Ramses II.

EGYPT: Architecture

• TOMBS for the eternal rest of a pharaoh or high official, there are three major types:
• MASTABA. Rectangular building with sloping walls and a single floor
• PYRAMID. This can be stepped (terraced) like the one of Zoser, and famous ones of Keops (Jufíu), Kefrén ( Snefru) and Mecerinos (Menkuará)
• HYPOGEUM. Tomb dug in the rock and hidden from looters. Most in the valley of kings, like that of Tutankhamun.

EGYPT: Architecture

SUMMARY UNIT

Develop a complete conceptual outline of the unit, using this as an example.

¡ GRACIAS !

LAS PRIMERAS LEYES Conjunto de normas o leyes que ordena la sociedad, tanto en Mesopotamia como en Egipto eran puestas por escrito y visibles para que todo el mundo las cumpliera.

CÓDIGO DE HAMMURABI 1750 a.c. Imperio Babilónico Con 282 leyes establecía las normas sobre la propiedad, los escalvos, la familia, etc. con castigos muy severos, y con un pricipio general de la Ley del TALIÓN (ojo por ojo), distinguiendo claramente entre privilegiados, no provilegiados y esclavos. La justicia la impartían jueces y se podía recurrir al rey si pensabas que eran injustos.

La escritura Jerogrífica fue descubierta por Jean-François CHAMPOLLION en el siglo XIX, gracias a la PIEDRA ROSSETA en la que aparece el mismo textro escrito en jerogríflico, demótico y griego antiguo

MESOPOTAMIA: de los primeros dibujos se pasaron a formas esquemáticas PICTOGRAMAS, las escribian en tablillas de barro, con instrumentos con forma de cuña. Esta escritura es CUNEIFORME, y avanzó hacia la unión de pictogramas para representar ideas IDEOGRAMA. (Barco, barco+agua=navegar)

EGIPTO: la escritura egipcia era de IDEOGRAMAS llamados JEROGLIFICOS, escritos en piedra, amdrea y papiro. Con el tiempo crearon escrituras simplificadas para la administración: Hierática y Demótica.

CHINA: hacia el 1.300 a.c. se desarrolló una escritura con un sistema de PICTOGRAMAS-IDEOGRAMAS que continúa hasta nuestros días.

ALFABETO: en torno al 1.200 a.c. los FENICIOS inventaron el alfabeto: los carácteres no representan idea ni eran dibujos esquematicos, sino SIMBOLOS que representan SONIDOS, reproduciendo el lenguaje. La mayoría de los idiomas modernos utilizan un alfabeto para su escritura.

POLITICA: las nuevas sociedades se organizaban de forma piramidal, donde un REY/EMPERADOR controlaba el territorio y la convivencia basándose en su origen divino, y ejerciendo su poder a traves de:

• DICTAR LEYES
• ADMINISTRACIÓN(funcionarios que hacían ciumplir esas leyes y se encargaban de los impuestos)
• EJÉRCITO para imponer el orden, defederse y conquistar otros territorios.

SOCIEDAD: La sociedad jerarquizada de la E. de los Metales aumentó aún más. Estas primeras vicilizacines estaban compuestas por:

• MINORIA PRIVILEGIADA: Familias ricas y poderosas (Rey/Faraón sus familias) y la NOBLEZA (propietarios de tierras y aristocracia militar) junto con los SACERDOTES (control social)
• NO PRIVILEGIADOS: Trabajan para la minoría anterior. Agricultores, pastores, pescadores, pequeños comerciantes y artesanos.
• ESCLAVOS: Legalmente propiedad de otra persona sin derechos. Trabajan para sus amos, la gran mayoría eran prisioneros de guerra, pero por deudas podías caer en la esclavitud.

El Poema de Gilgamesh (2500-2000 a. C) es una narración acadia en verso sobre las peripecias del rey Gilgamesh, conocida por ser la primera obra épica de la hitosria.

Para acceder a los templos había que atravesar el DROMOS (avenida flanqueada por esfinges). La entrada era una construcción llamada PILONO (enorme pared con forma de pirámide truncada) con dos grandes OBELISCOS (monolitos enormes terminados en pirámide) y ESTATUAS COLOSALES Una vez dentro la primera estancia era un PATIO rodeado de columnas seguida por una SALA HIPÓSTILA (cubierta y sostenida por columnas). Al fondo del templo estaba el SANTUARIO con la estatua del dios, y cerca un estanque simbolizando el origen de la vida

El mito de Osiris, principal mito egipcio y más conocido. Es quién creó Egipto y su civilización

La larga historia de Egipto se puede resumir a un nivel macrohistórico como: Un largo periodo de 3.000 años en los cuáles se unificó y dividió el territorio en 3 grandes momentos imperiales, tres periodos intermedios de invasiones y una época tardia con las conquistas persas-griegas-romanas. Estas divisiones se conocen como: Desde la PRIMERA UNIFICACIÓN 3.100 a.c. por NARMER, en la época Tinita (Tanis) Un primer IMPERIO ANTIGUO 2.700-2.200 a.c. con las grande pirámides de Guiza construidas alrededor del 2.500 a.c. Seguido del PRIMER PERIODO INTERMEDIO 2.200-2.100 a.c. de división de poder y territorial Un segundo imperio, IMPERIO MEDIO 2.100-1.800 a.c. que caerá de nuevo bajo invasiones. SEGUNDO PERIODO INTERMEDIO 1.800-1.500 de invasiones de Hicsos entre otros. Y un úlitmo IMPERIO NUEVO 1.500-1.000 a.c. del cuál hemos recibido los grandes templos de Karnak y Luxor, los speos de Ramses y Hatsepsut entre otros. TERCER PERIODO INTERMEDIO 1.00-700 a.c. con nuevas invasiones que ya no volverán a permitir un dominio egiocio. ÉPOCA TARDIA 700-30 a.c. con los dominios del territorio pimero por PERSAS (Cambises 529 a.c.), más adelante por la CULTURA GRIEGA (Alejandro Magno 332 a.c.) y finalmente por el IMPERIO ROMANO (Octavio Augusto 30 a.c.)

La larga historia de Mesopotamia se puede resumir a un nivel macrohistórico como: Una sucesión de imperios durante los 3.000 años de historia en los cuáles cada vez se controlaba un mayor territorio con sociedades cada vez más complejas, hasta la conquista del territorio por el imperio Persa. Desde el inicio de CIUDADES-ESTADO SUMERIAS 3.500 a.c. (Ur, Uruk, Lagash) color rojo Un primer gran IMPERIO ACADIO (Acad) 2.500-2.100 a.c. con Sargón como respresentante. color verde oscuro Seguido del IMPERIO BABILÓNICO (Babilonia) 2.100-1.250 a.c. dónde se puede mencionar el Código de Hammurabi como hito más destacado. color verde claro El IMPERIO ASÍRIO (Assur) 1.250-612 a.c. como ejemplo del más grande mesopotámico con la figura de Asurbanipal. color amarillo en el mapa. Y un úlitmo NEOBABILÓNICO 612-539 a.c. cuando Mesopotamia cae bajo el control PERSA con la figura de Ciro el Grande como represetante.