UGC 111 1st Edition Lecture 2 Outline of Last Lecture I Timeline of Human Development II Characteristics of Different Eras Outline of Current Lecture III Mesopotamia IV Early States Current Lecture Mesopotamia Fertile crescent modern day Iraq Land between Tigris and Euphrates Rivers Contained the earliest cities due to the land s fertility people thrived Cities were fighting for who would be in control Every city had its own gods Shamash Sun God also the God of Wisdom because he lived in the sky and saw everything Enuma Elish World s earliest creation myth 1800 BC The story of Marduk the patron God in Babylon Marduk defeated Tiamat who wanted to destroy the second generation of gods Had its own dynasties Sumerian Ur 3500 BC Akkadian Agade 2350 BC Babylonian Babylon 1900 BC Assyrian Nineveh 1100 BC Early States Domesticated crops farms which led to population growth 3 levels of political organization similar to modern day country state county legislature Each state had a leader who was usually determined dynastically by bloodline Difference between a state and a village is that in a state the leader has coercive power over their subjects ability to punish them Stratified social structure Top King and his court including priests These notes represent a detailed interpretation of the professor s lecture GradeBuddy is best used as a supplement to your own notes not as a substitute Nobility families who owned land Common people those who leased land and worked for it Bottom Slaves captured war prisoners Large organized cities Centers containing temple and royal complex Ziggurats temples for worship o Every new year it was believed that the gods came down from the mountains to have a banquet at the top of the ziggurat Fortification walls and large extravagant entrance gates King was the ruler who had many jobs o Stood in for the God o Judge and lawgiver enforcer o Royal propaganda to instill fear in the people Cuneiform was their form of writing used tablets to write on Hammurabi s Code of Conduct Eye for an eye the main set of laws in that time described the punishment and actions taken for specific crimes done Followed astronomy which helped them develop a calendar year Used math such as geometry to measure land for tax purposes calculated interest on payments divided a circle into 360 determined a 12 hour day
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