Revolution!

Nurishtar Invents the Ard

Directions: Read this fictional story about a farmer named Nurishtar, who lived in the Fertile Crescent of Mesopotamia around 4000 B.C.E. After reading the story, complete the assessment by answering the questions.

Nurishtar was the eldest son in a very large family of farmers who grew grain used to make bread called bappir. Bappir was made from starch extracted from wild grains. Bappir was spread on a flat rock, placed over a fire and cooked into a primitive form of fl atbread. Bappir could be stored for a long time. Nurishtar and his five brothers spent over 60 days in the spring each year tilling the soil on their small plot of land. They used long pointed wood spikes to work the soil by hand. It was very hard work. Each year, they grew just enough grain to produce the bappir the family would eat for the year. If the weather was good, they might have enough bappir to trade a small surplus of grain to others. If the weather was bad, they risked periods of hunger and had to forage for other food. One day, Nurishtar had an idea: If he could attach the spike to one of the cows they raised, the cow could pull the spike through the hard soil. He designed a tool he called an ard. He attached the spike to a frame that was harnessed to the cow. The cow dragged the ard through the soil, creating furrows in which to plant seeds. Nurishtar or one of his brothers put their weight on the frame to sink the spike into the ground. It took a long time to determine the right way to use the new tool and to train the cow to pull

the ard.

By using this innovation—the ard, pulled by the cow—Nurishtar and his brothers could work their plot of land in far less time and increase their productivity. Because they saved so much time, some of the brothers could spend their time making a new harness for the cow or building an irrigation ditch to bring more water to their land. When they had more water, they could plow a larger plot of land and grow more grain to make more bappir. They increased their production of grain and bappir. With some of the brothers free to work on other jobs, they built better homes and more tools. With a more abundant and sure food supply, they could have more children and enjoyed better health. Their standard of living improved, and they made a major contribution to the Neolithic Agricultural Revolution.

Nurishtar Invents the Ard –Assessment

Fill in the blanks with the correct economic term (bolded in the reading).

1. When Nurishtar and his brothers were able to plow their land in a shorter period of time, they improved their ____________________.

2. The ard was a/an ___________________ that made farming easier.

3. When Nurishtar’s family could consume more food and build better homes, they improved their _______________________________.

4. Because Nurishtar could work more land with the ard, he was able to increase his ____________________ of grain.