Assyria was a Semitic Akkadian kingdom, extant as a nation state from the mid 23rd Century BC to 608 BC centred on the Upper Tigris river, in northern Mesopotamia (present day northern Iraq), that came to rule regional empires a number of times through history. It was named for its original capital, the ancient city of Assur. Their descendants still live in the region today, and they form the Christian minority in Iraq, and exist also in north east Syria, south east Turkey and north west Iran.
- Let's talk about the artistic site of Assyria. An Assyrian artistic style distinct from that of Babylonian art was the dominant contemporary art in Mesopotamia. The characteristic Assyrian art form was the polychrome carved stone relief that decorated imperial monuments. The precisely characterized reliefs affect royal affairs, chiefly hunting and war making. Authority is given to animal forms, particularly horses and lions, which are magnificently represented in great detail. Human figures are comparatively rigid and static but are also minutely detailed, as in triumphal scenes of sieges, battles, and individual combat.
- Now a little bit about the social life in Assyria. The houses of the people contained little furniture; chairs, tables and couches were used. After death, the body was usually partially cremated, along with the objects that had been buried with it. There was a large body of slaves; above them came the agriculturists and commercial classes, who were comparatively few in Assyria. Assyria had its artists, money-lenders, poets and musicians.
- Political system: The Assyrian government was very militaristic and had a monarchy. It was the Babylonians that created the code of Hammurabi. The Assyrians were the first know terrorists and were very brutal to their enemies. They tortured prisoners and slaves. The government was successful because the Assyrians built roads and started a postal service that enabled faster communication.
- One of the greatest Assyrian achievements of the fourth century was the founding of the first university in the world. The School of Nisibis had three departments: theology, philosophy and medicine, and became a magnet and center of intellectual development in the Middle East. The statutes of the School of Nisibis, which have been preserved, later became the model upon which the first Italian university was based.
- The religion in Assyria was something like a predecessor forancient Semtic religion. The Assyrians practiced polytheism, which is a belief in many gods, before largely converting to Christianity.
- There were many jobs the Assyrians had. Some of the main ones were kings, forestry, mining, priests, scribes, slaves, farmers, merchants, craftsmen and sculpters. The kings, priests, sculpters and scribes were upper class. Middle class was foresters, merchants, craftsmen and miners. Low class was slaves and farmers. The lower class usually got mistreated and had more rules and less freedom. Even though farmers got mistreated the civilization could not survive without them. They provided food for them and food for trade. Wives did not have a definite social level. They usually went into whatever social level their husband was in. The Assyrians traded the things they had a lot of for things they were low on. They traded tin, lead, textiles and surplus grain for precious metals and stone.
