Western Civilization.p

The Ancient Near East: Mesopotamia, Egypt, Phoenicia, Israel 17

times. The women of Sidon were known for their re-

markable textiles, and Sidon and Tyre were the primary

source of the purple dye that symbolized royalty

throughout the ancient world. It was extracted with

great difficulty from the shell of the murexsnail, a crea-

ture abundant in the harbors of Lebanon.

Politically, Phoenician towns were governed by a

hereditary king assisted by a council of elders. In prac-

tice, they were probably oligarchies in which policy

was decided by the wealthy merchants who served on

the council. Little is known of their civic life or even of

their religious practices. The Phoenicians are credited

with inventing the first true alphabet, a phonetic script

with twenty-two abstract symbols representing the

consonants. Vowels, as in the other Semitic languages,

were omitted. Their system is regarded as the greatest

of all Phoenician contributions to Western culture be-

cause it could be mastered without the kind of exten-

sive education given to professional scribes in Egypt or

Mesopotamia. Literacy was now available to nearly

everyone, but because the Phoenicians normally wrote

with ink on papyrus, most of their records have

perished.

Political crises were common. Phoenicia was in-

vaded and at times ruled by both Egypt and the Hittites

of Asia Minor. In 1190 B.C. a mysterious group known

as the Sea Peoples attacked the Egyptian delta. They

were driven out but eventually established themselves

Illustration 1.

Egyptian Beliefs about the Afterlife.In this papyrus from
the Theban Book of the Dead,the dead man and his wife watch as
the god Anubis weighs his heart against a feather and Thoth

records the results. The Devourer of Hearts waits at the far right.

The writing in the background provides a good example of New

Kingdom hieroglyphics.

Sea

of

Galilee

Lake Huleh

Mediterranean

Sea

Dead

Sea

Sidon

Tyre

Samaria

Gaza

Jordan

R.

R. R.

Accho

Ascalon

Petra

Eglon

Lachish

Hebron

Beer-Sheba

Gath Libnah

Ashdod

Shechem

Jerusalem

Bethlehem

Jericho

Bethel

Antipatris

Dan

Hazor

Capernaum

Damascus

Cana

Megiddo

Caesarea

Apollonia

Joppa

Beth Ramoth-Gilead

-Shan

Tiberias

Nazareth

PHILISTIA

WILDERNESS

OF ZIN

JUDAH

AMMON

SAMARIA

PLAIN

OF

SHARON

GILEAD

MOAB

TRANS-

JORDAN

EDOM

Mt.

Nebo

Mt.

Lebanon Mt.

Hermon

Zered

R.

Arnon R.

Jabbok

Litani

R.

Yar

mukR.

Kis

hon

GALILEE

BASHAN

PHOENICIA

CARMEL

0 25 50 Miles

0 25 50 75 Kilometers

MAP 1.

Ancient Palestine