Everything Was Invented In Mesopotamia Quiz

Answer: Tigris and Euphrates

The annual flooding of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers in ancient Mesopotamia, somewhat unpredictable and violent at times, created an urgent need for the people to join together in order to avert a potential disaster. After reservoirs were built to store the precious water for use in irrigation, the people were able to use the fertile floodplain to their advantage, and grow enough food to allow not only permanent settlement, but eventually urbanization as well.

It is estimated that the Neolithic Revolution began there sometime around 10,000 BC; dating to approximately 5400 BC, Eridu, which is about 7.5 miles away from the famous biblical city-state of Ur, is believed by some to be the oldest city in the world.

Although there is evidence of an older use of irrigation in other areas of the world, scientists give Mesopotamians the credit for the oldest irrigation system that was built according to a plan which required an organized work force.

Answer: Phonograms

Cuneiform writing was typically made with a wedge-shaped stylus which the writer would press into damp clay. The clay tablets would then be dried in the sun and baked in ovens; fortunately for us, this process produced permanent records when kept in ideal conditions. Cuneiform originated with simple picture writing that simply stood for the object in the picture; it was followed by the use of ideograms, which conveyed more abstract ideas like eating or drinking, using more abstract symbols. Over time, the pictographs and ideograms evolved into phonograms, and the symbols came to represent syllables or sounds that made up words. Hieroglyphics, the well known writing from ancient Egypt, is also a type of phonographic writing where the pictures represented sounds or syllables of a word.

Answer: Lunar

Many instances of early calendars from ancient peoples have been discovered; for example, a mesolithic calendar found in Warren Field, Aberdeenshire, Scotland, has been called by some the oldest known calendar in the world. In Mesopotamia, keeping track of time was important in order to predict the coming flood, and making sure that all preparations were made.

The appearance of the waxing crescent moon just after sunset was the signal of the beginning of each month; each month was 29 or 30 days long, and extra days were added from time to time to keep in step with the solar year. Eventually the Sumerian calendar was modified by the Babylonians, who used a lunisolar calendar, which was passed on to the Assyrians, Chaldeans, and eventually the Hebrews when they were in Babylonian Captivity.

Answer: Sexagesimal

Originating in the third millennium BC, the sexagesimal system was the basis of what became our sixty second minute, sixty minute hour, and 360 degree circle. In fact, the ancient Mesopotamians are given credit in many works for creating time! Living in a culture where religion was all-powerful, the Sumerians, who laid the foundation for civilization in ancient Mesopotamia, worshiped their principal god Anu, the sky god, who was represented by the number 60.

This number system was passed on to the Babylonians, and eventually to other ancient peoples.

Answer: The Royal Standard of Ur

In 1922, Sir Leonard Wooley made a fantastic discovery in the ancient city of Ur, which was located near the confluence of the rivers in Mesopotamia. Built for King Abargi and Queen Shubad, who ruled Ur in approximately 3000 BC, the Royal Cemetery contained a wealth of artifacts that helped to shed some light on life in ancient Sumer. One of the items that was found in the tomb has been named the Royal Standard of Ur.

Although the artifact was small, measuring just 22 inches x 11 inches, it was decorated with shell and lapis lazuli. On one side of the panel, scenes of war were depicted, and guess what mechanized warfare was being used? Horses and chariots! It is believed, however, that the first wheels were not used for transportation; instead they were probably first used by potters as early as 3500 BC in Mesopotamia.

Answer: Seven Day Week

Not to be confused with the Amorite Babylonians, the Chaldeans, also called the New Babylonians, are given credit by some sources as being the first astronomers. That doesn't mean that people were not studying the stars before them; it is a nod to their ability to study the stars and heavens.

Not only were they able to forecast eclipses of the moon, they also computed the length of the solar year and the tilt of the earth's axis. Able to distinguish planets from stars, Chaldeans astronomers studied Venus, Mercury, Jupiter, Mars, and Saturn, the five planets closest to earth. Along with the sun and the moon, these planets had their own deities, which were each worshiped on a separate day in succession. Believing that life was an endless cycle of repetition, which occurred over and over, the ancient Chaldeans brought the seven day week into existence.

Answer: Hammurabi Code

Even though the Sumerians believed that illness was caused by demons as retribution for rules broken, there does appear to have been progress made in the field of medicine that was passed on to the Babylonians. The Hammurabi Code specifically spells out not only the consequences if something goes wrong (#218 "If a physician make a large incision with the operating knife, and kill him, or open a tumor with the operating knife, and cut out the eye, his hands shall be cut off"), but also fees that were to be paid (#221 "If a physician heal the broken bone or diseased soft part of a man, the patient shall pay the physician five shekels in money").

The Stele of Victory is associated with the Akkadian king Naramsin's victory over his enemies, the Ebers Papyrus is a medical text from ancient Egypt, and the Bower Manuscript is a medical text from the Gupta Era in India.

Answer: Zero

The Sumerian counting system was handed down to the ancient Babylonians by the Akkadians in approximately 300 BC; many scholars still debate today whether or not the Sumerian system had a placeholder for the concept of zero. It was the Babylonians, however, who created a placeholder for the concept - a pair of angled wedges.

Independently, of course, the concept of zero was also developed by the Mayans in the Americas in approximately 350 AD. Scholars still debate today how the idea arrived in India in 458 AD. Was it handed down from the Babylonians or developed independently? Interestingly Sumerian multiplication tables and division problems have been found on clay tablets that date to approximately 2500 BC.

While Euclid still bears the title, "Father of Geometry", it is obvious that those concepts were developed by the ancient Egyptians in their pyramid building.

Answer: Gargoyle

The ancient Mesopotamians created some of the first monumental buildings in the world; not only that, but they were made of a material that most would not view as being very permanent - clay! Because there were few trees and no native stone, they had to rely on the only plentiful material. Ancient architects, who apparently were really scribes who administered the work and recorded what was done, did discover that clay bricks that were fired in a kiln were more durable.

The result? Awesome ziggurats, built as temple complexes that included buildings for public meetings, grain storage, and the like, beginning approximately 3500 BC! Believed to be the dwelling place of the gods when they visited the city, only priests were allowed in the complex, which consisted of a series of terraces that were supported by buttresses.

Other structures found indicate the use of corbel vaulting, columns, and even domes. Gargoyles, typically associated with medieval architecture, appear to date back to ancient Egypt, where the gargoyles that collected water were in the shape of a lion's head.

Answer: 365-Day Calendar

There is much evidence provided by both carvings and cylinder seals that the Sumerians made extensive use of sail boats in fishing, as well as trade. Due to the lack of timber in the region, boats were made of reeds, however, wood for shipbuilding was also imported.

The belief in and use of astrology probably also dates back to the Sumerians, however, the Babylonians and New Babylonians made use of what has become known as zodiac signs. It makes sense that the plow was invented in ancient Mesopotamia, considering all of the rich and fertile soil there, as well as the fact that some of the oldest farming sites known have been found in the area.

The ancient Egyptians are the ones who deserve credit for the 365-Day Calendar.