Emergence of Early Culture!
"# !
Prehistory!
(most dates approximate)!
PALEOLITHIC AGE!
"!
40,000 BC!
18,000 BC!
30,000Ð20,000 Venus of Willendorf, Austria!
18,000Ð15,000 Last Ice Age!
13,000 Lascaux cave paintings, France!
MESOLITHIC AGE!
"!
10,000 BC!
10,000 Invention of bow and arrow, Þrst domestication of wheat and barley!
NEOLITHIC AGE!
"!
8000 BC!
8000 Domestication of animals, development of agriculture, pottery, weaving, permanent
houses, settlements, fortiÞcations, warfare!
"# "# !
Mesopotamia!
Egypt!
5000 BC!
5000 InÞltration of Semites from west and north, non-Semites from east; fusion!
3500Ð3000 Sumerian Protoliterate Period. InÞltration of Sumerians (origin?) and fusion with
resident population; invention of written language!
5000Ð3100 Pre-Dynastic Period!
4200 Invention of solar calendar!
3500 Development of religion: sun worship!
3100Ð2700 Dynasties I and II. Development of hieroglyphics and central administration!
BRONZE AGE!
3000 BC!
3000Ð2350 Sumerian dynasties!
2700 Reign of Gilgamesh, king of Uruk!
2500 First dynasty of Ur!
2350Ð2100 Akkadian Period!
2350 Sargon the Great!
2050Ð1900 Third dynasty of Ur (Neo-Sumerian Period), GudŽa of Lagash!
2686Ð2181 Old Kingdom, dynasties IIIÐVI. Highly centralized political theocracy; strong artistic
development!
2590Ð2514 Pyramid Age!
2260Ð2130 First Intermediate Period, dynasties VIIÐX!
2134Ð1786 Middle Kingdom, dynasties XIÐXII. Expansion and prosperity; reÞnement of arts!
2000 BC!
2000 The Epic of Gilgamesh!
1900Ð1500 First dynasty of Babylonia!
1792Ð1750 Hammurabi and Law Code!
1500Ð1100 Kassite Period, status quo!
1076Ð612 Assyrian Empire!
884Ð859 Assurnasirpal II, capital of Nimrud!
722Ð709 Sargon II, capital of Khorsabad!
669Ð626 Assurbanipal, capital at Nineveh!
1780Ð1550 Second Intermediate Period: Hyksos, dynasties XIIIÐXVII!
1570Ð1085 New Kingdom (Empire), dynasties XVIIÐXX!
1379Ð1362 Akhenaton (Amarna Period)!
1085Ð664 Post-Empire Period, dynasties XXIÐXXV!
IRON AGE!
"!
1000 BC!
625Ð539 Chaldean (Neo-Babylonian) Empire!
604Ð562 Nebuchadnezzar II!
586Ð539 Babylonian Captivity of Israelites!
539Ð331 Persian Empire!
539Ð530 Cyrus the Great!
521Ð485 Darius I!
(490Ð479 Persian invasions of Greece)!
485Ð465 Xerxes I!
331 Alexander the Great conquers Persian Empire!
670 Assyrian conquest of Egypt!
663Ð525 Saite Period, dynasty XXVI; cultural renaissance!
525 Persia conquers Egypt!
525Ð343 Persian kings, Egyptian dynasties XXVIIÐXXX!
343Ð332 Persian kings!
332 Alexander the Great conquers Egypt!
332Ð311 Macedonian kings!
311Ð30 The Ptolemies!
51Ð30 Cleopatra VII!
1 BC!
Prehistory!
Archaeologists have prosaically labeled the periods before the invention of writing according to
weapons or tools used, thus the Stone Age, Bronze Age, Iron Age. There are three phases of
the extended Stone Age: the Paleolithic (Gk., paleos, ÒoldÓ; lithos, ÒstoneÓ), the Mesolithic
(Òmiddle stoneÓ), and Neolithic (Ònew stoneÓ)É.!
Human history began with Homo sapiens, who invented art during the Paleolithic,
domesticated wheat and barley during the Mesolithic, and developed written language and
civilization during the Neolithic. Most of what we would call Paleolithic art is today found in the
caves at Altamira in Spain and at Lascaux and other caves in southern France. Permanently
closed to the public twenty-one years after their discovery in 1940, the Lascaux caves contain
paintings that are still remarkably fresh today because there are no visitors page 13bringing in
outside contaminants. The spectacular Hall of Running Bulls (Þg. 2.1) is Þlled with art but no
one knows why these artists decided to paint all these images. They made no attempt to
highlight or frame any of the animals nor, apparently, were they concerned about overpainting
earlier work. Standing in this hall is an uncanny experience; while studying the paintings one
feels the presence of creative forces applied to those walls many thousands of years
ago.Considerably older than the Lascaux paintings is the so-called Venus of Willendorf (Þg.
2.2), at present the Þrst known portrayal of a human being. Very likely a fertility symbol, this
ancient statuette has exaggerated female characteristics but no face, possibly indicating a
general statement about childbearing and motherhood. Several hundred female Þgures have
been found but no male Þgures, thus conÞrming the fertility thesis. Calling what is possibly an
early representative of the goddess religion ÒVenusÓ is, of course, a misnomer but the label
makes a certain amount of sense in todayÕs world.Trying to learn anything at all about the
history of humankind during the prehistoric period is a di cult, complex, and frustrating ffi
endeavor. Although archaeologists and anthropologists, among others, can discover objects
and unearth ruins all are hard pressed to determine ÒWhy?Ó Why did artists paint in caves?
Why did artists carve representations of nude women? Why was Stonehenge built and why did
the people living there continue building for hundreds of years (Þg. 2.3)? Stonehenge was
probably a Neolithic shrine, but for what purpose? For what gods? It is positioned to align with
the summer solstice, indicating that its designers possessed certain astronomical and
mathematical skills. How extensive were these skills? Were they exercised by a priesthood?
