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Ancient civilizations and their contributions
Ancient civilizations and their contributions
Ancient civilizations explained
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Mesopotamia arose before Egypt and influenced it in many ways, but the most influential was religion. Much like Mesopotamia, Egypt was polytheistic, however, they didn’t believe in gods. Instead, they believed in spiritual beings and that if they preserved their body (with their heart intact) that they would be all set to be sent into the afterlife. Polytheistic means they believed in more than one thing and in their cases, this meant either 3,600+ gods or 2,000 spiritual beings. Egypt and Mesopotamia both used temples, but Mesopotamia called them ziggurats. Ziggurats were large temples dedicated to the god of the city. The temple on top served as the god’s home and was beautifully decorated. Inside was a room for offerings of food and goods. They also believed kings and queens were descended from the city gods but were not actual gods. The kings and priests acted as interpreters as they told the people what the gods wanted them to do. In Egypt, the only people allowed in temples were priests and …show more content…
priestesses. Their most historical contribution to society was the invention of the wheel (Sumerians, 6000 B.C.E.), developed a trade system based on bartering, the old testament, astronomy, and that Mesopotamia was the very first civilization/city of the world. A mathematical system was also created based on sixty – all their numbers were parts of or multiples of sixty. We use this modern day with our 360 degree system as well as 60 minutes in every hour/60 seconds in every minute. The Indus Valley civilization began in 2500 B.C.E.
and flourished for about 1,000 years. Unfortunately, there is very little evidence of civilization. There is also no recorded information about the Indus River Valley civilization and politics and if there were, it remains a mysterious because their writings have yet to be translated. What is known is that the Indus Valley had two major cities – Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro. Harappa was from 3300 B.C.E. and ended 2400 B.C.E. Mohenjo-Daro started in 2500 B.C.E. and once the Indus Valley collapsed under invasion and natural disaster, there was nothing left and no record of it ending. A vast number of settlements were built on the banks of the Indus River Valley from 2600 to 1700 B.C.E. The regions covered about 1.25 million kilometers and are modern day Afghanistan, Pakistan, and north-western India. Their contribution to history was Sanskrit writing, indoor plumbing, metal working, wells, schools, and the grid
system. General Gaius Julius Caesar was around from 100 to 44 B.C.E. He was exiled, returned, became a ruler, and then became a conqueror. He turned Rome into an Empire. He forced them to make him their dictator. He conquered the Helvetians, the Germans, the Nervii, and Pompey. However, once he returned back to Rome, he was murdered. He was lured into one of the back rooms of Pompey’s theatre. Once he was there, he was ambushed by conspirators and Caesar was stabbed 23 times. (15 March 44 BC). We use his name sometimes without even thinking about it, such as a Caesarean Section, which also commonly known as C-Section. He was believed to be the first child to be born via C-Section, thus giving it its name. The Shang Dynasty (also the Yin Dynasty or Shang-Yin) was founded in China by a powerful leader named Tang the great and is thought to have run from 1600 to 1100 B.C.E. King Zhou was its final ruler. Dynasties were known to have a predicable cycle and this one was no different. At first, the “mandate of Heaven” is created and it had a period of power and prosperity where it restored peace and glory to the country. Towards the end there is a declining of power, featuring higher taxes and a declining social service. After this, the leader losses his “mandate of Heaven”, rebellion ensues, and they dynasty is overthrown. Their revolutionary innovations include evidence of a potter's wheel, industrialized bronze casting used for rituals, as well as weapons and tools, advanced jade carving, determined the year was 365 1/4 days, made reports on diseases, and they were the first to determine the spring equinox, which is we know today as approximately March 22nd.
Since people feared pharaohs, they respected them. For instance, the passage in Document 5 states that wokers built large pyramids to serve their pharaohs inside tombs. The text states, "Pharaohs were burried with their possessions." In addition, some people (Sumerians Akkadians) practiced polytheism, the worship of gods. Based on the document, "They believed that keeping the gods happy was the key to their own happiness and prosperity. On the other hand, if the gods were angry, they might bring suffering and disaster." In additon, previously stated, Egypt and Mesopotamia develoved into successful civilizations by effectively using the resources that surrounded them to solve problems and live happily. The text states, "Sumerians built huge temples called ziggurats. They believed these temples linked Earth with the heavens and linked people with the gods." This shows that they use dtheir resources to build ziggurats for their own goods so that the gods can give them happiness and prosperity instead of bringing them suffering and disaster. Therefore, Egyptians' religion and beliefs would help develop Egypt and Mesopotamia into successful
I can infer that the Egyptians and the Mesopotamians were similar in the way that they had a written language, both of them were polytheistic, and they both built pyramid type things. The differences between the Egyptians and the Mesopotamians were their different views on what happens to you in the afterlife and how to bury people after they die.
