Art of the Ancient Near East Originally created by Ms. Susan M. Pojer, Horace Greeley HS Chappaqua, NY, Marsha Russell, St. Andrews Episcopal School, Austin, TX and Douglas Darracott, Plano West HS Plano, TX

Mesopotamia “Land between the Rivers” ”

The Ancient Fertile Crescent “The Cradle of Civilization”

Effects of cities Cities bring massive changes to human life Alter physical environment (agricultures, slash and burn, ziggurats) New means of transport (wheel, sailboat) need generated by lack of natural resources Metallurgy new use for metals (tools, weapons): the beginning of Bronze Age Human organization and structure changes (governments) Division into social classes (royal, religious, landholding) Specialization (scribes, artisans, traders, warriors, farmers) Record keeping needed lead to development of language and writing

Mesopotamian Civilizations Sumerian* – B.C.E. –Gilgamesh, Ur, Uruk [Southern Iraq] Akkadian – B.C.E. –Sargon I aka Nimrod, Babylon, Ninevah [central] Assyrian – B.C.E. / B.C.E. [Northern] Babylonian* – B.C.E. / B.C.E. –Hammurabi to Nebuchadnezzer [Central Iraq]

Santa Anna Never Baked A Nutty Pancake Sumerian Akkadian Neo-Sumerian Babylonians Assyrian Neo-Babylonians Persians

Rise of Sumer Migration of Sumerians to Mesopotamia (4000 B.C.E.) Opportunity and need combine to create city Challenges of river valley (floods and farming create need for irrigation) Lack of natural resources encourages long distance trade Need for protection and aggression results in disputes over resources Age of warring cities (Ur, Uruk, Lagash, Nippur) B.C.E. Creation of the first empires (control of other lands and people) Eventual creation of city-states and unified empires

Sumerians

Ziggurat at Ur  Temple  “Mountain of the Gods”  Temple  “Mountain of the Gods”

Sumerian Religion - Polytheistic Enki Innana Anthropomorphic Gods

Mesopotamian Trade “The Cuneiform World”

Cuneiform: “Wedge-Shaped” Writing

White Temple and Ziggurat at Uruk, c BCE

use of mud brick/ desire for monumental architecture/ celestial orientation/ cella

Ziggurat at Ur (modern day Iraq), c BCE

Statuettes from the Temple of Abu at Eshnunna (Tell Asmar), c BCE, gypsum stylization of physical types/ hypnotic gaze

Above: Impression from a Sumerian cylinder seal, c.2500 BCE Left:Seated Statuette of Urnanshe, from the Ishtar temple at Mari (modern Tell Hariri, Syria), c BCE, gypsum

Left: Soundbox of a Sumerian lyre (Ur, Iraq), c BCE Below: Lyre from Sumerian Royal Cemetery (Ur, Iraq), c BCE

Standard of Ur (Ur), c BCE Contrast between war and peace/ use of registers to depict a narrative/ discoveries from royal Sumerian graves/ depiction of human figures/ lapis lazuli (Blue Stone)

“War side” of the Standard of Ur

“Peace side” of the Standard of Ur”

War side of the Standard of Ur, from Tomb 779, Royal Cemetery, Ur (modern Tell Muqayyar), Iraq, ca BCE. Wood inlaid with shell, lapis lazuli, and red limestone, 8” x 1’ 7”.

Peace side of the Standard of Ur

Sumerian Innovations Wheel [from pottery wheel] Cuneiform Astronomers Arithmetic base of 10 and 6 Clock of 60 seconds, minutes, 12 hours, 12 months Military formations Codified law /administration [govt] Agriculture and irrigation Wheat, barley, sheep, cattle

Akkadian Empires The First Empire

Sargon of Akkad: The World’s First Empire [Akkadians]

Victory stele of Naram-Sin, from Susa, Iran, 2254–2218 BCE. Pink sandstone, 6’ 7” high.

