Ancient Near Eastern Art

Mudbrick

Clay combined with vegetable matter so it does not crack when it dries

Tell Asmar

The archaeological site of a group of sculptures made of limestone, gypsum, and alabaster. They were first made 500 years after the Uruk head carving. Some are recognized as Abu, god of vegetation, and his consort. Due to their dress, others could likely represent priests. The eyes are thought to be atropaic devices

Register

A horizontal band containing decoration; used to distinguish between differing visual planes and time periods in visual narration

Hieratic style

An artistic technique in which the importance of figures is indicated by size, so that the most important figure is depicted as the largest; used in mesopotamian art to create visual narratives

Apotropaic device

An object deployed as a means of wording off evil. Often a figural image or a composite image inserted into an architectural setting.

Cuneiform

The wedge-shaped characters made in clay by the ancient Mesopotamians as a writing system.

Mesopotamia

The land between the Tigris and Euphrates River

An (Anu)

Sky god and head pantheon

Inanna (Ishtar)

Queen of heaven, spouse of of Anu, goddess of fertility, love, and war

Abu

god of vegetation

Enki

god of wisdom

Enlil

“lord breath” god of atmosphere

Imdugud

storm god

Shamash

sun god

Sumerian city of Uruk emerges

3500 BCE

Mesopotamians begin to use cuneiform

2900 BCE

The Sumerian Standard of Ur

2600 BCE

Stele

upright stone marker

Frontality

Representation of an object in full frontal view

Gilgamesh

a king of Uruk. Carved his tale on a stone marker. The stone credits him with building the Uruk walls and the Eanna, Inanna temple. Earliest Epic Tablets 2150 BCE

Conflict between Sumerian city states over resources

2350

Buttress

Vertical supporting element

Ziggurat of Ur

2100 BCE. Dedicated to the moon god nanna. Base consisted of solid mudbrick faced with baked bricks set in bitumen. 

Code of Hammurabi

engraved on a black basalt stele reaching to over 7 feet in height. The text consists of 3,500 lines of Akkadian cuneiform, and begins with an account of the temples Hammurabi restored. Details penalties for law breakers. ca. 1760

Babylon ruled by Hammurabi

1792-1750 BCE

Relief

Any work in which the figures project from a supporting background, usually a plane surface. 

Lamassu

wing headed bulls, guardian figures

Assyrian construction of Ashurbanipal’s North Palace

688-627 BCE

Assyrian empire

Assyrians controlled southern Mesopotamia by the end of the millennium. Their home was the city-state of Assur. Ended with the fall of Ninevah to Medes and Babylonians in 612 BCE.

The Babylonian royal palace

Almost on scale with the Assyrian’s palaces. Numerous reception suites framing 5 huge courtyards. Used glazed brick

The Hittites Conquer Babylon

1595

Hittites

An Indo-European Speaking people. Adopted cuneiform. Preserved their history on clay tablets. Under Hattusilis I., they took over most of modern day Turkey and Syria. Used huge stones to build walls to protect their cities. Built lions made out of limestone and other guardian figures.

Phoenicians

Good seafarers and expanded to the North African coast and Spain. They were good at working with metal and ivory and making coloured glass. Took inspiration from Egyptian motifs

Apogee (peak) of the Hittite Empire

1400-1200 BCE

Reign of Babylonian Nebuchadnezzer II

604-562 BCE

Babylonian construction of Ishtar gate

575 BCE

Persepolis

Ancient city in Iran. Where Darius I. built his palace

Darius I and Xerxes

Darius (r. 521–486 BCE) was the ruler of the Persian Empire and Xerxes (r. 485–465 BCE) was his son. Their territory took up more land than the empire of the Egyptian and the Assyrian Empires combined. The empire lasted for two centuries.

Blind arcade

An arcade with no openings. The arches and supports are attached decoratively to the surface of a wall. Used in Persian King Shapur I’s palace

Alexander the Great

Burnt the palace at Persepolis when he conquered the Persians

(356–323 BCE).

Rule of Cyrus the Great, overthrow of the Medes

559-530 BCE

Construction of Persian Palace at Persepolis

518

Alexander the Great defeats the Persians

331 BCE

Rhyton

An ancient drinking or pouring vessel made from pottery, metal, or stone, and sometimes designed in a human or animal form.

Cella

The principal enclosed room of a temple used to house an image. Also called the naos.

Capital

The uppermost member of a column or pillar supporting the architrave.