Mesopotamian Art and Architecture The arts and buildings of the ancient Middle Eastern civilizations developed in the area (now Iraq) between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers from prehistory to the 6th century BC. Their art reflects both their love and fear of natural forces, as well as their military conquests. The soil of Mesopotamia yielded the civilization's major building material, mud brick. This clay also was used by the Mesopotamians for their pottery, terra-cotta sculpture, and writing tablets. Few wooden artifacts have been preserved. Stone was rare, and certain types had to be imported; basalt, sandstone, diorite, and alabaster were used for sculpture.