This land is often called the "Cradle of Civilization". "Strictly speaking, it is the alluvial plain lying between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, composing parts of Iraq and Syria." (Wikipedia) This was a warring nation that was "home to some of the oldest major ancient 1.. 2. 3. 4. ART HISTORY: Mesopotamia 5. MEDITERRANEAN SEA Memphis EGYPT Nile R. RED TAURUS MTS SEA Euphrates R. SYRIA Mesopotamian Ziggurat at Ur, c. 2100 B.C. MTS OF LEBANON Tigris R. MESOPOTAMIA ARABIAN SUMER Kish What did they invent? (Remember this is 3500 BC- WOW!!!) How is a Ziggurat different from a Pyramid? What is Bas Relief? DESERT What feats did the original inhabitants, the Sumerians, master? Who are the "Urban Planners" and what structure did they create? Uruk. civilizations, including the Sumerians, Akkadians, Babylonians and Assyrians. Yet Mesopotamia was also settled, and conquered, by numerous ancient civilizations. Nippur 400 km 250 mies POROS Ur Unma Lagash CASPIAN SEA PERSIAN GULF Frank E Smith 2000 "The Dying Lioness" c. 650 BC British Museum, London. Great Pyramids of Giza, Egypt, c.2500 B.C.