8 Slide Powerpoint Presentation (with graphics) comparing two humanities: Egypt & Mesopotamia
HRW33
AncientMesopotamia1.pptxMesopotamia and the Ancient Near East
Fiero, chapter 1
Mesopotamia
“The Land between the Waters”
The Tigris and Euphrates rivers (cf. Gen 2:14)
The biblical “Land of Shinar” (Gen 11:2)
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Cf. Nimrod
Cush fathered Nimrod; he was the first on earth to be a mighty man. He was a mighty hunter before the LORD. Therefore it is said, “Like Nimrod a mighty hunter before the LORD.” The beginning of his kingdom was Babel [Babylon], Erech [Uruk], Accad [Akkad], and Calneh, in the land of Shinar [Sumer/Mesopotamia]. From that land he went into Assyria and built Nineveh, Rehoboth-Ir, Calah [Nimrud], and Resen between Nineveh and Calah; that is the great city. (Gen 10:8-12 ESV, bracketed material added)
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Timeline for Mesopotamia
| Period | Dates | Comments | Significant Cities | Significant Leaders |
| Sumerian | Begins c. 3500 BC ED I: 2900-2700 BC ED II: 2700-2600 BC ED III: 2600-2350 BC | Beginning of Bronze Age History begins | Uruk Eridu Ur Nippur | Gilgamesh |
| Akkadian (Semitic) | 2340-2159 BC | Extension of empire building | Accad | Sargon the Great Naram-Sin |
| Ur III | 2122-2004 BC | Sumerian revival | Ur-Nammu | |
| Old Babylonian (Semitic) | c. 2000-1600 BC | Amorites (w. Semitic group) | Babylon | Hammurabi |
In Mesopotamia, empires and rulers come and go, which is unlike Egypt.
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Timeline for Mesopotamia continued
| Period | Dates | Comments | Significant Cities | Significant Leaders |
| Neo-Assyrian (Semitic) | 934-610 BC | n. Mesopotamia | Ashur Nineveh Khorsabad | Ashurnasirpal II Tiglath-pileser III |
| Neo-Babylonian (= Chaldean) (Semitic) | 626-539 BC | s. Mesopotamia | Babylon | Nebuchad-nezzar |
| Persian (= Achaemenid) (Indo-European) | c. 550-330 BC | e. Mesopotamia (modern Iran); Zoroastrianism | Persepolis Susa | Cyrus (II) the Great Darius I Xerxes |
All date ranges in these tables are from Amelie Kuhrt, The Ancient Near East c. 3000-330 BC (New York: Routledge, 1995).
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Sumer (begins c. 3500 BC)
Civilization begins at Sumer
Writing begins at Sumer. The Sumerians “are list freaks”
The Sumerian language is unrelated to any other language.
Key study: History Begins at Sumer by Samuel Noah Kramer
City of Eridu: shift to agriculture (from hunting).
Irrigation in the desert
Ubaid period to latest Sumerian period = continuous; Ubaid is therefore the earliest Sumerian period, which dates back to c. 5000 BC. The sacred precinct dated 2100-2000 BC at Eridu was built on earlier sanctuaries as far back as Ubaid I.
Importance of sacred spots or places.
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Sumer as civilization
“The appearance of writing, the elaborate buildings, the use of imported materials, sophisticated art-works and the population increase reflected in the size of settlements, all signal the emergence of substantial urban communities with developed socio-economic structures. Nothing else can explain the materials, techniques and scale of buildings” (Kuhrt 25, emphasis added).
Sumer political culture
Empire-building begins
Famous for legal codes
Cf. Moses later on
Sumerian art
Free standing sculpture (fig. 1.9)
Large, wide eyes
Continuous eyebrows
Transfixed expression
Relief sculpture (fig. 1.2)
Sumerian city of Uruk
Uruk (biblical Erech; 4000-2900 BC) represents:
technological changes, such as the pottery wheel and “increased metal production” [i.e., bronze] (Kuhrt 22).
writing for accounting purposes; emerging bureaucracy.
development of hierarchical structure. Difficult to determine occupation of top officials.
