Mesopotamian Daily Life
In a city like this one, there would be all sorts of classes of people
The daily life of Mesopotamians was very different from the life you or I lead. There were four main classes of people: Priests, who were the highest people. Then there were the upper class, lower class, and slaves. Slaves were the people of empires the Mesopotamians conquered. FUN FACT: Slaves sold at an auction cost less than a donkey, but more than a cow.
Women's rights and freedoms in Mesopotamia were not equal to men's. In early Mesopotmaia, women were free to go to the marketplace, do business for themselves, and own their own land. Wifes of priests and high-class women may learn to read and write. The rights of women varied by city-states, but for the most part, there was an enormous gap between the rights of the high-class and low-class women.
The rich lived in large homes, which were very tall and sometimes wide, and the poor lived in smaller homes. No one in Mesopotamia lived in huts. People made their homes of sun-dried bricks, since wood and stone were generally unavaible. Most homes were built with three stories and a flat roof, which served as another story in the house. The first floor of the house was the courtyard, where animals were kept and gardens were grown. In ancient Mesopotamia, there were richer and poorer sections of town, but everyone had their own home.
Sumerians started the idea of school. Schools were attached to the temple, and only boys were allowed to attend. If the boys misbehaved or did something wrong, they were punished, usually by whipping. FUN FACT: Mesopotamian textbooks were heavy clay tablets. Imagine carrying that in your backpack!
Women's rights and freedoms in Mesopotamia were not equal to men's. In early Mesopotmaia, women were free to go to the marketplace, do business for themselves, and own their own land. Wifes of priests and high-class women may learn to read and write. The rights of women varied by city-states, but for the most part, there was an enormous gap between the rights of the high-class and low-class women.
The rich lived in large homes, which were very tall and sometimes wide, and the poor lived in smaller homes. No one in Mesopotamia lived in huts. People made their homes of sun-dried bricks, since wood and stone were generally unavaible. Most homes were built with three stories and a flat roof, which served as another story in the house. The first floor of the house was the courtyard, where animals were kept and gardens were grown. In ancient Mesopotamia, there were richer and poorer sections of town, but everyone had their own home.
Sumerians started the idea of school. Schools were attached to the temple, and only boys were allowed to attend. If the boys misbehaved or did something wrong, they were punished, usually by whipping. FUN FACT: Mesopotamian textbooks were heavy clay tablets. Imagine carrying that in your backpack!
