˗ˏˋ cities and pyramids ´ˎ˗

Question 1

what is mesopotamia?

Answer 1

• a region along the course of the tigris and euphrates rivers centered in modern iraq
• lots of wetlands, that have no become arid climates
• because most of the neolithic homes were made of organic materials, they are not found in the archaeological record

Question 2

what are the tigris and euphrates rivers?

Answer 2

two large rivers that were the focus for the development of mesopotamian civilization.

Question 3

what is the uruk period?

Answer 3

• the period between 4000 b.c. and 3200 b.c. during which the first cities in mesopotamia were developed
• uruk site is location of the massive ziggurat temple; measuring just under 100 ft tall

Question 4

what is the early dynastic period?

Answer 4

the period that follows the uruk period, during which southern mesopotamia was home to a series of city-states.

Question 5

what is the ziggurat?

Answer 5

a stepped pyramid found in many mesopotamian temple precincts.

Question 6

what did mesopotamian society revolve around for authority?

Answer 6

the temple, the palace, and the city council.

Question 7

what is the code of hammurabi?

Answer 7

• 1700-1800 BCE; the most extensive of a series of early mesopotamian legal documents
• 282 rules
• carved onto a massive, finger-shaped black stone stele (pillar) that was looted by invaders and finally rediscovered in 1901
• includes, among many other things, penalties for perjury, robbery, and murder
• regulations surrounding adoption, marriage, and the ownership of slaves
• mundane issues, such as the cost of hiring an ox or an ass

Question 8

what are bevel-rim bowls?

Answer 8

• small undecorated vessels made of coarse clay that are ubiquitous on uruk period sites
• the two theories about these bowls are: the standardized size would then reflect the basic ration for a day of work and that these vessels were used as molds for baking bread

Question 9

what were the royal tombs at ur?

Answer 9

• tombs dating to the early dynastic period in which the dead were buried with a spectacular array of precious artifacts and sacrificial victims
• archaeologists can discover a lot about societal structure, based off burials
• these tombs contain staggering deposits of wealth, including tools, jewelry, musical instruments, and vessels made from a wide range of metals (gold, silver, copper, and electrum) and precious stones (lapis lazuli, carnelian, steatite, and calcite)

Question 10

what is cuneiform?

Answer 10

• a writing system in which signs were impressed in wet clay
• was used to write a range of languages, including sumerian and akkadian

Question 11

what are cylinder seals?

Answer 11

• one of the methods developed by mesopotamian scribes to mark ownership
• they were made by carving scenes onto cylinders of stone. the cylinder seal was then rolled across fresh clay or mud, leaving behind an impression
• used to seal both vessels, and rooms

Question 12

what is mesopotamian warfare & expansion?

Answer 12

• cities were walled, and the texts from the time discuss wars between the cities
• some cylinder seals depict bound prisoners, showing that some sort of captive situations were happening
• many of the battles in the texts appear to be more of a show, than a combat resulting in mass casualties.
• the main tools of war were axes, spears, arrows, and carts drawn by asses or oxen

Question 13

what is habuba kebira?

Answer 13

• an uruk colony located on the upper reaches of the euphrates river in northern syria
• shows that the uruk culture was far-reaching

Question 14

what is the nile valley?

Answer 14

a swath of lush vegetation descending from the highlands of ethiopia and standing in sharp contrast to the surrounding desert.

Question 15

what is upper egypt?

Answer 15

the southern egyptian nile river valley ending in a series of cataracts, or rapids, in the area around the modern border between egypt and sudan.

Question 16

what is lower egypt?

Answer 16

the northern part of the egyptian nile river valley, including the nile delta.

Question 17

what is narmer palette?

Answer 17

an artifact discovered at the site of hierakonpolis; its two sides show the unification of upper and lower egypt under king narmer.

Question 18

what is the first dynasty?

Answer 18

the dynasty based in hierakonpolis and abydos in upper egypt.

Question 19

what is hierakonpolis?

Answer 19

along with abydos, one of the two centers of egypt during the late predynastic period and the first dynasty.

Question 20

what is abydos?

Answer 20

the site of the royal cemetery of egypt during the first and second dynasties

Question 21

what was egyptian government like?

Answer 21

• supreme power in egypt was the king/pharaoh
• believed that he was the human incarnation of the god horus (falcon), who was the top of the pantheon
• upon the king’s death, he became the incarnation of the god osiris, the god of the death
• king also had a special relationship with the sun god ra

Question 22

what is ma’at?

Answer 22

• a concept that combines the virtues of balance and justice; it was of central importance to egyptian society
• chaos and disorder were viewed as catastrophic
• the king’s role was to ensure the preservation of ma’at

Question 23

what are the pyramids of giza?

Answer 23

• one of the most recognizable monuments in the world
• constructed on the fringe of major settlements, in the desert
• pyramids were constructed as elaborate temples to the kings, and tombs for their remains
• the idea is to provide for his journey in the afterlife, as he becomes the god osiris

Question 24

what is saqqara?

