2. Mesopotamia and Early Egypt Flashcards
1
Q
What does Mesopotamia mean?
A
The land between the rivers
2
Q
Which rivers was Mesopotamia between?
A
Euphrates and Tigris
3
Q
T or F: The fertile crescent was contained within Mesopotamia.
A
F - Mesopotamia was in the fertile crescent
4
Q
How did Mesopotamians deal with unpredictable water supply?
A
irrigation, drainage ditches, and all of that bc flooding was not fun (it came from snow melting from mountains)
5
Q
Which 3 people groups contributed to Mesopotamia?
A
Assyrians, Akkadians, Sumerians
6
Q
Who were the first people to live in mesopotamia?
A
Sumerians
7
Q
What were city-states?
A
Cities that expanded to gain politcal and economic control over the surrounging countryside - basic units of sumerian civilization
8
Q
T or F: The natural defenses in mesopotamia were pretty bad so city states were surrounded by walls.
A
T - Uruk had a 6 mile wall with towers every 30-35 feet.
9
Q
Population of Uruk
A
50000 ppl
10
Q
What were mesopotamia houses made out of?
A
Mud bricks
11
Q
What was religion like in mesopotamia?
A
Polytheistic
3,000 gods and goddesses
Humans must obey and serve gods, they’re unpredictable
12
Q
What was a ziggurat?
A
A temple on a massive stepeped tower that had a lot of purposes. Center of the city physically, economically, and politically. Also had food.
13
Q
Who had the most power in Sumer?
A
Priests and priestesses and Kings - it was believed that they got their power from gods.
14
Q
What stuff did Sumerian people make?
A
wool textiles and pottery, mostly metalwork
15
Q
What kind of metals did the Sumerian people use?
A
Copper, gold, silver - they also made bronze
16
Q
What did Sumerians barter/trade?
A
wool, barley, dried fish, wheat, and metal goods for copper, tin, and timber
17
Q
When was the wheel invented?
A
about 3000 bc, good for trade
18
Q
What were the main 3 sumerian social groups?
A
nobles (royal, priest), commoners (farm - up to 90% of ppl, merch, fish, crafts), and slaves (cloth, grain grind, build projects, farm land for rich)
19
Q
What writing did the sumerians come up with?
A
cuneiform with reed stylus and baked clay tablets
20
Q
what were the main purposes of writing for sumerians
A
mostly record keeping, some scribe training (scribe is big role bc you can write :O)
21
Q
T or F: The sumerians wrote the epic of gilgamesh in cuneiform.
A
T and he never becomes immortal
22
Q
Tech advancements of sumerians
A
Wheel, sundial, bronze, number system based around 60 (also hour), geometry, constellations
23
Q
What is an empire?
A
a large political unit or state, usually under a single leader, that controls many peoples or territories.
24
Q
Who set up the first empire in world history?
A
Sargon, leader of Akkadians (around 2340 BC)
25
How big was Sargon's army?
5400 men
26
T or F: Sargon killed off the former rulers of city states he conquered.
F: He used them as governers
27
Who was Naram-Sin?
Sargon's grandson who also waged a lot of wars. He called himself the King of the Four Corners of the Universe and declared himself a god. He ruled from 2260 to 2223 bc (he died right around then).
28
How and when did the Akkadian Empire fall?
Attacked by neighbors - 2150 bc (ish)
29
T or F: Sumerians and Akkadians were both in power until the fall of the Akkadian empire.
F - the Sumerian city states got super conquered by the Akkadians.
30
T or F: After the fall of the Akkadian empire, a new empire immediately took over.
F - there was a return to independent city states and a lot of warfare until that happened
31
How did Hammurabi take over Sumer and Akkad?
- Good army with foot soldiers wielding axes, spears, and copper or bronze daggers
- divided opponents and subdued them one by one
32
When and what did Hammurabi do when ruling?
1792 - 1750 bc
Called himself the "sun of Babylon,...the kind who caused the four quarters of the world to render obedience.", established capital at babylon, had a famous code, died
33
What happened to Hammurabi's empire when he died?
Weak kings couldn't keep empire united --> got invaded
34
T or F: Hammurabi's code was harsher if your social class was lower.
True
35
T or F: Punishments were pretty lenient in Hammurabi's code given today's standards.
False - they were super harsh and "eye for an eye"
36
T or F: Hammurabi's code was forgiving towards public officials.
