ANCIENT NEAR EAST Flashcards
The fertile plains between the twin rivers, ____ and ____ were given the name Mesopotamia
Tigris and Euprates
Greek word origin of Mesopotamia meaning middle
mesos
Greek word origin of Mesopotamia meaning river
potamos
Mesopotamia is part of what is known as the _______ because of the irrigated farmlands
Fertile Crescent
Mesopotamia is also known as the ____ because it was where writing and government began
cradle of civilization
5 Ancient Near East Cultures
- Sumerian
- Akkadian
- Babylonian
- Assyrian
- Persian
The true arch first appeared in
Assyria
were made from clay mixed with chopped straw to
improve cohesion and bonding.
Bricks
Type of bricks used for ordinary finish
Sun-Dried
Type of bricks used for facing important buildings
Kiln-Dried
Type of bricks used for decorative purpose
Colored glazed
Sumerian figures that stood in attentive prayer before the god with the wide, staring eyes
votive figures
A type of script developed by Sumerians in clay tablets that is also one of the earliest known forms of written expression.
cuneiform
are terraced pyramids with temples at the summit, believed to connect heaven and earth.
Ziggurats
Part of a Ziggurat that served as a meeting place for the priests and gods making this belief that temples were often referred to as waiting rooms. It is also called the central hall.
cella
Two types of Ziggurats
One-stage and Multi-stage
The earliest development of the ziggurat which is a one-step ziggurat dedicated to God Anu.
White Temple, Uruk
The name Iraq was derived from
Uruk
an example of a city temple as it contains walls that enclosed the temple from the city
Temple Oval, Khafaje
Palace built by King Sargon II where all buildings arranged around a courtyard and are decorated with relief sculptures and glazed bricks
Palace of Sargon, Khorsabad
an Assyrian protective deity, often depicted as having a human’s head, a body of an ox or a lion, and bird’s wings
Lamassu
the first king of Babylon
King Hammurabi
King Hammurabi recorded a system of laws called ____.
the Code of Hammurabi
How many laws did King Hammurabi ordered that was engraved in stone and placed in a public location for everyone to see
282 laws
was the greatest
king of ancient Babylon.
King Nebuchadnezzar II
It was during this king’s reign that Babylon became the largest city in the world.
King Nebuchadnezzar II
was largely the creation of Nebuchadnezzar II. It owes its fame to the many references in the Bible and was the most famous and the largest city in ancient Mesopotamia
The City of Babylon (Gate of God)
4 Significant Structures in the City of Babylon
- Nebuchadnezzar’s Great Palace
- The Ishtar Gate
- Temple of Marduk
- Tower of Babel
was praised for its legendary Hanging Gardens (600 BC) recorded as one of the seven wonders of the ancient world
Nebuchadnezzar’s Great Palace
Nebuchadnezzar had constructed the gardens to please his homesick wife, ________, who longed for the trees and fragrant plants of her
homeland
Amytis of Media
was dedicated to the Babylonian goddess Ishtar. Through the gatehouse is the Processional Way, over half a mile long, leading to the Temple of 8th gate of Babylon. It has blue glazed tiles with alternating rows of bas-relief of dragons and lions.
The Ishtar Gate by Nebuchadnezzar II
God of Babylon
Marduk
was the center of
the state cult. Heavily bastioned, built in clay, with its huge square towers and its crenellated terraces, the main body constituted the actual temple with an outbuilding attached to the temple
Temple of Marduk
a ziggurat with a shrine of Marduk
on the top
the Etemenanki
Marduk’s
chief temples at Babylon were the _____ and _____
the Esagila and
the Etemenanki
the builders intended the tower to reach heaven
Tower of Babel
Father of the
Iranian Nation that established the Persian Empire as the most powerful state in the world
Cyrus the Great
He ruled the Persian Empire from 522-486 B.C. He developed infrastructure projects, the largest being the building of the new capital of Persepolis.
Darius I (son of Cyrus the Great)
was known for his
massive invasion of Greece and his defeat marked the
decline of the empire.
Xerxes I
City of the Persians
Persepolis
was begun by Darius I. It was built as a showcase for the empire, designed to awe visitors with its scale and beauty. It is Persian in ideology and design but international in its superb architecture and artistic execution. It was the richest ancient city
The Palace of Persepolis
Xerxes’ name was written in three
languages and carved on the entrances, informing everyone that
he ordered it to be built.
Gate of All Nations by Xerxes I
Grand Audience Hall by Darius I
The Apadana
the smallest of the palace buildings in Persepolis. It was constructed of the finest quality stone.
Tachara Palace of Darius & Xerxes, Persepolis
Reception Chamber & Guard Room of the Persepolis
Tripylon
served as the armory and storehouse of the Persepolis
The Treasury by Darius
was begun by Xerxes I and completed by Artaxerxes I. It was constructed for the king to receive the nobles and dignitaries. Columns at the throne hall have the double unicorn and the double bull capitals
The Throne Hall or Hall of the Hundred Columns
built during the Achamanaid Empire and was part of the Imperial Palace of Sasanian kings has the largest single-span vault of unreinforced brickwork in the world
Arch of Ctesiphon (Taq Kasra), Iraq
Remnant of the Persian Empire
Achamanaid Empire
