Lamassu from the citadel of Sargon II
Summary
TLDRThe script explores the ancient Mesopotamian civilization, focusing on the Assyrian period from 1000 to 500 BCE. It delves into the palace of Sargon the 2nd, highlighting the impressive sculptures, particularly the Lamassu, guardian figures with human heads and wings of bulls. These monolithic stone figures, found at the modern-day Khorsabad, symbolize the king's power and serve as awe-inspiring protectors of the city gates and citadel. The script describes their detailed craftsmanship, from the delicate crowns to the muscular anatomy, and the unique representation with five legs to appear both stationary and moving from different perspectives. The Lamassu, along with the palace's relief sculptures, convey the might and authority of the Assyrian king.
Takeaways
- 🏛️ Ancient Mesopotamia is known as the cradle of civilization, but it was a series of civilizations that conquered each other.
- 🗿 The Louvre houses sculptures from the Assyrians, who controlled the ancient Near East from around 1000 BCE to 500 BCE.
- 🕍 The sculptures are from the palace of Sargon the 2nd, representing the height of Assyrian civilization in the 8th century BCE.
- 📍 The modern-day location of these sculptures is Khorsabad in Iraq, where various Assyrian kings had palaces.
- 👥 The guardian figures, such as the Lamassu, were significant for protecting city gates and the royal citadel.
- 🦏 The Lamassu are winged bulls with human heads, symbolizing the power of the Assyrian king.
- 🏗️ Each Lamassu was carved from a single piece of stone, showcasing the impressive engineering of the ancient world.
- 🎨 The palace walls were adorned with relief sculptures depicting royal power through hunting scenes and other significant events.
- 👑 The Lamassu's crown and facial features are intricately detailed, reflecting the artistic skill of the time.
- 📜 Inscriptions on the Lamassu in cuneiform script declare the king's power and warn against threats to the citadel.
- 👁️ The Lamassu's design allows it to be viewed effectively from both the front and the side, with a unique five-leg perspective for a dynamic appearance.
Q & A
What is often referred to as the 'cradle of civilization'?
-Ancient Mesopotamia is often credited as the 'cradle of civilization', which is the place where farming and cities began.
What was the historical period of the Assyrians' control over the ancient Near East?
-The Assyrians controlled the ancient Near East from about 1000 BCE to around 500 BCE.
Where are the sculptures from the palace of Sargon the 2nd located today?
-The sculptures from the palace of Sargon the 2nd are located in a room in the Louvre.
What is the modern-day location of the ancient city of Khorsabad?
-Khorsabad is located in modern-day Iraq.
What were the guardian figures protecting the city gates of the citadel called?
-The guardian figures protecting the city gates were called Lamassu, which were winged bulls with the heads of men.
What is significant about the Lamassu sculptures being carved from a monolithic stone?
-The significance of the Lamassu being carved from a monolithic stone is that it demonstrates the ancient world's ability to work with large, single pieces of stone without any cuts.
What scenes were depicted in the palace's relief carvings?
-The palace's relief carvings depicted hunting scenes and other scenes indicating royal power.
What is unique about the Lamassu's depiction of movement?
-The Lamassu's depiction of movement is unique because it appears to be stationary from the front view but moving forward from the side view.
What decorative elements are featured on the Lamassu's crown?
-The Lamassu's crown is decorated with rosettes and double horns that come around to the top center, along with a ring of feathers.
What does the decorative pattern on the Lamassu's body represent?
-The decorative pattern on the Lamassu's body, including ringlets and spirals, represents the fur of the beast and adds to the overall sense of its power and majesty.
What inscriptions can be found under and around the legs of the Lamassu?
-Inscriptions in cuneiform can be found under and around the legs of the Lamassu, some of which declare the power of the king and damnation for those who would threaten the king's work.
Outlines
🏛️ Ancient Mesopotamia and the Assyrian Civilization
This paragraph delves into the complexities of Ancient Mesopotamia, often celebrated as the cradle of civilization but marked by a series of warring civilizations. It highlights the Assyrians' dominance from 1000 BCE to 500 BCE and the grandeur of their sculptures, particularly those from the palace of Sargon the 2nd. The discussion centers on the guardian figures, the Lamassu, which were colossal winged bulls with human heads, symbolizing the power of the Assyrian king and serving as protectors of the city gates and the citadel. These monolithic stone figures, with their intricate details and combination of naturalistic and imaginative elements, were not only decorative but also had a structural purpose, standing between massive arches and contributing to the awe-inspiring presence of the citadel.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Ancient Mesopotamia
💡Assyrians
💡Sargon the 2nd
💡Khorsabad
💡Guardian Figures
💡Lamassu
💡Monolithic Stone
💡Relief Sculpture
💡Cuneiform
💡Five Legs
💡Composite Animal
Highlights
Ancient Mesopotamia is the cradle of civilization, the birthplace of farming and cities, but was a series of civilizations that conquered each other.
The Louvre has a room filled with Assyrian sculptures from 1000 BCE to 500 BCE, showcasing the height of Assyrian civilization.
Sculptures from the palace of Sargon the 2nd, at the height of Assyrian civilization in the 8th century BCE.
Modern day Khorsabad in Iraq was the site of an Assyrian palace with impressive sculptures.
Assyrian kings established palaces in various cities, with sculptures from Khorsabad being particularly notable.
Guardian figures like the Lamassu, winged bulls with human heads, protected city gates and the citadel.