False (ignore class here): Fail to solve a crime and you give the person what they lost, judge rules wrong and gets punished
37
T or F: In hammurabi's code, the builder of the house would be put to death if the house fell on the person inside and killed them, even if there was a natural disaster or something
True
38
T or F: Marriages were entirely arranged and made legal by the parents.
True
39
T or F: Mesopotamian society was matriarchal.
False
40
What gave men the right to divorce their wives under Hammurabi's code? What happened to women if they neglected the home or humiliated the husband?
Failure to fulfill duties
inability to bear children
tried to leave home to engage in business >:(
drown
41
What benefits did women get if they were divorced?
money, some of husband's land for child raising >:(
42
What would happen to children (mainly son) if they a) slapped their father and b) did something really serious?
a) slice off hand
b) get disinherited (by father, who else? >:( )
43
how long is the nile
more than 4k miles
44
What does the nile do before emptying into the Mediterranean?
splits into 2 major branches, forms triangular delta - that region is lower Egypt, upstream to the south is upper Egypt
45
What did the Egyptians call the river's yearly flooding during summer and early autumn?
Miracle of the nile
46
Apart from fresh water, what other benefits did the flooding nile have?
fresh soil deposited on banks
47
T or F: Farmers in Egypt had food surplus
True
48
T or F: The nile was slower than land travel
F - fastest method of travel. North winds to go south (with sails), current to go north
49
What natural barriers did ancient Egypt have to prevent it from getting invaded?
deserts to east and west, cataracts/rapids, Mediterranean sea north, red sea east
50
T or F: The nile made Egyptians more optimistic overall than the mesopotamians because of the stability it provided.
True
51
True or F: Religion was kept separate from normal world order in ancient Egypt
False - it was part of it
52
T or F - The ruler was seen as the earthly form of sun god Re
true
53
What were the three major periods of Egyptian history?
Old, middle, and new kingdom - stable. not being invaded every 3 seconds. There was time in between when that was the case.
54
When does Egypt's history begin?
3.1k bc - King Menes unites lower and upper Egypt, starts first dynasty (he had a double crown!)
55
When was the old kingdom of ancient egypt?
2.7-2.2k bc
56
What does Pharaoh mean?
great house or palace, adopted to fit rulers of ancient egypt
57
T or F: POV: By helping their godly pharaoh, subjects were helping to maintain a stable world order.
True (that was the pov back then)
58
T or F: The pharaoh possessed absolute power and controlled everything alone
False - they had some help from members of the pharaoh's family and a bureaucracy with governors (pharaoh appointed)
59
T or F: The first pyramids were build during the Middle kingdom
false - old kingdom. They were kind of a city of the dead.
60
Describe mummification process
- preserve physical body
- remove liver, lungs, stomach, and intestines
- cover in salt
- remove heart and other internal organs at some point
- fill body with spices and wrap it in layers of linen soaked in resin
- lifelike mask placed over head and shoulders of mummy
- seal it up
61
what was khufu's pyramid?
biggest of all, built about 2540 bc, 13 acres, 756 at each side of base, 481 feet high
62
What was the sphynx?
Big human head lion body 240 ft long 66 feet high statue that has a disputed purpose but probably guarded stuff
63
What was the purpose of a pyramid?
Be a tomb, show off wealth and power
64
When was the middle kingdom?
2055 to 1650 bc
65
T or F: Egypt got smaller during middle kingdom
F - stable, good time for conquering and upping trade
66
T or F: During middle kingdom, the pharaoh started doing more stuff for people
True
67
What was the top of the social structure pyramid in Egypt?
God king pharaoh
68
What was the second layer (upper class) of the social structure pyramid in Egypt?
Nobles and priests who run government
69
What is the third layer (middle class) of the social structure pyramid in ancient Egypt?
merchants, artisans, scribes, tax collectors
they made stuff like wood furniture, gold and silver, copper tools and containers, paper and rope from papyrus, linen clothing
70
What was the bottom class of the social structure pyramid in Ancient Egypt?
peasant farmers that really didn't have much power (paid taxes with food, provided military service and labor for building projects)
71
t or f: marriages were arranged for boys and girls at the same age
f: 14 year old boys, 12 year old girls (same maturity level so it works out)
72
t or f: ancient egypt was a patriarchy
true
73
what opportunities did ancient egyptian women have?
property and inheritance, some businesses, possibility of becoming a priestess (upper class), 4 queens became pharaohs. Otherwise long hours working in fields and at home.
