Class distinctions in ancient Egypt

Scribe (record daily life of all the other workers, accounting, accounts of battle, copying other texts, writing texts). THEY CONTROL THE HISTORY, WHAT WILL BE PASSED ON.

* always work to be done

* control over your daily life and the product of your labor

* power of others, others pandering to you.

* better work than being a suffering soldier 

* hold more respect for your life than another 

* this is not manual labor, you are not physically depleted with scribe work

* preferable to washerman , pot maker, cobbler, watchman, merchant ship crew, carpenter, tax collector, field workers, soldiers, and peasants.  

* mobility (you can climb up the ranks) 

*it is a higher in the hierarchy 

Social hierarchy 

Pharaoh 

Scribe - closer connection to the pharaoh, meaning the more power and influence you have, more possessions, more property, power over the other classes (e.g.,, peasants), own slaves.

Soldiers - a means to an end, lesser "identity" than a scribe, a pawn of the pharaoh 

washerman , pot maker, cobbler, watchman, merchant ship crew, carpenter, tax collector, field workers, soldiers, and peasants.  

Laptops for Monday!

Please bring your laptop, if you have one, to class tomorrow.  I will also have some heavy books of Egyptian and Assyrian artifacts in Egypt and Iraq for those of you still searching for a suitable pairing with your OI artifact.

Your best friend for citation purposes is http://www.citationmachine.net/chicago/cite-a-book

Examples of Artifact Citations

“Egyptian Clay Model of Cattle.” In Neil MacGregor, A History of the World in 100 Objects (New York: Viking, 2010), pg 44.

“Model of a River Boat; Middle Kingdom, Dynasty 11-12.” Chicago Institute of Art. http://www.artic.edu/aic/collections/artwork/127874

"Winged Bull Relief; Neo-Assyrian, Sargon 2." Oriental Institute.  

            https://oi-idb-static.uchicago.edu/multimedia/7976/D.%20020004_A7369_050_HDR.1920x1200.jpg

World History: Ancient and Medieval Eras, s.v. "Assyrians depart for battle via chariot," Photos/Illustrations, Ridpath, John Clark, Ridpath's History of the World, 1901, accessed November 9, 2015. http://ancienthistory.abc-clio.com/.

Examples of Secondary Source Book Citation (with explanatory text)

Chadwick, Robert. "The Assyrians." In First Civilizations Ancient Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt,  
            77. 2nd ed. Oakville, Conn.: Equinox Pub., 2005. Chadwick argues that Assyrian kings 
            including Assurnasirpal II used "war propaganda" . . . "to strike fear and terror" in opponents.
            Such propaganda and actual tortuous acts were intended "not only to punish those who had  
            revolted, but to frighten the leaders of other cities and regions". 

Examples of Secondary Source Article Citation 

Davis, Paul K. "Assyrian Army." In World History: Ancient and Medieval Eras. ABC-CLIO, 2004-. Accessed November 9, 2015. http://ancienthistory.abc-clio.com/.

Step 1 Artifact Search: Fall Quarter Research Paper Begins!

Here is the link to the handout from class today, with the hyperlinks to the galleries at the Oriental Institute as well as the articles from National Geographic, etc. regarding the endangered or destroyed cultural artifacts. All requirements and due dates are contained in this document.

Today, we began STEP ONE which requires you to (1) decide to pursue either Assyria or Egypt, (2) find an artifact you want to explore from the Oriental Institute, and (3) find a complementary artifact from Egypt or Iraq (either in a museum or in situ).  You may search the Oriental Institute from the comfort of your home using the below link and keyword search OR you may walk over there (address 1155 E. 58th).  It is closed on Mondays, open Wednesday only from 10-8, and open Tuesday, Thursday and Friday from 10-5.  When you need to explore the underlying kingdom and time period, you should use http://ancienthistory.abc-clio.com/Authentication/LogOn?returnUrl=%2F.  I gave you the username and password in class. 

http://oi-idb.uchicago.edu/ (Oriental Institute at University of Chicago)

Here is a book published by the Oriental Institute which contains countless Egyptian artifacts, along with secondary source material. 

http://www.sca-egypt.org/eng/MUS_Egyptian_Museum.htm (Supreme Council of Antiquities, Cairo) There are also a number of books which contain the collections of artifacts from the museum in Cairo.  See for example this Google Books search: https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Egyptian+Treasures+from+the+Egyptian+Museum+in+Cairo+

Narmer Palatte

Visual Detective Questions to Analyze An Artifact

Directions: Look closely at the Narmer Palatte. Using the questions below, examine its various parts as well as a whole, and answer as many of the below questions WITHOUT ANY OUTSIDE RESEARCH. (Notice a few of these questions would be impossible to answer without outside research.). The goal is to figure out what the Palatte depicts, based solely on its pictorial symbols.

