logo
episode-header-image
Aug 2024
1h 7m

Mesopotamia

Turpentine
About this episode

In this episode of History 102, join WhatIfAltHists creator Rudyard Lynch and Erik Torenberg as they explore the intricate history of Mesopotamia. This episode dives into the origins, advancements, and eventual decline of one of the world's earliest civilizations, covering everything from early agriculture to the prominent empires and their societal structures.


🔥 Apply to join over 400 founders and Execs in the Turpentine Network: https://hmplogxqz0y.typeform.com/to/JCkphVqj


--

RECOMMENDED PODCAST:

🎙️ This Won't Last - Eavesdrop on Keith Rabois, Kevin Ryan, Logan Bartlett, and Zach Weinberg's monthly backchannel. They unpack their hottest takes on the future of tech, business, venture, investing, and politics.

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/id1765665937

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2HwSNeVLL1MXy0RjFPyOSz

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ThisWontLastpodcast


–

SPONSOR: BEEHIIV | BABBEL

Head to Beehiiv, the newsletter platform built for growth, to power your own. Connect with premium brands, scale your audience, and deliver a beautiful UX that stands out in an inbox. 🐝 to https://Beehiiv.com and use code “MOZ” for 20% off your first three months


🌐 Ready to achieve your 2024 goals? Start learning a new language with Babbel in just three weeks. Enjoy app lessons, live classes, and podcasts designed for real-world conversations. Get up to 60% off at babbel.com/torenberg


This show is produced by Turpentine: a network of podcasts, newsletters, and more, covering technology, business, and culture — all from the perspective of industry insiders and experts. We’re launching new shows every week, and we’re looking for industry-leading sponsors — if you think that might be you and your company, email us at erik@turpentine.co.


–


FOLLOW ON X:

@whatifalthist (Rudyard)

@eriktorenberg (Erik)

@TurpentineMedia


TIMESTAMPS:

  • The Fertile Crescent and Three Cultural Designations
  • The Formation of City-States in Mesopotamia
  • The Impact of Climate Change on Mesopotamia
  • The Role of Warfare in Mesopotamian Society
  • The Rise of the Priest Class and Theocracy
  • City-States and Government in Mesopotamia
  • The Development of Writing and Law Codes
  • Religion and Idol Worship in Mesopotamia
  • The Influence of Mesopotamian Civilization on the Bible
  • The Decline of Mesopotamian Civilization
  • Sumeria: The First Civilization
  • The Rise of Akkad and the First Empire
  • The Legacy of Mesopotamian Civilization
  • The Rise and Fall of Mesopotamian Empires
  • The Transition to Imperial Rule
  • The Evolution of Babylon
  • The Brutal Conquests of the Assyrians
  • The Impact of the Bronze Age Collapse
  • The Conquest of Mesopotamia by the Persians


BOOKS MENTIONED:

Against the Grain: A Deep History of the Earliest States by James C. Scott

The Story of Civilization by Will Durant

Assyria: The Rise and Fall of an Ancient Superpower by Eckhart Frahm

Scribes and Kings: The Lost History of the Ancient Near East by Marc Van De Mieroop

The Guide to the Bible by Isaac Asimov

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Up next
Yesterday
Explaining Capitalism's Rise + Fall + Rise
In this episode of History 102, 'WhatIfAltHist' creator Rudyard Lynch and co-host Austin Padgett analyze capitalism's cycles across civilizations, examining how free markets emerged from feudalism, their conflict with monarchies and socialism, and regulatory capture's impact on e ... Show More
2h 23m
Sep 28
Explaining Steppe Empires
In this episode of History 102, 'WhatIfAltHist' creator Rudyard Lynch and co-host Austin Padgett explore Eurasian steppe nomads from Aryans to Mongols, analyzing how small mobile populations repeatedly conquered and influenced much larger sedentary civilizations. -- SPONSOR: ZCAS ... Show More
2h 12m
Sep 18
Explaining Colonialism in Asia
In this episode of History 102, 'WhatIfAltHist' creator Rudyard Lynch and co-host Austin Padgett do a historical analysis examining European colonialism's impact across Asian civilizations, exploring patterns of conquest, resistance, and cultural transformation to understand broa ... Show More
2h 10m
Recommended Episodes
Sep 11
Fall of the Sumerians
Tristan Hughes continues our special series on Great Disasters, journeying back to ancient Mesopotamia with Dr Paul Collins to explore the fall of the Sumerians.4,000 years ago, the great cities of Sumer — Ur, Uruk, Lagash, Girsu — stood as glittering centres of power, crowned wi ... Show More
1h 1m
Jan 2025
Ancient Mesopotamia: everything you wanted to know
Do you know your Sumerians from your Babylonians and your Akkadians? All these civilisations formed part of the story of ancient Mesopotamia, where city states were formed, writing flourished, the wheel was possibly invented, mathematics was practiced, and dogs were gods, pets an ... Show More
50m 6s
Jan 2025
Sargon of Akkad
Over 4,000 years ago, Sargon of Akkad carved his name into history by forging what many consider the world’s first empire. But who was this enigmatic warlord, and how did he transform from a man without a dynasty to the revered founder of the Akkadian Empire? In this episode of T ... Show More
43m 21s
May 2025
Between Two Rivers: Ancient Mesopotamia and The Birth of History | Dr Moudhy Al-Rashid
We sit down with Dr Moudhy Al-Rashid, author of "Between Two Rivers: Ancient Mesopotamia and The Birth of History" an honorary fellow at Wolfson College, University of Oxford. She takes us on an incredible journey through ancient Mesopotamia, exploring the region's rich history, ... Show More
1h 3m
Aug 31
The Sumerians
More than 5,000 years ago, in what is today southern Iraq, one of the world’s first civilisations emerged. A civilisation often credited with the invention of writing, the wheel and cities. The Sumerians. The Sumerians are a people that you have probably heard of, but might not k ... Show More
50m 24s
Jun 2025
Rise of the Minoans
Tristan Hughes journeys into the heart of one of history's most intriguing civilisations: the Minoans. With Professor Nicoletta Momigliano, he explores the origins and rise of these Bronze Age titans on Crete around 7,000 BC, their early settlements, and the emergence of complex ... Show More
44m 44s
Jul 27
The Stone Age
The Stone Age is the foundational period of human history, stretching from roughly 3 million to 5,000 years ago, and accounting for over 99% of humanity’s time on earth. It’s the era when modern humans evolved and migrated out of Africa to populate the globe, developed language a ... Show More
56m 42s
Jun 2025
Feed Swap: The Ancient World - Ages
Fellow podcaster Scott Chesworth, from The Ancient World has a new season. I’m excited to introduce “The Ancient World – Ages”, a series covering the Early Bronze Age Collapse (c. 2200 BC) and the remaking of Southwest Eurasia. In this feed swap, you’ll hear episode A3 – The King ... Show More
52m 35s
Jul 2024
Birth of the Iron Age
It’s the end of the 12th century BC, and a once remarkable Near eastern world lay in ruin. Drought, warfare, famine, earthquakes, plague - all had combined to brutally devastate ancient civilisations stretching from Mesopotamia to Egypt to mainland Greece.  It was a catastrophe u ... Show More
1h 2m
Sep 16
Becoming Ourselves Part 1 — From Survival to Civilization.
History isn’t just a story of kings and battles — it’s the story of how humans learned to create value, survive collapse, and reinvent themselves again and again.In this episode of Decoded by Mo, we take a long journey through time — from the hunters painting bison on cave walls, ... Show More
37m 31s
Listen to millions of songs and podcasts on Anghami