Sumer: Royal Cemetery at Ur
Summary
TLDRThis presentation delves into Sumerian beliefs about the afterlife and burial practices, exemplified by the luxurious artifacts found in the Royal Tombs of Ur, discovered by Sir Leonard Wooley in the 1920s. The script explores the significance of these objects, including the 'Ram in a Thicket' statues and the 'Great Lyre,' in reflecting Mesopotamian society's organization and agrarian theocracy. It also touches on the influence of biblical associations on archaeological interpretations and the narrative imagery on the 'Standard of Ur,' which depicts scenes of war and peace, symbolizing the dual responsibilities of kingship.
Takeaways
- 🏺 The script discusses the Sumerian beliefs about the afterlife, burial rites, and practices, highlighting the significance of appeasing spirits with gifts to prevent haunting.
- 🛑 Sir Leonard Wooley's archaeological work in the 1920s uncovered the Royal tombs at Ur, revealing luxurious objects that captured global interest due to their quality and historical importance.
- 📜 The script mentions the city of Ur's association with biblical narratives, particularly the story of Abraham, which adds to the fame of the artifacts found there.
- 🔮 Sumerian cylinder seals, poetry, and myths provide insights into their views on the afterlife, where the deceased became spirits that required offerings from the living.
- 💎 The luxurious burial items, such as jewelry and artifacts made from lapis lazuli, indicate long-distance trade and the importance of these materials in Mesopotamian culture.
- 🐐 The 'Ram in a Thicket' sculptures reflect agricultural development and animal domestication, with the materials and craftsmanship showcasing the region's artistic prowess.
- 🎼 The 'Great Lyre' is an extravagant artifact with a golden bull's head, symbolizing the sun god, and inlaid shell work depicting scenes from a Sumerian funeral.
- 🎵 The lyre's reconstruction suggests that music played a role in funerary rites, with the depiction of animals acting humanly, possibly indicating a connection to the Epic of Gilgamesh.
- 🏰 The 'Standard of Ur' is a misnomered artifact that Wooley may have incorrectly identified as a military banner; it features narrative imagery depicting scenes of war and peace.
- 🤴 The Standard of Ur uses the artistic technique of hierarchy of scale to represent the king's status, showing him as physically larger than others in scenes of both war and peace.
- 🌾 The script concludes by emphasizing the narratives on the artifacts, which reveal the organization of Sumerian society and the concept of an agrarian theocracy.
Q & A
What were the two main subjects discussed in the final PowerPoint about ancient Sumer?
-The two main subjects discussed were the Sumerian beliefs about the afterlife and burial practices, and the influence of archaeology on the interpretation of objects found in Mesopotamia.
Who discovered the Royal tombs at Ur and in what decade?
-The Royal tombs at Ur were discovered in the 1920s by Sir Leonard Wooley, a British archaeologist working for the British Museum.
What is the significance of the objects found in the Royal tombs at Ur?
-The objects found in the Royal tombs at Ur are significant because they reflect Mesopotamian beliefs about the afterlife and are made of high-quality materials, indicating a connection to long-distance trade and contact between ancient civilizations.
What is the connection between the city of Ur and the Bible?
-The city of Ur is mentioned in the Book of Genesis as the place where the prophet Abraham is said to come from. However, it is not certain if this is the same city.
What do the Sumerians believe happens after one dies according to the script?
-According to the script, the Sumerians believed that after one dies, they become a spirit or a ghost, and the living need to appease them with proper gifts to prevent them from haunting them.
What is the significance of the Ram in a Thicket statues found in the Royal tombs?
-The Ram in a Thicket statues are significant because they are made of high-quality materials like lapis lazuli and ivory, and they reflect the importance of farming, agricultural development, and animal domestication in Mesopotamia.
What is the 'Great Lyre' and what does it depict?
-The 'Great Lyre' is an extravagant object found in the tombs, which has a golden bull's head and inlaid shell work depicting scenes from a Sumerian funeral and death rites, including animals acting in human ways.
What is the significance of the bull's head on the Great Lyre?
-The bull's head on the Great Lyre is a reference to the sun god, variously known as Utu or Shamash, who is described in cuneiform texts as taking the form of a bull with a lapis beard.
What is the Standard of Ur and what does it depict?
