The earliest of the city states of the ancient Near East appeared at the southern end of the Mesopotamian plain, the area between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers in what is now Iraq. It was here that the civilization known as Sumer emerged in its earliest form in the fifth millennium. At first sight, the plain did not appear to be a likely home for a civilization. There were few natural resources, no timber, stone, or metals. Rainfall was limited, and what water there was rushed across the plain in the annual flood of melted snow. As the plain fell only 20 meters in 500 kilometers, the beds of the rivers shifted constantly. It was this that made the organization of irrigation, particularly the building of canals to channel and preserve the water, essential. Once this was done and the silt carried down by the rivers was planted, the rewards were rich: four to five times what rain-fed earth would produce. It was these conditions that allowed an elite to emerge, probably as an organizing class, and to sustain itself through the control of surplus crops.
It is difficult to isolate the factors that led to the next development—the emergence of urban settlements. The earliest, that of Eridu, about 4500 B.C.E., and Uruk, a thousand years later, center on impressive temple complexes built of mud brick. In some way, the elite had associated themselves with the power of the gods. Uruk, for instance, had two patron gods—Anu, the god of the sky and sovereign of all other gods, and Inanna, a goddess of love and war—and there were others, patrons of different cities. Human beings were at their mercy. The biblical story of the Flood may originate in Sumer. In the earliest version, the gods destroy the human race because its clamor had been so disturbing to them.
It used to be believed that before 3000 B.C.E. the political and economic life of the cities was centered on their temples, but it now seems probable that the cities had secular rulers from earliest times. Within the city lived administrators, craftspeople, and merchants. (Trading was important, as so many raw materials, the semiprecious stones for the decoration of the temples, timbers for roofs, and all metals, had to be imported.) An increasingly sophisticated system of administration led in about 3300 B.C.E. to the appearance of writing. The earliest script was based on logograms, with a symbol being used to express a whole word. The logograms were incised on damp clay tablets with a stylus with a wedge shape at its end. (The Romans called the shape cuneus and this gives the script its name of cuneiform.) Two thousand logograms have been recorded from these early centuries of writing. A more economical approach was to use a sign to express not a whole word but a single syllable. (To take an example: the Sumerian word for " head” was “sag.” Whenever a word including a syllable in which the sound “sag” was to be written, the sign for “sag" could be used to express that syllable with the remaining syllables of the word expressed by other signs.) By 2300 B.C.E. the number of signs required had been reduced to 600, and the range of words that could be expressed had widened. Texts dealing with economic matters predominated, as they always had done; but at this point works of theology, literature, history, and law also appeared.
Other innovations of the late fourth millennium include the wheel, probably developed first as a more efficient way of making pottery and then transferred to transport. A tablet engraved about 3000 B.C.E. provides the earliest known example from Sumer, a roofed boxlike sledge mounted on four solid wheels. A major development was the discovery, again about 3000 B.C.E., that if copper, which had been known in Mesopotamia since about 3500 B.C.E., was mixed with tin, a much harder metal, bronze, would result. Although copper and stone tools continued to be used, bronze was far more successful in creating sharp edges that could be used as anything from saws and scythes to weapons. The period from 3000 to 1000 B.C.E., when the use of bronze became widespread, is normally referred to as the Bronze Age.
Paragraph 1: The earliest of the city states of the ancient Near East appeared at the southern end of the Mesopotamian plain, the area between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers in what is now Iraq. It was here that the civilization known as Sumer emerged in its earliest form in the fifth millennium. At first sight, the plain did not appear to be a likely home for a civilization. There were few natural resources, no timber, stone, or metals. Rainfall was limited, and what water there was rushed across the plain in the annual flood of melted snow. As the plain fell only 20 meters in 500 kilometers, the beds of the rivers shifted constantly. It was this that made the organization of irrigation, particularly the building of canals to channel and preserve the water, essential. Once this was done and the silt carried down by the rivers was planted, the rewards were rich: four to five times what rain-fed earth would produce. It was these conditions that allowed an elite to emerge, probably as an organizing class, and to sustain itself through the control of surplus crops.
1: Which of the following is NOT mentioned in paragraph 1 as a disadvantage of the Mesopotamian plain?
○There was not very much rainfall for most of the year.
○ Melting snow caused flooding every year.