Was there a priesthood?!
The questions raised by these ancient art works are endless, but so is the fascination of
exploring them. Not until we advance to the Neolithic Age and the invention of writing page
14and civilization do we begin to get some answers and, even then, so many explanations are
incomplete and subject to speculation.!
Mesopotamia: The Land between the Rivers!
The roots of Western civilization are found in the Near and Middle East in such widely
separated sites as Jericho in Palestine, ‚atal HŸyŸk in southern Turkey, and the Sumer area in
southern Mesopotamia (Gk., Òland between the riversÓ). A new way of life evolved in all these
locales but we shall concentrate on Sumer, which has been studied longer and in greater depth
than other Neolithic cultures. Beginning around 8000 BC in the fertile valleys of the Tigris and
Euphrates rivers (map 2.1), there gradually appeared a series of innovations: pottery, weaving,
permanent houses (rather than tents), organized communities, the buying and selling of crops
and goods, calendar fashioning, mathematics, and, most important, writing. What prompted
this startling surge of new ideas?!
Culture: Cultivation!
The answer, in a word, is agriculture. For millennia, nomadic tribes had followed the seasons as
they hunted game and gathered edible plants and fruit. At some point the puzzle of
propagation was solved and the connection made between seeds and germination, mating and
gestation. The resulting planting, harvesting, and animal husbandry enabled tribes to produce
more food than was needed, a surplus that normally freed them from the precarious existence
common to all hunting/gathering societies. Drought, ßoods, and storms have always plagued
farmers but nomadic hunters are totally at the mercy of a capricious nature.!
Stone Age people apparently continued to hunt and gather while cultivating some crops. In
about 8000 BC, however, some Mesopotamian tribes settled into permanent villages, where
they became wholly dependent on their animals and crops. The innovations that had freed
nomads from famine now actually imprisoned agricultural societies. However, returning to the
previous existence was never an option. Whatever the endeavor, advancing technology takes a
society in one direction only. In todayÕs world a retreat to a horse and buggy, 78 r.p.m. records,
or black-and-white television with a 9-inch (23-cm) screen is, quite simply, unthinkable for most
of us.!
The establishment of permanent agricultural communities marked the beginning of Òculture,Ó
which originally meant cultivating the soil. As the Mesopotamian communities ßourished, they
developed a higher civilization than that of Neolithic nomads, a culture as we understand the
meaning of the term: socially transmitted behavior patterns, beliefs, institutions, arts, and other
human creations.1 All of this was a direct consequence of settling down to cultivate the land.!
page 16"!
Consider the ramiÞcations of creating a new agricultural community. Permanent dwellings
become necessary for a population no longer on the move (domestic architecture, pottery, and
other household items). Cultivated land is divided into Òyour landÓ and Òmy land,Ó and properly
identiÞed, measured, and recorded (surveying, maps, mathematics, and writing). Because
privately owned lands were now at stake, villages organized for defense against those who
chose to steal rather than plant (community organization, village fortiÞcation and defense). The
spring ßoods upon which most agriculture depended must be anticipated, measured, recorded
and, in time, somehow controlled and exploited (development of a calendar, study of the
heavens to learn the wishes of the gods, invention of dams and the water wheel, development
of irrigation, and ever more writing and recording).!
Inevitably, farmers grew too much of one crop and not enough of another; this led to the
bartering of grain and, later, to full-ßedged commerce as crops, animals, and household goods
were bought and sold. This commercial activity necessitated a legal system to stabilize the new
world of agriculture, manufacturing, and trade. Further, the buying and selling of goods worked
most e ciently when concentrated in Þnancial centers, stimulating the development of ffi
commercial hubs. This, in turn, helped promote commerce. As commerce increased, villages
grew into towns that became cities and then city-states as urban developments interacted with
the surrounding countryside.!
It was in Sumer that a loose confederation of city-states consolidated political and economic
power into one of historyÕs earliest ruling dynasties. Sumer lay in the eastern arc of the Fertile
Crescent, that broad belt of productive land extending north-westward from the Persian Gulf
and curving down the Mediterranean coast almost to Egypt (map 2.1). This was a settlement
zone but also one of transit in which the ebb and ßow of people and ideas enrichedÑand
disruptedÑthe growth of civilization.!
• • •!
Sumerian Period, 3000Ð2350 BC!
No one knows why a high civilization began in Sumer and, at about the same time, in Egypt. In
prehistoric times both centers formed part of a larger cultural region: Mesopotamia was at Þrst
indistinguishable from northern Syria, and southern Mesopotamia (Sumer) was linked with
Persia. Similarly, Egypt shared its early predynastic culture with neighboring Libya, Nubia, and
possibly the Sudan. And then came the cultural burst that detached Sumer and Egypt from
their surroundings, as it established their place in history.!
The mystery is compounded because the origin of the Sumerians is also unknown. Migrating
into the river valley around 4500 BC, they amalgamated with the resident population and by
about 3000 BC had established themselves as the dominant class. They (or the neighboring
Subarians) have been credited with inventing the Þrst written language, a system called
cuneiform (KYOO-nay-uh-form, ÒwedgeÓ) writing. Cuneiform was used initially to record the
behavior of the rivers and the astronomical events that provided clues to the return of the life-
giving ßoods.!
page 17"!
Early Religion!
Predicting annual inundations was only one of the reasons for studying the stars. Primitive
religions characteristically attribute natural phenomenaÑßoods, storms, earthquakesÑto
unseen gods; more advanced cultures study the heavens for clues to superhuman powers
involved with the creation and governance of the universe. Sumerian beliefs reßected the
abundant concerns of everyday life: storms, catastrophic ßoods, earthquakes, and endless
raids by hostile neighbors. Their religion, consequently, was quite self-centered and practical,
emphasizing sheer survival in a hostile world.!
