Agriculture was developed around 5500 B.C. when people started forming groups and settling in Europe. They started to grow and harvest wheat and barley. The farmers began to move toward the west. Later some farmers began to use functional (not artistic) pots that weren't painted. The development of farming and the generation of food for harvest lead to the need for a more efficient method of preparing the ground for planting. These early farmers quickly saw the advantage of harnessing the power of oxen to pull the plow. This method of cultivating the ground made farmers more productive. Farming led to cooperation between different people. This cooperation led to the formation of villages. Farming would allow people to make many other advances later in time like the development art and construction of monuments (http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/ht/?period=02®ion=euw#/Key-Events).
Monuments were constructed about 4200 B.C. in Europe when farming had lead to organized groups. Some of those groups created large free standing monuments in northwest Europe. Some of these monuments had rooms inside them. The monuments were constructed out of large blocks of stone. Initially, royalty or privileged members of the communities were buried in mounds along with stone tools like axes. Later, the monuments that were constructed served as tombs for the elite members of the community. They were entombed in the monuments with some of their earthly possessions and beakers containing wine, suggesting a religious implication. These elite people were thought to be warriors who were revered by their peers. The megaliths seemed to honor the important people in that society (http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/ht/?period=02®ion=euw#/Key-Events).
The civilization in the Indus valley became known as the Harappan Civilization (See picture from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Civilt%C3%A0ValleIndoMappa.png
s, peas, and even sesame seed plants. In the valley, barley and wheat were domesticated and grown. The civilization had large urban cities that were highly developed. They were much more developed than places in ancient Europe at this same time (around 3000 B.C.). They had major cities called Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro in ancient Pakistan. The cities were more advanced than anything in that region and included urban planning and good hygiene. The cities are the earliest example of well thought-out city planning in the world. They are organized on a grid. This grid was likely employed to protect the houses from noise as well as offering a buffer for the citizens to enjoy a bit of privacy. Additionally, there were wells in each home. The well equipped the house with clean water which provided sanitation. The clean water was used for drinking. Many homes also had a room dedicated for bathing. And most houses had drains. The sewer systems took waste water along the streets and out of the city. The waste water was covered to prevent contamination of the wells. Some of the houses had courtyards also. There were large stone walls around the cities. These walls served two purposes. First, they would prevent unwanted intruders. In addition, they severed to stem the frequently occurring flood waters. The city dwellers were most likely traders and even artisans. They made many beautiful pieces of art. Some example of the art includes glazed beads and clay seals with animals, inscriptions, and people carved into them. The residents also made art out of gold, bronze and terracotta. Necklaces and statues were also carved by the artisans. In some towns there were even large temples where people worshiped. These temples could be some of the largest structures in the city. The region used wheeled carts and boats to trade goods to places as far as Greece. Traders would have to travel through barren deserts and across the Mediterranean Sea to accomplish this feat. It is believed that they used their punched coins in their trading interactions. This civilization died out for no apparent reason around the 2000 B.C. Theories for this range from an earthquake like the one recently experienced in Haiti which could have caused an epidemic of disease to the sewer system failure poisoning and killing its residents (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indus_Valley_Civilization).The civilizations of Mesopotamia were also advanced. These civilizations located there were Sumer, Babylon, Akkadia, and Assyrian empires. These cultures flourished during the Bronze Age. This area became known as the “cradle of civilization”. Sumer is located in the south of Iraq. At about 5000 B.C. this civilization had advanced agricultural techniques. These techniques include large scale cultivation, irrigation, and the employment of laborers especially around the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. Sumer was divided into about twelve city states. Every city state was arranged around a temple with its own patron god. The city states were either ruled by a governor or a king. The Ubaid period began at about 5000 B.C. It featured many advances in art in Mesopotamia. Many types of pottery were created during this period. The Uruk period was after that and it had less styled pottery and more mass production. The Sumer civilization made structures out of mud brick and cement because trees and minerals were uncommon. The houses were often destroyed to make room for others and that raised the elevation of the cities. This civilization was also the first to use writing, the plow, and architectural arches (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sumer).
I believe that change is good over the course of history. As each civilization advances and dies out a more advanced civilization takes its place and uses the last civilization as a stepping stool. The newer civilization uses the advances of the older one to become better. The Sumer and Harappan civilization both died out but much more advanced and powerful ones took their place. The civilizations I listed, all made major contributions like city planning, sewage disposal, water availability, large scale agriculture, writing, religion, and architectural breakthroughs that are still amazing to this day. Change leads to bigger and better things in the world.
Sources
Indus Valley Civilization. Web. 29 Jan. 2010.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indus_Valley_Civilization
Sumer. Web. 28 Jan. 2010. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sumer
Western and Central Europe, 8000–2000 b.c. Web. 28 Jan. 2010. http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/ht/?period=02®ion=euw#/Key-Events
Picture source:
File:CiviltàValleIndoMappa.png. Web. 29 Jan. 2010.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Civilt%C3%A0ValleIndoMappa.png
Excellent writing.
ReplyDeleteI would like to see you shake this up a bit by making connections to your own experience.
Also, mix up your sources; encyclopediae are fine for general information, but they are only a starting point.
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