Unit 1 Wrap-Up
Hammurabi Code
Around 1790 BCE a man named Hammurabi conquered Mesopotamia. He established an empire with a
capital city at Babylon. To help unify his empire, he collected existing Mesopotamian laws into a single code of
around 300 specific laws. The code regulated not only crime but also a variety of other areas. He engraved the
code on stone pillars and placed them throughout his empire. The following regulations from Hammurabi’s
Code deal with marriage, family matters, property, personal injury, and trade.
142. If a woman hates her husband and says to
him “You cannot be with me,” the authorities in
her district will investigate the case. If she has
been chaste and without fault, even though her
husband has neglected or belittled her, she will be
held innocent and may return to her father’s
house.
218. If a physician has treated a man with a metal
knife for a severe wound, and has caused the man
to die, or has opened a man’s tumor with a metal
knife, and destroyed the man’s eye, his hands shall
be cut off…
143. If the woman is at fault, she shall be thrown
into the river.
229. If a builder has built a house for a man and
his work is not strong, and if the house he has
built falls in and kills the householder, that builder
shall be slain,
195. If a son has struck his father, his hands shall
be cut off.
230. If the child of the householder is killed, the
child of that builder shall be slain.
196. If a man has destroyed the eye of another free
man, his own eye shall be destroyed.
231. If the slave of the household is killed, he shall
give slave for slave to the householder.
198. If he has destroyed the eye of a peasant, or
broken a bone of a peasant, he shall pay one silver
mina.
232. If goods have been destroyed, he shall replace
all that has been destroyed; and because the house
that he built was not made strong, and it has fallen
in, he shall restore the fallen house out of his own
personal property.
199. If he put out the eye of a man’s slave, or
break the bone of a man’s slave, he shall pay onehalf of its value.
200. If a man has knocked out the teeth of a man
of the same rank, his own teeth shall be knocked
out.
Questions: Please answer in complete sentences. Each answer should be at least 3-5 sentences
long.
1. Are the codes of Hammurabi based on social classes? Given one example to support your answer
(be sure to explain your example).
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2. Why might the punishments and crimes be based on social classes?
3. Hammurabi had these 300 laws printed on large stone pillars and placed them throughout his
empire.
Why do you think Hammurabi did this?
4. Would you do the same if you were in Hammurabi’s shoes?
5. What clues does the Code of Hammurabi give about Babylonian society?
6.
How does it describe the roles of men and women?
7. Do you agree with Hammurabi’s codes? Explain why/why not.
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The Epic of Gilgamesh
Synopsis (Dr. Fidel Fajardo-Acosta):
The Epic of Gilgamesh is the story of King Gilgamesh of Uruk (ancient city in Mesopotamia) who oppresses his people.
As punishment, the gods send him a companion, Enkidu, who is his mirror image and becomes his good friend. Together,
Gilgamesh and Enkidu defy the gods by killing the giant Humbaba, cutting down the sacred cedar forest which he guards,
and killing the Bull of Heaven. Enkidu has dreams of the destiny of tyrants who become slaves in the House of Death.
Enkidu finally dies of an illness sent by the gods. Horrified by Enkidu's death and the prospect of his own death,
Gilgamesh undertakes a quest for immortality which brings him to the abode (home) of Utnapishtim, a virtuous man who
obeys the gods and was saved by them from the Great Flood. Utnapishtim puts Gilgamesh to various tests which he fails
and eventually sends him away; assuring him that he cannot escape death. A humbled Gilgamesh returns to Uruk and
orders his story to be inscribed in stone.
Excerpt from the Epic of Gilgamesh:
Gilgamesh spoke to Urshanabi, the ferryman, saying:
"Urshanabi, this plant is a plant against decay (!) by
which a man can attain his survival(!). I will bring it to
Uruk-Haven, and have an old man eat the plant to test it.
The plant's name is 'The Old Man Becomes a Young
Man.'" Then I will eat it and return to the condition of
my youth."
Utnapishtim spoke to Gilgamesh, saying:
"Gilgamesh, you came here exhausted and worn out.
What can I give you so you can return to your land? I
will disclose to you a thing that is hidden, Gilgamesh…
There is a plant... like a boxthorn, whose thorns will
prick your hand like a rose. If your hands reach that
plant you will become a young man again."
At twenty leagues they broke for some food, at thirty
leagues they stopped for the night. Seeing a spring and
how cool its waters were, Gilgamesh went down and
was bathing in the water. A snake smelled the fragrance
of the plant, silently came up and carried off the plant.
While going back it sloughed off its casing.'At that point
Gilgamesh sat down, weeping…”
Hearing this, Gilgamesh opened a conduit … (to the
Apsu) and attached heavy stones to his feet. They
dragged him down; to the Apsu they pulled him. He
took the plant, though it pricked his hand, and cut the
heavy stones from his feet, letting the waves (?) throw
him onto its shores.
 What does this excerpt tell you about life in Mesopotamia?