Mesopotamian gods were considered powerful and immortal but otherwise much like human
beings writ large: frivolous, selÞsh, quarrelsome, sometimes petty, often childish. The gods
were arranged in a hierarchy, making this the Þrst systematic polytheistic religion. An (or Anu)
was a sky god and head of the pantheon (Gk., Òall the godsÓ). Enlil was ÒLord Breath,Ó god of
the atmosphere. Inanna (or Inini) was ÒQueen of Heaven,Ó the planet Venus, daughter of the
moon god, and spouse of Anu; her name was subsequently changed to the more familiar
Ishtar.!
All these gods were derived from the deities of nomadic societies in which men were the
dominant sex, mainly because of their greater size and strength. Men maintained their
dominance as nomadic life evolved into agricultural communities, even though one would
expect the goddess of fertility to be the prime deity. By contrast, the fertility goddess was
dominant in a Minoan agricultural society that had no nomadic prehistory.!
Ascertaining the will of these fractious gods was an overriding concern of the believers and
thus was born astrology, later transformed into the science of astronomy. Through prayer,
incantations, and magic, the Sumerians attempted to keep the gods happy or at least tolerant
and forgiving. The gods would help individuals in distress but never at the time of death. Male-
dominated societies have generally accepted this death orientation, unlike life-a rming ffi
cultures such as Minoan civilization, in which the sexes are virtually equal in cooperation and
responsibilities. In Sumer, pleasing the gods was more desirable than leading a good lifeÑa
pragmatic point of view that did little to promote or improve ethical behavior.!
The king was chief servant of the gods and their earthly representative; his government
presumed that the gods were in charge and that they occupied large areas set aside as sacred
communities. Collective labor was employed on temple lands but the rest of the city was
divided into private properties. Because sky gods made up the pantheon, their worship should
be from temples atop hills or mountains; the closer to the gods the more likely were the deities
to be contentÑand less likely to torment helpless humans.Ancient Brew!
A Sumerian tablet of ca. 3500 BC is inscribed in cuneiform with a recipe for Òwine of the grain.Ó
No one knows who invented beer but the Sumerians (or Egyptians?) were apparently the Þrst
(ca. 6000 BC) to make barley better for brewing by germinating barley grains, thus developing
enzymes that change starch into fermentable sugars, a process called malting. Because beer
turns up so often in Sumerian and Babylonian tablets we can assume that Mesopotamians
liked their beer and also liked variety, as attested to by a list of nineteen di erent kinds of beer. ff
We know also that Ninkasi was the goddess of intoxicating drink but, in these strongly male-
dominant societies, we donÕt know why a mere goddess ruled over beverages as important as
beer and wine.!
page 18"!
Sumerian Art and Architecture!
With no hills, much less mountains, in the vast and level deserts surrounding the river valleys,
the Sumerians had no natural temple sites nor were there any practical building stones. They
solved the problem by erecting massive artiÞcial hills made of sun-dried mud bricks. These
ziggurats were towers constructed as terraced pyramids with inclined walkways connecting
each terrace. The ziggurat at Ur dates from the Neo-Sumerian Period. It is a reÞned version of
the earliest known ziggurat, which was built a thousand years before at Uruk, reputedly the
oldest city in the world. The Ur ziggurat has three stairways, 100 steps each, that converge on
the Þrst platform; other stairways ascended to the second and then to a third level on which
stood the temple of the god.!
The elegant bull-headed lyre of the Queen Puabi suggests a splendid, luxurious court (Þg. 2.4).
Only the wood and strings have been restored; all else is original: gold-decorated posts, bullÕs
head with lapis lazuli beard, and four narrative scenes. A consistent symbol of Mesopotamian
royal power, the bearded bull is intensely alert as if straining to hear the music of the lyre.The
strange and fascinating He-Goat and Flowering Tree (Þg. 2.5) is a masterful example of
sculpture created by adding elements instead of cutting them away. As alive and alert as the
bearded bull, the goat peers intently through the decorative branches of a symbolic tree. An
age-old emblem of male sexuality, this is undoubtedly a fertility symbol.In addition to their
distinctive art and architecture, the Sumerians made important contributions to writing, law,
and religion. They also established the foundations of mathematics, science, and engineering.
In arithmetic they created multiplication, division, and square and cube roots. They used a
(decimal) system of mathematics plus a 60-base system from page 19which they were the Þrst
to derive seconds to a minute and 60 minutes to an hour. In geometry they used the 60-base
system to mark out a circle of 360 degrees.!
The Epic of Gilgamesh!
The most signiÞcant Sumerian literary work was The Epic of Gilgamesh, the Þrst story in world
literature to have a protagonist with a name and personality. This is also the earliest written
record of the discovery of death, which Gilgamesh strongly suspects means total extinction but
which his contemporaries, still rooted in simple notions, assume to be another form of
existence. Originally sketched by the Sumerians, reworked by the Akkadians, and shaped into
Þnal form by the Babylonians, The Epic of Gilgamesh is the story of a debauched half-
historical, half-legendary king whom the gods propose to chastise. To humble the arrogant
monarch, they create a foil: Enkidu of the strong limbs and simple heart. Before he encounters
Gilgamesh, the gods civilize Enkidu by providing him with a courtesan to instruct him in the
erotic arts. This humanizing process enables Enkidu to overcome his brutish nature and gain
worldly wisdom. As the gods intended, Enkidu and Gilgamesh meet in combat, ending in a
draw, as a chastened Gilgamesh joins his new-found comrade in a string of exciting
adventures. Inevitably, a misadventure provokes the wrath of the gods and Enkidu dies in the
arms of a bereft Gilgamesh, who is left alone to face the meaning of lifeÑand death.!
