8) CHAPTER’ Art of the Ancient Near East In public works such as this stone stele (upright stone slab the artists of Mesopotamia developed a suave and sophis. ticated symbolic visual language—a kind of conceptual art—that both celebrated and communicated the political stratification that give order and security to their world Akkadian ruler Naram-Sin (ruled 2254-2218 ct) is pic tured proudly here (pa. 2-1). His preeminence is signaled directly by size: he is by far the largest person in this scene of military triumph, conforming to an artistic practice we call hierarchic scale, where relative size indicates relative importance. He is ako elevated well above the other figures, boldly silhouetted against blank ground. Even the shape the stone slab is an active part ofthe composition. Its tapering top perfectly accommodates the carved mountain within it, and Naram-Sin is posed to reflect the profile of both, incre ing his own sense of grandeur by association. He clasps a veritable arsenal of weaponry—spear, battleaxe, bow an arrow—and the grand helmet that crowns his head sprouts hors, an attribute heretofore reserved for gods, By wearing it here, he is claiming divinity for himself. Ar historian Irene Winter has gone even further, pointing to the eroticized pose and presentation of Naram-Sin, to the alluring display of a well-formed male body. In ancient Mesopotamian culture male potency and vigor were directly related to mythical Thus every heroism and powerful kingship. spect of the representation of this ruler speaks to his sacred and political ithority as leader of the state This stele is more than an emblem of Naram-Sin’s divine right to rule, however, It also tells the story of one of his important military victories, The ruler stands above a crowded scene enacted by smaller figures. Those to the lef iresed and posed in a fashion similar to their ruler sent his army, marching in diagonal bands up the hillside into battle. The artist has included identifiable native trees 1g the mountain pathway to heighten the sense that this trays an actual event rather than a generic battle sc Before Naram-Sin, both along the right side of the stele and of the enemy, in this ease the Lullubi people Mesopotamia (modem Iran), One diminutive adversary has aken a fatal spear to the neck, while companions behind and below him beg for n Taller than most people who stand in front of it, and carved of eye-catching pink stone, this sumptuous work of ancient art maintains the power to communicate with us forcefully and directly even across over four millennia of his torical distance. We will discover in this chapter that pow fal symbolism and dynamic story-telling are not unique this one stele; they are signal characteristics of royal ar in the ancient Near East LEARN ABOUT IT 2:1 Investigate a series of conventions for the portrayal of human figures through the history of the ancient Near East. 2.2 Explore the development of visual narrative to tell stories of gods, heroes, and rulers in sculpted reliefs, 2.3 Survey the various ways rulers in the ancient Near East ‘expressed their power in portraits, historical narrative, and great palace complexes. 2.4 Evaluate the way modern archaeologists have laid the groundwork for the art-historical interpretation of the ancient cultures of the Near East. ((1e-{Listen tothe chapter audio on myarslab.com 27Europe, people in Well before frm munities appeared in asthe Feri nt (wae 24) illen riculture developed in i ; Euphates rivers, which che " I of problem riod i a 1 for lrge-seae systems ontrol the water supply. Meeting this need may have contributed he d nt of the first citi Between 400N) and 304K) 8CE, a major cultural sift seems to A solved into cities simul pave taken f sera vill ved Jy and independently in both northem and southern Meso mia, ‘These prosperous cities joined with their surounding ged with the d tof specialized skis beyond ieultural work. To grain mill and ovens were w Js and even modest affluence came increased trade ner cule Organized religion played an important role, and the peo- ple who controlled rituals and the sacred sites eventually became a-ime T of the ancient Near East worshiped merous gous and The names of comparable deities, over tim for example, Inanna, the Sumerian Jess of fertility, love, and war, was equivalent tothe Babylon ns Ishtar) Every ial protective deity, and the fie ity was seen as dependent on the power of that deity. Lan architectural complexes—clusters of religious, administrative ice buildings —d in each city as centers of ritual and worship and abo of government Although the stone-free alluvial plain of