Ancient Mesopotamia

People in ancient Mesopotamia used cedar as roof beams and supports in temples and palaces. Cedar was chosen because of its strength, resistance to decay, and its pleasing aroma.

Considering the geography of the area, what is the MOST likely way in which Mesopotamians acquired cedar?

• by trading for it

• from local forests

• from along the Nile River

• from along the Tigris River

Which of these resources would be of greatest importance to the survival of a civilization?

• gold

• lumber

• oil

• water

Beyond the basic elements of civilization, what did the Sumerians add to future societies and cultures?

• patriarchy and job specialization

• social classes and agricultural surplus

• clearly-defined government and large cities

• raising livestock and monumental architecture

200. If a man knock out the teeth of his equal, his teeth shall be knocked out.

201. If he knock out the teeth of a freed man, he shall pay one-third of a gold mina.

202. If any one strike the body of a man higher in rank than he, he shall receive sixty blows with an ox-whip in public.

203. If a free-born man strike the body of another free-born man or equal rank, he shall pay one gold mina.

204. If a freed man strike the body of another freed man, he shall pay ten shekels in money.

205. If the slave of a freed man strike the body of a freed man, his ear shall be cut off.

- taken from The Code of Hammurabi

Using this excerpt from The Code of Hammurabi, what be the punishment for a slave who slapped his master?

• The master would sell the slave.

• The slave would pay ten shekels.

• The master would slap the slave.

• The slave's ear would be cut off.

Mesopotamian religion was polytheistic. Polytheistic means

• "the belief in gods in nature."

• "the belief in more than one god."

• "the belief that priests were kings."

• "the belief that god was everywhere."

Early societies- such as the Mesopotamians and Indo-Europeans- were able to form complex economies MAINLY due to

• imported labor from Asia.

• specialization of production.

• the development of stone tools.

• the development of steel tools.

Which number marks the location of the Mesopotamian civilization?

• 1

• 2

• 3

• 4

Which of these is an accurate description of a Mesopotamian ziggurat?

• a burial place for emperors

• a religious and civic center

• a ship with triangular sails

• a weapon used to destroy walls

Once civilizations could grow excess food thousands of years ago, people in those societies soon learned to

• make weapons to attack their rivals.

• create religions with specific rules.

• specialize in specific forms of labor.

• build ships to begin exploring the world.

In early Mediterranean civilizations, the development of an extensive trade network and a bureaucracy that could manage record keeping was based on

• writing.

• geography.

• military power.

• natural resources.