But the story does not end there. Learning that the great ßoodÕs legendary hero, Utnapishtim,
possesses the secret of eternal life, Gilgamesh tracks him down and Þnds the thorny plant that
guarantees immortality, exactly as revealed to him by the hero. Ecstatic over his precious
discovery, Gilgamesh celebrates by bathing in a nearby pool. At that moment Òa serpent
snuffed [put out] the fragrance of the plant; it came up from the water and carried o the plant. ff
Going back it shed its slough.Ó Considered immortal because of its annual sloughing o of ff
skin, the snake steals immortality from Gilgamesh. ÒThereupon Gilgamesh sits down and
weeps, His tears running down over his face.Ó This is the truly Þnal loss, conÞrming the dark
Mesopotamian suspicion that life only seems to be hopeful, happy, and bright. Ultimately the
truth is learned, usually the hard way: life ends in nothingness.!
The ÒStandard of UrÓ!
The so-called ÒStandard of UrÓ was found in a tomb in the royal cemetery at Ur (Þg. 2.6).
Though these two panels form the front and back of a musical instrument, they are described
as they appear in the Þgure, that is, as upper and lower panels. The upper ÒwarÓ plate shows,
in the top register, the king alighting from his carriage to receive captives. In the center a line of
lancers in heavy cloaks faces vanquished enemies on the right. The four chariots in the bottom
register drive across the bodies of fallen warriors.The lower ÒpeaceÓ panel highlights a banquet
scene: the court drinks with the king to the sound of apparently stirring music (judging from the
far-right Þgure). In the center row, servants are leading animals and holding Þsh, which may be
a depiction of food preparation in a lower part of the palace. The bottom register probably
illustrates the spoils of war.!
page 20 Akkadian Period, 2350Ð2150 BC" !
The Þrst Sumerian period ended when the city-states fell to Semitic barbarians from the north,
the Akkadians, some of whom had probably served the Sumerians as mercenaries. The
Akkadians introduced the new concept of a divine monarchy supported by force of arms,
which eventually caused the collapse of the Sumerian social order that had, among other
things, protected the free peasants. In time, competition with, and the expansion of, large
estates reduced the by then debt-ridden peasants to serfdom: the perennial battle of haves
and have-nots. New rulers then settle down into the same pattern of inequalities; peasants are
crushed and the whole process restarts, leading to take-overs by the Babylonians, the
Assyrians, and the Persians.!
The dynamic ruler of the Akkadians was Sargon the Great, the Þrst notable military conqueror
in history. The bronze head from Nineveh (Þg. 2.7), very likely representing Sargon, expresses a
new idea in sculpture: a digniÞed and powerful monarch. Bound in the Sumerian fashion, the
hair is plaited, wound around the head, and gathered in a tight bun. This is a ruler in absolute
control.!
Figure 2.7 Akkadian civilization, third millennium BC Bronze head, possibly of king Sargon.
From Nineveh, Iraq. Bagdad, National Iraq Museum (Archaeological Museum).!
© DEA/M CARRIERI/Age Fotostock!
The Akkadians reÞned Sumerian art and the quality of life but could not convince the
Sumerians that they were kinfolk rather than rank outsiders. Sargon and his successors even
called themselves kings of Sumer and Akkad, but the Sumerians continued to fume under
ÒforeignÓ domination and eventually regained political control. A major factor in the fall of
Akkad was a volcanic eruption followed by centuries of a drought that turned their verdant land
into a desert, from Egypt and Akkad all the way to India.!
Neo-Sumerian Period, 2050Ð1900 BC!
After the fall of the Akkad dynasty in about 2100 BC, GudŽa, ruler of the city of Lagash, united
the Sumerians in a renaissance of Sumerian culture. About twenty statues of GudŽa have
survived, possibly indicating a popular king or an expert in public relations or both. For GudŽaÕs
statues (Þg. 2.8) Sumerian sculptors used diorite, an exceptionally hard stone, which may also
account for the large number of surviving statues. All the statues are similar to this one,
portraying the ruler as both devout and wise, a carefully crafted image of composed
serenity.Old Babylonia, 1900Ð1500 BC!
Although the Sumerians and Akkadians had coexisted through the Sumerian revival, the
invading Babylonians (originally called Amorites) found a divided land so exhausted from
constant friction that opposition was nonexistent. The Sumerians and Akkadians couldnÕt even
get together long enough to Þght o a truly foreign invader. Nomads from the Arabian desert, ff
the Babylonians established a powerful state centered on their royal city of Babylon.
Excavations at Mari, in the middle Euphrates valley, have revealed an enormous palace of
nearly 300 rooms containing thousands of tablets from the royal archives. Chief among the
royal correspondents was Hammurabi (ca. 1792Ð1750 BC), who consolidated the territories of
Sumer and Akkad into a powerful Babylonian kingdom.4!
A striking characteristic of all Mesopotamian cultures was the large number of landowning
merchants and farmers. With its potential for chaos this situation needed a structure that
regulated private property, trade, and other business a airs. Legal standards had been ff
developed in the past but none so practical as HammurabiÕs Code of Laws that established the
rule of law from the Persian Gulf to the Mediterranean Sea (Þg. 2.9). Consisting of a rather
poetic prologue and epilogue, the code has a central section that lists 282 regulations dealing
with perjury, theft, land tenure, licensed drinking, commerce, marriage and divorce, inheritance,
adoption, medical treatment, construction, and the hire of livestock, laborers, and slaves.
Oddly enough there is no reference to taxation. In common with earlier codes, the page
25basic principle was Òretaliation in kindÓ or, as expressed by the Hebrews, Òan eye for an eye
a tooth for a tooth.Ó As a combination of contemporary tribal practices and of more enlightened
provisions for justice, the code did replace some (not all) Òretaliation in kindÓ with Þnes and
money compensation to aggrieved parties. Most important, it worked.!