southern Mes floods and drought, it was a fertile bed for riculture and successive, interlinked societies. But its wealth made Me tamia vulnerable t0 political upheaval. Over the tries, the balance of power shifted between north and south ans controlled the south, filing their independent city-states, with the fruits of new technology, developed literacy, and impressive att and architecture. Then they were eclipsed by the Akkadians, their neighbors to the north, When invaders from farther north in tum conquered the Akkadians, the Sumerians regained power locally. During this period the ity-sates of Ur ind Lagash thrived under Amorites were next to dominate the south. Under them and their king, Ham Babylon 28 CHAPTER 2 An SUMER 1m Mesopotamia bet w Sumer. The Sumerians ae credited with impo alectveh logical and eunanl advances. They may have invented the sa heel and the plo. But perhaps their greatest contribu «was the invention in 3400-3200 #cé of tion to beer civilizations was the the fs form of written script WRITING Sumerians presed cuneiform ie ment, to keep busines records (see “Cuneiform Writ . 30), Thousands of surviving Sumerian tablets have al scholars wo trace the gradual evolution of writing and arithmeti an in origin, although n Akkadian, Epic of Gilgam 1 king of Uruk and sist literary epic wing version ofthis tae i write north. Th age of Sumer’ neighbors 0 \dary Sumer records the advencures ofa lege his companion Enkidu, When Enkidu dies, King Gilgamesh sets out to find the secret of eternal life from the onl rman and woman who had survived a great flood sent by the gods todestroy the world, because the gods had granted tality. Gilgamesh ultimately accepts his own mortality, abandons his ques, and retums to Uruk, recognizing the majestic city as his Tasting accomplishment THE ZIGGURAT The Sumerians’ most impresive survivin archaeological remains are ziggurats, huge stepped structures with a temple or shrine on top. The first ziggurats may bi developed from the practice of repeated rebuilding at a sacred with rubble from one structure serving as the foundation ako protected the shrines ‘Whatever the origin oftheir design, ziggurats towering above the flat plain prochimed the wealth, prestige, and stability of @ Ziggurats functioned symbol y's rulers and glorified its gods ally 100,25 lofty bridges between the earth and the heaven: meeting place for humans and their gods, They were given names such a6 “House of the Mountain” and “Bond between Heaven and Earth URUK Two large temple complexes in the 1,000-acre city at Uruk (presentlay Warka, Iraq) mark. the Sumerian city-state. One was dedicated to Inanna, the of love and war, while the other complex belonged to the sky god Anu. The temple plat over the centuries, ultimately rose to a height of about of Anu, built up in sta 40 feet, Around 3100 nce, a whitewashed mud-brick temple that moder archaeologists refer to as the White Temple was erected ruined structure WS form (re. 2-2). This now 2 simple rectangle with an off-center doorway that led into @ASIA MINOR Aegean = eae Ts . 7 ANATOLIA Ai = i ASSYRIAN Olina SS BY lle Cresee, Semen i Er e8¢0m p< Aains (Nm 8) tba: Meg coms persia eaenott AS Desert MAP 2-1 + THE ANCIENT NEAR EAST between th le land that could support early agricuture, notably the area ‘and Euphrates rivers and the stipe of land on ether sie ofthe Nie in Egypt 2-2 + RUINS AND PLAN OF THE ANU ZIGGURAT AND WHITE TEMPLE Uruk (present-day Wark, Iraq)-c. 3400-3200 bce. Many ancient Near East vie mound known localy a6 atl, fepe or huyuk that represents the accumulated debris of generations of human nabinton, When propery excavated, such mounds yield evidence about the people who inhabited the site. ties stil be undiscovered. n most cases an archaeological stein the region i signaled by ART OF THE ANCIENT NEAR EAST CHAPTER 2 29 fmmTECHNIQUE | Cuneiform Writing ictyach earner son later cuneiform an ‘Sumerians invented wring around 3400-200 sce, apparently 28 ome raded at Uruk. The symbols were ee00 ace e700 er {an accounting system for go +, the symbols had begun to evolve buts Jraphs, simple pictures tool By the fourth millennium {om pictures into phonograms—representations of sable sounds — thus becoming a writing system as we know it. By 3000-2000, scribes ‘oF writing tool, with one iangular end and one pointed ot clay tablet to adopted a sti tend that could be pressed easily and rapiy into a w produce cunelform writing. These drawings demonstrate the shit rom pictographs to cuneiform. id ‘The ¢. 