Uruk is the largest site in Sumeria; the rampart (embankment of earth) runs 6.2 miles and is 5,000 years old. By the late 4th millennium BC = 247 acres.
ED I (2900 BC): Wall of Uruk (see Epic of Gilgamesh). Walled city, insulated from the world outside.
The city is associated with Gilgamesh (c. 2700 BC; Sumerian)
Later, expansion of Uruk world: colonization to the north.
Cuneiform tablet Cuneiform: the type of writing developed in Mesopotamia
Cuneiform writing developed out of pictographic writing, and was primarily used for business. Begins with the Sumerians, and is picked up by Akkadians and Hittites. Akkadian then became the lingua franca of the Bronze Age Near East (Egyptian and Hittite kings communicated in it).
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Sumerian political environment
Sumer was made up of about a dozen city-states, which were walled cities with village settlements outside.
The cities could be quite large; Ur (c. 2000 BC), according to Kramer, had about 200,000 people (Sumerians 88-9).
Ur is original home of Abraham (Genesis 11:28, 31; 15:7)
The most important social institution was the temple complex, which included the ziggurat (and its priests)
Each city was governed by an ensi.
Kramer notes that there were bicameral assemblies of “elders” and “men.”
Over time, due to military needs, kingship evolved and the palace grew in power. The king was known as “the big man.”
The Ziggurat
“The most prominent building in the temple complex from earliest times was the ziggurat” (Walton, Ancient Near Eastern Thought 120)
Associated with a particular deity’s temple complex
The structure itself:
The ziggurats of Mesopotamia are like the “empires” of Mesopotamia – here today and gone tomorrow.
Built of mud-brick
Mesopotamia has little stone or wood
They lack interiors
Stairways (cf. Jacob’s ladder at Genesis 28)
Chamber at the top had bed and table for the deity
Oriented to the four points of the compass
Built on a sacred site
The concept of “sacred space”
The navel or center of the earth
Like the Tower of Babel in Genesis 11, they function as the meeting point of heaven and earth. The ziggurat at Ur stands today as the best-preserved example of the Mesopotamian ziggurat.
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Ziggurat of King Ur-Nammu; ca. 2500-2050 B.C.
U.S. soldiers ascending the ziggurat
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Sumerian economy
The economy was agricultural, not industrial. Early Mesopotamia traded food because they had a surplus of food; they developed higher yielding barley. There was plenty of free-ownership of land; even the poor are known to have owned “houses, gardens, and fishing ponds” (Kramer 75). The nobility had estates of hundreds of acres.
Sumerian society
The basic unit of society was the patriarchal family and clan.
Often land was owned within family groups (we have tablets indicating that family members were present as witnesses for sales of land).
There were slaves (prisoners of war), and what emerges from the texts is that children were sold into slavery for money. Kramer notes that “a man might turn over his entire family to creditors” (78). Some slaves were mistreated, but they had rights (“engage in business, borrow money, and buy their freedom” [78]). The price of a slave was 20 shekels for a man, less than the cost of a donkey. Children of slave/free marriages were free.
Arranged marriages. Women could possess property, take part in business, and be a witness at official transactions (as far back as 2700 BC are deeds of sale). However, their husbands could easily divorce them, and if a woman bore no children, the husband could seek a second wife. Children could inherit their parent’s property at death, and adoption of children is well-attested (Kramer 78-9).
Sumer: legal codes
2350 BC: Urukagina of Lagash initiates “sweeping” reforms (discovered in triplicate).
It is the earliest legal declaration:
“[Urukagina] solemnly promised Ningirsu that he would never subject the waif and the widow to the powerful” (qtd. in Kuhrt 39).
The first time the word “freedom” appears in a text (amargi – “Return to the mother”; enigmatic – obscure; rebirth?; see Kramer 79).
Kramer thinks the reforms were due to the increasing power of the palace. Due to an expansionist policy, in order to supply the needs of the military, there was increased taxation and confiscation of property, even that held by the temples. This is the first “church and state” conflict. The people sided with the temple.
Emerging power of the palace (civil ruler).