Figure 2.9 Law Code of Hammurabi Stele. Inscribed on a basalt stele (ca. 1790 BC) in the
Akkadian language in the cuneiform script. These laws stand as one of the Þrst written codes
of law in recorded history.!
© Shutterstock/jsp!
Hammurabi summarized, in the codeÕs prologue, his contribution to the people after he
Òpronounced the majestic name of Babylon and decreed the extension of its power over the
whole universeÓ so that ÒI might bring order to my people and so that I might free them from
evil and wicked men, that I should defend the weak from the oppression of the mighty.Ó
Although self-serving and verging on purple prose, these words do have a noble intent.
Establishing order, protecting society, and making all equal before the law are worthy goals in
any society.!
The Assyrian Empire, 1076Ð612 BC!
After lackluster nomads (Kassites from Iran) had ruled Babylonia in a reasonably benign
manner from ca. 1500 to 1100 BC, a far more warlike power emerged in the north. The Þrst
militaristic state in history, Assyria was to become, in the words of one of its kings, ÒLord of the
World,Ó the most powerful and ruthless of all Near Eastern empires.!
Assyrian art and architecture served the king, glorifying the monarch as a mighty hunter and
implacable warrior (Þg. 2.10). The intent was to intimidate any foes foolish enough to resist
Assyrian military might. The enormous palace of Assurnasirpal II (uh-soor-NAS-ir-pall; 883Ð859
BC)5 at Nimrud (ancient Kalkho), was the administrative center of a garrison state that
extended from the Tigris to the Nile and from the Persian Gulf to Turkey (map 2.2). Erected in
the Mesopotamian tradition of clusters of rooms surrounding courtyards, the palace walls were
covered with elaborate reliefs of warring, hunting kings (much like the scene in Þg. 2.10), which
were veritable symphonies of violence and death. The palace entrance was ßanked by huge
Þgures of human-headed, winged bulls carved both in relief and in the round (Þg. 2.11).
Designed to ward o evil spirits, the bulls are depicted at rest (frontal view) and in motion (side ff
view), an illusion furthered by the Þfth leg. This combination of Þne attention to detail, sweeping
wings, and sheer size communicates an awesome vigor symbolizing the invincibility of Assyrian
might. Assurnasirpal IIÕs standard policy guaranteed fear of him and his army. Upon capturing
an enemy town his soldiers rounded up surviving inhabitants, cut o their hands and feet, and ff
piled them in the town square to bleed to death.During the reign of Sargon II (721Ð705 BC)
innovative Assyrian sculptors created immensely powerful solitary Þgures of divinities, kings,
and heroes. The ÒgeniusÓ (person of great inßuence) illustrated in Þgure 2.12, thought to be
Gilgamesh himself, is a huge model of massive strength, impressive and intimidating. This is
how conquered enemies were supposed to view their new masters.6!
The Assyrian Empire reached the pinnacle of its power during the reign of Sargon II. Because
mass murder frequently sti ened enemy resistance, the Assyrians initiated an alternative ff
policy: control dissent by removing entire populations from their homes and scattering them
throughout the empire. It was Sargon II who dispersed the population of IsraelÑthe Òten lost
tribes of Israel.Ó!
page 26"!
Assyrian power gradually waned shortly after the conquest of Israel. SennacheribÕs (sen-NAC-
ur-ib) sack of Babylon in 689 BC and the conquest of Egypt in 670 BC were the last major
successes of the Assyrian juggernaut. A coordinated e ort of Babylonians, Medes (from ff
northern Persia), and Palestinians decisively defeated the Assyrians in 612 BC, resulting in the
destruction of all their major cities, especially the royal city of Nineveh. The end was
spectacular. No other ancient empire collapsed so swiftly nor was devastated so completely.
The empire simply disappeared, conÞrming the biblical saying that those who live by the sword
shall perish by the sword.The Chaldean (Neo-Babylonian) Empire, 625Ð539 BC!
The Chaldeans were a Semitic desert race from, perhaps, the Syrian area. They had settled in
and around Babylon even before forming the alliance with the Medes that helped destroy
Assyria. As the last upholder of Mesopotamian culture, the newly rebuilt Babylon was little
more than a sumptuous museum in which older traditions, mostly Sumerian, were collected
and preserved. Innovation was virtually unknown in Babylonia that had shut itself o from the ff
outside world as it contemplated past glories.!
With the accession of Nebuchadnezzar II (neb-oo-kud-NEZ-ar, also spelled Nebuchadrezzar;
605Ð562 BC) to the throne, the legendary might of Sumer and Assyria was recalled in a
monumental architecture and in a series of military expeditions that consolidated Babylonian
power. A vigorous and brilliant commander, Nebuchadnezzar drove the Egyptians from
Palestine, conquered Jerusalem in 586 BC, and exiled many Jews to Babylon. Jeremiah had
advised cooperation with Babylon, reasoning that it was better to yield to a Semite foe than
join a weak and faithless Egypt. The Jews ignored his sensible counsel and revolted, with
predictable results. The king of Judah was blinded, his children and nobles killed and he was
blinded to be brought to Babylon.!
page 28"!
ÒNebuzaradan, the captain of the bodyguard who served the king of Babylon, entered
Jerusalem. ÒAnd he burned the house of the Lord and the kingÕs house and all the houses of
Jerusalem.!
Jeremiah 52:12Ð13!
According to Jeremiah (52:27Ð30) 4,600 Jews were carried into what they called their
Babylonian Captivity (586Ð538 BC). Though Jeremiah stated that ÒJudah was carried captive
out of its land,Ó it was mostly artisans and other skilled workers who were carted o . Many of ff
the poorer class were left behind to continue the traditions of their people as best they could.!