3100 ece drawing of a bow! (which means “bread” or “food” was reduced toa four-stroke sign by about 2400 ece, and by about 700 8t toa highly abstract arrangement of vertical marks. By combining the pictographs and, later, cuneiform signs, witers created composite signs for example, a combination of the signs for “head” and “ood” meant ies a a tye symbols eg View the Closer Look for cuneiform writing in Sumeria on myartslab.com large chamber containing Statues of gods and donors were placed in Sumeria A seriking life-size marble face from Uruk (ma. 23) may repr a temple goddess. It been attached to a wooden hea na full-size wooden b stripped ofits original pain, wi the inlay brows and eyes, it app mask. Shells may have been used for the whites of the eye apis lazuli for the pupils, and the hair may have been gol. Aull 4 alabaster (a fine, white stone) found in ne temple complex of Inanna at Uruk (90. 2-4) shows how ea Mesopotamian sculptors told stories in stone with great clarity and The visual narrative is organized into three registers, horizontal bands, and the story condensed to its essential element The lowest register shows in rip the sources of life in th satural world, beginning with water and plants (variously ident fed as date palm and barley, wheat and flax) and continuing in sperimposed upper strip, where alternating rams and ewes marc file along a solid ground-line. In the middle register naked § sskets of foodstuffs, and in the top register, the god 1s an offering from two standing figures. Inanna < poles hung with banners. The + who face her are thought to be frst a naked priest or acolyte ne A ean, Te : “ 7 g (not visible From Uruk (present-day Warka, lac). c. 3300-2000 ace. Marte, Hei ne may representa re-enactment ofthe ritual approx. (20.3 em). raq Museum, Baghdad Hmmm 20. CHAPTER 2 ART OF THE ANCIENT NEAR EAST ee2-4 + CARVED VESSEL From Uruk (present-day Warka, iraq). c. 3900-2000 ace. Alabaster, height 96"(91 em). raq Museum, Baghdad. 2-5 + TWELVE VOTIVE FIGURES. From the Square Temple, University of Chicago, ART OF THE ANCIENT NEAR EAST CHAPTER 2 31A BROADER LOOK | A Lyre from Sir Leonard Woolley excavations at Ur ‘during the 1920s intially gat attention because ofthe association ofthis ancient Mesopotamian city withthe biblical patriarch Abraham. ft was not long, however, before the exciting discoveries themsolves moved to center stage, especialy 16 royal burials that yielded spectacular objects crafted of gold and lurid evidence of the human sacrifices associated with Sumerian royal burial practices, when etainers were seemingly buried with the rulers they served. \Wootley’s work at Ur was a joint venture of the University of Pennsyivania Museum in Philadelphia and the British Museum in London, and in conformance with raq’s Antiquities Law of 1922, the uncovered artifacts were divided between the sponsoring institutions and Iraq itself. Athough Wooley worked with a large team of laborers anc 9-6 « KATHERINE AND LEONARD WOOLLEY (ABOVE) EXCAVATING AT UR assistants during 12 seasons of digging tr, he and his wile Katherine reserved fOr thomselves the painstakingly delicate process of uncovering the most important finds (12. 2-6). Woolley’s own account of vrork within one tomb outines the practice— “Most ofthe workmen were sent away «80 that the final work with knives and brushes ‘could be done by my wife and myselt in comparative peace. For ten days the wo of ts spent most ofthe time from sunrise to sunset lying on our tummies rushing and plowing and threading beads in ther order as they lay... You might suppose that to find three-score women all richly bedecked with jewelry could be avery tiling experience, land sot, in retrospect, but 'm afraid that at the moment one is much more conscious of the toll than ofthe tril (quoted in Zetler and Home, p31) 2.6 av, BESIDE TWO ARCHAEOLOGICAL ASSISTANTS IN ONE OF THE ROYAL BURIALS Fo as ofthe Universit of Pennsyvania Museum, Philadelphia: psesesiteinan thar a Royal Tomb in ele Cone of the most spectacular discoveries n the royal burials at Ur was an elaborate lee, ‘which rested over the body of the woman who had presumably played it during the funeral ‘ceremony fr the royal figure buried nearby (pia, 2-7). Like nine other lyres Woolly found fat Ur, the wooden sound box ofthis one had Tong since deteriorated and disappeared, but crafted bul's-head finial of gold tnd lapis azul survived, along witha plaque fof carved shel infaid with Bitumen, depicting atthe top a heroic image of a man interlocked with and in contro! of two bulls, and below them three scenes of arimals mimicking the activities of humans (Fic. 2-8). On one register, a seated donkey plucks the stings ‘of a bul iyre—siriar tothe instrument on wich this set of images