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Cities and Civilization

Cities and Civilization. Turkey Mesopotamia Egypt Indus Valley Yellow River valley, China Mesoamerica Andean America E. and S. Africa. 3500-1500 BC 2000-1000 BC 0-1500 AD 1000-1500 AD 1000-1500 AD. Earliest urban “hearths”. Diffusion of urbanism.

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Cities and Civilization

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  1. Cities and Civilization

  2. Turkey Mesopotamia Egypt Indus Valley Yellow River valley, China Mesoamerica Andean America E. and S. Africa 3500-1500 BC 2000-1000 BC 0-1500 AD 1000-1500 AD 1000-1500 AD Earliest urban “hearths”

  3. Diffusion of urbanism • By urbanism we mean a way of life, a set of institutions, a kind of social organization • Invented various times and places • Diffused from each of these places to other places

  4. Urbillum, Irbil, Erbil, Arbela, Arabilu • Under control of Sumerians, Persians, Macedonians, Ottoman Empire, Kurds & Iraq • Site continuously occupied for 8,000 years (underground water source) • Has been a city for 4,300 years! • Enormous “tell” has not yet been excavated

  5. Civi… • Civic, civilization, civilize, city, civility • These English words reflect the long association between ideas of urban life and a refinement of thought and behavior • All derive from Latin • Rulers of the Roman Empire saw city building as the way to spread civilization

  6. Civil-izing viewed in retrospect • Urban life does not necessarily uplift the human spirit • The city becomes a second wilderness with its own predators & prey • Culture distracts and titillates us as often as it uplifts us • As we adapt to “second nature” we forget about our dependence on “first nature”

  7. What does this sculpture “tell” us? • Found in excavation of Teotihuacan • Says two things about the division of labor • Says something about cultural development • Labor specialization leads to the development of skills as varied as stone-carving and acrobatic performance

  8. Purpose of the city? The city was invented not once but many times, and served various needs • Defense against outsiders • An immediate concern of agriculturalists surrounded by pastoralists and other less sedentary peoples • Ceremonial Center • Monumental architecture • Residences of priests and scribes • Place for conducting periodic ceremonies and rituals • Management of resources • Creation of irrigation systems, granaries, etc. • Collection of taxes/tribute for distribution to members of the court (sometimes after sacrifice to the gods) • Distribution of stored food to subjects in times of famine

  9. Original Social Hierarchy in City • TINY MINORITY • God-King • Priests (doubled as administrators) • Technicians (e.g. surveyors, engineers) • Artisans & performers • Merchants • MAJORITY • Subjects (mostly peasant farmers) • Conquered peoples • Slaves

  10. Characteristics of Early Cities • Early cities emerge at different times in different places (meaning of “early” varies) • Populations ranging from a few thousand to more than 100,000, but generally in the 7,000-20,000 range • Generally have Citadel with monumental architecture (temples, palaces) • Often surrounded by a city wall • Often have some form of record-keeping

  11. Ziggurats (Mesopotamian temples) A place for the performance of religious ceremonies by the Mesopotamian priests, including sacrifice of animals, fruit, and even beer!

  12. The Forbidden City, Beijing http://pasture.ecn.purdue.edu/~agenhtml/agenmc/china/scenfc.html

  13. Mayan Temples Place where priests carried out ritual human sacrifices of virgins, children or prisoners before throwing down the bodies http://www.locogringo.com/past_spotlights/apr2002.html http://www.maya-art-books.org/html/New_photos.html

  14. The “Citadel” • Found in many early cities • Takes various forms • A compound of grandiose structures, often walled off from rest of city • Functioned as: • place of ceremony • home for semi-divine leaders and their “court” • storage place for food reserves

  15. “Mohenjo-Daro” (mound of the dead) • Harappan culture (Indus valley, in what is now Pakistan) • Peak around 2000 BC • About 35,000 residents • Assembly halls, giant granary, towers, and cistern (bath?) in the citadel • Planned • Axial layout • Covered sewers

  16. Cosmo-Magical Order • Regular “grid-iron” layout was not originally designed for practical purposes • Cities like Teotihuacan, Roman colonies, and China’s Forbidden City were aligned with the cardinal directions (axially) in an attempt to make them eternal and powerful • The city, especially the citadel, was believed to be the center of the universe and axiality demonstrated that idea visually

  17. “Teotihuacan” (Mexico) • Emerged as urban center around 0 AD • Lasted for more than 600 years • Influenced most of Mesoamerica • 60-80,000 inhabitants • Apartment buildings, wide avenues, huge pyramids

  18. The Forbidden City, Beijing (1420 AD) An administrative and ceremonial center off limits to ordinary Chinese http://www.chinavista.com/beijing/gugong/!start.html

  19. “Pueblo Bonito” • Chaco Canyon, NM • Built in stages beginning around 919 AD by the “Anasazi” people • 5 stories in height along back wall, up to 600 rooms in use • 1000-2000 occupants? • Access to rooms through central courtyard, which contained two great religious gathering places called kivas and was lined by over 35 smaller kivas

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