Exhaustive History of Early Civilizations, the Stone Age, and the Greek Golden Age

Timeline of Early Human History and Civilization

• $50,000$ years ago: First appearance of Homo sapiens.

• $35,000$ years ago: Oldest known cave art.

• $16,000\,BCE$: Inhabitants of southwest Virginia, USA, utilized flint blades.

• $13,000\,BCE$: Cave wall paintings created at Lascaux, France.

• $10,000\,BCE$: Paleo-Indians crossed Beringia into North America during a period of low water levels; Mammoths became extinct.

• $8000\,BCE$: Homo sapiens learned to cast copper and harden pottery; first villages appeared.

• $6350\,BCE$: Earliest known walled city established in Jericho.

• $5600\,BCE$: First evidence of domesticated pigs in China.

• $5500\,BCE$: Rice in use in Hunan, China along the Yangtze River; first manufacture of textiles using flax in the Middle East.

• $5450\,BCE$: Eruption of Volcano Hekla.

• $5000\,BCE$: Goats, sheep, and pigs domesticated in the Middle East.

• $4000\,BCE$: Writing developed in Sumeria; irrigation started in Zagros Mountains; Sumerian civilization built the first known cities.

• $3600\,BCE$: Use of glass began.

• $3500\,BCE$: Cotton cultivated in India; first wheel invented.

• $3200\,BCE$: Mnajdra, a megalithic temple, built in Malta.

• $3000\,BCE$: Irrigation spread to Mesopotamia.

• $2900\,BCE$: Major flood wiped out Mesopotamian cities.

• $2800\,BCE$: First calendars appeared in Mesopotamia; Hieratic script used in Egypt.

• $2750\,BCE$: City of Tyre was established.

• $2500\,BCE$: Egyptians used glass beads for jewelry and decorations.

• $2340\,BCE$: Sargon $I$ of Akkad established the first Mesopotamian Empire.

• $2000\,BCE$: First spoked wheels designed for war chariots.

• $1913\,BCE$: Start of the Egyptian-Nubian war.

Life in the Old Stone Age (Paleolithic Period)

• The Lifestyle of Early Humans:

  • Early humans lived in the Paleolithic Period as hunter-gatherers.

  • Life was difficult; people gathered fruits, berries, and edible roots while hunting wild animals.

  • They were nomadic, meaning they moved constantly to follow animal herds for food rather than settling in one location.

  • Shelter consisted of caves, animal skin tents, or built shelters.

  • Early humans were physically weaker than their prey (e.g., mammoths and bison) and relied on inventiveness and skill to hunt.

  • Protection from the cold became essential as they spread north during the last Ice Age.

• Mammoths:

  • Description: Similar to hairy modern elephants, standing up to $4\,meters$ tall and weighing up to $8\,tons$.

  • Features: Huge tusks measuring up to $4.5\,meters$ long.

  • Extinction: Occurred approximately $10,000$ years ago, though carcasses have been found preserved in frozen ground in places like Siberia, Russia.

• Tools and Technology:

  • The period is named the Stone Age because of the central importance of stone for toolmaking.

  • Initial tools: Crude stones used as hammers or inefficient knives.

  • Specialized tools: Stone knives, arrowheads for hunting, and scrapers for cleaning animal hides (used for clothes and tents).

  • Manufacturing: Created by chipping bits off one stone using another stone to shape it.

  • Secondary tools: Stone tools were used to fashion tools from animal bone, such as needles for sewing.

• The Utility of Fire:

  • Fire provided warmth, cooked food, and acted as a deterrent against predators like wolves and bears.

  • Case Study (Hunting with Fire): In $1961$, scientist Clark Howell investigated smashed bones in the Ambrona Valley, Spain. He theorized that hunters used fire to drive mammoths into marshy, muddy ground. Trapped in the mud, the heavy animals ($8\,tons$) became easy targets for spears and arrows. Evidence suggests hunters ripped open bodies to consume soft organs and harvested as much meat and skin as possible.

The Materials and Communication of the Stone Age

• Materials Beyond Stone:

  • Animals provided food, clothing, shelter, and raw materials.

