Study Unit 2

Question 1

The history of Mesopotamia can be divided roughly into three important periods:

Answer 1

The Sumerians 3000 BC to 1899 BC
The Assyrians 1380 BC to 612 BC
The Persians 600 BC to 300 BC

Question 2

The Sumerians

Answer 2

These skirts, kaunakes, consist of tiers of fringes. The people from Mesopotamia were very fond of fringes. Fringes can be seen on most garments from the Sumerian and Assyrian periods.

Question 3

The Assyrians

Answer 3

Both men and women wore fringed shawls, draped around the body. Note the square beard and the hair in heavy curls. Bracelets and other items of jewellery were heavy. The king wore a fez-shaped headdress called a tiara or mitre with streamers hanging at the back.

Question 4

The Persians

Answer 4

The Persians can be thanked for much in dress today. They developed the tailored coat with set-in sleeves, and a collar with lapels. Shoes were well-made with a definite right and left. The round, bulging cap can be seen in figures 6 and 7 in your textbook. Fringes seem to have disappeared. The fibre used mostly in Mesopotamia was wool and sometimes linen, but the Persians also used silk. Clothing were also far more colourful than in ancient Egypt