• Where was the artifact found?  How was it found?  With what other artifacts was it found?  How can I use the other (outside) artifacts found with this artifact to interpret it? 

• Of what is it made in terms of materials?  What is the origin (place) of those materials?  What do those materials suggest about the culture that produced it? 

• What is its size (and relative sizes within the composition)? 

• If a scene, or consisting of separate parts, what is its layout or overall organization? 

• What are the unique stylistic features? What specific details are represented? 

• What is its purpose?  Who used it? How did they use it? Why did they use it? 

• (For artifacts depicting people/animals,) what actions do the people seem to be undertaking? Who are they? What do they represent? Is any status or rank differences evident? 

• How would you describe the life ways of the "people" based on their depictions? 

http://www.ancientegypt101.com/images/narmer_palette_2b.gif  

Mesopotamia Unit Assessment on Friday, October 23

Today's unit assessment is made up of two parts.  The first part is worth 25 points, comprised of the geography exam on the Middle East (1 point each for countries and capitals and 2.5 points for landmarks) for a total of 25 points.  The second part is worth 75 points, comprised solely of your FINAL version of your essay on Mitchell's translation of Gilgamesh and Kramer's article on the Sumerians.  Remember Gilgamesh is the king of Uruk, which was an ancient city of the Sumerians.

Gilgamesh draft feedback

• Begin you paper with a short sentence or two with the background.  Situate the reader within the time, place, people. 

• Create the most specific, argumentative thesis, showcasing the major (and separate and different) ideas underlying each body paragraph. If you don't have one now, read each body paragraph and include the main idea of each within the thesis.

• Check that your body paragraphs are well organized.  Each should deal with a DISTINCT analytical category, such as social structure, political structure, or religious beliefs.  You might be able to create two or three body paragraphs on sub-analytical categories,  such as workers, women, or children for three separate body paragraphs.  Another example could be religious deities, religious practices, etc.  A clue that your body paragraph is NOT a body paragraph is that you only have one or two sentences or pieces of evidence.

• Craft specific topic sentences that go beyond any single piece of evidence or fact and instead make an argument for that particular paragraph.  
• Not effective: Gilgamesh was the king of the people of Uruk.
• Effective: Gilgamesh failed to act as protector of the people's welfare.

• Locate and use specific textual passages from Mitchell's translation of Gilgamesh and Kramer's article on the Sumerians to support your topic sentences.   For those of you who didn't, make sure your final version incorporates specific textual passages.  These can be short and concise. 
• See below for examples. 

• Incorporate textual evidence in your essay, either using quotes or by paraphrasing it. Here is a great example of how to do this, with each source:
• Ex: According to Kramer, "Sumer was . . . inhabited by the people who spoke the non-Semitic language and had invented cuneiform writing." (71)
• Ex: Gilgamesh illustrated how political and religious power were intertwined: "Enlil granted [Gilgamesh] the kingship[.]" (90)  
• Ex: Kramer argued that Sumerians lacked "great art" (76) and yet Gilgamesh was shown repeatedly ordering the production of great works of art (69, 156-7).

• Please go through the paper and make sure you simply use PAST TENSE throughout.

• Please go through the paper and make sure you eliminate PASSIVE VOICE throughout. Start your sentences with an actor, rather than starters such as "There are several examples of" . . .
• Ex:  Gilgamesh illustrated the enormity of the powers of the Sumerian king. 
• Ex: Kramer argued that Sumerians were devoted to their gods and goddesses. 
• Ex: Gilgamesh illuminated the feasts, festivals, and funerary offerings of Sumerians (87, 154), with a similar depiction in Kramer (77, 79). 
• Note the above sentences also show how to PARAPHRASE VERY SPECIFIC IDEAS. 

Mock Trials in the Court of Hammurabi

If you were absent on Friday, Oct. 16, you are missing a grade in the gradebook for our simulation.  Scroll down and look at the cases we recreated, and then please discuss your options with me.