THE MESOPOTAMIAN EMPIRE

THE MESOPOTAMIAN EMPIRE

WHAT MESOPOTAMIA MEAN?

The name Mesopotamia means "between rivers" because it is located between the Tigris and the

Euphrates River.

WHERE IS MESOPOTAMIA?Mesopotamia is largely corresponding to the

modern day Iraq, and also some parts of Syria, Turkey, and Iran.

WHO WAS THE FIRST KING?King Hammurabi was the first king.

HOW DID THEY GET DEVELOPED?Early settlers in Mesopotamia started to

gather in small villages and towns. As they learned how to irrigate land and grow crops on large farms, the towns grew bigger.Eventually these towns became large cities.

New inventions such as government and writing were formed to help keep order in the cities. The first human civilization was formed.

THINGS MESOPOTAMIAN INVENTED• Wheels• Chariot• Sailboat• Money• Writing• Seeder Plow• Math• Glass

WHEELSThe oldest wheel known was found in

Mesopotamia dated 3,500 BC. It was made of planks of wood joined together.

CHARIOTThe chariots were one of the wheeled vehicles

that the Mesopotamian people invented.It has a platform for someone to stand on and wheels. They also would use the chariot to take

very important people around the city.

SAILBOATThey created the sailboat for getting water from

the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. They also used the sailboat to go and fish in the rivers.

MONEYThey invented a kind of money system by

using clay tokens for trades. Tokens were of different sizes and shapes. The tokens were

put into a clay ball with the number of tokens pressed on the outside.

WRITINGThe Mesopotamian invented a type of writing named

"Cuneiform" which translates "wedge shaped". Writing was originally made for keeping track of what they bought or sold. Cuneiform was writing on a clay

tablets with a pointed reed called a stylus.

SEEDER PLOWThe Mesopotamians also invented the seeder plow, which was a revolutionary innovation. It

allowed the farmer to simultaneously plow a field and seed it, reducing the time to plant and

increasing crop production.

THE FIRST CALENDARThe Mesopotamians Invented the first calendar. They used the calendar to see when they should plant their crops and when they should harvest their crops. The solar year was divided into two

seasons. The summer included the barley harvest in the second half of May.

THE FIRST CALENDAR

MATHSThe Mesopotamians were experimenting with

ways to count, measure and solve mathematical problems. They were the first people to give place values to numbers. They were first to

recognize the concept of zero.

SHADUFThe shaduf is a structure that helps transport

water from a river or lake into a ditch or canal.

SHADUF

GLASSOne day some sailors were going to go ashore

to rest and cook something to eat. They gathered some wood and started a fire. They

were on a beach so the wood and the fire were on top of sand. Surprisingly, the sand under the

fire started to melt and this liquid started to run down.

After it cooled, it hardened and turned into a clear hard object. The Mesopotamians used the glass for art and initially they didn't use the glass

for drinking out of.

GLASS

GODS OF MESOPOTAMIANSSumerian Gods

Babylonian GodsAssyrian Gods

SUMERIAN GODSANU - the god of the heavens and king of the gods. The city associated with Anu was Uruk.ENLIL - the god of air, wind, and storms, Enlil

held the Tablets of Destiny. These tablets gave him control over the fate of man and made him

very powerful. He wore a crown with horns.

SUMERIAN GODSUTU - the god of the sun as well as justice and

the law, Utu is drawn holding a saw like instrument. Mythology says that Utu travels

across the world each day in a chariot.INANNA - was the goddess of love and war. Her

symbol is a star with eight points. NANNA - was also called Sin. He was the god of

the moon.

BABYLONIAN GODSMARDUK - was the primary god of the Babylonians

and had Babylon as his main city. He was considered the supreme god over all the other

gods. He had as many as 50 different titles. He was sometimes pictured with his pet dragon.

NERGAL - god of the underworld, Nergal was an evil god who brought war and famine on the people.

TIAMAT - goddess of the sea, Tiamat is drawn as a huge dragon. Marduk defeated her in battle.

ASSYRIAN GODSASHUR - the primary god of the Assyrians. He

was also the god of war and married to the goddess Ishtar. His symbols are a winged disc

and the bow and arrow.ISHTAR - similar to Inanna, she was goddess of

love and war.