Nebuchadnezzar continued to build in Babylon in the grand manner, including an enormous
ziggurat 295 feet (90 m) high and named Etemenanki (ÒTemple of the Foundation of Heaven
and EarthÓ) that may have been the biblical Tower of Babel. The Hanging Gardens he
constructed for his Median wife became one of the wonders of the ancient world.!
One of the more dazzling designs was for the glazed brick Ishtar Gate (Þg. 2.13). The
Mesopotamians had a special talent for portraying animals, an ability especially evident in page
29this monumental work. Embellished with lions, bulls, and a kind of gri n, the gate stood at ffi
the end of the main processional entrance to the opulent capital city.Despite the size and the
splendor of its cities the Babylonian Empire was quite fragile. After the death of
Nebuchadnezzar in 562 BC its decline was swift, ending, according to the Bible, with the death
of Belshazzar in 539 BCÉ.!
1King Belshazzar made a great feast for a thousand of his lords, and drank wine in front of the
thousand.!
2Belshazzar, when he tasted the wine, commanded that the vessels of gold and of silver which
Nebuchadnezzar his father had taken out of the temple in Jerusalem be brought, that the king
and his lords, his wives, and his concubines might drink from them. 3Then they brought in the
golden and silver vessels which had been taken out of the temple, the house of God in
Jerusalem; and the king and his lords, his wives, and his concubines drank from them. 4They
drank wine, and praised the gods of gold and silver, bronze, iron, wood, and stone.!
5lmmediately the Þngers of a manÕs hand appeared and wrote on the plaster of the wall of the
kingÕs palace. 6Then the kingÕs color changed and his thoughts alarmed him; his limbs gave
way and his knees knocked together.!
13Then Daniel was brought in É [and] 17answered before the king ÒI will read the writing to the
king and make known to him the interpretation.!
25ÓAnd this is the writing that was inscribed: MENE, MENE, TEKEL, and PARSIN. 26This is the
interpretation of the matter: MENE, God has numbered the days of your kingdom and brought
it to an end; 27TEKEL, you have been weighed in the balance and found wanting; 28PERES,
your kingdom is divided and given to the Medes and Persians.Ó!
30That very night Belshazzar the Chaldean king was slain.!
Daniel 5: lÐ6, 13, 17, 25Ð28, 30!
Internal strife, decadence, and degeneracy took their toll, leaving no opposition to the
conquering Persians. The Assyrian Empire had gone down Þghting; Babylon, the last of twenty-
Þve centuries of Mesopotamian kingdoms, expired with scarcely a whimper.!
The Persian Empire, 539Ð331 BC!
The Persians migrated from somewhere east of the Caspian Sea into the high plateau country
north and east of the Persian Gulf. Apparently closely related to the Medes who lived farther
north, they spoke an Indo-Iranian language, as did the Medes.7 Under the remarkable
leadership of Cyrus the Great (539Ð530 BC), the Persians Þrst absorbed the Medes and then
moved against the Lydian kingdom ruled by the legendary Croesus (KREE-sus). Croesus had
already formed alliances with Egypt and Sparta in anticipation of a preventive war against
Persia, but he was uncertain about success until he consulted the Delphic Oracle. According to
the Greek historian Herodotos (484Ð425 BC), the oracle predicted that a Lydian attack would
destroy a great army. That did indeed ensueÑbut the vanquished army was commanded by
Croesus.!
page 30"!
With the conquest of Egypt in 525 BC by CyrusÕs son Cambyses (kam-BYE-sez), the Persian
Empire expanded rapidly, eventually extending from Greece to the Himalayas and from
southern Russia to the Indian Ocean, the greatest empire the world had yet seen (map 2.3).
Like the later Romans, the Persians allowed subjugated peoples to retain their own customs,
laws, and religion. The Hebrews, for example, were allowed to worship Jahweh (or Yahweh)
and those in Babylon were encouraged to return to Jerusalem, though few chose to do so. For
the pragmatic Persians such tolerance was eminently sensible, enabling the government to
collect tribute from the far-ßung empire without unduly annoying the populace.!
One of the major Persian achievements was an elaborate network of imperial roads that formed
the best highway system prior to Roman roads. The Royal Road extended some 1,600 miles
(2,580 km) from the Persian Gulf to Asia Minor, connecting the empireÕs principal cities of Susa
and Sardis. By using a series of relay riders the ÒkingÕs messengersÓ could travel the entire
Royal Road in a week. According to Herodotos, ÒNothing mortal travels as fast as these
Persian messengers. Not snow, nor rain, nor heat, nor gloom of night stays these couriers from
the swift completion of their appointed roundsÓ (Histories, VIII).8!
Although the Persian king did not employ Assyrian terrorist tactics, he was still an absolute
monarch whose authority was tempered only by some power sharing with his nobles. From the
admittedly biased Greek point of view, Cyrus, Darius, and Xerxes were oriental despots and the
Persian army a mighty but mindless machine. Some claim that the Persian Empire was quite
liberal and humane, but the many insurrections throughout its history testify to the heavy yoke
of the man called the King of Kings.Persian culture was as derivative and eclectic as that of
their Roman contemporaries. With nothing original to contribute they adapted their art and
architecture from Mesopotamian, Egyptian, Lydian, Palestinian, and Greek models. Probably
the most characteristic expression of their culture was their architecture. They copied the
raised platform and terraced building style of Babylon and Assyria, adding winged Assyrian
bulls and glazed Babylonian bricks. They chose forests of columns in the Egyptian manner but
with Greek ßuting and capitals. Most importantly, their architecture was wholly secular.
Because their new religion of Zoroastrianism (see below) required no priests, rituals, statues, or
temples, they concentrated instead on building elaborate palaces.!
