THE LAND BETWEEN TWO RIVERS

WHAT CLIMATE PROBLEMS DID THE ANCIENT SUMERIANS FACE?

• 110° heat
• Scorching dusty wind
• Little rain
• Parched dry land
• Spring flooded marshes

WHAT WAS THEIR SOLUTION TO THESE PROBLEMS?

• Dams helped dry land into fertile plain
• Made canals from rivers to the fields
• Made artificial lakes to hold excess water

How did the solution effect the development of Sumerian civilization in the following categories?

Having irrigation systems gave surplus to the farmers and allowed less people to work at farming. Freed up people time to live in cities.

NEW JOBS

• Brick makers
• Canal builders
• Butchers
• Potters

Great temples were built to please the gods and store surplus grains

TRADE FARMING PRODUCTS FOR

• Wheat
• Barley
• Wool
• Dairy products
• Dates

How did the development of Sumerian civilization contribute to new ideas?

KEEPING RECORDS

• Used small clay tokens of different shapes
• Bulla-container that held tokens
• Shapes to stand for tokens
• Press marks in clay bulla to show what’s inside

TECHNOLOGY

• Plow
• Wheel
• Sailboat
• Mixed metals and created bronze

Works Cited