These reforms show how women were subjugated by men: “Women in former times each had two men, but women of today have been made to give up that crime” (qtd. in Kuhrt 40). If a woman spoke disrespectfully to a man, she “shall have her mouth crushed with a baked brick; the brick was to be displayed at the city-gate” (Kuhrt 39).
Treasures of the Royal Tombs of Ur
Woolley’s Royal Tombs of Ur (ED III, c. 2600-2340).
Bull-harp with beard (figs. 1.3 and 1.4): from tomb of Queen Puabi at Ur. Guardian of the gateway to the afterlife.
Scenes from the Epic of Gilgamesh
Beards as symbol of power.
Gold, carnelian and lapis lazuli (from n.e. Afghanistan).
Inaid Standard (fig. 1.6)
The king is the largest figure (“big-man”).
Note that the chariots are drawn by asses, not horses, which were not known in Mesopotamia until, at the earliest, 2000 BC.
Human sacrifice
Ruler and his retainers; many victims/attendants. No texts to help us understand the meaning. Basically unanticipated until discovered. Some hint of this in the Epic of Gilgamesh (“The Death of Gilgamesh” section): those who “lay with him”: “wife, son, concubine, musician, entertainer, and chief valet, household attendants” (Kramer 130).
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Treasures from the tombs of Ur
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Inlaid Standard
Note that the animals are donkeys, not horses
Mesopotamian deities
Anu: heaven
Enlil (chief): storm
Sin (Nanna): moon
Ishtar (Inanna): fertility
Tammuz (Dumuzi): young, dying god
Enki: underworld waters
Shamash: sun deity of justice
Marduk: chief deity of later Old Babylonian Kingdom
It is now clear that the Greeks adapted their own deities to some of these deities, at least at the mythic level.
Cylinder Seal
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Sumer
Movement toward empire-building
Lugalzagesi – End of ED III: Time of formation of larger political units.
Became ruler of combined Uruk-Ur-Umma group.
Claimed rulership of the area; claimed to be established by Enlil of Nippur (the top deity of the Sumerian pantheon). Claimed rulership “‘from the Upper Sea (Mediterranean) to the Lower Sea ([Persian] Gulf)’” (Kramer 43).
Consolidation of political control “through land grants made to local rulers . . . , thereby turning them into dependent governors and laying the foundations of an administrative system for his new domain (Kuhrt 44).
Thus, the concept of “empire,” as we know it, begins in human history c. 2350 BC.
The Akkadians
Akkad Dynasty: Major expansion outward of Mesopotamian “arms, commerce, and culture” (Gordon, Common 54).
Akkadian is a Semitic language, related to Hebrew and Arabic.
In the archaeological record, Akkadians were present in the earlier Sumerian period. Sumer, in fact, was a multicultural society.
The first great leader of the Akkadians was Sargon the Great (2340-2284 BC; fig. 1.5)
His capital was at Agade (location uncertain) in the northern part of southern Mesopotamia. A new city, perhaps only a settlement in ED.
Increase in written use of Akkadian at this time. Extensive documentation.
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Sargon the Great
Sargon the Great, Akkadian king (see fig. 1.5):
The stuff of legends and tales. Birth-legend (from late Assyrian 720-610 BC; see Kuhrt 48). Born in secret, never knew who his father was, placed in a basket of rushes and floated on the river. Drawn from water. Earlier tales give him a humble birth.
“He somehow entered the court of Urzababa, the king of Kish, and rose in his service to become royal cupbearer” (Kuhrt 48-9).
His name means “legitimate king.”
Compares favorably to Nimrod from the Bible
Destroyed the walls of Uruk. Captured Lugalzagesi. Defeated Ur and Umma as well.
“King of lands.” King represents political centralization (Kuhrt 51, 54).
Campaigns against western Iran, northern area, Mari, and Ebla, even perhaps as far as “Cedar Forest and Silver Mountain” (Mediterranean).
Claimed suzerainty over the “Four Quarters of earth,” control over “throne-rooms from the rising of the sun to the setting of the sun” (Gordon, Common 24-25). “King of the Universe”
Sargon the Great
Had merchants in Asia Minor.
56-year reign.
