2. WHY ANCIENT NEAR EAST IS CONSIDERED THE CRADLE OF
CIVILIZATION?
The ancient Near East is considered the cradle of civilization. It was the
first to practice intensive year-round agriculture, it gave the rest of the
world the first writing system, invented the potter's wheel and then the
vehicular- and mill wheel, created the first centralized governments, law
codes andempires, as well as introducing social stratification, slavery and
organizedwarfare, and it laid the foundation for the fields
of astronomy and mathematics.
3. WHAT WAS THE GREATEST ACCOMPLISHMENTS OF
SUMMERIAN PEOPLE?
One of the greatest accomplishments of the Sumerian people was
the invention of the earliest known system of writing.
4. DEFINE ZIGGURAT.
A ziggurat is a stepped
pyramidal structure with a
temple or shrine on top
Functioned symbolically as
lofty bridges between earth
and the heavens
5. EXPLAIN THE ZIGGURAT AT UR.
The Ziggurat one of the last
standing monuments of the
Sumarians. Built sometime in
the 21st century BCE by King Ur-
Nammu and his son Shulgi, this
particular ziggurat was meant to
honor the city’s patron god
Nanna. The ziggurat was meant
to be Nanna’s dwelling place and
as such, it stood in the center of
the city and was the center of all
administration.
6. EXPLAIN PERSIAN ARCHITECTURE.
Persian architecture is one of the more recognizable forms of architecture within the
ancient Mediterranean. Although is not as famous as the Greco-Roman architecture
to the west, Persian architecture is similar in that it borrowed styles which were
developed by the Egyptians and even the Greeks.
Perhaps the most recognizable form of Persian architecture was developed during the
Achaemenid period. This style was highly influenced by the Egyptians and the
Greeks, as well as other provinces within the huge empire. This style used relief
sculpture in adjunct to massive monuments and complexes. Palaces of the more
notable Persian kings, including Cyrus the Great, and Xerxes I display the
Achaemenid style. These great halls are lined with huge columns, where large
numbers of audiences could be tended to. These columns are similar to Greek
columns, but their style is distinct. Persian columns are more slender, and closely
fluted than those of the Greeks. Instead of the three styles of capitals used by the
Greeks, the Persians developed their own style of using animals to adorn their
capitals. The most widely used animal was that of a winged bull.
7. EXPLAIN THE PALACE OF PERSEPOLIS
Persepolis (Old Persian Pārsa, Takht-e Jamshid or Chehel Minar)
was the ceremonial capital of the Achaemenid Empire (ca. 550-330
BCE). Persepolis is situated 70 km northeast of the modern city of
Shiraz in the Fars Province of modern Iran. In contemporary Persian,
the site is known as Takht-e Jamshid (Throne of Jamshid). The earliest
remains of Persepolis date from around 515 BCE. To the ancient
Persians, the city was known as Pārsa, which means "The City of
Persians".
8. WHAT WAS APADANA?
An apadana (Persian: )آپادانا is a large hypostyle hall, the best known examples
being the great audience hall and portico at Persepolis and the palace of Susa.
The Persepolis Apadana belongs to the oldest building phase of the city of
Persepolis, the first half of the 5th century BC, as part of the original design by
Darius the Great. Its construction completed by Xerxes I. Modern scholarships
"demonstrates the metaphorical nature of the Apadana reliefs as idealised social
orders".
9. EXPLAIN BABYLONIAN ARCHITECTURE.
In ancient Babylon, architecture
characterized by: mud-brick construction;
walls articulated by pilasters and recesses,
sometimes faced with burnt and glazed
brick; narrow rooms, mostly covered with
flat timber and mud roofs; and the
extensive use of bitumen in drain and
pavement construction and as mortar.
10. EXPLAIN THE FEATURES OF ISHTAR GATE.
The Ishtar Gate (Arabic: عشتار )بوابة was the eighth gate to the inner city of
Babylon. It was constructed in about 575 BC by order of King Nebuchadnezzar
II on the north side of the city.
• Turquoise bricks that were GLAZED
• Glazed bricks were painted and fired
• The top is an example of CRENELATION or topped with notches
• Gold-colored bricks show lions, the symbol of the goddess Ishtar
11. WRITE ABOUT HANGING GARDENS OF
BABYLON.
The Hanging Gardens of Babylon were considered to be one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient
World, and the only one of the Wonders that may have been purely legendary.
They were purportedly built in the ancient city-state of Babylon, near present-day Al Hillah, Babil
province, in Iraq. The Hanging Gardens were not the only World Wonder in Babylon; the city walls and
obelisk attributed to Queen Semiramis were also featured in ancient lists of Wonders.
“In this palace he erected very high walks, supported by stone pillars; and by planting what was
called a pensile paradise, and replenishing it with all sorts of trees, he rendered the prospect an exact
resemblance of a mountainous country. This he did to gratify his queen, because she had been
brought up in Media, and was fond of a mountainous situation.”
The Hanging Gardens probably did not really "hang" in the sense of being suspended from cables or
ropes. The name comes from an inexact translation of the Greek word kremastos, or the Latin word
pensilis, which means not just "hanging", but "overhanging" as in the case of a terrace or balcony.