Answer 24

• the location of the stepped pyramid, the earliest pyramid constructed in egypt
• in later periods, saqqara continued to be used as a sacred burial area

Question 25

who was king djoser?

Answer 25

the third dynasty egyptian king who constructed the first pyramid, located at saqqara.

Question 26

who was king snefru?

Answer 26

• built the first true pyramid
• three attempts to build it before succeeding
• first attempt collapsed during construction
• second attempt resulted in the “bent pyramid” with a slop at 60 degrees, but midway through changed it to 44 degrees which resulted in the bent top
• last attempt was successful and resulted in the red pyramid, at 105 meters high

Question 27

who was cheops?

Answer 27

a fourth dynasty egyptian king who constructed the first and largest pyramid ever built at giza.

Question 28

who was cepheren?

Answer 28

• a fourth dynasty egyptian king who constructed a pyramid at giza that was slightly smaller than the one constructed by cheops
• the great sphinx is located alongside the gepheren valley temple

Question 29

who was mycerinus?

Answer 29

the last fourth dynasty egyptian king to build a pyramid at giza; it was smaller than the other pyramids and at least partially sheathed in polished granite.

Question 30

what was the great sphinx?

Answer 30

• cepheren’s image is well preserved in a series of powerful sculptures discovered in his pyramid’s valley temple
• one of the most famous features at giza is the great sphinx, the figure of a cat with a human head, carved into the bedrock of a small hill adjoining the cepheren valley temple
• at highest point, measures 66ft high

Question 31

what is mummification?

Answer 31

• the methods of embalming, or treating the dead body, using either nature, or ritual, to remove moisture and preserve body from decay
• practiced in every continent, in ancient egypt, and inca empire

Question 32

what is the pharaoh’s curse?

Answer 32

• pharaoh tutankhamun, aka “king tut”
• tomb was discovered and opened in 1923, by howard carter (british archaeologist) and team
• there was no curse, discovered in this tomb. however, there had already been rumors of curses on anyone that would rob a pharaoh’s tomb
• about 6 weeks after the opening of the tomb, lord carnarvon (who financed the expedition) died of an infected mosquito bite
• 8 people (of the original 58) who entered the tomb, died of various causes over the next decade
• carter either survived the curse, or the curse took a very long time because he died in 1939

Question 33

where did the mummies go?

Answer 33

• we used to eat mummies as medicine, use them in makeup and paints (mummy/egyptian brown), and used to make oils and incense
• when mummies started getting scarce, regular corpses were sometimes mummified and then used

Question 34

what are cities in egypt like?

Answer 34

epypt was a territorial state rather than a city-state.

Question 35

who was akhenaten?

Answer 35

• a religious reformer who built the city of amarna
• he tried to switch the religion of egypt from a pantheon (worshipped for over 3,000 years) to worshipping one deity
• wanted to remove evidence of previous gods

Question 36

what is amarna?

Answer 36

• a city built by the heretic king akhenaten and abandoned after his reign
• excavation of this city has provided a unique horizontal exposure of an egyptian urban center
• after akhenaten’s death, his religious reforms were rejected, his monuments smashed, and his city at amarna abandoned

Question 37

what was jenne-jeno?

Answer 37

• the site of an urban center in mali, west africa, that predates extensive external contact
• played an important trade center for caravans coming from timbuktu to the north
• axum is famous for its standing stones carved in the shape of multistory buildings
• the tallest of these monuments, carved from a single block of stone, rises 21 meters

Question 38

what is aegean?

Answer 38

the aegean sea and surrounding areas; the civilizations of bronze age greece.

Question 39

what is knossos?

Answer 39

a site excavated by arthur evans that is the largest minoan settlement.

Question 40

what is the minoan?

Answer 40

• a bronze age society located on the island of create
• depicted minoan society as peace-loving flower worshippers

Question 41

what is the mycenaean?

Answer 41

• a bronze age society that developed on the peloponnese peninsula and in central greece
• portrayed mycenaean society as aggressive warriors

Question 42

what is lion gate?

Answer 42

an important example of mycenaean defensive architecture.

Question 43

what are early state modules?

Answer 43

autonomous political units.

Question 44

what are peer polity interaction?

Answer 44

the full range of exchanges taking place between autonomous sociopolitical units.

Question 45

what is heterarchy?

Answer 45

the relationship of elements to one another when they are not ranked.

Question 46

what was the core of society in minoan and mycenaean societies?

Answer 46

• the palace
• minoan palaces were so intricate and elaborate, that they may have served as the inspiration for the myth of the labyrinth

Question 47

what is the megaron?

Answer 47

• a large hall located at the center of the mycenaean palace at the site of pylos
• had a central hearth, and four central pillars
• also had a public, open court but on a smaller scale than the minoan palaces
• major difference between the palaces/societies: no large tombs on minoan sites and elaborate funerary rituals on mycenaean sites

Question 48

what is akrotiri?

Answer 48

a bronze age town on the island of thera that was buried by a catastrophic volcanic eruption.

Question 49

what is thera/santorini?

Answer 49

a cycladic island that was devastated by a major volcanic eruption during the bronze age.