Daughter is Enheduanna, installed as cultic “bride” at Ur to moon-god (Nanna).
Enheduanna: Woman poet who is the earliest known literary figure in world history; wrote poetry in Sumerian (though she is Akkadian).
King as mediator between gods and men. “Provider of wealth, status, and safety” (Kuhrt 54). King as warrior. World Empire = Divine Kingship (Gordon).
Standardization of script, measures, calendar and archive-keeping indicates centralization.
Akkadian art is a change in representation of the individual. Freedom of movement. Individual. Gods fighting in combat scenes (before they were fighting with animals).
Naram-Sin
Naram-Sin (2260-2223 BC), Sargon’s grandson.
High point of Akkadian empire, ruling from n. Syria to w. Iran. Campaigning even to the west of Ebla. “King of the Four Quarters.”
Destroyed Ebla? (If not, then it was Sargon who did it).
Lots of texts from this time.
Other members of royal family filled cultic offices in southern Mesopotamia and elsewhere (e.g., Mari). Relatives as governors. Extensive temple construction.
The first Mesopotamian ruler to deify himself, with cult established at Nippur, the chief seat of the head of the Sumerian pantheon, Enlil (Kuhrt 51). Temple to him at Agade, because he withstood a major threat to his realm.
Dynasty maintained control right through his successor, Shar-kali-shari.
Victory Stele of Naram-Sin (Akkadian period) Note: Horns of power and size of the ruler; stars represent divinity; Naram-Sin ascends the mountain
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Ur III (2112-2004 BC)
Sumerian renaissance. Sumerian reemerges as “cultured” dead language.
Classical form of Sumerian Epic of Gilgamesh composed at this time.
Schools founded for training future officials.
The state controlled the economy.
Ur Nammu (ruled 2112-2095 BC): First king of Ur III dynasty. “King of Sumeria and Agade.”
Important building projects; built ziggurat at Uruk. Killed in war.
Ur III rulers were heirs to Agade (Akkad), who misused their power.
The earliest extant law code (written in Sumerian) by Shulgi, a warrior-king, successor of Ur-Nammu, with a poetic prologue and epilogue. “The orphan did not fall a prey to the wealthy,” the “widow did not fall a prey to the powerful,” and the “man of one shekel did not fall a prey to the man of one mina (sixty shekels).”
Note “protect the weak” mandate
Hymns of the time emphasize unity and harmony of land under a single ruler (Kuhrt, 69).
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The Epic of Gilgamesh
The earliest known epic
Extremely popular all over the Near East
An Akkadian fragment found at Megiddo in Israel (Amarna Age) indicates it was in Palestine before the Israelites.
Translated into Hittite and Hurrian, and more recently discovered in Elamite (as a drama).
Still popular as late as Neo-Assyrian and Neo-Babylonian empires.
Gilgamesh still a character in literature as late as the Arabian Nights
Within the epic is a flood story with parallels to the Genesis flood story.
Utnapishtim is the Noah of the Sumerian flood story
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The Epic of Gilgamesh
An epic is a poem/tale about a hero
Bravery and fame
Gilgamesh is part human, part god; he wears a lion’s pelt, much like the later Greek Herakles (Hercules)
Tension between companionship (Enkidu) and desire (Ishtar/Astarte/Aphrodite).
Humans are subject to the whims of the gods
Major theme: Death and the question of immortality.
Conclusion: There is only this life; make the best of it.
The afterlife is a gloomy existence.
Near the end of his quest, Gilgamesh is told to retrieve a plant that gives immortality. He obtained it, but then a serpent stole it from him.
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When the seventh day arrived,
I released a dove to go free,
The dove went and returned,
No landing place came into view, it turned back.
I released a swallow to go free,
The swallows went and turned,
No landing place came to view, it turned back.
I sent a raven to go free,
The raven went forth, saw the ebbing of the waters,
It ate, circled, left droppings, did not turn back.
Epic of Gilgamesh (from Archaeological Study Bible 14)
Old Babylonian Kingdom 2000-1600 BC
Amorites, a west Semitic people, are dominant
Old Babylonian language is the southern dialect of Akkadian
Most famous is king is Hammurabi (1792-1750 BC)
The Law Code of Hammurabi basalt stele (fig. 1.7).