  • Mammoth bones were used as frameworks for housing, which were covered with animal skins or earth.

  • Clay was molded and bone was carved to create small models of animals and people.

  • Jewelry was crafted from polished stones and metal nuggets (gold and copper) found in riverbeds.

• Early Art:

  • Cave paintings: Natural pigments from plants or ground rocks were used to paint deer, bison, and horses (e.g., Lascaux Cave, France).

  • Painted figures wearing masks and animal skins suggest religious rituals related to hunting.

  • Over $100$ cave paintings have been discovered across Europe, Africa, and Australia.

• Development of Language:

  • Humans possess strong tongue muscles enabling more varied sounds than other animals.

  • Importance of language:

    1. Cooperation: Allowed people to organize, share knowledge, and collaborate on new tools/ideas.

    2. Thought formulation: Words express and help create complex thoughts and formulate new discoveries.

The New Stone Age (Neolithic Period) and Farming

• The Transition to Agriculture:

  • The Neolithic Period was characterized by the development of agriculture and animal domestication.

  • The shift occurred approximately $10,000$ years ago at the end of the last Ice Age as the earth warmed.

  • The transition may have been driven by forest growth, shrinking plains for animal herds, or population growth exceeding what hunting could support.

  • Traditional tools: Digging sticks and stone blades for harvesting.

• Domestication of Animals:

  • Humans began taming and keeping animals for a reliable food supply (meat and milk).

  • Wool was used for blankets/clothes.

  • Animals were used for labor: Oxen for carrying heavy loads; dogs for herding sheep.

• Inventions and Metal:

  • The Neolithic Period saw the invention of the wheel and the use of clay for pottery.

  • The discovery of metal ended the Stone Age.

  • Progression of metals:

    1. Accidentally found nuggets of gold and copper used for decoration.

    2. Learning to extract metal from rocks by heating (smelting) and shaping with fire.

    3. Bronze: A mix much harder than copper, superior for tools and weapons.

    4. Iron: Even harder than bronze.

Mesopotamia: The Cradle of Civilization

• Environment and Geography:

  • Mesopotamia, a Greek word meaning "land between the two rivers," was located between the Tigris and the Euphrates (modern Iraq).

  • Rivers rose in Turkey and flowed southeast.

  • The region was well-suited for farming due to flat land and annual floods that left rich, thick mud (silt) for crops.

  • The environment facilitated the first settled societies, beginning with the Sumerian civilization around $4000\,BCE$.

• The Fertile Crescent:

  • A crescent-shaped region including the Tigris/Euphrates plains, the Mediterranean coast (Syria, Lebanon, Palestine), and the Nile Valley (Egypt).

  • Known as the "cradle of civilization" because of the early development of cities.

• Irrigation:

  • Sumerians solved low rainfall problems by digging channels to bring river water to fields.

  • Social impact: Irrigation required collective effort, encouraging the construction of larger settlements and cities.

  • Feedback loop: Irrigation produced more food $\rightarrow$ supported larger populations $\rightarrow$ provided manpower to expand irrigation systems.

The Akkadian and First Babylonian Empires

• The Akkadian Empire:

  • Rise: Around $2340\,BCE$, Sargon of Akkad conquered the Sumerian city-states.

  • Language: Akkadian, an ancestor of Semitic languages like Arabic and Hebrew.

  • Legacy: It was the first time Sumer was united under one rule, though the empire broke up during the reign of Sargon's great-grandson.

• The First Babylonian Empire:

  • Rise: Established around $1830\,BCE$ near the Euphrates, only $60\,km$ from the Tigris.

  • Strategic advantage: Controlled main trade routes of the Fertile Crescent.

  • Hammurabi the Great: Ruled from $1792\,BCE$ to $1750\,BCE$; established a Babylonian empire across Mesopotamia with a disciplined army.

• The Code of Hammurabi:

  • Recorded on stone columns (stelae) in temples.

  • Includes a picture of Hammurabi with Shamash, the god of justice.

  • Contents: $16$ lines of blessings and $280$ lines of curses.

  • Principles: The core principle was "an eye for an eye," meaning an equivalent action/punishment for a wrong.

