1. Mesopotamia:Writing, Literature, Art and Sculpture By: Justine Colford, Jewelya Taylor & Christopher Connick

2. Mesopotamia:Writing, Literature, Art and Sculpture Title Contents Writing 4. How They Wrote 5.Gaining Knowledge 6. Cuneiform Examples 7. Video 8. Art 9. Worship 10. Examples 11. Literature 12. The Epic of Gilgamesh (Video) 13. Gilgamesh Vs. Noah 14. Sources 15. The End Contents:

3. Writing Sumerians created one of the earliest forms of writing: Cuneiform. Basically pictograms of what they were trying to say. Used by scribes to record information. Evolved over many years.

4. How They Wrote As cuneiform was not a language it was based upon pictures. Used a reed stylus to draw upon clay tablets. Clay was packed into a tablet and then baked. Because they preserved their writing, we can learn more about them.

5. Gaining Knowledge Henry Rawlinson discovers ancient carvings in modern day Iran- 1835. The carvings contained 2 languages. He spoke only one. Using his knowledge of Old Persian he spent 12 years deciphering the text. These discoveries lead us to discover Sumer, which was unknown until then.

6. Cuneiform Examples

7. Video Now for a short video summary on what you’ve learned so far. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DCjtPRHRZs8

8. Art They did not impact art as much as other civilizations as they were constantly involved in wars. Their topics were influenced by heavy conflict and thirst for power. Sculptures and other pieces often used beards as a symbol for power.

9. Worship Almost everyone had a small statue in their home representing a God for daily worship.

10. Examples

11. Literature The most common form of literature in Mesopotamia was an “Epic.” An Epic is a very long poem that tells a story. One example of an Epic is The Epic of Gilgamesh.

12. The Epic of Gilgamesh http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xEeW1tx5QrQ

13. Gilgamesh Vs. Noah The Epic Of Gilgamesh Flood is sent by assembly of Gods. Ordered to build a ship. Must gather 2 of each animal. Lasts 6 days, all wicked is wiped out. 3 different birds are sent out. Ship rests on mountain. The Bible Flood is sent by God. Ordered to build an Ark. Must gather a male and female of each animal. Lasts 40 days, all sinners die. 3 Birds are sent out later. They stop on a mountain.

14. Sources http://www.historylink101.com/lessons/art_history_lessons/mesopotamian_art_lesson.htm http://www.crystalinks.com/sumerwriting.html http://www.calligraphylearn.com/cuneiform-alphabet.html http://www.mesopotamia.co.uk/menu.html http://www.icr.org/article/noah-flood-gilgamesh/

15. The End Thank You