Exploring Ancient Cultures Class Summary 3/3/14

with Kim Rodgers

Gilgamesh Continued...

We started off class by reviewing what we read in Gilgamesh the King last week. We read the second installment of the trilogy this week, The Revenge of Ishtar, and talked about how the ancient Mesopotamians viewed their rulers -- as a mix of man and god. After her death in our story, Shamhat, a kind woman who was much loved by the city and who filled the streets with her musical voice, was depicted as a bird. The students reflected on the characteristics of a bird that Shamhat might possess. Her beautiful voice reminded them of the song a bird sings. In our version of the story it isn’t quite clear what animal Gilgamesh might be, but it’s hairy, large, and powerful. We discussed what animals they might choose to use for a god they created or animals they might choose to represent characteristics they themselves might possess. These they created, using clay to sculpt their gods. We will be using these next week as we begin working on our own tale.

Loom-osity!

While some students chose to work with the clay, others worked on our class loom. We talked about how cloth was made in ancient Mesopotamia. They didn’t go shopping when they needed some new clothes. There was a long process involved. Students spent time weaving yarn in and out of the threads, creating wall hangings for our class. Because weaving takes time we will continue to work on them over the coming weeks. Come on in and check our progress!