Similarities Between Ancient Egypt And Mesopotamia
Tulsa Community College
Reflections of a Belief System:
Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia
The belief system of a culture is seen in the arts, social order, and the laws of the people. This is evident to us today as we study the cultures of our past, for all have some sort of connection to a “higher power” in their seemingly everyday lives. Here, we will take a look at the similarities and differences of the ancient Mesopotamian peoples and the ancient Egyptians. By studying the legal systems and hierarchies of the people, we find that the ancient people of both Mesopotamia and Egypt tie in their religious affiliations with the law codes and social classes. Egyptians ruled by Theocracy, where the “state [is] ruled by a god or by the god’s representative.” (Sayre 73), usually under the direction of the Sun God, Re. Much the same, the Babylonian king Hammurabi had made strict laws for his people to follow, considering Hammurabi believed he was a “descent from the gods and his status as their favorite…” (Sayre 46), he wanted to give the people a sense of his power. For these reasons, they were held in a higher position to the lower classes. In both civilizations, art had depicted the kings and rulers to be obviously different from the lesser citizens as a way …show more content…
In most art, the rulers are made to be larger, and are often seen to be involved in an activity that presents them as stronger and more able, in such instances as in the presence of or representing the gods and their power. The Egyptians had built pyramids, and the Mesopotamians had built ziggurats, “a pyramidal temple structure consisting of successive platforms with outside staircases and a shrine on the top” (Sayre 33). To further their connection to the gods, the kings would have the few lowest classes work together to build gigantic temples to represent a gateway to the
Reflections of a Belief System:
Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia
The belief system of a culture is seen in the arts, social order, and the laws of the people. This is evident to us today as we study the cultures of our past, for all have some sort of connection to a “higher power” in their seemingly everyday lives. Here, we will take a look at the similarities and differences of the ancient Mesopotamian peoples and the ancient Egyptians. By studying the legal systems and hierarchies of the people, we find that the ancient people of both Mesopotamia and Egypt tie in their religious affiliations with the law codes and social classes. Egyptians ruled by Theocracy, where the “state [is] ruled by a god or by the god’s representative.” (Sayre 73), usually under the direction of the Sun God, Re. Much the same, the Babylonian king Hammurabi had made strict laws for his people to follow, considering Hammurabi believed he was a “descent from the gods and his status as their favorite…” (Sayre 46), he wanted to give the people a sense of his power. For these reasons, they were held in a higher position to the lower classes. In both civilizations, art had depicted the kings and rulers to be obviously different from the lesser citizens as a way …show more content…
In most art, the rulers are made to be larger, and are often seen to be involved in an activity that presents them as stronger and more able, in such instances as in the presence of or representing the gods and their power. The Egyptians had built pyramids, and the Mesopotamians had built ziggurats, “a pyramidal temple structure consisting of successive platforms with outside staircases and a shrine on the top” (Sayre 33). To further their connection to the gods, the kings would have the few lowest classes work together to build gigantic temples to represent a gateway to the