-The Standard of Ur is an object that has been misnamed, but it features one of the earliest versions of narrative imagery, depicting scenes of war and peace, symbolizing the responsibilities of kingship.
What artistic technique is used in the Standard of Ur to indicate the status of the king?
-The artistic technique used is the 'hierarchy of scale,' where the most important figures, such as the king, are depicted as physically larger than others to indicate their status.
What does the Standard of Ur tell us about the organization of Sumerian society?
-The Standard of Ur tells us about the agrarian theocracy of Sumerian society, where the king had responsibilities to protect the city in times of conflict and oversee agricultural prosperity in times of peace.
Outlines
🏺 Sumerian Afterlife Beliefs and Archaeological Discoveries
This paragraph delves into the Sumerian beliefs regarding the afterlife and the burial practices, as well as the archaeological excavations in Mesopotamia. Sir Leonard Wooley's discovery of the Royal tombs at Ur in the 1920s is highlighted, revealing luxurious artifacts that captured global attention. The paragraph also touches on the region's significance due to biblical associations, particularly the city of Ur's mention in the Book of Genesis. The Sumerians' view of the afterlife as a state of becoming a spirit that requires appeasement with gifts is discussed, along with the reflection of these beliefs in the quality of objects found in the tombs. The paragraph concludes with an exploration of the materials and craftsmanship evident in the discovered artifacts, such as the string of beads with white carving, indicative of long-distance trade with the Indus Valley Civilization.
🐐 The Ram in a Thicket and the Great Lyre: Sumerian Art and Mythology
The second paragraph focuses on specific artifacts found in the Royal tombs, including the 'Ram in a Thicket,' a pair of statues depicting goats, which symbolize the importance of agriculture and animal domestication in Mesopotamia. The statues are made from luxurious materials like gilding, lapis lazuli, and ivory, showcasing the craftsmanship of the time. The paragraph also discusses the 'Great Lyre,' an extravagant object with a golden bull's head adorned with lapis lazuli, which is believed to represent the sun god, Utu or Shamash. The lyre is reconstructed with inlaid shell work depicting scenes from a Sumerian funeral. The narrative of the lyre, along with the other artifacts, provides insights into the Sumerian society's organization and their agrarian theocracy.
🎼 The Standard of Ur: Narrative Art and the Dual Role of Kingship
This paragraph examines the 'Standard of Ur,' an artifact misnamed by Sir Leonard Wooley, which is not a military banner as initially thought but a piece of narrative art. The artifact features scenes of war and peace on opposite sides, illustrating the dual responsibilities of kingship. The war side depicts a structured and orderly military conflict with chariots, soldiers, and prisoners, culminating in the king's central figure, symbolizing his role in protecting the city. The peace side shows the king overseeing an agricultural harvest, a feast, and a community's prosperity, again emphasizing his importance through the hierarchy of scale in the artwork. The paragraph concludes by reinforcing the idea of the king's status and the narrative significance of the Standard of Ur in understanding Sumerian society.
🌾 Agricultural Prosperity and the King's Role in Sumerian Society
The final paragraph continues the discussion on the Standard of Ur, focusing on the peace side's depiction of agricultural activities and the king's role in fostering prosperity. The narrative imagery shows figures bringing bales of wheat and domesticated animals, leading to a feast for the priests and a musician playing for the event. The king is depicted as physically larger than others, a technique known as the hierarchy of scale, indicating his high status. The paragraph emphasizes the king's dual role in both war and peace, and how the artifacts and their narratives provide a window into the organization and values of Sumerian society, particularly its agrarian theocracy.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Sumerian beliefs
💡Afterlife
💡Archaeology
💡Royal tombs at Ur
💡Sir Leonard Woolley
💡Cuneiform
💡Long-distance trade
💡Lapis lazuli
💡Ram in a Thicket
💡Great Lyre
💡Standard of Ur
Highlights
The Royal tombs at Ur, discovered in the 1920s by Sir Leonard Wooley, revealed luxurious objects reflecting Sumerian beliefs about the afterlife.
Sumerians believed in appeasing spirits with gifts to prevent haunting, which is reflected in the high-quality objects found in the tombs.
The discovery of the Royal tombs was influenced by archaeological interest due to biblical associations with the region.