orginal appeared— stabilized by a standing bear, while a fox ‘accompanies him with a rattle. On the register ‘above, upright animals bring food and dik fer a feast. A hyena to the lft—assuring the oe ‘ofa butcher witha knife in his belt—cares 8 table piled high with meat. lion follows, oth ‘an exquistel {large jar and pouring vessel “The top and bottom registers re particularly intriguing in relation tothe Ep of Gigamesh, 3,000-line poem thats Sumers ‘great contribution to word iterate. Rich in descriptions of heroic feats anc fabulous creatures, Gilgamesh’s story probes the ‘uestion of immortality and expresses the heroic aim to understand hostile sureundiMs and to find meaning in human existence Gilgamesh encounters scorpion-men, He the one pictured inthe lowest register and itis easy to see the hero himself in the ‘commanding but unprotected boarded US centered in the top register, naked cent ‘a wide bet, masterfully controling inhi the two powerfully rearing human-headee bulls that flank him, Because the Poem w= > frst wettan down 700 years after this Hews created, his plaque may documenta 7682 oral tradition. ‘On another level, because we KOM IES were used in funeral rites, ou this MSO ‘epet aheroc image of the deceased MeART AND ITS CONTEXTS | Art a ‘At has always been a casualty in times of socal unrest, One ofthe most recent examples isthe looting ofthe unguarded iraq National Museu later the fal of Baghdad to U.S.-ed coation fores in Api 2008, Among the many thousands of treasures that were stolen is a precious marble head of a woman from Wark, over 5,000 years od (see FG. 2-9). Fortunately it was later recovered. Aso looted was a carved Sumerian ‘vessel (see Fc, 2-4), eventual returned to the museum two months later, shattered into 14 places. The museum itself managed to reopen in 2009, but thousands ofits antiquities are stil missing ‘Some ofthe most bitter resentment spawned by war has involved the taking by he victors of art objects that held great value forthe conquered population, Two historical priceless objects unearthed in Elamite Susa, for example—the Akkadian sole of Naram-Sin (S86 ‘0. 2) and the Babylonian stele of Hammurabi (988 MG. 2-18)—were rot Elamite at al, but Mesopotamian. Bath had been brought there as rmltary booty by an Elamite king, who added an inscription tothe stele of Naram-Sin claiming it for himslf and his gods. Uncovered in Susa ‘during excavations organized by French archaeologist Jacques de Morgan, both works were taken back to Paris atthe tum of the twentiot century and ara now displayed inthe Louvee. Museums around the world ‘contain such works, elther snatched by invading armies or acquied as a result of conquest. “The Rosetta Stone, the key to deciphering Egyptian hieroglyphs, was iscovered in Egypt by French troops in 1799, el into rsh hands when they forced the French trom Egypt, and ultimately ended up in the British Museum in London (668 Fi. 3-38). Inthe early nineteenth Century, the Briton Lord Elgin purchased and removed classical Greek sculpture from the Parthenon in Athens with the permission of the ‘Ottoman authorties who governed Greece atthe time (98 “Who Owns the Art?" page 133). Although his actions may indeed have protected these treasures from neglect and damage inlter wars, they have remained installed in the Brtish Museum, despite continuing protests from Greece. Many Gorman collections include works that wer similarly “protected” atthe end of World War land are surfacing now. Inthe United States, Native Americans are increasingly vocal in thelr demands that artifacts and human remains collected by anthropologists and archaeologists be returned o them, res, bare-chested and dressed in what appear to be Fg feet, big shoulders, and cylindrical bodies. The female figures are The male fig sheepskin skirts, are stocky and muscular, with heavy legs, as massive as the men, Their long sheepskin skins reveal sturdy legs and feet ‘Sumerian artisans worked in vatious precious metas, and in bronze, often combining them with other materials. Many of these creations were decorated with—or were in the shape of—animals ‘or composite animal-human-bird creatures. A superb example of theie kills Iyre—a kind of harp—from the city of Ur (present- chy Mugaiyir, Iraq), to the south of Uruk. This combines wood gold, lapis lazuli, and shell (ce Fos. 2-7, 2-8). Projecting from the base is a wood-sculpted head of a bearded baal overlaid with gold, 34 CHAPTER 2 ART OF THE ANCIENT NEAR EAST or Theft? Serer Mom em Rodeo To the victor, tis sid, "belong the spoils." But passionate ‘and continuous debate surrounds the question of whether this ton remains vain our own time, especialy in the case of revered cultural artifacts 2-9 | FACE OF A WOMAN, KNOWN AS THE WARKA HEAD Displayed by rag authorities on its recovery in 2003 by the Iraq Museum in Baghdad. The head is from Uruk (present-day Warka, rag). c: 3300- ‘3000 ce. Marble, height approx. 