A productive agricultural technology, city living, distinct class and gender inequalities, the emerging power of states — all of these were common features of First Civilizations across the world and also of those that followed. Still, these civilizations were not everywhere the same, for differences in political organization, religious beliefs and practices, the role of women, and much more gave rise to distinctive traditions. Nor were they static. Like all human communities, they changed over the centuries. Finally, these civilizations did not exist in complete isolation, for they participated in networks of interactions with near and sometimes more distant neighbors. In looking more closely at two of these First Civilizations — Mesopotamia and Egypt — we can catch a glimpse of the differences, changes, and connections that characterized early civilizations.