Amaia+N

=Primary Source: "Sick man of Europe"=

This photo to the right is a cartoon produced in 1896 representing the phrase "sick man of Europe" which refers to the Ottoman Empire due to the fact that they were rapidly loosing war, financial control and land to European forces. This comic in particular shows Sultan Abdul Hamid II in front of a poster which announces the reorganisation of the Ottoman Empire. The empire's value is estimated at 5 million pounds. Russia, France and England are listed as the directors of the reorganisation. The Sultan says: "BISMILLAH! (For God's sake!) Make me into a limited company? M'M - AH - S'pose (I suppose) they'll allow me to join the board after allotment." This is referencing the weakness of the Ottoman Empire at the time. = = = = = = = = = = =Primary Source:Elmina Castle= By the seventeenth century, most trade in West Africa concentrated on the sale of slaves. Elmina played a significant part in the Atlantic Slave Trade. The castle acted as a depot where slaves were bought in from local African chiefs and kings. The slaves, often captured in the African interior, were sold to Portuguese traders in exchange for goods such as textiles and horses. The slaves were held captive in the castle before exiting through the castle’s infamous “Door of No Return” to be transported and resold in newly colonized Brazil and other Portuguese colonies. Trade with the Europeans helped make certain goods, such as cloth and beads, more available to the coastal people, but European involvement also disrupted traditional trade routes between coastal people and northern tribes by cutting out the African middlemen. The population of Elmina swelled with traders from other towns hoping to trade with the Portuguese, who gradually established a west-African monopoly. = = =School Of Athens: Michelangelo= I chose Michelangelo from the School of Athens. I think that he contributed many great and famous works of art that we still appreciate today. Such as the Sistine Chapels, David, and St. Peter's Basilica to name a few. Michelangelo received commissions from some of the most wealthy and powerful men of his day, including popes and others affiliated with the Catholic Church. His work demonstrated a blend of psychological insight, physical realism and intensity never before seen. Well, this figure is actually thought to be Heraclitus, painted with the face of Michelangelo. Somewhat obtuse I realize. -SW I think another influential man who deserved to be in the School of Athens was Chandragrupta. He also had great influence during his time by unifying India and demonstrating his great power. In the year 305 BC., in the Northwest, where Seleucus Nicator was threatening fresh invasions. Chandragupta not only stopped his advance but pushed the frontier farther west into what is now Afghanistan. This showed how powerful Chandragupta really was. = = = = =Primary Source: The Tang Code= The Tang code was a penal code that later became the basis for later dynastic codes not only in China but elsewhere in East Asia. It is composed of 12 sections with more than 500 articles. The penalty for an offence was determined according to two factors: == =Class Starter: The Mesoamerican Ballgame=
 * Offence** : The Tang Code clearly associated each offence with a penalty
 * Relations**: Relations outside the family were defined according to positions in a social hierarchy lead by the emperor himself. In this hierarchy, officials were higher than ordinary men, who were themselves superior to persons of lower class. For instance, a slave committing a crime against his master was punished more severely than if an ordinary person had committed the same crime. The same offence committed by the master against his slave, on the other hand, resulted in a //lower// penalty than the same crime committed by a common person. The code imposed two years of forced labor on any private household found in possession of such works as the //Luo River Writing// (Luoshu) or the Yellow River Chart (Hetu). The practice was preserved in the legal practice until the Song dynasty Nice PS. -SW

= = The Mesoamerican ballgame was more than just a game, it was a ritual based on religious beliefs. To ancient Mesoamericans, in order to keep crops growing and people healthy, they had to sacrifice a valuable human being-a ball player. On the other hand, winners were shown with praise and riches. Ancient Mesoamerican players would have played a ball game using a rubber ball on a masonry field in an I-shaped court. Hoops on either side are visible.

We don't know the details of the ancient ball game played in ancient Mesoamerica. The rings or hoops on either side are thought to be a late innovation. Models found of the game show what appear to be two teams of three.  It is thought that the ball was always supposed to be kept in the air and that no hands were allowed -- as in modern soccer.

 The ball's material is known, but not its size although it probably weighed from between a half and 7 kg. Some depictions of it show it improbably large. Presumably, it could be no bigger than the inside perimeter of the hoops. At least one ball is shown to have contained a human skull.

Many Mesoamericans lost their personal possessions by gambling on the game.

Ball games were violent and dangerous and players wore protective gear, usually made of leather, such as helmets, knee pads, arm and chest protectors and gloves. Archaeologists call the special protection constructed for the hips "yokes", for their resemblance to animal yokes.

The entire community was differently involved in a ball game:  It is not known if women played however we have found small sculptures of female ball players.
 * Ballplayers: The players themselves were probably men of noble origins or aspirations.
 * Sponsors: Ball court construction as well as game organization required some form of sponsorship. Affirmed leaders, or people who wanted to be leaders, considered ball game sponsorship an opportunity to emerge or reaffirm their power.
 * Ritual Specialists: [|Ritual specialists] often performed religious ceremonies before and after the game.
 * Audience: All sorts of people participated as spectators to the event: local commoners and people coming from other towns, nobles, sport supporters, food sellers and other vendors.
 * Gamblers: Gambling was an integral component of ball games. Bettors were both nobles and commoners, and sources tell us that the Aztec had very strict regulations about bet payments and debts

 = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =Unit 1 Primary Source: The Vedas=

[[image:http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/02/Rigveda_MS2097.jpg/300px-Rigveda_MS2097.jpg width="300" height="291"]]
====The oldest Scriptures in all of India and the most important are called the Vedas. All Hindus recognize the Vedas as the true origin of their faith because of the spiritual meaning behind them.There are four Vedas: Rig Veda Sama Veda, Yajur Veda and Atharva Veda. Each is divided into two groups: works and knowledge. The Rig Veda, also known as the Book of Mantra, contains hymns & accounts the social, political and economic background of the Rig-Vedic civilization. Next, the Sama Veda, which is also called the Book of Song, is purely a collection of melodies. The guidebook for priests who execute sacrificial acts, is the Yajur Veda or the Book of Ritual. Finally there is the Book of Spells, or Atharva Veda. This book includes almost exclusively, a wide variety of hymns, magical incantations, and magical spells. It contains spells for everything from success in love to the realization of other worldly ambitions prevalent at its time. Largely for personal, domestic use, it was not originally accepted as authoritative because of the deviant nature of its contents. Scholars believe that it dates from a later time. ‍Eventually it was acknowledged as one of the Vedas, especially after its adoption as a ritual handbook by the Brahmans‍.====