8" 20.3 em) intensely ike dee the decoratvely patered blue beard et ated from the semiprecious gemstone, lapis lazuli. Since lapis lazult CYLINDER SEALS About the time written records appeared, Sumerians developed seals for identifying documents and estab- lishing propery ownership. By 3300-3100 ncr, record Keepes redesigned the stamp seal as a cylinder. Rolled across docu: ments on clay tablets or over the soft clay applied to a closure that needed sealing—a jar id, the knot securing a bundle, othe door to a room—the cylinders left a raised mirror image of the design incised (cut) into their surface, Such sealing attested to theinder seals, usually le s high, were generally made ‘ofa hard stohe so that the tiny but intricate incised scenes would ppointment co a high administrativ sition, and the seals were buried with them, along with other important posses 22uli CYLINDER SEAL in ROURE 2-40 isc The lapis f al burials at Ur. It comes from the tomb of a powerful royal woman known 2s Puabi, and was found leaning with ffinged skir air gathered up in 4 heir necks. T ures in the upper register raise their gas ‘ompanie servants, one of whom, at fir lef, ho a fan. Th igure in the lower register sits in front of a table piled with f while 2 figure behind her offers a cup of drink, presumably drawn from the jar she carries in her other hand, the lyre plaque ce Fic, 2-8). Musical entertainment is provided by four women standing to the far right AKKAD A people known as the Akkadians inhabited an area north of Uruk. Daring the Sumer d Sumerian cultur in period, they adopt unlike the Sumerians, the Akkadians spoke a Semitic anguage ( same family of hat inch ). Under ical figure Sargon I (ruled c. 2332 st of Me “King of the Four Quarters of the World, powerful military and po 9) nce), they conquered 1 potamia, For more than ruled this empire from his capital at Akkad, the actual site of which 2440 + CYLINDER SEAL IMPRESSIOF From the tomb of Queen Puabi @ em), Unive y and Anthropology Phiadelpia, pture in alabaster, excavated at Ur in 1927 by British archae~ A Lyte from a Royal Tomb in d Woolley (see is one of the works ‘of ancient Near Eastern art (ma. 2-41). An inscription on the back identifies che centrally highlighted figure on the for larger than her companions and wearing a flounced, fleeced wool went and the head —as Enheduanna 2-11 + DISK OF ENHEDUANNA. From Ur ipresent-day Mugaiye, aq). c. 2900-2275 ect. Alabaster, diameter 10° (25.6 cm). University of Penneyivania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, Philadephia T OF THE ANCIENT NEAR EAST CHAPTER 2 38RULER) her of S, and high priestess of the moon god Nanna i i pear in sduanna’s name also appears in other ng Akkadian inscriptions and most notably in association 1 series of poems and hymns dedicated to ds Nanna and Inanna. Hets is the earliest recorded name of an author in The procession portrayed on the front of the disk commemo. {es the dedication of Enheduanna’s donation of a dais (raised platform) to the temple of Inanna in Ur. The naked man in front of her ps val | while Enhedu see ¢, 2-14). Sargon’s appointment of his daughter | HEAD OF A MAN (KNOWN AS AN AKKADIAN 12 day Ninua, Iraq). c. 2300-2200 ce. Copper alloy, ). aq Museum, Baghdad. OF THE ANCIENT NEAR EAS' ae sue it may also have been the rulers attempt t bolster his sup- assert dynastic control in the southern part of his domain, largely populated by Sumerians. HEAD OF A RULER A life-size bronze head (1a. 2-42)—found 1 the northem city of Nineveh (present-day Ninua, Irag) and thought ro date from the time of Sargon—is the earliest known work of hollow-east sculpture using the lost-wax casting pro- cess (ee “Lost-Wax Casting,” pags sophistication i may reflect a generalized ideal nd hairs ken The facial features nique the sculprure was once identified as Sargon himself, The enormous sling beard and elaborately braided hair (circling the head and knot at The deliberate dam ending in back) indicate both royalty and ideal male appearance to the left side of the face and eye suggests that the head was symbolically mutilated at a bter date to destray its power. Specifically, the ears and the inlaid eyes appear to have been removed to deprive the head of it ability © "THE STELE OF NARAM-SIN The concept of imperial author ity was literally carved in stone by Sargon’s