Shamash, the sun god, as deity of justice, giving the law
“Justice should prevail in the land” so that “the strong might not oppress the weak.” Protection of widows and orphans
Example of lex talionis legal code, that is, punishment is equal to the offense (cf. Lev 24:19-20; then compare the Sermon on the Mount at Matt 5:38-39)
OBK sacked by the Hittites in 1595 BC.
Ancient archive of 20,000 texts discovered at Amorite Mari, another powerful city further up the Euphrates River.
Babylonian relief sculpture (fig. 1.2)
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Hammurabi and Shamash
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The Hittites
The Hittites
Major Near Eastern power, an Anatolian civilization forgotten to history (much like the Sumerians). They were Indo-Europeans. In 1906, Hittite tablets were discovered at Baghazköy, their ancient capital, and the Hittites were rediscovered.
However, they were mentioned a number of times in the Bible, e.g., Joshua 1:4; Genesis 10:15; 15:20; 23:3.
They helped spread the Indo-European war chariot around the Near East, and, though they emerge in the Bronze Age (c. 1800 BC), they introduced iron-working, helping to eventually bring on the Iron Age.
Suppiluliuma I: 1344-1322 BC
Hittite kings after him trace themselves to him. He was victorious in eastern lands and took the capital of the Mitanni (Washshukanni), turning the Mitanni (Hurrian) state into a buffer against Assyrian expansion.
Established famous Carchemish on the Euphrates as seat of authority.
Established friendly relations with Egyptian king (either Akhenaten or Tutankhamun); recognized by the Egyptian ruler as an“equal.” Sent his son to Egypt, who was then murdered. Went to Egypt to avenge, but caught illness and died.
Levant cultures and civilizations
Levant = Syro-Palestine region (generally, the area of modern Israel, Palestine, Lebanon, Jordan, and Syria).
Damascus in Syria may be the oldest city in the world (founded before 5000 BC)
Ebla in Syria
Canaanite Settlements
Map of the ancient Levant
http://www.siue.edu/~stamari/AncientLevantMap.gif
Ebla: Forgotten major city
Ebla (Tell Mardikh) in Syria, near Aleppo:
Over 15,000 tablets discovered, beginning in 1975, dating to c. 2450-2350 BC. The tablets reveal cuneiform script and the Eblaite language (which is Semitic).
“The evidence from Ebla shows how the biblical patriarchs of the second millennium BC inherited a sophisticated N Syrian culture already present for 500 years” (NBD 287).
It was ruled by a prince or king and a body of elders.
The economy was agricultural (wool, textiles, olive oil, wine).
Gold and silver were available in large quantities (like Ur III, the means of exchange).
Ugarit: Canaanite City
Ugarit: Modern Ras Shamra in Syria. Coastal city-state. A substantial town as early as 3rd millennium BC. Represents Canaanite culture from 1400-1200 BC.
Important archives of hundreds of clay tablets were found in the temple library beginning in 1929.
Early alphabet revealed
Some of the tablets are trilingual: Sumerian, Akkadian, and Hurrian. Ugaritic language is north-west Semitic and is related to Hebrew. ABCs of 30 letters (cuneiform script) led to Phoenician alphabet of 22 letters. Alphabetic writing comes from the Canaanites. The Canaanites (Phoenicians) passed it on to the Greeks.
Literary material with parallels to poetry of the Old Testament. According to Gordon, the Ugaritic literature parallels later Greek and Hebrew in places (12).
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Ugarit along the Mediterranean coast
Fell under Hittite control in time of Suppiluliuma I. Ugarit ruler Niqmaddu II on friendly terms with Suppiluliuma I and Egypt. A major treaty has been found (written in Akaddian) between Suppiluliuma and Naqmuddu II.
Niqmepa (1310-1260 BC) made new treaty with Mursili II, revealing governing relationships in Syria. Hittite kings were supreme.
Two temples found (Baal and Dagon).
Agricultural (grain, wine, olives).
