Mesopotamia

Mesopotamia is a Greek word meaning

'between two rivers'. The rivers are the Tigris
and Euphrates which flow through modern
Iraq. The Euphrates also flows through much
of Syria.
Babylon - one of the earliest kingdoms where
first codes of law were drown e.g.

CODE OF HAMMURABI.

ARTS
Early Persian Bull Capital

CLOTHING
In Mesopotamia, natural resources like flax
and sheep's wool were used.
Flax was harvested and then would break
down naturally. The long fibres in the stem
were separated and used to make linen. Flax
can be identified as a plant with blue flowers.

Summer
Clothing for men and women were simple yet
durable.
Sumerian men in the summer were bare
chested and wore a skirt like garment tied to
the side.
Women would wear a long gown and their
right arm and shoulder would be left
uncovered. Assyrians would wear a shortsleeved tunic underneath their robe.

Winter
In the winter, Sumerian men would wear
sheepskins with the wool side out. They would
be worn with a belt to keep them in place.
Women would use sheep skin as well. They
would drape the sheepskin around them like a
dress or a robe. Women would pin theirs on
the left shoulder..

 The rich and the royalty would often wear

more expensive clothing even though they
wore the same styles as the poor. Theirs
would be made of a more luxurious material.
Wealthy women and princesses would wear
coloured and bright clothing.
Gods wore different items than the wealthy or
royalty. God Marduk, imagined by
Mesopotamians, wore symbols of power.
Assyrian soldiers wore metal suits and iron
weapons.

ARCHITECTURE
Temples
Mesopotamian temples were designed to
a rectangular plan. Early examples were
constructed atop a small earthen platform; as
time went by, these platforms became taller and
taller, giving rise to the classic Mesopotamian
ziggurat.

 Ziggurat - represented the sacred mountain

where gods and men could meet. They were
brick-built temple-mounds, taking the form of
a layered platform. They resembled step
pyramids with a flat roof, on which a shrine
would be built. Access to this shrine was by a
broad staircase or ramp.

Great Ziggurat of Ur near Nasiriyah, Iraq

PALACES
The palaces of Mesopotamian rulers were
large and lavishly decorated.
Built around a series of courtyards, these
complexes housed craftsmen's workshops,
servants quarters, food storehouses, shrines,
and the domestic accommodation for the
royal family.
Palace walls were decorated with carved stone
slabs on which pictorial and textual depictions
of cultural scenes or the the Kings' deeds.

 Gates and important passageways were

flanked with massive stone sculptures of
mythological figures.
Outside, these palaces were often adjoined to
expansive gardens and parks, stocked with
wild animals for hunting.

HOUSES

The materials used to build a Mesopotamian

house were the same as those used today:
sun-baked brick made of mud mixed witrh
straw, mud plaster and wooden doors.
Most large houses, were built around a
courtyard. Off one side was a large square
room, where the family received guests and
ate together. Leading off this room were the
private family quarters. Other sides of the
courtyard led to the kitchen, store rooms and
servants accommodation.