grandson Naram-Sin foot-high stele (probably only 35 its origi of the first works of art created to celebrate a specific achieve- ment of an individaal ruler, The original inscription—framed in 2 rectangular box just above the ruler’s head—states that the stele commemorates Naram-Sin’s victory over the Lullubi people of the Zagros Mountains. Watched over by solar deities (symbolized by the rayed suns at the top of the stele) and wearing the homed ‘own heretofore associated only with gods, the hierarchi- ed kit foes, boldly sithouetted a helm tands proudly above his soldiers and his filles inst the sky next to the smooth surface This expression of physical prowess and political power a erected by Naram-Sin in the courtyard of the temple of the suf 4 Shamash in Sippar, but it did not stay there permanently. Dut after the end of ing the tw ‘over a thousand years Akkadian ral par and transported the stele of Naram-Sin back to bi od. He also addeda elfth century we Elamite king Shutruk-Nahhunte conquered SiP- is own capital in Susa, where he rededicated it co an Elamite g new explanatory inscription—in a diagonal band on the mountait in front of Naram-Sin—recounting his own victory and chim ifically with Nara prowess The Sin stele remained in Susa until the end of the ninete is monument—which is identified spec asa statement of his own military and political nth centuys when ie was excavated by a French archaeologist and traveled OR more, this time appropriated for exhibition in Paris at the Loave2443 + NANNA ZIGQURAT Ur present-day Mugaiyr, rag). c. 2100-2060 ace UR AND LAGASH The Akkadian Empire fell around 2180 nce to the Guti, a moun: ‘ain people from the northeast. For a brief time, the Guti con: trolled most of the Mesopotamian plain, but ultimately Sumerian control of the region and expelled the Gut in 2112 ct, under the leadership of King Umammu of Ur. He notably sponsored magnificent building campaigt od Nanni Sosa dedicated to the moon ko called Sin (ro. 2-13), Although located on the site of an earlier temple, this imposing sructure—mud-brick faced with kiln-dried brick set with bit men—was nor the accidental result of successive rebuilding, Its base isa rectangle 205 by 141 feet, with three sets of tars converg- at an imposing entrance gate atop the first of what were three platforms. Each platform's walls slope outward from top to base probably to prevent rainwater from forming puddles and eroding the mudl-brick pavement below. The first two levels of the ziggurat and their retaining walls are recent reconstructions. city-state remained Sumerian independent One large throughout this period: Lagash, whose capital was Girsu (present- chy Telloh, Iraq), on the Tigris River. Gudea, the ruler, built and restored many temples, and within them, following a venerable Mesopotamian tradition, he placed votive statues representing himself as governor and embodiment of just rule. The statues are made of diorite, a very hard stone, and the difficulty of carving it may have prompted sculptors to use compact, simplified forms for the portnits. Or pethaps it was the desire for powerful, stylized images that inspired the choice of this imported stone for this series of statues. Twenty of them survive, 1 king Gudea a familia figure in the seudy of ancient Near Eastern art. Images of Gudea present him as strong, peaceful, pious ruler worthy of divine favor (pa. 2-14). Whether he is shown siting or standing, he wears a long garment, which provides ample, smooth space for long cuneiform inscriptions. In this imposing statue, only ight shoulder is bare, and he wears a cap with a wide brim carved with a patter to represent fleece. He holds a vessel in front of him, from which life-giving water flows in ewo streams, each filled with leaping. fish. The text on his garment states that he dedicated himself, the satue, and its temple to the god- ddess Geshtinanna, the divine poet and interpreter of dreams. The sculptor has emphasized the power centers ofthe human body: the eyes, head, and smoothly muscled arms. Gudea’s face is youthful ne, and his eyer—oversized and wide open—perpetually confront the gaze of the deity with intense concentration, BABYLON For more than 300 yeats, periods of political turmoil aleernated with periods of sable government in Mesopotamia, until the Amorites (a Semitic-speaking people from the Syrian desert, to the west) reunited the region under Hammurabi (ruled 179 1750 sce). Hammurabi’s capital city was Babylon and his subjects were called Babylonians. Among Hammurabi's achievements was a written legal code that detailed the laws of his realm and the pen- alties for