Mesopotamia (Greek: Μεσοποταμία, translated from Old PersianMiyanrudan "the Land between the Rivers" or the Aramaic name Beth-Nahrin "two rivers") is a region of Southwest Asia. Strictly speaking, it is the alluvial plain lying between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, in modern Iraq and Syria. More commonly, the term includes these river plains in totality as well as the surrounding lowland territories bounded by the Arabian Desert to the west and south, the Persian Gulf to the immediate south, the Zagros Mountains and the Caucasus mountains to the north.
Writings from Mesopotamia (Uruk, modern Warka) are the earliest written work in the world, giving Mesopotamia the reputation of being the "Cradle of Civilization".
Mesopotamia was settled by, and conquered by, numerous ancient civilizations, including the Sumerians, Akkadians, Babylonians, Assyrians and the Persian Empire. Peoples who threatened or invaded these lands include the Hittites and the Elamites. During the time of the Persian Empire of Sassanids this area was called Dil-i Iranshahr meaning "Iran's Heart" and the metropol Ctesiphon, the capital of Persia was situated in Mesopotamia.
These civilizations arose from earlier settlements and cultures which were among the first to make use of agriculture.
A DWELLER IN MESOPOTAMIA (http://fax.libs.uga.edu/DS49x2xM465D/), being the adventures of an official artist in the garden of Eden, by Donald Maxwell, 1921
MESOPOTAMIAN ARCHAEOLOGY (http://fax.libs.uga.edu/DS69x5xH236M/), by Percy S. P. Handcock, 1912
Mesopotamian art was largely used to glorify powerful dynasties, and often reflected the belief that kingship and the divine were closely interlocked.
Unlike the other southern Mesopotamian peoples, the Assyrians had access to large quantities of stone, and their many carved reliefs have consequently survived well.
The Babylonians practised all the Mesopotamian arts and excelled in brightly coloured glazed tiles, used to create relief sculptures.
Mesopotamian Art and Architecture, the art and architecture of the ancient Middle Eastern civilizations that developed in the area between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers from prehistoric times but chiefly spanning the period from about 3500 bc to the 6th century bc.
The lower parts of the Mesopotamian region encompassed a fertile plain, and it was here that the first cities of the ancient world developed, together with royalty and priesthood that each demanded imposing palaces and temples, decorated with wall paintings, inlays, bas-reliefs, and statues.
Just as Mesopotamian political control and artistic influences spread to neighbouring cultures, at times reaching as far as the Syro-Palestinian coast, so techniques and motifs from outlying areas had an impact on Mesopotamian centres.
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