74
What was the writing in Ancient Egypt and when did it start?
Hieroglyphics (or priest carvings/sacred writings) came about in 3k bc. Used pictures and more abstract forms, pretty complex.
75
What was the simplified version of hieroglyphics?
Hieratic script - used in daily life.
76
How did writing materials evolve in ancient egypt?
stone carvings --> papyrus
77
What advancements did ancient egyptians contribute to society?
Art --> very specific style with profile, semi profile, and frontal view for painters and sculptors
78
how did the Hyksos influence ancient egypt?
Invaded around 1650 and ended middle kingdom, used war chariots (beat donkey carts), ruled for almost 100 years, taught egyptians how to use bronze, taught how to make war chariots (dummies)
79
How did ancient Egyptians get rid of the Hyksos?
using the war chariots and bronze tools (xD), a new dynasty of pharaohs drove them out
80
When was the New Kingdom of Egypt?
1550 BC to 1070 BC
81
Who was the first Pharaoh of the New Kingdom?
Ahmose 1. He got rid of the Hyksos and made egypt more military-y and developed a more professional army.
82
T or F: Egypt created an empire during the new kingdom period.
True - conquered Nubia, canaan and syria, euphrates river (a lot of thutmosises helped with this - 1 did nubia, 3 did the rest with 17 military campaigns)
83
T or F: During the new kingdom, egypt became more ARRRG fighty and less diplomatic
False - they got more diplomatic and political
84
What were some fancy buildings that were built during the height of the new Egyptian imperial state, and who was ruling?
Amenhotep 3 - Temple centers at Karnak and Luxor, big statues of Amenhotep (70 ft high) (this is the best card ;) )
85
What happened at the end of Amenhotep 3's reign?
started with military challenge from Hittities, Amenhotep 4 was even less able to deal with it bc religious upheaval
86
What did Amenhotep 4 change his name to and why?
Akhenaten, "servant of Aten", because he started worshiping Aten as the only god ever. He closed down the temples of all the other gods.
87
T or F: Amenhotep 4 was successful at changing religion to monotheism.
False - Tutankhamen (child pharaoh) restored the old gods
88
Who was Hatshepsut and what did she do?
She was an egyptian queen who became a pharaoh. She built herself a temple, sent out military expeditions, encouraged mining, and sent a trading expedition up the nile. She was kind of treated as a king when spoken to and drawn, and she knew it was kinda unusual but went along with it.
89
How did Amenhotep 4's religious stuff affect the Egyptian empire?
He ignored foreign affairs to pursue religion and lost syria and canaan. Ramses 2 took it back but couldn't get back the same border. Then in the 1200s BC sea peoples drove back the egyptians and got rid of all egyptian power in Canaan. This basically got rid of the egyptian empire and new kingdom fell in about 1070 bc.
90
What happened to Egypt after the fall of the new kingdom?
Ruled by libyans, nubians, persians, macedonians (alexander the great). Cleopatra tried to reestablish Egypt's independence at about 100 bc, but was defeated and Egypt became part of the roman empire.
91
What was Kush before the fall of the new kingdom?
Nubia
92
When did kush conquer egypt? How long did they have control?
750 bc - maintained control until 663 bc when they got overwhelmed by iron wielding assyrians (they were still using bronze and stone) (they then learned iron from assyrians but didn't apply it to Egypt - they stayed out)
93
T or F: Kush's economy was at first based on farming and then became more trading based.
True. Starts with grain, then iron and stuff like that (learned from assyrians)
94
Where did kush trade goods to?
Central and east africa for roman empire, arabia and inda
95
what were the major exports of kush?
ivory, gold, ebony, and slaves (these seem like some problematic exports)(I'm looking at two of you. You know who you are)
96
What were the major imports of kush?
jewelery, silver lamps, and other luxury goods
97
What is known about kushite trading control?
State authorities probably controlled it first, then probably a big merchant class.
98
What is known about Kushite society?
Mostly urban, big houses for merchants, public baths, luxurious palaces, kings buried in (smaller) pyramids
99
When was the height of Kush?
Maybe about 250 BC - 150 AD
100
What caused the state of Kush to decline?
Possibly the rise of Axum, a new trading power that was in a similar area
