Thinking About Chronology

  • 3500 BCE

    Beginning of Sumerian, Egyptian, and Norte Chico civilizations

  • 3400 BCE

    Nubian kingdom of Ta-Seti

  • 3200 BCE

    Period of independent Sumerian City states

  • 2663 BCE

    Old Kingdom Egypt

    High point of Pharoh's power and pyramid building
  • 2200 BCE

    Beginning of Chinese, Indus Valley, and Central Asian (Oxus) civilizations

  • 2070 BCE

    Xia Dynasty in China

  • 1999 BCE

    Epic Gilgamesh Completed

  • 1900 BCE

    Babylonian Empire

  • 1792 BCE

    Reign of Hamurabi

  • 1700 BCE

    Abandonment of Inus Valley Cities

  • 1550 BCE

    New Kingdom Egypt

  • 1200 BCE

    Beginnings of Olmec Civilization

  • 1046 BCE

    Beginnings of the Western Zhou Dynasty

  • 760 BCE

    Kush Conquest of Egypt

  • 586 BCE

    Babylonian Conquest if Judah

  • 500 BCE

    Egypt and Mesopotamia incorporated into Persian Empire

  • 221 BCE

    China's first Emperor - Qin Shihuangdi

    Burnt books and scholars in effort to unify China for writing brought political conflict