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Ancient Civilizations - Coggle Diagram
Ancient Civilizations
Mesopotamia
Location: In the text it said "The ancient Greeks called it mesopotamia which means "Between the rivers".", and most of mesopotamia is located inside of modern day iraq. (Steele 6) 
Writing: On page 12 it says "As the first cities arose, people began to require records of ownership, business, and government". Also they would make the cuneiform symbols by using a reed stylus which was a stick with a wedge shape at one end (Steele 12)
Architecture: In the text it said "Like the ancient pyramids of central america, ziggurats formed part of sacred precincts, which were thought to be the earthly dwelling places of the gods". Also the word zigguratu in assyrian means "Height" or "pinnacle", so the ziggurats mean they're tall. (Steele 24)
Religion: On page 14 it says "The Sumerians worshiped many gods and goddesses", and more modern people of mesopotamia history would rename and combine similar gods of the past. (Steele 14)
Government: On Page 10 it says "Some Rulers, Such as Gilgamesh of Uruk became legendary and their history was entangled with all kinds of myths.". Also all the rulers in a city state would have their name put on a clay tablet which was called the kings list. (Steele 10)
Kings List
Art: In the text it says"The ancient Mesopotamians were great lovers of poetry, art, and music.", and Music was mostly played for honor of gods, and important city-state events, but most common people would have loved to have it. (Steele 26)
Ancient Egypt
Location: On Page 8 It said "Desert covers more than 90% of egypt" and "The egyptians lived on the banks of the Nile River". Also after the big flood the farmers went to work sowing barley and emmer wheat.
(Hart 8)
Architecture: On page 20 it says "it was supposed to represent a gigantic stairway for the king to join the sun god". Also the pharaohs would be buried deep inside the pyramid having spells on the walls to supposedly help them in the afterlife. (Hart 20)
Religion: In the text it says "Many of the gods are represented by animals: a baboon might stand for Thoth, god of wisdom, at one temple, and a moon god named Khonsu at another". Also on page 24 the dominant deity over all of egyptian religion was their sun god which could take the form of 4 other important gods.
(Hart 24)
Government: The people in the court were mostly either relatives of the pharaoh or they won high office by being a scribe. Also in the text it said "When people approched the king, they often kissed the ground at his feet. (Hart 12)
Writing: In the text it says "It was deliberately kept complicated so that not too many people could master it", And The rosetta stone was created for a very complicated thank you to their greek ruler but this allowed the text
to be translated. (Hart 34)
Art: Games back in egypt were a very important thing becasue you can find many board games, games, and toys such as Dolls, Senet, and playing soldier, And on the page it says "The Egyptians were also great story tellers, and kept their children amused with popular tales of imagination & Enchantment. (Hart 52)
Ancient China
Government: Around 221 B.C. the first chinese empire was created after the Qin Soldiers defeated their remaining enemies. The first emperor, Zheng wanted to show how great he was compared to the kings he defeated, so he gained the title First Sovereign Qin Emperor or the Name Qin Shi Huangdi. Also on Page 16 it says "He built an impressive tomb guarded by thousands of
life-sized terra-cotta warrior, probably in the belief that he would remain a powerful man in the afterlife".
(Cotterell 16)
Writing: On Page 11 it says the kings would scorch the bones of Ox and Turtle shells (Oracle Bones) to communicate with ancestors about their questions. Also It states that "Cracks were then read to discover the answer to a question put to the ancestors. The answers to these questions would then be carved into the oracle bone itself. (Cotterell 11)
Religion: According to Page 26 it says "In Imperial China, religious beliefs were divided into the "three ways" of Confucianism, Daoism, and Buddhism". In China's history the county has mostly been accepting of all 3 religions, and even after disputes about certain beliefs there was barely any persecution happening. Also during the first century
A. D. Buddhism appeared in China from India, and it was very popular because of it's gentle teachings.
(Cotterell 26)
Architecture: On Page 41 it says "Chinese buildings were raised above the damp ground on platforms of rammed earth". The very heavy overhanging roofs they had on most of their building were supported by a structure of multiple strong wooden beams which made it so movement during an earthquake could happen. Also commonly in ancient china the walls surrounding cities would be square because it represented the four corners of the earth to them.
(Cotterell 41)
Art: One thing that China has always been known for is it's beautiful arts and various crafts. On page 56 it says "Although the manufacture of decorative objects involved sophisticated techniques, many were mass produced.". Also artisans in china were considered one of the most important members of society because they made tools for farming, weapons for soldiers, and they created decorated tableware along with fine silk cloths.
(Cotterell 56)
Commerce (trade): During the Mongol/Yuan Dynasty (1279 - 1368) they had a conglomerate of trading routes that span from Northern China to across Asia called the "Silk Road" which they allowed merchants to trade on. Many chinese merchants who traded on the road would gain big amounts of money from trading Silks, Spices, Porcelain, teas, and Lacquerware. Also according to the text on page 58 it says "Traditionally, merchants were excluded from civil service jobs were subject to heavier taxes" and "Mongols ignored the opinions of chinese officials, and the social position of merchants temporarily improved"
(Cotterell 58)
Location: In China there are 2 major rivers called the Yellow River in the north and the Yangzi River in the south which the Yellow River with it's fertile land is were the first civilization was located at. In the warm climate of the south, the Yangzi river was a big water supply for rice cultivation, and this in turn made the region into china's main rice producing region. Also on page 38 it says "the Yellow River often broke it's banks and caused devastating floods. This tendency to flood led to the river's other name, "China's Sorrow". ".
(Cotterell 38)
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