What was important?
 What was valued?
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Egypt
Daily life in ancient Egypt revolved around the Nile and the fertile land along its banks. The yearly flooding of the Nile
enriched the soil and brought good harvests and wealth to the land. Most ancient Egyptians worked as field hands,
farmers, craftsmen and scribes (people who copied manuscripts – could read and write). A small group of people were
nobles. Together, these different groups of people made up the population of ancient Egypt.
With the rise of
civilization came the
rise of the class system
or the hierarchy.
Before the Neolithic
Revolution, hunters and
gatherers lived in
societies with great
equality. But with
civilization came
different classes: the
rich and the poor, the
powerful and the
powerless.
Look at the table below: Compare and contrast the rich and the poor in ancient Egypt
A Nobleman’s Family
One bright morning in ancient Egypt, a nobleman
woke up in a bed covered in fine linen sheets. He
opened his eyes and looked around his bedroom.
He saw the cabinet where his clothes were kept, his
wife's cosmetic box, and a lamp for lighting the
room in the evening. His thoughts were disturbed
by the servant who entered the room. The servant
helped him to wash and shave. Then, the
nobleman dressed in a kilt made of fine linen and
sandals made of leather. Meanwhile, the
nobleman's wife got up. She washed and dressed
with the help of another servant. The nobleman's
wife wore a dress made of fine linen and jewelry
made of glass. She applied some kohl to her
eyelids and went downstairs. She applied some
kohl to her eyelids and went downstairs. The
nobleman and his wife had a small meal of bread
and fruit. They sat on cushions and ate from a low
table.
A Farmer’s Family
One bright morning in ancient Egypt, a farmer
woke up in a bed covered in a coarse linen sheet
that had been woven by his wife. He opened his
eyes and looked around his bedroom. He saw the
shelf where his clothes were kept and a basket.
The farmer got out of bed and washed and shaved.
Then, he dressed in a kilt made of coarse linen and
sandals made of reeds. The farmer's wife was
already awake. She had washed and dressed in the
early morning light. Then she had gone into the
next room to wake the children and begin her daily
chores. She wore a dress made of coarse linen.
Around her neck was an amulet of the goddess
Tawaret on a piece of papyrus string. The farmer,
his wife and their children sat down to a small meal
of bread and fruit. They sat on a bench and ate on
reed mats. Then, the farmer got up and went to
work in the fields near his house.
~Adapted from ancientegypt.co.uk
Create a list of differences between a nobleman’s family and farmer’s family:
 ________________________________________________________________________
 ________________________________________________________________________
 ________________________________________________________________________
 ________________________________________________________________________
 ________________________________________________________________________
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The Declaration of Innocence from the The Egyptian Book of the Dead
Ancient Egyptians believed that when they died, they made a journey to the afterlife, and so filled their tombs with the
necessary objects of daily life such as food to aid them on their journey. One of these objects was the The Egyptian Book
of the Dead, a guide for the journey. The Declaration of Innocence is made when the dead reached the Hall of the Two
Truths where the god Osiris made the judgment about his destination in the afterlife.
1600-1500 BCE, Excerpts
I have not done crimes against people,
I have not mistreated cattle,...
I have not stolen the cakes of the dead...
I have not increased nor reduced the measure,...
I have not cheated in the fields.
I have not added to the weight of the balance,
I have not falsified the plummet of the scales.
I have not taken milk from the mouth of children,
I have not deprived cattle of their pasture...
I have not held back water in its season,
I have not dammed a flowing stream,
I have not quenched a needed fire.
I have not neglected the days of meat offerings,
I have not detained cattle belonging to the god,
I have not stopped a god in his procession.
I am pure, I am pure, I am pure, I am pure!
I have not known what should not be known,
I did not begin a day by exacting more than my due,...
I have not blasphemed a god,
I have not robbed the poor.
I have not done what the god abhors,
I have not maligned a servant to his master.
I have not caused pain,
I have not caused tears.
I have not killed,
I have not ordered to kill,
I have not made anyone suffer.
I have not damaged the offerings in the temples,
I have not depleted the loaves of the gods,

