Ancient Egypt vs. Mesopotamia

Comparative Essay Although Old Kingdom Egypt and Ancient Mesopotamia shared some similarities in their economic and social aspects of civilization, they differed greatly culturally and in their political order. There are known to be many parallels between the famous Old Kingdom Egyptians and Ancient Mesopotamians. In particular, they had very similar economies in terms of the kind of work they did, what they produced, and how they distributed it. Either civilization probably would not have existed if it weren’t for the Agricultural Revolution that began around 10,000 BCE. Agriculture has a huge influence on their economies because both civilizations were built around these river valleys in the Fertile Crescent. Alike, they both grew wheat & barley and domesticated sheep & other animals. The rich silt, dependable flooding, and irrigation of Egypt and the irrigation technology and availability of two rivers in Mesopotamia created a surplus of food. Food surpluses thus lead to a larger population and job specialization. Agriculture became a primary part of both economies, and a job such as pottery making became a huge tool when it comes to storing and transporting goods. Weaving was also popular amongst Egyptians and Mesopotamians to make cloth out of cotton. Teachers used writing tablets and drew pictograms, cuneiform, hieroglyphics, and cursive script to teach boys the language. Many of these educated young men became scribes, which was one of the most desired jobs in ancient times. Scribes are important to this day because they allowed us to understand their cultures. Both civilizations not only traded throughout the “ancient world” (Europe, South Asia, South Africa), but they also traded with each other. Their constant communication through trade has impacted them socially because ideas and technology spread through diffusion. Social classes and slavery were very much evident in each of these places. The elite of Egypt were usually pharaohs, while the