○ The silt deposited by rivers damaged crops.
○ Timber, stone and metals were not readily available.
2: According to paragraph 1, which of the following made it possible for an elite to emerge?
○ New crops were developed that were better suited to conditions on the Mesopotamian plain.
○ The richest individuals managed to gain control of the most valuable cropland.
○ Control over the few available natural resources made some people four to five times richer than everyone else.
○ The building of canals to increase agricultural output required organization.
3: The word “sustain" in the passage is closest in meaning to
○ defend
○ promote
○ maintain
○ transform
Paragraph 2: It is difficult to isolate the factors that led to the next development—the emergence of urban settlements. The earliest, that of Eridu, about 4500 B.C.E., and Uruk, a thousand years later, center on impressive temple complexes built of mud brick. In some way, the elite had associated themselves with the power of the gods. Uruk, for instance, had two patron gods—Anu, the god of the sky and sovereign of all other gods, and Inanna, a goddess of love and war—and there were others, patrons of different cities. Human beings were at their mercy. The biblical story of the Flood may originate in Sumer. In the earliest version, the gods destroy the human race because its clamor had been so disturbing to them.
4: According to paragraph 2, Eridu and Uruk are examples of urban settlements that
○ lacked the features usually found in other early urban settlements
○ developed around religious buildings
○ grew much more rapidly than most of the urban settlements found in Sumer
○ were mysteriously destroyed and abandoned
5: The word “sovereign" in the passage is closest in meaning to
○ counselor
○ master
○ defender
○ creator
Paragraph 3: It used to be believed that before 3000 B.C.E. the political and economic life of the cities was centered on their temples, but it now seems probable that the cities had secular rulers from earliest times. Within the city lived administrators, craftspeople, and merchants. (Trading was important, as so many raw materials, the semiprecious stones for the decoration of the temples, timbers for roofs, and all metals, had to be imported.) An increasingly sophisticated system of administration led in about 3300 B.C.E. to the appearance of writing. The earliest script was based on logograms, with a symbol being used to express a whole word. The logograms were incised on damp clay tablets with a stylus with a wedge shape at its end. (The Romans called the shape cuneus and this gives the script its name of cuneiform.) Two thousand logograms have been recorded from these early centuries of writing. A more economical approach was to use a sign to express not a whole word but a single syllable. (To take an example: the Sumerian word for " head” was “sag.” Whenever a word including a syllable in which the sound “sag” was to be written, the sign for “sag" could be used to express that syllable with the remaining syllables of the word expressed by other signs.) By 2300 B.C.E. the number of signs required had been reduced to 600, and the range of words that could be expressed had widened. Texts dealing with economic matters predominated, as they always had done; but at this point works of theology, literature, history, and law also appeared.
6: According to paragraph 3, which of the following led to the appearance of writing?
○ An increasingly sophisticated administrative system
○ Coordination between secular and religious leaders
○ The large volume of trade, particularly imports
○ A rapidly expanding and changing population
7: In paragraph 3, why does the author provide the information that the number of signs in use had dropped from 2,000 to 600 by 2300 B.C.E.?
○ To argue that the development of writing involved periods of growth followed by periods of decline
○ To demonstrate that earlier written texts used a larger vocabulary than later texts, which were aimed at a broader audience
○ To support the claim that the range of words expressed by logograms varied widely depending on time period and type of text
○ To provide evidence for the increased efficiency of using signs to express syllables rather than whole words
8: According to paragraph 3, ancient texts most commonly dealt with
○ theology
○ literature
○ economics
○ law
Paragraph 4: Other innovations of the late fourth millennium include the wheel, probably developed first as a more efficient way of making pottery and then transferred to transport. A tablet engraved about 3000 B.C.E. provides the earliest known example from Sumer, a roofed boxlike sledge mounted on four solid wheels. A major development was the discovery, again about 3000 B.C.E., that if copper, which had been known in Mesopotamia since about 3500 B.C.E., was mixed with tin, a much harder metal, bronze, would result. Although copper and stone tools continued to be used, bronze was far more successful in creating sharp edges that could be used as anything from saws and scythes to weapons. The period from 3000 to 1000 B.C.E., when the use of bronze became widespread, is normally referred to as the Bronze Age.