What does this excerpt tell you about the Egyptian afterlife?

Why did the Egyptians feel that it was important to write the above passage into their most sacred
text, which would be handed down to future generations?
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Indus
Some kind of centralized state, and extensive town planning, is suggested by the layout of the great cities of Harappa and
Mohenjo-Daro. The same kind of burnt brick appears to have been used in the construction of buildings in cities that were
as much as several hundred miles apart. The weights and measures show a very considerable regularity. The Indus Valley
people domesticated animals, and harvested various crops, such as cotton, sesame, peas, barley, and cotton. They may
also have been a sea-faring people, and it is rather interesting that Indus Valley seals have been dug up in such places as
Sumer. The Indus Valley people had a merchant class that, evidence suggests, engaged in extensive trading. ~ Adapted
from sscnet.ucla.edu
Complete the Chart on the Indus River Valley Civilization Using the Reading Above:
Evidence of a Centralized State
(centralized means “under a single
authority”):
Evidence of Experiencing a
Neolithic Revolution:
Evidence of Long-Distance Trade:
Primary Source Document: The Rig Veda
Read the following excerpt from the Rig Veda and answer the questions. Note: Indra is the god of war. Kine
means cow or cattle.
With all-outstripping chariot-wheel, O Indra, thou far-famed,
hast overthrown the twice ten Kings of men, With sixty
thousand nine-and-ninety followers, who came in arms to
fight…Thou goest on from fight to fight intrepidly, Destroying
castle after castle here with strength.
With Bow let us win kine, with Bow the battle, with Bow
be victors in our hot encounters. The Bow brings grief
and sorrow to the foeman: armed with the Bow may we
subdue all regions. Close to his ear, as fain to speak, She
presses, holding her well-loved Friend in her embraces.
Strained on the Bow, She whispers like a woman – this
Bowstring that preserves us in the combat.
1. Based on this reading, make a list of skills that you
believe would have been important to Indo-Aryans
during their migration from Central Europe to India?
2. Based on your answer to question number one, what do
you think happened once the nomadic Indo-Aryan
migrants encountered the settled, farming Dravidians
living in south Asia (India)? How would both change?
What would be their relationship with each other?
3. Why did the Aryans feel that it was important to write the above passage into their most sacred text,
which would be handed down to future generations?
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China:_______________________________________________________________________
Using the Chart:
 What is the title of the chart?
__________________________
 Define the word “cycle”.
__________________________
 What does a new dynasty
receive?
__________________________
 What can a dynasty lose?
__________________________
Analyzing the Chart: The Dynastic Cycle and the Mandate of Heaven

What does a new dynasty bring and/or do?
_________________________________________________________________________________

By the new dynasty has become an old dynasty, what is occurring or happening?
_________________________________________________________________________________

What does the old dynasty lose?
_____________________________________________________________________

Another term for the “Mandate of Heaven” is the “right to rule”. What do you think this means?
_________________________________________________________________________________

What are problems that occur as a dynasty becomes an old dynasty?
_________________________________________________________________________________

After the old dynasty is overthrown, what does the new dynasty claim?
_____________________________________________________________________

So, why is this called the dynastic cycle?
________________________________________________________________________________
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