breaking them (see The Code of Hammurabi,” page 39). THE HITTITES OF ANATOLIA Outside Mesopotamia, other cultures developed and flourished im the ancient Near East. Anatolia (present-day Turkey) was home to several independent cultures that had resisted Mesopotamian domination, but the Hittites—whose founders had moved into the ‘mountains and plateaus of central Anatolia from the east—were the ‘most powerfal among them. The Hittites established their capital at Hattusha (near present chy Boghazkoy Turkey) about 1600 act, and the city thrived until its destruction about 1200 uct. Through trade and conquest, the Hittites created an empire that stretched along the coast of the ART OF THE ANCIENT NEAR EAST CHAPTER 2 37"TIVE STATUE OF GUDEA 28 CHAPTER 2 day Telioh, rag). ¢. 2000 ace Diort, height 25° (73.7 em ASSYRIA KALHU Dusiog ay Sy withthe ta the ako made ope to are noe forthe ment of J hase wall h date sate ¢ ll. Sowe he the ows 1m the bie al «ale ofthe from the geal ‘treme wea the millennia ad he Assi Mesopotamia Al oer net inch ceneuy 2 4 Mexposnin ‘nce they had exe an victor, A | of reigow aBabylonian ruler Hammurab's systematic coifiction of his people's ghts,dutes, and punishments for wrongdoing was engraved on a black basalt sab known as the STELE OF HAMMURAB! (10. 2-18). This Posing artifact, therefore, i both a work of at that depicts a legendary about lustce between god and man, At the top ofthe stele, we see Hammurabi standing in an atitude prayer before Shamash, the sun god and gos of justice, Rays rise from Shamash’s shoulders as he ss, crowned by a conical homed cap, on a backless throne, holding ational symbols of his power—the measuring rod and he rope circle. Shamash gives the law tothe king, diary, and the codes of justice flow forth underneath ther horizontal bands of exquistely engraved cuneiform signs. The idea of ‘90d-given laws engraved on stone tablets wil have along traction in the ancient Near East. About 500 years later, Moses, the lawgiver of lara received two stone tablets containing the Ten Commandments from God Con Mount Sina Exodus 22:1) AAprologve 00 the front ofthe stole lists the temples Hammurabi has restored, and an epiogue on the back glorifies him asa peacemaker, but most ofthe stele “pushes” the laws themselves, quaranteeing uniform treatment of people throughout his kingdom. Within the inscription, Harnmurabi declares that he intends “to cause justice to preva inthe land and te destroy he wicked and the evi, thatthe strong might not, ‘oppress the weak nor the weak the song.” Most ofthe 200 or so entries ial and property matters. Only 68 relate to ‘domestic problems, and a mere 20 deal with physical assault, Punishments are based on the wealth, class, and gender ofthe partes—the rghts of the wealthy are favored over the poor, cizens over famous are instances when punishments follow dea vith commer laves, men over women. Mast ‘are special taloved to it erimes—an eye for an ye, atooth fora penalty is decreed for crimes such as stealing from a temple or palace, helping a slave to ‘escape, o insuboraination inthe army. Trial by water and fie could ‘also be imposed, as when an adulterous woman and her lover were 10 the water: they did not crown, they were deemed innocent. Although some ofthe punishments may seem excessive tobe thrown i today, Hammurabi was breaking new ground by regulating les and punishments rather than leaving them tothe whims of rulers or officials 2-18 + STELE OF HAMMURABI Probably trom Sippar; found at Suse (present-day Shush, ran) 6, 1782-1750 ace. Basalt, height of stele approx. 7's” (2.25 m) height of figural raiaf 28" (71.1 cm), Musée du Louvre, Pari, (la-/Read the document related to the code of Hammurabi 1 ‘on myartslab,com . CHAPTER 2 39reset ay Boghahoy, Trey 400 Linen. was prob Be laae on the grand under the hones, This ; Msp sed SRSA aod bly & conronil hut, in which the king db ee Pe roa sili rode back and forch tiling animal Merial ee aba ny ofthis image mare «sti in Mesopotamian at, away Bom ee eee rational involvement with the event portaye \ sin k smade fom mud a 7 Gls es tormarcs ro scam sea pre Cole- ASSYALAN ARcatone another palace relief, the scene shifts Fe eS Recindcccan heat of battle, set within a detailed ‘will with ens inlow tne *A-Closer Look,” page 42). Three of the A reliet Be ete tneaene ies made of infhted ani i renneen tos, le in a raging river, retreating fiom a vanguard . : Mie RES Enel tin bans wo enc tne sal THE LION HUNT | Seene evokes ag citi event from 878 nck described in the R 1 BN be Aayian ting ovenoox he aap Be ce car che sneer vown of A Dart leader and soldier escaped into the Euphrates River in a *emptt sme thie carrer a ME ANCIENT NEAR Easy2-17 + ASSURNASIRPAL 1! KILLING LIONS From the palace complex of Assurnasipal I, Kathu (present-day NinvUd, ra). . 