9: According to paragraph 4, the earliest wheels probably
○were first developed in areas outside Mesopotamia
○were used to make pottery
○ appeared on boxlike sledges
○ were used to transport goods between cities
10: The word “engraved” in the passage is closest in meaning to
○ carved
○ produced
○ dated
○ discovered
11: Which of the sentences below best expresses the essential information in the highlighted sentence in the passage? Incorrect choices change the meaning in important ways or leave out essential information.
○ Also around 3000 B.C.E., it was discovered that mixing copper, known from about 3500 B.C.E., with tin would create a much harder metal known as bronze.
○ Although copper had been known since 3500 B.C.E in Mesopotamia, the discovery of bronze did not occur until around 3000 B.C.E.
○ Another major development around 3000 B.C.E. was the discovery that copper could be mixed with a much harder metal known as tin.
○ The development of bronze by mixing copper and tin probably occurred around 3000 B.C.E. but may have happened as early as 3500 B.C.E.
12: The word “widespread” in the passage is closest in meaning to
○ obvious
○ significant
○ necessary
○ common
Paragraph 3: It used to be believed that before 3000 B.C.E. the political and economic life of the cities was centered on their temples, but it now seems probable that the cities had secular rulers from earliest times. ■Within the city lived administrators, craftspeople, and merchants. (Trading was important, as so many raw materials, the semiprecious stones for the decoration of the temples, timbers for roofs, and all metals, had to be imported.) ■An increasingly sophisticated system of administration led in about 3300 B.C.E. to the appearance of writing. ■The earliest script was based on logograms, with a symbol being used to express a whole word. ■The logograms were incised on damp clay tablets with a stylus with a wedge shape at its end. (The Romans called the shape cuneus and this gives the script its name of cuneiform.) Two thousand logograms have been recorded from these early centuries of writing. A more economical approach was to use a sign to express not a whole word but a single syllable. (To take an example: the Sumerian word for " head” was “sag.” Whenever a word including a syllable in which the sound “sag” was to be written, the sign for “sag" could be used to express that syllable with the remaining syllables of the word expressed by other signs.) By 2300 B.C.E. the number of signs required had been reduced to 600, and the range of words that could be expressed had widened. Texts dealing with economic matters predominated, as they always had done; but at this point works of theology, literature, history, and law also appeared.
13: Look at the four squares [■]that indicate where the following sentence could be added to the passage.
City life was diverse, and the population was engaged in a variety of occupations.
Where would the sentence best fit?
14: Directions: An introductory sentence for a brief summary of the passage is provided below. Complete the summary by selecting the THREE answer choices that express the most important ideas in the passage. Some sentences do not belong in the summary because they express ideas that are not presented in the passage or are minorideas in the passage. This question is worth 2 points.
Irrigation made it possible for the civilization known as Sumer to arise on the Mesopotamian plain in the fifth millennium B.C.E.
Answer Choices
○ The scarcity of natural resources on the plain made it necessary for a powerful elite to emerge and take charge of trade and imports.
○ The economy of each city was based on a craft such as pottery or metal working, and the city of Eridu was known for its saws, scythes and weapons.
○ Writing appeared in the form of logograms and later developed into a system using signs to represent syllables rather than whole words.
○ Priests were powerful figures in the ancient civilization and controlled the political and economic life of the cities.
○ The earliest city states had one or more patron gods and were built around central temple complexes.
○ The development of the wheel and the creation of bronze were important innovations in Sumer
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參考答案：
1. ○3
2. ○4
3. ○3
4. ○2
5. ○ 2
6. ○1
7. ○4
8. ○3
9. ○2
10. ○ 1
11. ○1
12. ○4
13. ○1
14. ○ Writing appeared in the form of logograms and later developed into a system using signs to represent syllables rather than whole words.
○ The earliest city states had one or more patron gods and were built around central temple complexes.