During the years of 3500 BC to 2500 BC, the geography of a land often impacted a civilizations development in great measures. Depending on the resources available or the detriments present due to certain topographical characteristics like rivers or deserts, a civilization could flourish or collapse. By studying the geographic features of growing societies like the Nile, Euphrates, and Tigris Rivers as well as the Mediterranean Sea of Egypt and Mesopotamia, the link between developing cultures and geography will be examined through sources, including Egypt: Ancient Culture, Modern Land edited by Jaromir Malek and Babylon: Mesopotamia and the Birth of Civilization by Paul Kriwaczek. To determine the extent of its influence, this investigation will attempt to compare and contrast the role of geography in ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia, focusing on the civilizations’ various periods of development and settlement.
In both Egypt and Mesopotamia, they both have ideas about the afterlife. The two have some similarities and differences about the afterlife in which whether they come back as another person, or they come back as another soul, or they go to another world. In Egypt and Mesopotamia there are different meanings of the afterlife through the similarities, difference, and the different civilizations.
In Ancient Egypt, huge pyramids were created to serve as tombs for pharaohs. I believe that a temple was included for Egyptians to make offerings for their kings. Ancient Egyptians had a belief of Polytheism, meaning that they worshipped their gods, which led them to worship their Pharaohs very much. The Egyptians weren’t the only ones that had the belief of Polytheism. The Ancient Mesopotamia did too have the same belief. I mentioned earlier that the Sumerians and Akkadians rely on their gods. Well, by briefly examining the illustration on Document 6, the size of the temple tells me that the Sumerians placed high value on their gods that they look up to them for their own happiness and prosperity. Polytheism was very important for both civilizations. It contributes to how they govern their civilization.
Egypt and Mesopotamia were two of the world’s earliest city-based civilizations, creating the basis for Middle Eastern and Western history. Both Egyptian and Mesopotamian civilizations existed on the banks of major rivers. While Egyptian civilization thrived along the Nile, Mesopotamia settled between the Tigris and the Euphrates. Although they shared this characteristic, it was also the cause of many of their differences in political systems, religions, and social stability.
What similarities and differences did Egypt and Mesopotamia have and why was Egypt more politically unified than its neighbor, Mesopotamia? I think in order to answer these questions it is important to look at how both societies lived. Egypt and Mesopotamia were two civilizations existing during the time period of 2000-1200 BCE.(text, 97) These civilizations were shaped by their environment, involved with trade, and faced changes in government after the 100 year drought; however, they differed in that Egypt was shaped by the Nile, traded goods for goods and changed their outlook on the pharaoh who was ruler of all; whereas, Mesopotamia was shaped by the Tigris and Euphrates, traded money for goods, and had a ruler over rulers. The governed harmonic life style of Egypt led this society to be more politically unified; whereas, Mesopotamia’s government led to many different ways of structure, thus creating a less unified society.
Although the kings of both lands were closely tied to religious institutions they had very different responsibilities to their people because of the culture of their location. The major point that differentiates Mesopotamia and Egypt is their location. The fact that Egypt was located in the most productive area of ancient times caused Egyptian pharaohs to focus more on their internal concerns, rather than gain new territories. The idea of Ma’at played a big role in the way of the pharaohs ruling over Egypt. Instead of expanding, they were more worried about having harmony and peace within the people, and keeping the balance of ma’at.
Mesopotamian and Egyptian religions shared two key similarities: polytheism and priestly authority. The religions in Mesopotamia and Egypt were both polytheistic. Their religions were polytheistic because Mesopotamians and Egyptians could not explain many things in that occurred in their lives. Therefore, they assumed that there are different gods for everything. This means that the religion had many gods for different things. In Egypt and Mesopotamia, priests were part of the upper class and were very important in the daily lives of civilians. Priests were part of the upper class because they were thought to have the ability to communicate with the gods. In Mesopotamia, the priests held the highest authority in the religious structure. Egyptian priests were not as powerful in government as Mesopotamian priests were, but they still had significant power. Egypt’s highest religious and military leader was encapsulated in the position of pharaoh. The pharaoh was at the top of all social classes and was considered to be a god-like figure.
