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BC The birth of civilization The world's oldest civilization is said to have flourished around 6000-5000 BC in the Yellow and Yangtze River deltas. Small communities formed, split and reformed in an ongoing process that gradually led to the formation of large cities, until the 14th century BC saw the advent of China's first royal dynasty, the Yin. Around 3000 BC the Mesopotamian civilization, centered on a city state built by the Sumerians, flourished in the fertile lands between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. The Sumerians possessed the world's oldest writing system; a system of cuneiform characters used for works such as The Story of Gilgamesh, the world's oldest piece of literature; and the Code of Hammurabi. Around the same period, the kingdom of the Ancient Egyptians appeared in the lower Nile delta in North Africa. Prolific pyramid building symbolized the authority of the Pharaohs, and paper made from a type of reed known as papyrus was in widespread use. Around 2300 BC, the Indus River valley in India became home to the Indus civilization. The Indus people engaged in maritime trade with the Mesopotamians, and developed a complex culture complete with urban infrastructure such as blocks and streets. Many riddles still surround the Indus culture, and its writing system has yet to be deciphered. 200 BC China was united for the first time under the emperor Shi Huang Di, however his Qin dynasty crumbled after only 15 years, leaving Liu Bang to build what became the (Former) Han Dynasty. The Silk Road began to carve a route across the continent, allowing a constant stream of caravans to travel between the western regions of Asia and the city of Chang'an (today's Xian). Over in the Mediterranean meanwhile, with the third of the Punic Wars Rome finally brought down the Carthaginians, expanding its territory and dominating the Mediterranean from the Italian peninsula. Julius Caesar, the Roman leader universally recognized today, was dictator in the 1st century BC.

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