The Great Palace of Darius and Xerxes at Persepolis (Þg. 2.14) was destroyed by Alexander the
Great but enough remains of this enormous complex to give some idea of its magnitude. The
view shown is of the eastern stairway in front of the Audience Hall, with the Gate of Xerxes on
the left. The Great Hall was 250 feet square (23.2 m2). It could hold 10,000 people and
originally had 100 stone columns, each 40 feet (12.2 m) high and all brightly painted. This was
the Þrst use of interior columns in the Mesopotamian world. Though inßuenced by Egyptian
examples, these columns are more closely patterned after Greek models and were probably
designed and constructed by Greek artisans. They are topped by a series of complicated
capitals composed of the forequarters of lions, bulls, or human-headed bulls. The low reliefs
show Persian guards standing at attentionÑa security guard in stone. The inßuence here is
clearly Assyrian but nowhere in the palace are there kings slaughtering enemies or helpless
animals. Persian kings preferred tidy and e cient administration of their vast empire without ffi
blatant intimidation in the Assyrian manner.!
Persian culture was highly reÞned. An example of the luxury enjoyed by the upper class is a
drinking horn ingeniously combined with a fantastic lion-gri n (Þg. 2.15). The details are sharp ffi
and precise: tongue, teeth, sharp claws, tiny tufts of hair. Characteristic of the Persian style are
such stylistic conventions as the shoulder-muscle and the tulip-shaped muscle on the foreleg.!
Persian Magic!
The English word ÒmagicÓ is derived from Magi, the priestly hierarchy of Zoroastrianism. Like
the Brahmans of India the Magi were members of the highest caste and keepers of the cult.
Supposedly Òwise in the things of God,Ó a Magus probably functioned as both priest and
scribe. A branch of the clan moved to Babylon where they specialized in casting horoscopes,
telling fortunes, and interpreting dreams, which qualiÞed them as practitioners of magic, to use
the word in its modem meaning. Three Persian Magi appear in the Gospel of Matthew as the
Òwise men from the EastÓ who came to worship the infant Christ.!
Zoroastrianism!
Perhaps the most important contribution of the illustrious Persian culture was a new religion. A
prophet named Zoroaster (Gk.; Zarathustra in Persian) was both a reformer of traditional folk
religion and the creator of a new faith. Born sometime in the seventh century BC (660?), he was
the Þrst exponent, according to some scholars, of an ethical, monotheistic religion. Other
scholars contend that Zoroastrianism was a dualistic religion, albeit ethical. Which is it?
Examining the evidence may supply some answers, but, as in all religions, Þnal explication
rests with each interpreter.!
In the Gathas, his only surviving authentic work, Zoroaster declares that Ahura Mazda (also
called Ormazd) is the principle of truth and also the Holy Spirit, the Creating Word page 33that
existed before the world was born, the Word that brought all forms of life into being, boding
good for all species, particularly the human race. In order that people might, through struggle,
appreciate the true meaning of goodness, a twin of the Holy SpiritÑAhriman the Evil OneÑwas
created. It is unclear whether Ahriman was invented by Ahura Mazda (Ormazd) or created
simultaneously as the evil twin of Ormazd, and thus the scholarly disagreement about monism
and dualism. In any event, all life became a contest between good and evil, truth and error,
light and darkness.!
In its original form Zoroastrianism was a personal religion with no place for rituals, priests or
temples. The emphasis was on practical moral living without extremes such as celibacy or
cloistered seclusion; anyone could seek the good and the true. The ethical life was dedicated
to the active realization of a just society Þnally freed from evil.!
An elaborate eschatology looked forward to the coming of the Saoshyans or Savior, who would
resurrect the dead for judgment. The righteous would then pass to heaven and the wicked to
hell to su er physically for their sins. In another passage Zoroaster described the just as ff
residing in the House of Song while the unjust are doomed to the House of the Lie.!
According to Zoroastrianism the conßict between good and evil would not last forever.
Ultimately Ahura Mazda would overcome Ahriman. Not even those condemned to the House of
the Lie would stay there forever. The Þnal victory of Ahura Mazda and the destruction of
Ahriman would usher in the Fraskart, the ultimate Òmaking excellentÓ or rehabilitation of
AhrimanÕs followers.!
The new faith was so far beyond the capacity of the common people that, over time, its
abstractions were minimized and emphasis placed on sacriÞce, liturgy, and priestly mediation
Ñthe very paraphernalia Zoroastrianism had tried to eradicate. Ishtar, the ancient
Mesopotamian fertility goddess, returned to the pantheon where she was joined by Mithra, god
of light and new Persian deity. Thus, in time, a religion that had protested against polytheism
and empty formalism took on some of the characteristics of the old beliefs it had sought to
supplant. Having readily gained the support of the Persian rulers, the new faith later became
inßuential in Mesopotamia, Asia Minor, and Egypt. Much that was new and vital in
Zoroastrianism can be detected in subsequent religious movements.!
Zoroastrianism languished after the destructive invasion of the Middle East by Alexander the
Great and nearly foundered 1,000 years later during the seventhcentury Muslim conquest of
Persia. Preserved by a mass migration to India and subsequently revived through scholarly
Parsee leadership, Parsism (Zoroastrianism) is still practiced in India by the descendants of
Persian exiles.!
Summary!
Part of the history of Western civilization begins in Mesopotamia with the early agricultural
settlements there. When nomads settled down to farm, everything changed, with one invention
following upon another: animal husbandry, pottery, weaving, permanent houses, communities,
fortiÞcations, mathematics, a calendar, and writing. In due course came trade, manufacturing,
law, and all the other complexities of civilizationÑincluding warfare.!
page 34"!
The Sumerian Period (3000Ð2350 BC) saw the development of organized polytheism and
ziggurats with temples on top; advances in mathematics, writing, and astronomy; and the Þrst
major literary work, The Epic of Gilgamesh.!
