Chapter 1: Writing and City Life – Detailed Notes

Theme: Mesopotamian Civilization

🧭 Introduction

• The chapter explores the development of writing and city life in Mesopotamia, one of the earliest known civilizations in the world.
• Mesopotamia means ‘land between the rivers’ — the Tigris and Euphrates.
• Located in present-day Iraq.
  🏞️ Geographical Setting
• Fertile Crescent: A region in the Middle East with rich soil and agricultural productivity.
• Divided into:
  • Northern Mesopotamia: Hilly terrain and rainfall-based agriculture.
  • Southern Mesopotamia (Sumer): Flat, arid, depended on irrigation for agriculture.
    🏙️ Significance of Cities
• Mesopotamia is called the cradle of civilization because:
  • It had the earliest cities, developed around 3000 BCE.
  • Featured palaces, temples, canals, walls, markets, and residential areas.
    🧑‍🌾 Life in Mesopotamian Cities
    Agriculture* was the backbone; irrigation from rivers.
• Crops: Barley, wheat, dates, lentils, etc.
• Domestication of animals like sheep, goats, and cattle.
• People lived in urban centers and villages.
• Cities were also centers of trade, craft production, and administration.
  🛕 Urbanization and Temples
• Temples were the center of city life.
• Played a religious, economic, and administrative role.
• Run by priests who controlled:
  • Agricultural surplus
  • Storage
  • Distribution
  • Trade
• Temples owned land, employed labor, and were central to early state formation.
  🛍️ Trade and Transport
• Long-distance trade with regions like Iran, India (Meluhha), and Anatolia.
• Traded items: Textiles, grain, dates, wood, copper, tin, lapis lazuli.
• Transport used river boats, donkeys, and carts.
  🏠 Urban Architecture
• Houses were made of mud bricks.
• Structures included:
  • Ziggurats: Stepped temple towers.
  • City walls: For defense.
  • Drainage systems: Indicate civic planning.
    📜 The Development of Writing
• Earliest writing: Cuneiform script on clay tablets.
• Originated around 3200 BCE in Sumer.
• Stylus used to make wedge-shaped marks.
• Initially developed for record keeping (e.g., trade, taxes).
• Over time, it included:
  • Laws
  • Literature
  • Letters
  • Epics (e.g., Epic of Gilgamesh)

🧑‍⚖️ Uses of Writing

1. Administrative: Records of taxes, land, trade.
2. Legal: Laws (e.g., Code of Hammurabi).
3. Literary: Stories, poems, and myths.
4. Educational: Scribes were trained in schools (tablet houses).

🏛️ Political Structure

• Various city-states (e.g., Ur, Uruk, Lagash, Babylon).
• Ruled by kings; some claimed divine right.
• Role of the king:
  • Head of army
  • Builder of temples and canals
  • Lawgiver
• Famous kings:
  • Gilgamesh (Uruk)
  • Hammurabi (Babylon) – known for legal code.

⚖️ Hammurabi’s Code (c. 1750 BCE)

• One of the oldest known law codes.
• 282 laws carved on a stone stele.
• Based on principle of “eye for an eye” (retaliatory justice).
• Different punishments for different classes (nobles, free men, slaves).
• Focused on:
  • Property
  • Trade
  • Marriage
  • Crime

👩‍👦 Social Structure

• Hierarchical society:
  • Nobles (priests, kings)
  • Free citizens (farmers, artisans, merchants)
  • Slaves
• Patriarchal society:
  • Women had fewer rights
  • Could own property but had limited legal rights

🛠️ Craft and Technology

• Known for:
  • Pottery
  • Textile production
  • Metal work
  • Brick making
• Innovations:
  • Plough, wheel, sail, bronze tools

🧱 Archaeological Sources

• Excavated cities: Ur, Uruk, Mari, Babylon
• Artifacts:
  • Clay tablets
  • Cylinder seals
  • Statues
  • Pottery
  • Tools and weapons

🗿 Legacy of Mesopotamian Civilization

• Influenced:
  • Later writing systems
  • Legal codes
  • Urban planning
  • Administrative methods
• Knowledge passed to Greeks, Romans, and others.

🧪 Decline of Mesopotamian Cities

• Causes:
  • Environmental degradation
  • Salinization due to irrigation
  • Political instability and invasions (Assyrians, Persians, Greeks)
• Civilization eventually declined around 500 BCE.