Purple-dyed linen and wool. Cloth in mass quantities. Had plenty of gold and silver, which allowed them not to supply men to Hittite army. Merchants figure prominently. Minoan and Mycenaean wares. Favorable trade location.
Population made up of Canaanites and Hurrians (based on names).
Deities of Syro-Palestine area
El: head of pantheon
Ba’al (chief): storm; analogous (at least) to Marduk and Bel of Mesopotamia
Ashtoreth (Astarte): fertility; homologous to Mesopotamian Ishtar; Queen of Heaven (see fig. 1.2)
Molech: human sacrifice
Dagon: grain
Arch. Study Bible 515.
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The Dark Age (1100-800 BC)
A significant break in the historical record.
Collapse of Mycenaean civilization
Troy collapses
Hittite kingdom destroyed
Ugarit destroyed by Sea-Peoples: Clay tablet in an overn: “The boats are gone”
Egypt lets go of Palestine
Move to iron technology (Iron Age)
Migration of Greek-speaking peoples to the coast of Asia Minor (Ionia)
Rise of Aramaean as the lingua franca of the Near East
Shift in political configuration: Large empires fell; new states appear (e.g., Israel and Judah)
Invasion of the “Sea-peoples”
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Phoenicians
Chief cities: Tyre, Sidon and Byblos, all on the coast (today’s modern Lebanon and s. Syria)
Continuation of Canaanite culture.
The Carthaginians, people of the Phoenician (Punic) colony of Carthage in North Africa, still referred to themselves as Canaanites in St. Augustine’s day (c. AD 400).
They gave Europe the alphabet.
Sea-faring people of the new Iron Age, known for their purple dye (from which “Phoenician”), importation of tin, and colonization (Cyprus, Carthage, Sicily, “Tarshish” in Spain, Cadiz near Gibraltar).
Closely related to the Hebrews (culturally and linguistically); Deborah noted the ships of Dan (Judges 5:17). Strong ties with David and Solomon (2 Sam 5:11; 1 Kings 5:1-12; 9:27; 10:22); Jezebel; even Jesus made the point of ministering there (Mark 7:24).
Philistines
One of the Peoples of the Sea that attacked Ramesses III (1185 BC; Peleset of Egyptian records).
Settled on coast of Israel. The word “Palestine” comes from “Philistine.”
Their language is unknown. Perhaps writing was rare. They are likely Aegean in origin (based on pottery).
Bible: Philistines are from Caphtor (Crete; Amos 9:7). Dominant during the Period of the Judges (1200-1000 BC). Dominant until 1000 BC, when David conquered them (2 Sam 5:17-25).
Another school (Zinger) thinks they are from Anatolia:
References in Egyptian sources point to Anatolia (Lukka) and Denunu.
Names etymologically connected to Anatolia (Goliath).
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Philistines
Five major cities (Philistine Pentapolis) in and near the modern Gaza Strip.
Ekron, modern Tel Miqne, is a city of the Philistine Pentapolis. Large Iron Age site (40 acres).
Besieged by the Neo-Assyrian Sargon II (712 BC), which is depicted on a wall relief of his palace at Khorsabad.
May have been destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar (Babylonian Chronicle).
The other cities of the Pentapolis are Ashdod, Gaza, Ashkelon, and Gath.
Israel and Judah
Israelites: Never in Assyrian documents are Israel and Judah linked together.
Israel League: Samaria, Tyre, Sidon, Byblos, Hamath, Damascus.
Judah League: Judah, Ashkelon, Gaza, Ashdod, Moab, Edom.
The alphabet
a b c d e z h i/j k l m n o p q r s t u
alef bet gimel dalet he vav khet tet yod kaf lamed nun ayin pe tsade qof resh shin sin tav
zayin mem samek
alpha beta gamma epsilon zeta eta theta iota kappa mu nu ksee pi rho sigma tau
delta lambda omicron
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Mesopotamian Iron Age Empires
Neo-Assyrian
Ashurnasirpal II (883-859 BC) killing lions (below and fig. 1.1). Represents the power of the Assyrian king. (see also figs. 1.13, 1.14 and 1.15)
Powerful, warlike kingdom. Took the northern kingdom of Israel into captivity (722 BC; see figs. 1.12 A & B)
Neo-Babylonian (Chaldean)
Famous ruler is Nebuchadnezzar II (see Book of Daniel), who rebuilt Babylon (see fig. 1.11)
His father helped to sack Nineveh (612 BC); Nebuchadnezzar destroyed Jerusalem c. 587 BC, taking the southern kingdom of Judah captive.
