The document discusses several complex ancient civilizations and their contributions, including: - The Phoenicians developed the first alphabet which directly influenced later Western scripts. - The Israelites created Judaism, one of the three Abrahamic religions, and their history is chronicled in the Hebrew Bible. - Hammurabi established one of the earliest legal codes and advanced mathematics and literature in ancient Babylon. - Ancient Egyptians developed a centralized government, religious beliefs, and built the pyramids and Sphinx. Their view of the afterlife and role of the pharaoh changed over time.