Long-distance trade is evidenced by the presence of beads with carvings found in both Mesopotamia and the Indus Valley Civilization.
Lapis lazuli, a semi-precious stone from Afghanistan, was significant for creating vibrant blue pigments in Sumerian art.
The 'Ram in a Thicket' sculptures depict goats, symbolizing the importance of farming and animal domestication in Mesopotamia.
The name 'Ram in a Thicket' originates from a biblical narrative involving Abraham, reflecting Wooley's interpretation of the artifacts.
The 'Great Lyre' features inlaid shell work depicting Sumerian funeral rites and scenes of animals acting humanely.
The lyre's reconstruction suggests a connection between the harp and a woman likely to have played it during a funerary procession.
The bull's head on the lyre represents the sun god, with its lapis lazuli beard and gold material signifying divine energy.
The Standard of Ur, despite its misnomer, showcases one of the earliest forms of narrative imagery in art.
The Standard of Ur's war side depicts a sense of orderliness and discipline, with the king at the center representing leadership.
The peace side of the Standard of Ur illustrates the king's role in agricultural prosperity and community feasts.
The use of hierarchy of scale in the Standard of Ur emphasizes the king's status and importance in society.
The artifacts found in the tombs reflect the organization of Sumerian society and the concept of an agrarian theocracy.
Transcripts
consumer and the Royal Cemetery at UR so
in this final PowerPoint about ancient
Sumer we're going to tackle two subjects
the first of which is the Sumerian
beliefs about the afterlife and burial
rights and practices and then second is
this kind of larger issue of archeology
how various sites in Mesopotamia have
been excavated over the centuries and
how that has influenced interpretations
of the objects found there
so to begin
um we will look at would have been known
as the Royal tombs at Ur and these are
16 burial sites that were discovered in
the 1920s by a British archaeologist
working for the British Museum and then
he had a team from the University of
Pennsylvania and his name was Sir
Leonard Wooley
and this is actually a kind of I believe
postcard that was made after his
archaeological discoveries what he
encountered you can kind of already see
from these photos are just you know the
most fantastic and luxurious objects
they certainly captured the world's
imagination when they were found but
I think also uh what this postcard is
showing us is that part of the reason
there has been
um archaeological interest in this part
of the world for so long is that this is
also a part of the world associated with
um the birth of Christianity
and in fact I don't know if if you're
familiar with it but um the city of or
might make an appearance in the Bible in
the Book of Genesis the prophet Abraham
is said to come from quote oral of
excuse me er er of childish
um we don't know for sure if this is the
the city associated with that
um but you know that was part of the
fame that uh
or I I should say those associations
were part of the reason these objects
became so famous
um is because they had this kind of
biblical Association
um whether or not that that's warranted
um so there's that uh but the other
obvious reason that these these objects
are so extraordinary
um is what they reflect about uh
Mesopotamian beliefs about the afterlife
and we know some of this from cylinder
seal uh uh excuse me not cylinder seals
but cuneiform writing poetry and various
myths that have been recorded
um and the long and short of it is that
the Sumerians believed that after one
died you became a spirit or a ghost and
then
um the living needed to appease you with
the proper gifts
um and so that you could essentially not
haunt them you were bribing the deceased
which is interesting
um
so these are are obviously the highest
of quality objects that would have been
uh made for for this purpose and we'll
look at just a few of them in more
detail I won't show you the the string
of beads or this lapis and gold wreath
um but there is quite a bit of jewelry
that's been discovered and this um
string of beads is interesting because
you'll see that some of them have this
white carving on them and we find these
same beads with this kind of carving in
the Indus Valley Civilization again in
modern day Pakistan
so that's an indication of of long
distance trade and contact between these
very ancient civilizations
lapis I will also talk a little bit more
about later on but it is also
um this semi-precious stone that comes
from Afghanistan and is very important
in the history of art because it creates
this very vibrant blue pigment when it
is ground up
um so you know the materials
um even if they you know I'll just say
that the materials in these burials are
as significant as the objects themselves
in many cases
so the first pair of objects that I will
show you there are two statues virtually
identical uh one at the University of
Pennsylvania's Museum one of the British
museum both known as RAM and a Thicket
and
um right off the bat what do we see we
see these kind of small-ish Yeah medium
size I would say medium-sized sculptures
of what is more accurately should be
called a goat rather than a ram and
