Ancient Civilizations – Railway GK Capsule
1. Overview of River Valley Civilizations
| Civilization |
River |
Modern States |
Period (BC) |
Major Cities |
| Mesopotamian |
Tigris-Euphrates |
Iraq, Syria, Turkey |
3500-539 |
Uruk, Ur, Babylon |
| Egyptian |
Nile |
Egypt |
3100-30 |
Memphis, Thebes, Alexandria |
| Harappan |
Indus |
India, Pakistan |
2600-1900 |
Mohenjo-Daro, Harappa, Dholavira |
| Chinese |
Yellow (Huang He) |
China |
2100-256 |
Anyang, Luoyang |
2. Mesopotamia – “Land Between Rivers”
- Sumerians (c. 3500–2334 BC): Invented cuneiform script (earliest writing).
- Akkadian Empire (2334–2154 BC): Sargon I, world’s first emperor.
- Code of Hammurabi (1750 BC): 282 laws on stone stele—earliest written law.
- Ziggurat: Stepped temple; e.g., Great Ziggurat of Ur (~2100 BC).
- 60-based system: 60 sec/min, 360° circle legacy.
Key Terms
- Cuneiform: Latin “cuneus” = wedge.
- Gilgamesh: Epic poem, oldest literature.
3. Egypt – “Gift of the Nile”
- Unification: c. 3100 BC by King Menes (Narmer).
- Dynasties: 30 over 3 eras—Old, Middle, New Kingdom.
- Pyramids:
– Step Pyramid at Saqqara (2670 BC) – first stone building.
– Great Pyramid of Khufu (c. 2560 BC) – 146.5 m high, 2.3 million blocks.
- Rosetta Stone (196 BC): Trilingual script → deciphered hieroglyphics (Champollion, 1822 AD).
- Tutankhamun (1332–1323 BC): Tomb discovered 1922 by Howard Carter.
4. Indus Valley Civilization
- Extent: 1.5 million km²—largest among early civilizations.
- First Discovery: 1921 – Harappa (Rai Bahadur Daya Ram Sahni).
- Script: Pictographic, 400+ symbols—yet to be deciphered.
- Town Planning: Grid pattern, underground drainage, kiln-burnt bricks.
- Granaries: Great Granary at Mohenjo-Daro (150 × 50 m).
- Weights: 16-ratio system; 1 mina ≈ 13.5 g.
- Decline: c. 1900 BC; theories—climate change, tectonic shifts, Aryan influx.
5. China – Yellow River Civilization
- Xia Dynasty (c. 2100–1600 BC): Yu the Great controlled floods.
- Shang (1600–1046 BC): Oracle bones – earliest Chinese writing.
- Zhou (1046–256 BC): Mandate of Heaven concept.
- Inventions: Silk (c. 2700 BC), bronze metallurgy, crossbow.
6. Quick-Reference Tables
Table-1: Scripts & Writing Materials
| Civilization |
Script |
Material Used |
Direction |
| Mesopotamia |
Cuneiform |
Clay tablets |
Left-right |
| Egypt |
Hieroglyphics |
Papyrus |
Right-left |
| Indus |
Indus Script |
Steatite seals |
Right-left (?) |
| China |
Oracle Bone |
Turtle plastron |
Top-bottom |
Table-2: Monuments & Builders
| Monument |
Built by |
Year (BC) |
Location |
| Great Bath |
Indus People |
2600 |
Mohenjo-Daro |
| Stonehenge |
Neolithic Europeans |
2500 |
England (not river valley) |
| Pyramid of Khufu |
Pharaoh Khufu |
2560 |
Giza |
| Ziggurat of Ur |
King Ur-Nammu |
2100 |
Ur (Iraq) |
7. One-Liner Revision Facts
- Mesopotamia = “Mesos” (middle) + “Potamos” (river) in Greek.
- Egypt’s calendar = 365 days, based on Nile flood cycle.
- Indus people = first to grow cotton (Gossypium arboreum).
- Mesopotamian wheel = invented c. 3500 BC for potters, then chariots.
- Hammurabi’s Code = “eye for an eye.”
- Largest Harappan site = Rakhigarhi (Haryana, India).
- Egyptians called their land “Kemet” = black soil.
- Chinese calligraphy brushes = invented 3000 BC.
- Indus Valley = no evidence of temples or palaces.
- Mesopotamian Epic of Gilgamesh has flood story predating Noah.
8. Multiple-Choice Questions (MCQs)
Q1. Which river was the lifeline of the Mesopotamian civilization?
Ans. Tigris-Euphrates
Q2. The Great Bath was discovered in which Indus site?
Ans. Mohenjo-Daro
Q3. Who is credited with the unification of Upper & Lower Egypt?
Ans. Menes (Narmer)
Q4. The world’s first written law code was compiled by—
Ans. Hammurabi
Q5. The script of the Indus Valley Civilization is classified as—
Ans. Pictographic & Undeciphered
Q6. Which dynasty in China is associated with oracle bones?
Ans. Shang
Q7. The Great Pyramid of Giza was built for which Pharaoh?
Ans. Khufu
Q8. The term “Mandate of Heaven” originated in—
Ans. Zhou Dynasty, China
Q9. The world’s first emperor, Sargon I, belonged to which region?
Ans. Akkad (Mesopotamia)
Q10. The Indus people’s ratio system of weights was based on—
Ans. 16 (binary multiple)
Q11. Which among the following is NOT a Mesopotamian city?
Ans. Thebes (Egyptian city)
Q12. The Rosetta Stone helped decipher which script?
Ans. Egyptian Hieroglyphics
Q13. The earliest evidence of silk comes from which civilization?
Ans. Chinese
Q14. Which Indus site is located in present-day Gujarat?
Ans. Dholavira
Q15. The Step Pyramid at Saqqara was designed by—
Ans. Imhotep
9. Key Dates to Memorize
| Event |
Year (BC) |
| Sumerian cities flourish |
3500 |
| Egyptian unification |
3100 |
| Indus cities peak |
2600 |
| Great Pyramid completed |
2560 |
| Hammurabi’s Code |
1750 |
| Shang Dynasty starts |
1600 |
| End of Indus cities |
1900 |
Tip: Cover one civilization per day; revise one-liners every night.
BETA