Lamassu sculptures expressed the power of the Assyrian king and had both a decorative and structural purpose.
The Lamassu were carved from single monolithic stones, a significant feat in the ancient world.
Relief carvings in the palace depicted the process of moving the massive Lamassu into place.
Palace walls were decorated with relief sculptures showing hunting scenes and other displays of royal power.
The Lamassu had intricate details like rosettes, double horns, and a ring of feathers on the crown.
The Lamassu's faces had extraordinary features, including incised wavy hair, connected eyebrows, and bull ears with earrings.
The Lamassu's beards had a complex representation with ringlets and spirals, interrupted by horizontal bands.
The wings of the Lamassu formed a decorative pattern, and the body had ringlets to represent the fur of the beast.
Inscriptions in cuneiform on the Lamassu declared the king's power and damnation for those who would threaten the citadel.
The Lamassu was designed to be seen from both a frontal and profile view, with a unique five-leg perspective.
The Lamassu's movement from the side view and stillness from the front view symbolized its role as a guardian figure.
The combination of decorative forms and sensitivity to the anatomy of the Lamassu showcased the power and authority of the king.
The impressive Lamassu sculptures would have awed anyone approaching the citadel, demonstrating the power of the Assyrian civilization.
Transcripts
(piano music)
-Ancient Mesopotamia is often credited as the
cradle of civilization, that is, the place where
farming and cities began.
It makes it seem so peaceful, but this was
anything but the case.
In fact, it was really a series of civilizations
that conquered each other.
-We're in a room in the Louvre filled with
sculpture from the Assyrians, who controlled
the ancient Near East from about 1000 BCE
to around 500 BCE.
-And these sculptures in particular come from
the palace of Sargon the 2nd, and we're carved
at the height of Assyrian civilization in
the 8th century BCE.
-So this is modern day Khorsabad.
-In Iraq.
-And various Assyrian kings established palaces
at different cities.
So there were palaces at Nimrid and Assur
before this, and after there'll be
a palace at Nineveh, but these sculptures come
from an excavation from modern day Khorsabad.
-The most impressive sculptures that survive
are the guardian figures that protected the city's
gates, and protected the gates of the citadel itself.
That is, the area within which were both the temple
and the royal palace.
-So at each of these various gates, there were
guardian figures that were winged bulls with
the heads of men.
-We think they were called Lamassu.
-As figures that stood at gateways, they make sense.
They're fearsome, they look powerful.
They could also be an expression of the power
of the Assyrian king.
-They are enormous, but even they would have
been dwarfed by the architecture.
They would have stood between huge arches.
In fact, they had some structural purpose.
It's interesting to note that each of these
Lamassu are actually carved out of a monolithic
stone, that is, there are no cuts here.
These are single pieces of stone, and in the
ancient world, it was no small task to get these
stones in place.
-Well, and apparently, there were relief carvings
in the palace that depicted moving these massive
Lamassu into place.
So it's important to remember that the Lamassu
were the gateway figures, but the walls of the
palace were decorated with relief sculpture
showing hunting scenes and other scenes
indicating royal power.
-This is a Lamassu that was actually a guardian
for the exterior gate of the city.
It's in awfully good condition.
-Well my favorite part is the crown.
It's decorated with rosettes, and then double
horns that come around toward the top center,
and then on top of that, a ring of feathers.
-It's really delicate for such a massive
and powerful creature.
The faces are extraordinary.
First of all, just at the top of the forehead,
you can see kind of incised wavy hair that comes
just below the crown, and then you have
a connected eyebrow.
-And then the ears are the ears of a bull
that wear earrings.
-Actually quite elaborate earrings.
-Well the whole form is so decorative.
-And then there's that marvelous, complex
representation of the beard.
You see little ringlets on the cheeks of the face,
but then as the beard comes down, you see
these spirals that turn downward, and then
are interrupted by a series of horizontal bands.
-And then the wings too form this lovely decorative
pattern up the side of the animal, and then
across it's back.
-In fact across the body itself there are ringlets
as well, so we get a sense of the fur of the beast.
And then under the creature, and around the legs,
you can see inscriptions in cuneiform.
-Some of which declare the power of the king.
-And damnation for those that would threaten
the king's work, that is, the citadel.
-What's interesting too is that these were meant
to be seen both from a frontal view and
a profile view.
-Well if you count up the number of legs,
there's one too many.
There are five.
-Right, two from the front, and four from the side,
but of course, one of the front legs overlaps,
and so there are five legs.
-What's interesting is that when you look at the
creature from the side, you actually see that
it's moving forward, but when you look at it
from the front, those two legs are static
so the beast is stationary.
And think about what this means for a guardian
figure at a gate.
As we approach, we see it still, watching us
as we move, but if we belong, if we're friendly,
and we're allowed to pass this gate, as we move
through it, we see the animal itself move.
-And then we have this combination of these
decorative forms that we've been talking about
with a sensitivity to the anatomy of this
composite animal.
His abdomen swells, and his hindquarters move
back, and then we can see the veins, and muscles,
and bones in his leg.
-So there really is this funny relationship
between the naturalistic and the imagination
of the sculpture.
-And the decorative, but all speaking to the
power, the authority of the king and the fortifications
of this palace, and this city.
-They are incredibly impressive.
It would be impossible to broach the citadel
without being awestruck by the power
of this civilization.
(piano music)
5.0 / 5 (0 votes)