ARCH 100 Lecture Notes - Lecture 6: Anthropocentrism, Alluvium, Hassuna Culture

• School: Simon Fraser University
• Department: Archaeology
• Course: ARCH 100
• Professor: Ernest Bumann

Document Summary

Arch 100 lecture week 6: the ancient near east. Arid/semi arid valleysl nile; tigris/euphrates; indus/ganges; yangtze river/huang. Ho (yellow river); also in mesoamerica and peru. Arid to semi-arid river environments in river valleys or near sources of fresh water. Agriculture was intensi ed through irrigation which supported dense populations. Located in strategic locations for participation in exchange and trade networks. Mesopotamia (a greek word, means between the rivers) Alluvial plain between the tigris and euphrates rivers in iran and iraq. Akkad and sumer, later assyria and babylonia. Between zagros mountains (200mm isohyet) and the syrian desert. Trade with the indus valley (harappans), levant, anatolia, egypt, etc. Timber from zagros mountains, cedar from lebanon. Names after the rst neolithic site: tell halaf in n-e-syria. Hallmark: glazed pottery painted with geometric animal designs. Uruk period (4000-3100 bc): 50,00 people, secular rules, patron gods: inanna (ishtar), Anu, complex administration, several temples dedicated to different gods like the white.