This is a brief presentation on early civilizations. This is just an overview and should be used with supplemental materials for each individual civilization.

1. Ancie nt C ivilizations

Mesopotamia

Egypt

China

Greece

Indus River Valley

2. Mesopotamia
6500 – 3100 B.C.E.
Karl Musser. Tigris - Euphrates Watershed. 2005. Map. WikipediaWeb. 28 Jun
2012. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mesopotamia>.

3. Location
− Between Tigris and Euphrates River
− Present Day Iraq
− Known as the Fertile Crescent
Empires
− Sumerian
− Babylon
− Assyrian

4. 
Important contributions
− Wheeled Vehicles
− Astronomy
− Algebra
− Geometry
− First form of writing – cuneiform
− Hammurabi's Code – set of laws for society

5. Ancient Egypt
3200 – 500 B.C.E.
NASA Goddard. Egypt. 2011. Photograph. FlickrWeb. 28 Jun 2012.
<http://www.flickr.com/photos/gsfc/5635018418/>

6. 
Location
− Nile River Valley
− Mediterranean Sea

Society
− Pharaohs were divine rulers

Depended on viziers to supervise
− Mummified bodies upon death

Believed in afterlife

7. 
Contributions
− Tombs
− Pyramids
jay8085. Pyramids at Giza. 2005. Photograph. FlickrWeb. 29 Jun 2012. <http://
www.flickr.com/photos/89649959@N00/5275093636/>.

8. Ancient China
Shang Dynasty: 1600 B.C.E.
- Han Empire 220 C.E.

Lamussa Design. Map of Shang Dynasty. 2009. Graphic. WikipediaWeb. 28
Jun 2012. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shang_Dynasty>.

9. 
Location
− Present day China
− Dynasties shifted central location based on
who had power
− Tended to stay near rivers (Huang, Yangzi)

Society
− Social Classes (nobles, peasants)
− Many nature gods and spirits were
worshipped

10. 
Contributions
Ritenour, Anita. Terra-Cotta Army. 2008. Photograph. FlickrWeb. 29 Jun 2012.
<http://www.flickr.com/photos/puliarfanita/3456327439/>.
Roantree, Dermot . Great Wall. 2004. Photograph. FlickrWeb. 29 Jun
2012. <http://www.flickr.com/photos/21814742@N00/13414746/>.

11. Ancient Greece
1750 – 133 B.C.E.
Megistias. The Archaic Period in Greece. 2007. Graphic. WikipediaWeb. 28 Jun
2012. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ancient_Greece>.

12. 
Location
− North Mediterranean Sea
− Aegean Sea
− Balkan Peninsula

Society
− Very skilled seamen
Government evolved

Monarchy to aristocracy to oligarchy to
democracy
− Polytheists – Many different gods and goddesses

13. 
Contributions
− Literature

Homer
− Democracy
− Science
− Philosophy

Aristotle, Plato, Socrates
Cattiaux, Guillaume. Parthenon. 2008. Photograph. FlickrWeb. 29 Jun
2012. <http://www.flickr.com/photos/gcattiaux/2349772226/>.

14. Indus River Valley
3300 – 1300 B.C.E.
M M. Indus Civilization. 2005. Graphic. WikipediaWeb. 28 Jun 2012.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indus_Valley_Civilization>

15. 
Location
− Northwestern India and Pakistan
− Along fertile lands of Indus River Valley
Society
− Two main cities

Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro
− Major farmers
− Polytheists – worshiped nature gods

16. 
Contributions
− Uniform weights and measurements
− Accurate time records
− Dentistry
− Used swastika before it became a symbol of
hatred
− Cremation

17. Works Cited
Ellis, Elizabeth Gaynor, and Anthony Esler. World History: Connections to Today. 1st. Saddle
River, NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1999. 35-125. Print.

Mesopotamia
"Mesopotamia." . British Museum. Web. 29 Jun 2012. <http://www.mesopotamia.co.uk/>.

Egypt
Kinnear, Jacques. "Ancient Egypt Site." 30 Jun 2011. Web. 29 Jun 2012. <http://www.ancient-
egypt.org/>.

China
Wikipedia contributors. "Shang Dynasty." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The
Free Encyclopedia, Web. 29 Jun 2012. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shang_Dynasty>.

Greece
"BBC: Primary History-Ancient Greece." . BBC, 2012. Web. 29 Jun 2012.
<http://www.ancient-egypt.org/>

Indus River Valley
Wikipedia contributors. "Indus Valley Civilization." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia.
Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 27 Jun 2012. Web. 28 Jun 2012.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indus_Valley_Civilization>.