Under Sargon the Great the Akkadians assumed political control of Sumerian culture (2350Ð
2150 BC) and reÞned and improved their art forms. Continually unhappy under Akkadian
domination, the Sumerians regained control under GudŽa of Lagash (Neo-Sumerian Period,
2050Ð1900 BC).!
The incessant internecine strife of Sumerians and Akkadians left them vulnerable to the
Amorites, opportunistic nomads from the Arabian desert, who established the Babylonian
Empire (1900Ð1500 BC), centered on the royal city of Babylon. Chief among the royal rulers
was Hammurabi, whose legal code conÞrmed the rule of law throughout the empire.!
Other desert nomads, the Kassites, established a rather benign rule in Babylon (1500Ð1100
BC), maintaining the culture but doing little to improve life or art. The Kassites were conquered
in turn by Assyria, the Þrst militaristic state in history (1076Ð612 BC). Entirely at the service of
the king, Assyrian art had essentially two themes: power and conquest. Ruthless in their
warring and ruling, the Assyrians stressed their brutality as a warning to potential dissidents.
AssyriaÕs enemies were equally pitiless when the end came, destroying everything Assyrian.!
The Assyrians were demolished mainly by the Medes and the Chaldeans, the latter a Semitic
desert tribe that reestablished the Babylonian Empire, known today as the Chaldean (Neo-
Babylonian) Empire (625Ð539 BC). Under Nebuchadnezzar II Babylon bloomed brießy as a kind
of museum of past glories, the Þnal ßowering of a Mesopotamian culture that had begun 2,500
years before.!
Last of the ancient Near Eastern powers, the Persian Empire (539Ð331 BC) was also the
greatest that the world had yet seen. Persian culture was eclectic: it incorporated a variety of
ideas and styles in art and architecture from other civilizations. This was a highly sophisticated
society with an e ciently governed empire that had a truly ÒinternationalÓ concern for the ffi
diverse cultures it embraced. The PersiansÕ strikingly original contribution, Zoroastrianism, was
arguably one of the great world religions.!
A culture that began in the Land between the Rivers in about 3000 BC succumbed, Þnally, to a
European power in 331 BC. Not until the expansion of Islam, 1,000 years later, would the Near
or Middle East again Þgure prominently in world affairs.!
• • •!
Culture and Human Values!
For the average Mesopotamian life was a matter of survival in the here and now. There was
some personal freedom but, on the whole, people were at the mercy of forces beyond their
control, from raging rivers to warring kings. The gods were believed to be fractious and
enemies seemed always at the gates. Ultimate reality was understood as nothing more than
the visible world with its constant imperfections and occasional terrors.!
None of the Mesopotamian cultures seems to have achieved any appreciable period of
balance. Each historical era was mainly one of adjustment, from Sumerians to Akkadians, page
35to Sumerians, Babylonians, and all the rest. [During this time period there was a process of
syncretism occurring between these various cultures. Syncretism is basically a combination,
reconciliation, or coalescence of varying, often mutually opposed beliefs, principles, or
practices, esp. those of various religions, into a new conglomerate whole typically marked by
internal inconsistencies.] There was a chronic proclivity to stagger from one crisis to another
without falling totally into chaos but also without rising to a plateau of stability.!
If we are to believe ancient Egyptian and Greek writers, MesopotamiaÕs long and troubled
history reveals little concern about ideals such as the true, the good, or the beautiful. We are
told that neither its polytheistic religions nor its authoritarian governments inspired any urge
toward personal excellence. Pleasing the gods was supposedly more important than living a
good life. To a certain extent, the ancient writers were probably right, but that is not the whole
story. The extant art and architecture alone testify to the notable accomplishments of the
several cultures, as do their contributions to writing, law, religion, mathematics, and astronomy
Ñall of this in the face of drought, ßoods, war, and other disasters. Moreover, there is nothing
in Egyptian literature, for example, that compares with The Epic of Gilgamesh. Theirs is a
remarkable record of human resilience, ingenuity, and creativity, an abiding conÞrmation of the
hardiness of the human spirit.Notes!
1. The concept of culture was Þrst explicitly deÞned in 1871 by British anthropologist Edward
B. Tyler as Òthat complex whole which includes knowledge, belief, art, morals, law, custom and
any other capabilities and habits acquired by man as a member of society.Ó As opposed to
genetically endowed behavior, culture always entails learned behavior.!
2. Wiener, P. R., editor in chief. (1973). Dictionary of the history of ideas (Vol. III., pp. 279Ð
280). New York: Charles ScribnerÕs Sons. Source: Pritchard, J. B., ed. (1950). Ancient near
eastern texts relating to the old testament (pp. 42, 72, 109). Princeton: Princeton University
Press.!
!3. The highest heaven in the Mesopotamian conception of the cosmos.
4. The reference to Old Babylonia is modern hindsight; there was a later kingdom called Neo-
Babylonia.!
5. These and subsequent royal dates are reigning periods.!
6. ÒThe Assyrians were Þerce, well-disciplined and cruel. Their cruelty was calculated, at least
in part, to terrorize real and potential enemies, for the Assyrians boasted of their brutality.Ó
Kagan, D., et al. (1979). The western heritage (p. 22). New York: Macmillan.!
7. With only a few exceptions, all inhabitants of modern Europe speak languages derived
from ancient tongues brought from Eurasia (Ukraine or east of there) by Bronze Age
conquerors. The term Indo-Iranian identiÞes various language branches as spoken in Europe,
Iran, and northern India. These include Greek, Latin, Sanskrit, Persian, Celtic, and the
Germanic languages. The name Iran (used after AD 600) means Òland of the Aryan.Ó!
8. From which the U.S. Postal Service derived its motto.