that's one of the earliest domesticated
animals in Mesopotamia so I think you
recall back to the um the work face we
had sheep
um uh you know circling around that base
here we have a goat so this is another
kind of reminder of the importance of
farming agricultural development and
animal domestication in the region
um
and the goats are uh trying to kind of
pick food if you will off of this tree
and then we think we don't know entirely
but we think that
um together they held some kind of bowl
and that bowl no longer survives
um but you know they're gorgeous and and
the materials from which they are made
are just so um beautiful so here's a
profile and you can see that that
gilding
um and then this is an example of that
that lapis lazuli that I talked about
um and as well as some Ivory that has
been carved to create the texture of the
wool
um or I guess the fur of the animal
so why are they called Ram in a Thicket
well they got this name
um from Sir Leonard wooly he again was
kind of approaching this site from a
possible biblical standpoint and uh
relating to the prophet Abraham there's
an important moment in the Bible when
the Christian God asks Abraham to
sacrifice his only son is a way of
proving his Devotion to God
um this is obviously you know a big ask
and Abraham
um
struggles with it for quite some time
but then you know right as he is about
to actually sacrifice his son God
intervenes tells him that you know this
was just a test of your faith you've
passed the test and instead you know
please just sacrifice a ram for me and
so
um Abraham does that he sacrifices a ram
instead of his son
so as I said
um you know part of the archaeological
interest in this location is this idea
that it could be connected to
um biblical stories biblical narratives
and I don't think it's the most
egregious case of kind of
misinterpreting imagery but but that is
why
these objects have the name that they
have rather than simply being referred
to as goats
nevertheless they are gorgeous I think
that is something we can all agree upon
and another very
extravagant wonderful object is known as
the great liar
um and it consisted of some
um what's the word I'm looking for
um some carved Stone I'll come up with
the word later and then this Golden Bull
Head that we can look at
um and in all probability this wooden
structure and I'll explain
um why I say that in just a second but
this wooden structure that you're seeing
here the what actually makes up the harp
um
is this is a modern reconstruction the
the wooden components of this object did
not survive in the grave so how do we
you know how do we speculate that this
was the form of this original object
I will come back to the head in just a
second but on that front piece of the
liar over here
um you can see some inlaid shell work
and it shows various scenes from a
Sumerian funeral and death writes and
very interestingly on the third from the
bottom I should say across all of them
here we have a man in between two bowls
but in the rest of them we have a
variety of animals kind of enacting
human behavior which is interesting and
then in this third from the bot or third
from the top
we have a bear
um engaging with uh some kind of liar
some kind of a musical instrument
um that is has this wooden structure in
the head of a bowl so that is how
archaeologists have come to to
reconstruct this object
but you know what is going on so first
of all this was found on top of the
remains of a woman who in all likelihood
played this liar at this uh funerary
procession and I should say that in
addition to the Royal individuals who
have been found at these locations
there's also been the bodies of 60
attendants who appear to have been uh
buried with them so this idea of
continuing to um
perform for them if you will in the
afterlife there's that aspect but then
also we have you know a bull's head and
it is made out of gold and extraordinary
amounts of of lapis in its um in its
beard
and this would have been a person not a
personification but a um a reference an
animal reference to the sun god
variously known as utu or shamash
um and he is described in these
cuneiform texts that are so valuable to
us as uh very frequently taking the form
of a bowl
um and then even having a Lapis beard so
um we have a kind of
um
uh I wouldn't say a patropaic I don't
think that the poll is necessarily
warding off evil but we have a kind of
burial
um with this figure of the essence of
the sun god the Sun God is is becoming
part of the Grave
um and kind of imbuing the Grave with
his good energy if you want to think of
it that way but it's just an
extraordinary object in and of itself
so as I said the rest of the panels here
show uh what seemed to be funerary
rights over here we have a lion and I
think he's a hyena carrying liquid and a
table with
um meat upon it to some kind of feast
over here we have the playing of music
and then at the bottom we have a goat
and more Libations but this is
particularly interesting because
um this figure has been interpreted as a
kind of man scorpion hybrid and wouldn't
you know that is one of the creatures
that Gilgamesh
conquers uh in the Epic of Gilgamesh so
this uh liar was created around 700
years before the first recorded uh
before the Epic of Gilgamesh was
recorded in writing as far as we know