875-860 ece. ‘Alabaster, height approx. 88" (89.1 em). British Museum, Londen. DUR SHARRUKIN Sargon Il (euled 7: Sharrukin (present-day Khorsabad, Iraq). On the northwest side (ro. 2-48), Within the citadel, Sargon’s palace complex (the 706 ce) built a new Assyrian capital at Dur group of buildings where the ruler governed and resided) stood on 1 nised, fortified platform about 40 feet high—demonstrating the of the capital, a walled citadel, or fortress, straddled the city wall use of ar as politcal propaganda. i propag tadelgteA abu tee gut palace tnrone oom cael gate 8 2-18 + RECONSTRUCTION DRAWING OF THE CITADEL AND PALACE COMPLEX OF SARGON 1! Dur Sharukin (present-day Khorsabad, Iraq). ¢. 721-706 ace. The Oriental Intute Museum, University of Chicago. ART OF THE ANCIENT NEAR EAST CHAPTER 2 41stay Nr an ee Palace comee oman eg cm sh We. Leno e 75-060 ac, oy Tinted nero Twotane aot ae matvougeragh nea ieasrter smeiuhigotsameaer clvararow:tsiedconreir tan Archers on yar. com palace complex was accesible man, the powerfil body of aon or bull, the wings of an ‘ \ en square, around and the homed headdes of a god portant goverment and religious off ln an open space between the palace complex and cemple B was the main courtyard, complex at Dur Sharrukin rove aziggurat declaring the might of . mmpleson the left. The Asya’ kings and symbolizing their chim to empire. It prob- forced wall with only two ably had seven level, each about 18 feet high and painted a dif by past the main courtyard, Within the fe mt color (ce Fa 248). The four levels still remaining were ryan ined with narative relief once white, black, blue, and red. Instead of separate flights of stairs Pea, Wonkibews wiked ose between the veh, aig, squred-ofsginl mp rose contin ‘sly around the exterior ftom the base, at aaience rom, they would have Aanked, like the other gates of citadel” NINEVEH. Asurbanial (ruled 665-<. 627 ncx), Ling of the Assyrians three (Sevetations afer Sargon II, maintined his capital at Nineveh. od the bearded head of a2-19 » GUARDIAN FIGURES AT GATE A OF THE CITADEL OF SARGON I! DURING ITS, EXCAVATION IN THE 18408, Like that of Assurnasipal II two centuries eatier, his palace was decorated with alabaster panels carved with pictorial narratives in lief: Most show Assurbanipal and his subjects in battle or hunting, but there are occasional scenes of palace life ‘An unusually peacefil example shows the king and queen relaxing in a pleasure garden (na. 2-20). The king reclines on a h, and the queen sis in a chair at his feet, while a musician afr eft plays diverting music, Three servants arrive from the left 2:20 + ASSURBANIPAL AND HIS QUEEN IN THE GARDEN with trays of food, while others wave whisks to protect the 1 couple f hung it bow, and quiver of arrows: sm insects, The king has taken off his rich neckla al and 1 his couch, and he has hid aside his weapons—sword, ‘on the table behind hin but this apparently tranguil domestic scene is actually a victory celebration vupside d yn from tree atthe far lef From the palace at Nineveh (present-day Ninua rag). ©. 647 ace. Alabaster, height approx. 21” (63:3 om), British Museur ART F THE ANCIENT NEAR EAS ondon, CHAPTER 2 Jy trophy, the severed head of his vanguished enemy, hangs a3)-BABYLONIA Babylon sa bid 1 Way, the route taken by reli of string ions, mascot the Euphrates River, ts two sections The older Mand (re. 2-24). Th patron god, Marduk sa nts [eran fom the Euphrates bridge he ina bed of bitumen, was up 1 Babylonian power (Ra. 2-22). Beyond the shear Gate since about 1600 uct. Against chat blue background and gold-colored bricks formed he led turquoise, bh iated with Marduk. PERSIA Indo-Europe le, began rin Mesopotamia, From the region Persis (present-day Fars, Iran), the da vast em pre traced their ancestry to a semilegendary ian ing named Achaemenes, and com ‘quently they are known as the Achaemenid The dramatic exp ion of the Achacme eat ader, Cyrus I (Cyrus a hh Empire included Babylonia, Media which seetl nce). By the time of his present-day northern Tran through Anitoli), and some of the Aegean as fir to the west, Only the Greeks them (see Chapter 5). When Dari 486 nc) took the throne, he could 2-21» RECONSTRUCTION DRAWING OF BABYLON IN THE 6TH CENTURY nor ‘The Oferta Insitute Museum, University of Chicago. ace of Neb Hegdeats chadhez2ar I, with its famous be een ust behind and tothe st, west ofthe Processional Way at looms in the far distance on the Ko the Eupheats,