In western Asia there are two big rivers –the Tigris and the Euphrates. They run through a large, fertile plain which was called Babylonia. Sometimes it is called Mesopotamia that means from the Greek words ‘land between rivers’. As the map shows, Mesopotamia is a part of a great ‘new moon’ of rich land often spoken of as Fertile Crescent. Babylonia was the cradle of an ancient world with its traditions and customs. People who were living on that land were called the Sumerians – they lived there for centuries. Today they might be called the advanced representatives of those times due to their being good builders and good farmers. They had cities with nice streets and with sewers. For building houses they used to take brick instead of stones. Hence, their buildings all crumbled away long ago.

As I have known, these early people were good farmers – they pulled out water from the rivers to irrigate their farms. They were advanced people because they even dug big canals to carry the water in order to grow barley and wheat on their fields. It was oxen who helped them plough the fields. It is hard to believe that the Sumerians moved on boats along their canals. Probably they had horses because they carried loads on land and changed places of residence.

What is more amazing that cosmetics that I think of as being modern these people used long ago, as well as some toilet kits. The Sumerians had also beautiful jewelry of gold and silver, and good copper tools. The ancient world was not sleepy and inactive. I was shocked to know that their children had toys to play with – rattles, whistles, wagons, and even toy animals on wheels.

Occasionally different tribes from the desert invaded into their land of two rivers. It happened that one of the leaders of those tribes became the ruler of the land and thanks to his being a wise ruler he had the laws of the land gathered together and carved a great stone tablet. They were written in cuneiform and can still be read.