um but it's an indication again of the
longevity of this epic poem
um and how it predated its actual
recording by several hundred years
all right and then the final object I
will show you
um is known as the standard of UR and if
you do or do not know
um
standards are these kind of military
banners that that
um would have heralded and announced an
Army on the battlefield back in the day
um this title was given to this object
Again by Sir Leonard wooly
um and in all likelihood
I think we can say almost with certainty
this is not what that object originally
was for whatever reason woolly thought
it could have been a standard but um it
almost certainly was not we don't know
what it originally was but it now you
know has that name attached to it so I
just wanted to kind of make that clear
um it's a it's a misnomer name but that
happens quite a bit in art history
unfortunately
so we don't know what it was
um but it does have
I believe essentially for our purposes
one of the earliest if not the earliest
version of narrative imagery imagery
that is telling a story I guess you
could kind of say that about
um the workface as well but here it's a
little more fleshed out and uh it tells
that story on two sides there is one
side of the object that depicts scenes
of War and the other side are scenes of
peace and collectively they kind of
speak to
the responsibilities of kingship because
we will see the king in both of these
sides
so first things first here we have the
war side and you can see that once again
it is divided into registers so even
though we are depicting War there's a
sense of orderliness about it and in
addition to the uh
the figures in art history we would call
this the iconography in addition to that
the materials are also incredibly
significant so we have
copious amounts of lapis lazuli that we
also have this Redstone which would have
come from uh the Indus Valley region and
we have a mother of pearl which came
from more coastal areas so lots of
evidence of trade and lots of evidence
of wealth
um embedded in this object
and then each of these registers shows a
slightly different component of War so
at the very bottom we have chariots this
is a technology that has been invented
in this period
um
chariots that are are defeating their
enemies trampling the enemies then we
have soldiers in uniform military uh
Garb and they are opposing
um prisoners of war and we can tell that
they are prisoners because they don't
have the orderliness of our soldiers
look how incredibly uniform and
disciplined these images are there's
variety heterogeneity you know kind of
visual chaos happening with our our
captives and several of them are nude
and we know that that again is a sign of
of low status
um but those compose the the top uh
excuse me the bottom and then the middle
registers
um and I guess I don't have a detail of
it but all of this is leading up to the
king in the center of the very top
register
so that's the war side
um and as I say showing the
responsibility of the king to kind of
protect his City in times of conflict
and then on the peace side
um we have uh the king supervising in
agricultural Harvest and essentially you
know the the Golden Age of his community
so at the bottom this really hasn't
survived very well but we have I guess I
didn't even include it but we have
figures bringing bales of wheat leading
domesticated animals that continues on
our second register
um and then the feast is all brought to
priests who are seated here you can tell
their priests by the skirts that they
are wearing we have a musician with
another harp playing for the the feast
and then everybody is facing in the
direction of this figure
who is the king and just like on the
other side you can see how the king here
is physically larger than everybody else
I'll go back in both instances it's kind
of playful but the artist has indicated
the king is so high or or so large
rather that he is breaking that top
register he can't he literally is
exceeding the space that is given to him
and this is an example of a artistic
Technique we refer to as hierarchy of
scale and we see this throughout the
ancient world
um when uh figures are essentially with
hierarchy of scale figures that are the
most important are depicted as the
physically largest and then if you're
less important you are smaller so this
isn't a form of naturalism this isn't
this uh imagery is not trying to say the
king is in front of a kind of child here
or something his size is an indicator of
his status and we will see this over and
over and over again
um and in fact we kind of already did
excuse me but I just forgot to mention
it when we were looking at our votive
figures you can see that these figures
are all different sizes
um and that is not to indicate you know
different ages it's to indicate status
so this guy was the most important so on
and so forth moving down the line
um so hopefully that gives us do I have
a concluding I do
um hopefully that gives us a sense of of
not only the
material qualities of the objects found
in this Royal tomb but also some of
their narratives and what those
narratives tell us about the
organization of Sumerian society
um and and this idea of an agrarian
theocracy
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