  • Purpose: Designed to prevent families from feuding and seeking endless revenge.

• Babylonian Science and Mathematics:

  • Arithmetic: Counted in units of $60$ (sexagesimal system). This led to the $24$-hour day, $60$-second minute, $360$-degree circle, and buying in dozens ($12$).

  • Astronomy: Years were calculated as $360$ days ($12$ months of $30$ days); occasionally added an extra month to sync with the earth’s movement.

  • Zodiac: Divided the sky into $12$ parts, creating the star signs.

  • Weeks: Considered the number $7$ lucky (representing $7$ known planets), initiating the $7$-day week.

• Threat of the Hittites:

  • Fierce warriors from Anatolia (Turkey) who fought in chariots.

  • Advantage: Discovered how to make weapons from iron, which were more durable than Babylonian bronze.

  • Assyrians: Also learned to make iron weapons around $1300\,BCE$ and threatened Babylon.

Ancient Egypt: Recordkeeping and Communication

• The Writing Systems:

  1. Hieroglyphics: Developed from pictures representing whole words; later stood for sounds/letters. Used for sacred tasks (religious texts, tombs).

  2. Hieratic Script: A simpler version using symbols instead of full pictures ($2800\,BCE$); used for business and literature.

  3. Demotic Script: Further simplified version for everyday use ($600\,BCE$).

  4. Coptic: Language developed from ancient Egyptian, written using Greek letters and some demotic characters; still used by Egyptian Christians.

• Papyrus Production:

  • Made from a reed-like plant along the Nile.

  • Process: Stem split into thin strips $\rightarrow$ dampened $\rightarrow$ pressed/beaten with stones $\rightarrow$ strips stick together $\rightarrow$ dried between heavy stones.

• The Rosetta Stone:

  • Discovered in $1799$ near Rashid (Rosetta) by Napoleon’s French armies.

  • Inscriptions: Three scripts (Hieroglyphic, Demotic, and Greek).

  • Decipherment:

    • Thomas Young: Guessed circled words (cartouches) were names; deciphered "Ptolemy" and "Berenika."

    • Jean-Fran'cois Champollion: Successfully deciphered hieroglyphics in $1822$.

Ancient Egyptian Kingdoms and the Pyramids

• The Old Kingdom (The Age of Pyramids):

  • Mastabas: Low, rectangular mud-brick tombs used for early pharaohs.

  • Step Pyramid: Built by Pharaoh Djoser ($2630-2611\,BCE$) at Saqqara.

  • Great Pyramid of Giza: Built by Pharaoh Khufu; stands nearly $152\,meters$ tall; composed of $2.3\,million$ stones ($2.5\,tons$ each); required laying $285$ stones per day.

  • The Sphinx: Legendary monster with a lion’s body and human head; guards the Giza complex.

  • Labor: Built by peasants (working during flood seasons for $10$ loaves of bread and a measure of beer/day), professional craftsmen, and slaves.

• Decline of the Old Kingdom ($2150-2130\,BCE$):

  • Political chaos: $18$ kings and $1$ queen claimed the throne in $20$ years.

  • Possible factors: Weak rule of Pepi $II$ ($90$-year reign), external attacks, and low Nile floods.

  • Ecological disaster: $20-30$ years of low rainfall led to famine and desertification.

• The Middle Kingdom ($2040\,BCE$):

  • Stability restored; abolished the nomarch system to increase pharaoh’s power.

  • Expansion into Nubia (Kush) for gold mines.

  • End: Invaded by the Hyksos ($1630-1520\,BCE$) from Palestine, who used bronze weapons and horse-drawn chariots.

• The New Kingdom:

  • Greatest period of Egyptian power; professional army established.

  • Conquests: Thutmose $I$ ($1504-1492\,BCE$) and Thutmose $III$ extended the empire to the Euphrates.

  • Wealth: Slaves from Syria/Canaan; mining for copper/gold in Sinai; trade with Punt (Somalia) for frankincense and myrrh.

  • Monuments: Valley of the Kings; temples by Amenhotep $III$ ($1391-1353\,BCE$).