use of a stele to commemorate a victory/ Sargon of Akkad and Naram Sin/ hierarchical proportion/ organization of figures/ incorporating landscape

Akkadian Innovations Given credit for the world’s first empire Sargon of Akkad aka Nimrod Multiethnic centrally ruled empire Euphrates River to Mediterranean with parts of modern-day Iran,Syria, Anatolia, and Arabian Peninsulas Continuation of Sumerian civilization and innovations

Neo-Sumerian Empires Phase Two

Seated Statue of Gudea from Lagash Neo-Sumerian c BCE

Top: Relief of Assurnasirpal II Killing Lions (Nimrud, Iraq) c. 850 BCE Below: Drawing of the citadel and palace complex of Sargon II (Khorsabad, Iraq)

Lion Gate (Boghazkoy, Turkey), c.1400 BCE, limestone

Assyrian Empires “A land bathed in Blood””

The Assyrian Empire ©2004 Wadsworth, a division of Thomson Learning, Inc. Thomson Learning ™ is a trademark used herein under license.

Assyrian Military Power Assyrian soldiers carrying away the enemy’s gods.

Assyrian Lamassu from the Citadel of Sargon II (Khorsabad, Iraq) c. 720 BCE Reputation of the Assyrians/ royal citadel of Sargon II/ lamassu/ sculptor’s viewpoints

Assyrian reliefs from the palace of Ashurbanipal (Ninevah, Iraq) c. 650 BCE

depiction of a wild beast/ bas relief carving/ demonstration of the king’s power

Lamassu (winged, human-headed bull) R: from the citadel of Sargon II, Dur Sharrukin (modern Khorsabad), Iraq, ca. 720–705 BCE. Limestone, 13’ 10” high. L: from the palace of Assurnasirpal II, modern Nimrud, Iraq, 883–859 BCE. Alabaster, 10’ 3 ½" high.

Assyrian archers pursuing enemies, relief from the Northwest Palace of Ashurnasirpal II, Kalhu (modern Nimrud), Iraq, ca. 875–860 BCE. Gypsum, 2’ 10 5/8” high.

Assurbanipal and His Queen in the Garden, The Palace of Assurbanipal, Nineveh (modern Kuyunjik), Iraq, ca. 647 BCE. Gypsum, 21” high.

Ashurbanipal hunting lions, relief from the North Palace of Ashurbanipal, Nineveh (modern Kuyunjik), Iraq, ca. 645– 640 BCE. Gypsum, 5’ 4” high.

Historical and current range of the Lion (Time 8/23/04)

Babylonian Empires Hammurabi to Nebuchadnezzer

Stele with law code of Hammurabi (Susa, Iran), c BCE, basalt

Ishtar Gate (Babylon, Iraq), c. 575 BCE

Neo-Babylonian Period/ King Nebuchadnezzar/ Ishtar and Tammuz/ bulls, lions, and the mususu/ the “hanging gardens”

Ishtar Gate and throne room, Babylon, Iraq, ca. 575 BCE. Reconstruction drawing of Babylon in the 6 th century BCE.

Persian Empire A Brief Overview

Royal Audience Hall (apadana) at Persepolis of Darius I (Iran), c. 500 BCE Darius III and Alexander the Great/ elevation of platform/ apadana with bull capitals/ loose groupings of buildings/ satrapies

Reliefs at Persepolis

Left: Layout of Persepolis Below: Bull Capital from the royal audience hall of the palace of Artaxerxes II (Susa) c. 375 BCE

Persepolis (apadana in the background), Iran, ca. 521–465 BCE.

Processional frieze (detail) on the terrace of the apadana, Persepolis, Iran, ca. 521–465 BCE. Limestone, 8’ 4” high.

Darius and Xerxes Receiving Tribute, relief on the stairway, Persepolis, Iran, ca. 521–465 BCE. Limestone, 8’ 4” high.

Triumph of Shapur I over Valerian, rock-cut relief, Bishapur, Iran, ca. 260 CE.