○ The development of the wheel and the creation of bronze were important innovations in Sumer
古代西亞地區(qū)最早的城邦出現(xiàn)在美索不達米亞平原的最南邊，這個位于底格里斯河和幼發(fā)拉底河之間如今被稱為伊拉克的地區(qū)。5 000年前，正是在這里出現(xiàn)了蘇美爾文明的早期形態(tài)。乍看之下，這個平原并不像是一個（古老）文明的發(fā)源地。這里自然資源稀缺，木材、石料以及金屬都極其匱乏。降雨量有限，當(dāng)?shù)厮Y源的主要來源是每年冰雪融化導(dǎo)致的沖過平原的洪水。因為該平原在方圓500公里內(nèi)的海拔落差只有20米，所以河床（的位置）不斷地發(fā)生變化。這就使得灌溉系統(tǒng)的規(guī)劃至關(guān)重要，特別是（如何）建造水渠以疏導(dǎo)和保存水資源。這些灌溉工程完成以及河流沖積下的淤泥就會沉積在此處，帶來的回報相當(dāng)可觀：其產(chǎn)出量會比靠雨水滋潤的土地高出4~5倍。正是這些環(huán)境條件使得在該地誕生了一個可能充當(dāng)管理階層的“精英”，這一階層通過對余糧的控制來養(yǎng)活自己。
很難把導(dǎo)致蘇美爾文明進一步發(fā)展，即城市聚居點的出現(xiàn)的諸多因素孤立起來看待。其中最早的，如公元前4500年的埃利都以及之后1000年出現(xiàn)的烏魯克，都以用泥磚建造的令人驚嘆的廟宇群為中心。通過某些方式，這些“精英”將自己與神靈之力聯(lián)系在一起。以烏魯克為例，這個城邦有兩個守護神——天神以及眾神之主安努和愛與戰(zhàn)爭女神伊南娜——不同的城市還有其他的守護神。人類受神靈庇佑且掌控。圣經(jīng)中關(guān)于洪水的故事可能起源于蘇美爾。在最早的版本中，神靈們意圖毀滅人類，因為人類太過喧囂吵鬧令諸神厭煩不已。
曾經(jīng)，人們認為公元前3000年之前，這些城邦的政治經(jīng)濟生活是以廟宇群為中心的，但是現(xiàn)在看來，這些城邦很可能早期就有世俗的統(tǒng)治者。城邦中生活著管理者們、手工藝人以及商人。（因為有如此多的原材料、裝飾廟宇用的半寶石石料、建造屋頂用的木材以及所有的金屬都必須進口，貿(mào)易就顯得很重要了。）一個日益復(fù)雜的管理系統(tǒng)促使了書寫在公元前3300年左右的誕生。最早的手寫體以縮記符為基礎(chǔ)，用符號來表達一個詞。這些字符是用楔形狀的鐵筆，被雕刻在潮濕的陶土版上（因此字符末端也呈楔形）。（古羅馬人把這種形狀稱之為楔形（cuneus）并把這種手寫體稱之為楔形文字（cuneiform）。）這些早期的書寫文字記錄了2000個這樣的字符。后來出現(xiàn)一種更加方便的書寫方法：使用一個符號去代表一個音節(jié)而非整個單詞。（例如，在蘇美爾語中表示“頭”的詞是“sag”。每當(dāng)一個詞中含有“sag”這個音節(jié)，書寫時都會寫上“sag”，“sag”被用于表達這一發(fā)音，而該詞其他部分的發(fā)音則會用其他的符號來表達。）到公元前2300年，書寫所需用到的符號數(shù)量下降到了600個。單詞表達的范圍卻擴大了。有關(guān)經(jīng)濟方面的文本占主導(dǎo)地位，它們歷來如此；但同時，關(guān)于神學(xué)、文學(xué)、歷史和法律的作品也孕育而生了。
4000年前的晚期的發(fā)明還包括輪子，這一發(fā)明最初可能是用于提高陶器的生產(chǎn)效率的，而后被應(yīng)用到交通運輸上。雕刻于約公元前3000年、來自蘇美爾的一塊陶土板上提供了已知最早的例證：一個帶頂棚的箱狀雪橇被安裝在四個實心的輪子上。一個重大進展同樣也發(fā)生在約公元前3000年，銅在約公元前3500年就為美索不達米亞人所熟知，如果將銅和錫混合在一起，就可以制造出一種更堅硬的金屬——青銅。雖然銅制和石器還在繼續(xù)被使用，但是青銅器更受歡迎，因為它可以被鑄成鋒利的邊緣應(yīng)用到鋸、鐮刀和武器等各方面。公元前3000年到公元前1000年青銅器被廣泛使用的這一時期通常被稱為青銅時代。