The Phoenicians: Traders and Seafarers

• Trade Routes:

  • Sailed the Mediterranean to Britain (for tin) and possibly around Africa.

  • Acted as middlemen between the eastern inland (incense/spices from India via Arabian caravans) and the west.

• Phoenician Ships:

  • Fighting Ships: Long, thin, equipped with rams at the prow.

  • Trading Ships: Rounder hulls.

  • Naval Technology: Developed the Bireme ($2$ rows of oars) and Trireme ($3$ rows of oars) for speed/mobility.

• Products and Innovations:

  • Tyrian Purple: Dye made from Murex sea snails; required thousands of snails for $1\,gram$ of dye. Became a status symbol for Roman emperors.

  • Glass: Invented transparent glass production.

  • Cedar Wood: Exported from Lebanon mountains for ships and palaces (desired by Egypt/Assyria).

  • Scrolls: Imported papyrus and made it into practical recording products. The Greek word biblia (book) comes from the Phoenician city of Byblos.

• The First Alphabet:

  • Used $22$ symbols representing individual consonant sounds.

  • Adapted by the Greeks (who added vowels) $\rightarrow$ Romans (Latin) $\rightarrow$ modern English/French. Closely related to Arabic and Hebrew alphabets.

Spartan Society and Government

• Social Structure:

  • Descended from Dorians (mountainous southwest Greece).

  • Ruled over slaves known as Helots; Helots farmed the land while Spartans trained for war.

  • Spartans had little respect for art or poetry; valued military discipline.

• Government (Oligarchy):

  • Established by legendary ancestor Lycurgus.

  • Assembly: All male citizens; voted by shouting.

  • Council of Elders: $30$ men; approved laws beforehand.

  • Ephors (Overseers): $5$ men; only ones who could propose new laws.

• Discipline and Lifestyle:

  • Infants: Left on hills overnight to test strength; only survivors were raised.

  • Education: Boys sent to military school at age $7$; lived in barracks until age $30$.

  • Service: Military service continued until age $60$.

  • Women: Physically trained (gymnastics); had more freedom than most Greek women.

  • Anti-luxury: Land distributed equally; public meals to prevent jealousy; used poor cooking; suspicious of foreigners.

Intellectual Achievements of the Greek Golden Age

• Philosophy: The Love of Knowledge:

  • Thales of Miletus ($653-543\,BCE$): First famous philosopher; rejected supernatural myths for logic. Theorized the earth was round and the moon reflected sunlight; believed life came from water.

  • Socrates ($470-399\,BCE$): Developed the Socratic Method (teaching by questioning). Emphasized that tradition often guides behavior more than reason.

  • Plato ($427-347\,BCE$): Student of Socrates; founded the Athens Academy. Developed the Theory of Forms (world objects are imperfect copies of ideal forms).

  • Aristotle ($384-322\,BCE$): Student of Plato; founded the Lyceum; tutor to Alexander the Great. Emphasized observation and biology; father of modern science.

• Mathematics and Science:

  • Pythagoras ($582-496\,BCE$): Associated with the Pythagorean theorem on triangles.

  • Archimedes ($287-212\,BCE$): Discovered formulas for area/volume; experimented with levers and liquid displacement.

  • Hippocrates ($460-377\,BCE$): Father of medicine; identified physical causes for disease (diet, climate) rather than gods. Doctors take the Hippocratic Oath today.

  • Aristarchus of Samos ($310-230\,BCE$): Theorized the earth orbits the sun (heliocentrism).

• History and Theater:

  • Herodotus ($484-420\,BCE$): "Father of History"; wrote The Historia (Inquiries) about the Persian Wars. Focused on human motives over divine intervention.

  • Thucydides ($460-404\,BCE$): Wrote about the Peloponnesian War; used eyewitness accounts and self-checked sources.

  • Drama:

    • Aeschylus ($525\,BCE$): Added a second actor; wrote religious/moral tragedies.

    • Sophocles ($496-406\,BCE$): Added a third actor; introduced painted stage sets.

    • Euripides ($484-406\,BCE$): Featured ordinary people; introduced tragi-comedies.

    • Aristophanes ($450-388\,BCE$): Master of comedy and satire.