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l(ING SARGON
OF AI(I(AD
REIGNED CIRCA 2330 TO 2279 B.C.
overran China.
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STAR LOCATION
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SUPPOR1'1NG PLAY!kR
day Baghdad. Sargon began his rise as a cupbearer to the king of Kish, whom he eventually
overthrew. He then led troops against the great
rival ruler to the south, Lugalzagesi, who commanded all of Sumer. Animosities among Sumerian city-states may have hampered Lugalzagesi
in his fight against Sargon, who captured him
and placed a yoke around his neck. A celebratory
inscription later boasted that Sargon triumphed
in 34 battles on his march to the Persian Gulf,
where he "washed his weapons in the sea."
CREATION OF AN EMPIRE
Syria's Tell Brak is one of Mesopotamia's oldest cities. RIGHT: A calcite disk depicts Sargon's daughter, Enheduanna, high priestess of the temple in Ur.
OPPOSITE:
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HAMMURABI
REIGNED CIRCA I792 TO I750 B.C.
defied him. But he also provided unity and stability to his empire by compiling a code of
laws, or legal precedents, that applied to
all his subjects.
Inscribed in stone on a monument
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Hammurabis Code
favored men over women.
Adultery by a husband
mightgo unpunished,
but an unfaithful wtfo
would be executed.
did not allow for personal acts of vengeance; that
alone was a significant contribution to law and
order in civil society.
Hammurabi and other ancient conquerors
weren't above seeking vengeance themselves.
There were no rules restraining kings or emperors
from attacking one another, even when they had
formed alliances and pledged eternal friendship.
For instance, Hammurabi turned against his longtime ally the king of Mari, the ruler of a flourishing
city on the upper Euphrates River. Hammurabi
destroyed his rival's palace-along with a temple
to Shamash. In so doing, he ignored an inscription
that cursed anyone who desecrated the shrine
and entreated the gods to cut the offender's
throat and annihilate his offspring.
In strife-torn Mesopotamia, such curses were
often fulfilled. Hammurabi's dynasty lasted only
a few generations before it toppled. But his code
of laws set a vital and enduring precedent. Rulers
down through Napoleon Bonaparte issued their
own codes to unite realms that contained people
of many d if ferent customs and conceptions of
justice- and to discourage them from taking the
law into their own hands.
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WORLD SURVEY
HAPPENINGS ELSEWHERE , 2000 TO 1500 B .C.
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AUSTRONESIAN
MIGRATION
Austronesians travel
in outrigger boats and
reach Vanuatu. They
continue to Fiji and
other South Pacific
islands, where they
establish hierarchical
chiefdoms, introduce
yams and breadfruit,
and raise pigs and chickens. The Austronesian
language family eventually extends from Madagascar to Easter Island.
HARAPPANS RULE
INDUS VALLEY
From large, wellplanned cities, the Indus
Valley civilization trades
copper, ivory, and gemstones with Persia and
Mesopotamia. It has a
sophisticated culture, a
well-organized government, and a writing systern of 400 characters.
Its worship of various
gods and goddesses
may have become a part
of Hinduism.
STONEHENGE
STANDS TALL
The last stage of construction winds down at
Stonehenge, the megalithic monument that
first arose on the Salisbury Plain in England
around 3000 e.c. Made
up of local sarsen stones
and bluestones transported roughly 140 miles
from Wales, the mysterious circle is thought to
have been a religious
center and cemetery.
SHANG DYNASTY
THRIVES
The Shang dynasty
reigns over the lower
reaches of the Yellow
River Valley and the
North China Plain. The
Shang develop a writing
system known as oracle
bone script-that is,
reading cracks in burnt
bones-the foundation of
the Chinese written ianguage. They perfect the
wheel, carve jade, and
make bronze weapons.
lers
1eir
pie
s of
the
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