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4: Learning to Build and the Evolution of Tools and Symbolic Statues (1900 BCE - 400 BCE)

  • Page ID
    31630
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    From the time of the first civilizations, people continued to adapt and explore their environments, Innovations lead to inventions making life easier and aiding in the emergence of new cultures. Simultaneously, throughout the world, ancient civilizations were constructing large structures without the aid of modern building equipment.

    • 4.1: Overview
      From the time of the first civilizations, people continued to adapt and explore their environments. Innovations lead to inventions making life more comfortable and aiding in the emergence of new cultures. Simultaneously, throughout the world, ancient civilizations were constructing large structures without the aid of modern building equipment.
    • 4.2: Middle, New, and Late Kingdom Egyptian Dynasties (1366 BCE – 332 BCE)
      The Egyptians continued as the powerhouse of the Nile River and tomb builders for the kings. Their standardized written language was into literary texts, and many technical innovations introduced around Egypt. The horse and chariot, musical instruments, bronze works, pottery, and looms evolved into modern machines.
    • 4.3: Aegean (1700 BCE – 1450 BCE)
      The largest concentration of people was on the island of Crete, home to the Minoans. They were a chief exporter of wine, crafted work, jewelry, oil, and importers of raw materials to support the growing number of people on the island. They built one of the finest fleets of merchant vessels for trading with other civilizations in the area; Egyptians, Mesopotamians, and Indus Valley people.
    • 4.4: Mesopotamia (2500 BCE – 330 BCE)
      Mesopotamia was the ancient region on the eastern side of the Mediterranean, today's Iraq and parts of Iran, Syria, and Turkey. The ancient Mesopotamians evolved into three distinct cultures: Assyrian, Babylonian, and Persian.
    • 4.5: Phoenicians (1200 BCE – 539 BCE)
      The Phoenicians were an ancient civilization living on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea in what is now Lebanon. Eventually, some of the settlements even extended along the coast of North Africa.
    • 4.6: Etruscan (900 BCE – 600 BCE)
      The Etruscans lived westward of the Tuscany region of what is now Italy, their culture influenced by the trading contacts with the Aegeans and Phoenicians.
    • 4.7: Shang and Zhou Dynasties (1766 BCE – 256 BCE)
      In China, the Xia dynasty was one of the first ancient civilizations to be described in historical records. There is some archeological evidence showing the Xia dynasty existed from 2100 to 1600 BCE as they settled on the Yellow (Huang) River.
    • 4.8: Late Jomon (1500 BCE – 300 BCE)
      The middle and late Jomon period in Japan brought about more significant expansion of settlements and new techniques with wet rice farming and bronze metallurgy. Trees were plentiful in the surrounding areas, and the Jomon people became skilled woodworkers, building permanent settlements using wood from the plentiful and long-lasting chestnut trees.
    • 4.9: Chavin (900 BCE – 200 BCE)
      Chavin culture developed during 900-200 BCE high in the northern Andes Mountains of Peru in the Mosna Valley. Settled by the Chavin, the highland plateau area is located 3150 meters above sea level, where the Mosna and Huachecsa rivers merge, forming a vibrant agricultural location.
    • 4.10: Olmec (1500 BCE – 400 BCE)
      As with most other civilizations, the Olmec civilization began where there was water, establishing their location on the alluvial fan of the Coatzacoalcos River basin. The Olmec’s erected three large sites around 900 BCE, La Venta, the largest and most prominent.
    • 4.11: Early and Middle Pre-Classic Mayan (2000 BCE – 400 BCE)
    • 4.12: Conclusion and Contrast
    • 4.13: Chapter 4 Attributions


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