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Persia
Medes and Persians – the two largest tribes. The Persians are Indo-Europeans. Today, modern Iran.
Achaemenian dynasty of the Persians. Led by Cyrus II “the Great” – enlightened for the times. In Isaiah 45:1 he is called “Messiah.” Conquered parts of Asia Minor and Babylon. Tolerant (Ezra 6:1ff). Ruled over the Jews.
Extensive bureaucracy; highways, mail system, “eyes and ears”
Fought the Greeks at Marathon, Thermopylae, Plataea, Salamis
Later fought Alexander the Great
Behistun Inscription: 25’ x 50’, 350’ up a mountain cliff. Old Persian cuneiform, Elamite, Babylonian cuneiform. Helped to decipher Near Eastern antiquity.
Tomb of Cyrus – discovered in 1951 at
Pasargadae, Iran.
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Persian Empire at 500 BC
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Ruins at Perseopolis – present day Iran
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Apadana – Palace of Darius I and Xerxes;
Perseopolis, Iran
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Zoroastrianism
Indo-European in origin, its deities can be found in Vedic religion as well. The sacred text is the Zend Avesta.
Open air fire altars
Radical dualism: A cosmic struggle between good and evil; Ahura Mazda, “Lord of Wisdom,” vs. Angra Mainyu, “Evil spirit,” that is, “Ahriman.”
The world is their battle ground. Movement is toward victory of the good.
This exclusive monotheism in Persia “demonized all other gods and all other religions” (Riley, River 37).
Advocates puritanical behavior as a way to gain favor in the afterlife; it is a salvation religion. Some will be resurrected to enjoy heaven through belief and just acts.
Prophesies a Last Judgment by fire and a final banquet. No more time; no eternal punishment.
Near the end, born of a virgin, will be Saoshyant – a World Savior.
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Mesopotamian influences
Mesopotamia:
Writing
Sexagesimal system:
A system based on the number 60 (5 x 12): today we have the circle = 360; 1 hour = 60 minutes; and 1 minute = 60 seconds; one’s clock or watch is a reminder of Sumeria.
The Mesopotamian year was 12 lunar months long (as with the Hebrews); Egypt followed a 365-day year cycle.
Potter’s wheel and the wheeled vehicle.
Works Cited
Fiero, Gloria K. The Humanistic Tradition Volume 2: The Early Modern World to the Present. 6th ed. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2010. Print.
Gordon, Cyrus H. Common Background of Greek and Hebrew Civilizations. New York: Norton, 1965. Print.
Kramer, Samuel Noah. The Sumerians: Their History, Culture, and Character. Chicago: University Of Chicago Press, 1971. Print.
Kuhrt, Amelie. The Ancient Near East c. 3000-330 BC. 2 Vols. New York: Routledge, 1995. Print.
Walton, John H. Ancient Near Eastern Thought and the Old Testament: Introducing the Conceptual World of the Hebrew Bible. Grand Rapids: Baker, 2006. Print.
Walton, John H. The Lost World of Genesis One: Ancient Cosmology and the Origins Debate. IVP Academic, 2009. Print.
Near Eastern and African influence on Greek culture
Bernal, Martin. Black Athena: The Afroasiatic Roots of Classical Civilization. 2 Vols. New Brunswick: Rutgers Univ. Press, 1987, 1991.
Burkert, Walter. The Orientalizing Revolution: Near Eastern Influence on Greek Culture in the Early Archaic Age. Trans. Margaret E. Pinder and Walter Burkert. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1992.
West, M. L. The East Face of Helicon: West Asiatic Elements in Greek Poetry and Myth. Oxford: Clarendon, 1999.
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