H E A D Essential Library A Did you know writing began in ancient Mesopotamia? That the first computer was N created in ancient Greece? Or that the compass was invented in ancient China? Ancient C times still echo in the present. Travel through time and learn more about these I E once-great Ancient Civilizations. Explore major historical developments, cultural and N scientific contributions, and the continuing impact of these past civilizations. Dig deeper T into the daily lives of ancient peoples. Discover what they believed in and what they fought for. Learn how the world of today is built on the legacies of the past. M E BOOKS IN THIS SET S Ancient Aztecs Ancient India O Ancient China Ancient Maya P O Ancient Egypt Ancient Mesopotamia T Ancient Greece Ancient Rome A M I A ABDO PUBLISHING IS A DIVISION OF ABDO WWW.ABDOPUBLISHING.COM ABD_ANC_MES_COV.indd 1 8/5/14 3:02 PM ANCIENT MESOPOTAMIA BY TOM HEAD Essential Library An Imprint of Abdo Publishing | www.abdopublishing.com ABD_ANC_MES_FPGS.indd 1 10/30/14 11:06 AM ANCIENT MESOPOTAMIA BY TOM HEAD CONTENT CONSULTANT Dr. James A. Armstrong Harvard Semitic Museum (retired) ABD_ANC_MES_FPGS.indd 2 10/30/14 11:06 AM ANCIENT MESOPOTAMIA BY TOM HEAD CONTENT CONSULTANT Dr. James A. Armstrong Harvard Semitic Museum (retired) ABD_ANC_MES_FPGS.indd 3 10/30/14 11:06 AM www.abdopublishing.com Published by Abdo Publishing, a division of ABDO, PO Box 398166, Minneapolis, Minnesota 55439. Copyright © 2015 by Abdo Consulting Group, Inc. International copyrights reserved in all countries. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without written permission from the publisher. Essential Library™ is a trademark and logo of Abdo Publishing. Printed in the United States of America, North Mankato, Minnesota 102014 012015 Cover Photos: Shutterstock Images Interior Photos: Shutterstock Images, 2, 12 (inset), 27, 28, 52, 78–79; Al Hoch/Janesville Gazette/AP Images, 6–7; John R. McDermott/National Geographic Society/Corbis, 9; Courtesy of Penn Museum, 10–11; iStock/Thinkstock, 12; Tina Hager/arabianEye/Getty Images, 14; SuperStock/Glow Images, 16; Stefano Bianchetti/Corbis, 19; Levgen Sosnytskyi/Shutterstock Images, 20–21; Herbert M. Herget/ National Geographic Society/Corbis, 30–31, 35, 63, 64, 77; Vladimir Korostyshevskiy/Shutterstock Images, 33; CM Dixon/Heritage Images/Glow Images, 37; iStockphoto, 40–41; Gianni Dagli Orti/ Corbis, 43, 85; Bettmann/Corbis, 45, 71; Werner Forman Archive/Glow Images, 47, 56–57, 75; Tony Baggett/iStockphoto, 49; Richard Ashworth/Robert Harding/Glow Images, 50–51; Dorling Kindersley/ Thinkstock, 54, 87; Science Source, 60; Prof. Albert T. Clay/National Geographic Society/Corbis, 67; Namir Noor-Eldeen/Pool/epa/Corbis, 72–73; The University of Chicago/AP Images, 81; Mbzt/ Wikimedia Commons, 83; US Navy, 90–91; Babak Tafreshi/National Geographic Society/Corbis, 93; Stuart Campbell/AP Images, 95 Editor: Arnold Ringstad Series Designer: Jake Nordby Library of Congress Control Number: 2014943879 Cataloging-in-Publication Data Head, Tom. Ancient Mesopotamia / Tom Head. p. cm. -- (Ancient civilizations) ISBN 978-1-62403-541-8 (lib. bdg.) Includes bibliographical references and index. 1. Iraq--Civilization--To 634--Juvenile literature. 2. Iraq--History--Juvenile literature. 3. Iraq--Social life and customs--Juvenile literature. I. Title. 935--dc23 2014943879 ABD_ANC_MES_FPGS.indd 4 10/30/14 11:06 AM CONTENTS The First Civilization CHAPTER 1 6 Empires of the Fertile Crescent CHAPTER 2 20 The Lawgivers CHAPTER 3 30 Voices of the Fertile Crescent CHAPTER 4 40 Life in Mesopotamia CHAPTER 5 54 Death and the Gods CHAPTER 6 62 Agriculture and Technology CHAPTER 7 72 Inventing War CHAPTER 8 78 All That We Ever Were CHAPTER 9 90 TIMELINE 98 ANCIENT HISTORY 100 GLOSSARY 102 ADDITIONAL RESOURCES 104 SOURCE NOTES 106 INDEX 110 ABOUT THE AUTHOR 112 ABD_ANC_MES_FPGS.indd 5 10/30/14 11:06 AM ABD_ANC_MES_FPGS.indd 6 10/30/14 11:06 AM CHAPTER 1 THE FIRST CIVILIZATION A woman named Enheduanna was one of the most powerful figures in ancient Mesopotamia. Enheduanna was still a child when her parents, King Sargon and Queen Tashlultum of Akkad, conquered Sumer and brought it under Akkadian rule, establishing the world’s first empire. As Enheduanna grew older, she became history’s earliest author. The writers of ancient Akkad and Sumer used a form of writing known as cuneiform. 7 ABD_ANC_MES_FPGS.indd 7 10/30/14 11:06 AM Her poetic works, written in approximately 2300 BCE, were the first to be credited to a specific person rather than being anonymous. This gave her an unprecedented legacy. Historians do not know her birth name. Enheduanna was the name she took on when she became high priestess, a common practice among religious leaders to this day. Just as Pope Francis is not addressed by his birth name of Jorge Bergoglio, Enheduanna did not refer to herself by her birth name. It is unlikely we will ever know what it was. Most of what historians know about Enheduanna comes from two sources: the text of her 47 surviving hymns and a calcite engraving called the Disk of Enheduanna. These artifacts say relatively little about her daily life or her personal history outside of the public eye, but they say a great deal about her far-reaching priorities. Her temple dedications tell us she was The people of Ur worshiped their gods in temples built on talented at describing gods, the communities that worshiped them, and how top of pyramid-shaped platforms called ziggurats. the two were connected. She likely spent much of her daily life in the giparu, or priest’s home, in the Sumerian city of Ur. Her religious duties involved rituals we now know little about. She would have probably washed and maintained the statues of the gods, overseen sacrifices, pronounced blessings, and written hymns. She also would have predicted the future, kept detailed records on the movement 8 ABD_ANC_MES_FPGS.indd 8 10/30/14 11:06 AM