SW

Lecture: 9/2/25 West Asia: Temples, Kings, and Visual Language (Lecture Notes)

1. Core Institutions & Power

  • Temples: Multi-functional hubs (administration, religion, economy, power), not just worship spaces.

    • Uruk Example: Center for contract documents; contracts broken there upon completion, showing political/bureaucratic role.

2. Urban Environment & Early Art

  • Architecture: Elaborate surface decoration using conical clay elements (likely inspired by textiles).

  • Uruk (Warka) Phase: Important for monumental architecture and portable objects.

    • Warka Vase (Uruk Alabaster Vessel):

    • Details: 41\frac{3}{8} inches tall, substantial weight, ritual/temple vessel. One of two similar vessels.

    • Function & Symbolism: Communicates social hierarchy and ritual function.

    • Registers: Space divided into bands of images, read bottom-to-top, mirroring social/ritual hierarchy.

    • Imagery: Water motif at bottom, followed by vegetation, then flora and fauna (goats, sheep), then offerings by nude (lower status) people. Top registers show abundant offerings and a central figure (goddess/priestess). Missing priest-king figure implies reciprocal provision.

  • Votive Practice: Mundane objects transformed into monumental, sacred offerings (e.g., Warka Vase).

3. Rulership & Communication

  • Rulership Iconography: Lion hunts symbolize ruler's ability to subdue chaos and establish order.

  • Art's Evolving Audience: Shifts from temple-only to public display for broader sociopolitical messaging.

4. Emergence of Writing & Administration

  • Writing:

    • Develops from pictographs to cuneiform (Sumerian writing) due to expanding bureaucratic needs.

    • Cuneiform: Script capable of writing multiple languages.

  • Cylinder Seals:

    • Function: Stamps for record-keeping, agreements, ownership. Produce continuous images.

    • Material: Often semi-precious, may have amuletic/identificatory purposes.

5. Regional Variations in Art & Culture

  • Ashnuna Votive Figures:

    • Characteristics: Frontal limestone/alabaster figurines, hands clasped (often held vessels), elaborately coiffed hair/beards (status).

    • Eyes: Notably large, often inlaid (e.g., lapis lazuli), signifying vigilance or ecstatic experience before the divine.

    • Purpose: Devotional presence in sacred spaces when owner is absent.

  • Ur (Lagash/Ur Region):

    • Burials: Extremely rich, approximately 2{,}000 tombs (elite/royal). Extensive use of luxury materials (lapis lazuli, carnelian, gold, shell) and sophisticated practices.

    • Kuwabi: Royal woman buried with magnificent grave goods; her cylinder seal identifies her.

    • The Standard of Ur:

    • Description: Trapezoidal object with "war" side and "peace" side. Materials: lapis lazuli, shell, red limestone (from India).

    • War Side: Central leader, defeated enemies underfoot, orderly soldiers, chaotic/dehumanized non-elite enemies.

    • Peace Side: Feast scene, offerings from various social strata; higher registers show finer attire, culminating in larger, framed elite figure.

    • Meaning: Portable symbol of kingship and martial prowess; uses repetition and hierarchy to convey power.

6. Evolution of Kingship Models

  • Stela of Eannatum (Stele of the Vultures):

    • Two Sides: "War" (military victory, Eannatum leading troops) and "Mythic/Religious" (divine sanction by god Ningirsu).

    • Purpose: Political propaganda and religious affirmation.

  • Akkadian Empire: Introduces divine kingship.

    • Ruler as God-like: Rulers depicted as divine (surpassing intermediary role). Copper-alloy representation shows naturalistic features with abstracted beard/hair.

  • Stele of Naram-Sin:

    • Depiction: Ruler vastly larger, wears horned headgear (divinity). Sun-like symbols indicate divine favor.

    • Victory: Naram-Sin defeats Lullabi (mountain people), elevating his status beyond human.

    • Captive Imagery: Lullabi enemies defeated, nude, in disarray vs. king's orderly soldiers, reinforcing moral dichotomy.

    • Textual Traces: Later inscriptions show object's movement as spoils of war.

  • Women in Akkadian Culture:

    • Enheduanna: Daughter of Sargon, priestess of the moon god, considered the earliest named historical author (hymns).

    • Artifacts: Represented in cylinder seals, alabaster disc votive object with cuneiform (integration of women in religious-ritual economy).

  • Gudea of Lagash: Prolific diorite sculptures, reinforcing temple-building and divine authority.

7. Architectural Developments & Modern Context

  • Ziggurats: Temples on stepped bases, preserving older sacred cores, communicating continuity and divine proximity.

  • Ur Temple Remains: Monumental architecture, heavily rebuilt (e.g., Saddam Hussein) raising ethical/archaeological questions about authenticity and nation-building.

  • Archaeology & Modern Politics: Used to connect modern states with ancient glories, shaping historical narratives.

8. Key Terms & Figures for Exams

  • Uruk (Warka): Early urban center, pivotal in development of writing and monumental art.

  • Warka Vase: Alabaster vessel, ~41\frac{3}{8} inches tall, iconic for hierarchical registers and ritual symbolism.

  • Cuneiform: Early writing system, developed from pictographs in Sumer, used for administration.

  • Cylinder Seals: Administrative tools used for record-keeping and identity, producing continuous images.

  • Ashnuna Votive Figures: Freestanding statues with large, inlaid eyes, representing worshipers in temples.

  • Ur: City known for rich royal burials, including Queen Kuwabi and the Standard of Ur.

  • Standard of Ur: Trapezoidal object with "war" and "peace" sides depicting aspects of kingship, made of lapis lazuli, shell, red limestone.

  • Stela of Eannatum (Stele of the Vultures): Depicts Eannatum's military victory and divine sanction by Ningirsu.

  • Akkadian Empire: Period introducing divine kingship, where rulers are depicted as god-like.

  • Naram-Sin: Akkadian ruler, famous for his stele depicting him as a divine conqueror (horned headgear, larger scale).

  • Enheduanna: Daughter of Sargon, priestess of the moon god, considered the earliest named author.

  • Gudea of Lagash: Ruler known for numerous diorite sculptures emphasizing piety and temple building.

  • Ziggurats: Stepped temple towers, symbolizing divine proximity and continuity.

  • Registers & Hierarchical Scale: Artistic conventions used to organize narrative and convey social/religious status.

  • Votive Practice: Offering objects or actions to deities, often involving monumentalized everyday items.