It's Monumental
Have you ever thought about what you’re going to leave behind after you pass away? Everyone leaves some type of footprint on this world either big or small. If we were wiped out would the next people know what dorms were? What would they think of a cemetery? On a bigger scale, leaving behind monuments was a way for the ancient people to leave their mark. Building monuments was a way to show off power or to emphasize major events.
One of the most famous monuments, the Great Pyramid of Giza, gives us a glimpse into their everyday lives. The pyramids that were built with stone have been able to withstand time. They used the pyramids as tombs for the royal families and sometimes servants. In each tomb room they would leave beloved items such as clothing, jewelry, food, weapons, and even games. These tombs could be seen from miles away.
The Great Sphinx of Giza was closely built by the pyramids. The original purpose of the sphinx is currently unknown but many believe the sphinx is protecting the Giza plateau or guarding the tombs. The building of these monuments shows the people of Egypt had great mathematical, physics, astronomy, engineering, and many other skills. These monuments in Egypt were build over a long period of time with many slaves.
The Ziggurat of Ur was built to show outsiders the power and skill that Ur possessed. The Ziggurat of Ur is one of the largest ziggurats of Mesopotamia. The steps of the ziggurat are thought to lead to heaven. On the top there is a temple that was thought to have connected heaven and earth. The people of Mesopotamia thought that the gods and goddesses would be please by their creation. Ziggurats were built with mud which makes them harder to preserve over periods of time. With the ziggurat you can conclude that Mesopotamians were highly skilled mathematicians and architects.
A more recent memorial monument could be Mount Rushmore. Carved into the side of a mountain are the faces of the four greatest presidents. This is a site that attracts many visitors every year. It may not be a religious monument but it is in honor of past United States Presidents. Like the pyramidal tombs in Egypt, the pharaohs or royals were honored by them. They could be seen from far away. In the United States, not too long ago, we designed our leaders’ faces on a mountain to remember them. Mount Rushmore can be seen from far away as well with the past leaders of our country. However, we have different machines and equipment that we used that people didn’t use back then.
Throughout the years many monuments have been built, big or small. Monuments can be seen for miles giving outsiders a glimpse on what to expect. Monuments can be built for a number of reasons. This could include the showing of power, memorial sites, or even religious grounds. Monuments can be found around the world in different cultures with different backgrounds.
Sources:
The Great Pyramids of Giza. (n.d.). Retrieved February 02, 2018, from https://smarthistory.org/the-great-pyramids-of-giza/
Ziggurat of Ur. (n.d.). Retrieved February 02, 2018, from https://smarthistory.org/ziggurat-of-ur/
I like that you compare the Pyramids and Ziggurats to Mount Rushmore. I never would have considered that the same thing. I think its really neat that they built these monuments for their leaders. How do you think the workers felt about building these monuments back then? do you think they would have had the same way of thinking that we have now? Do you think they appreciated the work they were doing for there leaders? Do you think they hated it? How do you think they were able to move all of the stone? thinking about it like that really puts it into perspective, on how hard they would have had to work to build these things.
ReplyDeleteI also liked that you compared the religious monuments to Mount Rushmore. I also wouldn't have put those into the same perspective but great comparison. How big were the tombs exactly? How long did it take for the slaves to finish building these types of structures? Overall, great choice of topic.
ReplyDeleteI thought this was a very interesting comparison that you chose between the different monuments and our Mount Rushmore. It was very good. I believe that you can look at this and compare with most cultures because I would think that a lot of countries have monuments of some of their greatest leaders. This shows respect towards those leaders.
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