1. Compare and contrast (similarities and differences) early Mesopotamia with early Egypt.

Early Mesopotamians and Egyptians settled according to geography They needed their cities to be located in places that could easily access water for drinking and farming . For the Sumerians in Mesopotamia it was important to develop a civilization close to water , so they settled between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers . In Egypt , it was the Nile that provided water both for drinking and farming . The Nile delta flooded each year , providing newer , more fertile soil for farmers . While Mesopotamia was home to many cities , such as Babylon and Nineva , Egypt was divided [banner_entry_middle]

into only two parts , Upper and Lower Egypt

Mesopotamia was divided into several cities , so each city had its own form of government . Occasionally these cities would be united , but for the most part they were usually at war with one another . Unlike Mesopotamia , Egypt was run according to a strong centralized monarchy Both Sumerians and Egyptians believed that their kings and queens were direct descendents of the gods . Unlike the Egyptians , the Sumerians did not believe that the monarchs were actually gods . Both civilizations had a system in which the king was the ultimate ruler , priests and royalty were next in seniority , and farmers had no power . Beneath the farmers were the slaves , prevalent in both civilizations . The Sumerians developed a written language called cuneiform . Because it was a difficult form of writing to master , scribes were trained from the age of ten to learn cuneiform when fully trained , scribes were responsible for royal transmissions as well as keeping track of taxes paid . The Egyptians had a written language called hieroglyphs , which consisted mainly of pictures . One did not require special training in to write or read hieroglyphs

Both Mesopotamia and Egypt followed religions based in polytheism The Mesopotamians had many gods and goddesses who served different purposes An was the god of the sky , Marduk was the main god of Babylon and Ishtar was the goddess of love and war . They were worshipped at structures called ziggurats these were often built in to honor a particular god or goddess . When it was time to bury their dead , most were buried in graves beneath their houses , though many were buried in common graveyards . Families who could afford to do so would bury their loved ones with precious items . The Egyptians followed a different method of burying and honoring their dead . Many individuals were mummified , a process that took a great deal of time and was performed by priests . Much like the dead in Mesopotamia , ancient Egyptians were often buried with valuables and charms to ward off evil spirits

Early politics differed in Mesopotamia and Egypt . The different cities in Mesopotamia would frequently go to war and take over each other ‘s cities . The most famous leader and warlord was Gilgamesh , for whom poems and songs were written . The cities were occasionally united once by the famous leader Hammurabi . In Egypt , the position of king or queen was often an internal battle which would entail one… [banner_entry_footer]