Before the beginning of history, people from across the land gradually developed numerous cultures, each unique in some ways while the same time having features in common. Mesopotamia and Egypt are important to the history of the world because of religious, social, political and economic development. Mesopotamia was the first civilization, which was around 3000 B.C., and all other countries evolved from it. Mesopotamia emerged from the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. The soil was rich and agriculture was plentiful. The Semitic nomads occupied the land around Akkad. The Sumerians established the city-states. Villages became urban centers. Because of the formation of the city-states everything flourished. However, Mesopotamian agriculture lacked stones; therefore mud brick became their major building block. Their diet consisted of fish from the rivers. The rivers were flooded frequently destroyed the cities. Mesopotamians made their living from crops and pottery.
Like the Mesopotamians, the Egyptians also believed in god and goddesses and was one of the first to develop their unique writing system called hieroglyphics. Egyptian’s also were the first to construct triangular pyramids with magnificent tombs to bury their dead pharaohs and queens. These pyramids were very comparable to the ziggurats built by the Mesopotamians. The Egyptians unlocked more access when they started using papyrus to make paper in order to communicate. They also inven...
Religion was a major part of Ancient Egyptians’ lives. Their faith was so engrained in them that it was more of a lifestyle than a set of beliefs. The Egyptians practiced polytheism, or the worship of many gods, and they believed that their pharaoh was a god on Earth (Doc 3). The people worshipped the pharaoh and gave him all respect and power. They believed that their two main goals in life were to keep the pharaoh and the other gods happy and to live a good life so that they may enjoy a happy life after death. Their shared faith strengthened their society because everyone was working toward the same goal. Groups were not divided based on what god they worshipped. Instead, the fact that every person lived to please the same gods and wished to go to the same afterlife gave them something in common and brought them together as a community. Sumerians also practiced polytheism and believed that their priests were connected to the gods. The people thought it was their responsibility to keep the gods happy, and believed that if the gods were pleased, they would allow their people to be content as well (Doc 6). Because of their desire to please the gods, Sumerians performed every task to the best of their ability. For example, they invested lots of time and money into their ziggurats, or temples, because they only wanted to give their best to the gods. The Sumerians’ devotion to every task ensured that everything was done well and helped their civilization
Ancient Egypt’s pyramids are the oldest and largest stone structure in the world. Along the Nile 35 major pyramids still stand. The three largest pyramids at Giza rank as one of the seven wonders of the Ancient World. It was on the list of notable things to see which was made up by the travelers during ancient times. The ancient Egyptians also built temples of limestone. They designed parts of the temples to resemble plants. Moreover, many of ancient Egypt’s finest paintings and other works of art were produced for tombs and temples. Ancient Egyptian sculptors decorated temples with carvings showing festivals, military victories, and other important events. Sculptors also carved large stone sphinxes. These statutes were supposed to represent Egyptian Kings or Gods and were used to Guard temples and tombs. The Temples were houses of worship. The word temple most often refers to Buddhist, Confucian, Hindu, Taoist, and ancient Near Eastern and European places of worship. Most Temples are built to honor god, a God, or many Gods. Many of these buildings are considered the homes of gods. Back then and still today worship at temples often involves traditional ceremonies and may include sacrifices. Certain temples stood on sacred sites. The design of numerous temples was symbolic.
Approximately 5500 years ago four of the worlds' most prestigious ancient river civilizations had emerged. Our world has been left in astonishment and awe wondering how these civilizations were developed. Egypt and Mesopotamia were the first ancient river civilizations to create cities and their own ways of living. Society, geography, and religion played an enormous role in the development of the ancient cities. Although there is evidence of early Sumerian contact with the Egyptians, Egypt's civilization was largely self-generated and its history and cultural patterns differed from Mesopotamia.
The ancient Egyptian civilization impacted multiple cultures and was influential to others by being the most fascinating and sophisticated old civilization. Egypt lies in the far north -east of the continent of Africa, which overlooks the Mediterranean Sea from the north, and the Red Sea to the east, and is separated from the continent of Asia by the Suez Canal. Ancient Egypt contains the oldest civilizations on earth. Ancient Egyptians were able to keep records and pass down their historical achievements over eras. Ancient Egypt set a precedent and inspired other cultures to advance and to become more innovative in several aspects, such as, medicine, and architecture. As mentioned by David Silverman in his book Ancient Egypt, “this land of