The art piece which I have chosen to reflect about from the Mesopotamian culture is called the “Snake Dragon”. This marvellous art piece is categorized as a sculpture and as a relief. It was created during the Neo-Babylonian period within 604-562 BC, in the area of southern Iraq. The Babylonian period marked historic changes in both Middle Eastern and Greek culture. The wars, and political changes that occurred in this time were quite significant, and changed society. This relief is made out of terracotta molded bricks, and clay bricks. This sculpture is also a relief because it is not attached to its base, it is carved from its base and out. The Snake Dragon was found on the famous Ishtar Gate which was too created during the Neo-Babylonian Period. To be more exact, there is hundreds of Sank Dragons on the Ishtar Gate! The reason for this being is because the creator of the Ishtar Gate, King Nebuchadnezzar the second, wanted to praise Marduk, the most important god of the Mesopotamian pantheon. Marduk, was a mythical Persian god which had a dramatic rise to power by political influence. Marduk is also associated with Jupiter, as a lord, and as the supreme leader of all the Mesopotamian gods. He became the supreme god of Mesopotamian religion and culture by fighting an army of demons led by the goddess Tiamat, and killed her. This made people is Assyria to worship Marduk and he then became the god of the city Babylon, where the Ishtar gate is!
When the King of Babylon decided to build a gate (now called the Ishtar Gate), in order to surround Babylon, and to praise the gods, he immediately knew that he wanted to praise Mardurk. Then, came the snake-dragon symbol. The snake-dragon contained a head of a snake, a scaly dragon body,...
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...lpture is mind blowing and truly historic!
The Mesopotamian culture was in the Middle East and this time period was during the time that the region was uprising. Where politics, religion, and gods were dominantly important. During this time came the god Marduk, which became the supreme leader of the culture and the city of Babylon. From the uprising of this god came the magnificent art piece known as the snake dragon! This sculpture was associated with the god Marduk himself, and is still known today for its meaning and significance on the Ishtar Gate! I, like many others adore this art piece and that is the reason why I choose to reflect on it. Furthermore, that is why I choose to reflect on the Snake-Dragon sculpture, and some interesting facts about it, its significance, and its meaningful history in the Mesopotamian culture during the Neo-Babylonian period!
The Assyrian Winged Protective Deity is a low relief sculpture, so it does not stand out as much against the stone it was carved out off, but the viewer can easily distinguish the outline of the figure portrayed. One foot of the figure is stepping forward, which could symbolize a continuation with life even after death to protect the king. The stance of this figure greatly resembles Egyptian reliefs, since they would often have their statues have one foot forward. They did this because it symbolized eternity through the afterlife, which the ka of the person needed. The ka ...
Just like Akhenaten in the aforementioned relief, the king and his family were depicted in an exaggerated style, much different than the idealized style of past Egyptian art. The human body was drawn with emphasis on the curves of the hips and stomach, but also presented individual features that made it easy to discern who was pictured. Along with differences in style, the content of art changed, with the royal family being seen in increased intimacy. There is even a relief of Nefertiti sitting on Akhenaten’s lap, a closeness not previously seen in royal art. The Aten Great Temple reflects the changes in architecture that especially permeated temple architecture. Temples were built open to the air, allowing Aten to penetrate the sacred area with his rays. Also, temple reliefs evolved to depict scenes of daily life at Amarna and the activities of the royal family instead of that of gods, as previously seen in Egypt. The Great Temple contained nine hundred open air mudbrick offering tables, like the ones depicted in the relief, in which food offerings would be left for Amen. Akhenaten probably decided to be depicted as the sphinx in the above relief because of the connection the sphinx previously held to the sun god Amen- Ra with Akhenaten reinterpreting it as a symbol of praise to
Joines, Karen Randolph. Serpent Symbolism in the Old Testament: A Linguistic, Archaeological, and Literary Study. Haddonfield, NJ: Haddonfield House, 1974. Print.
Egyptian art is infamous across the world - classified by the monumental pyramids, and the Sphinx. Although these are both valid forms of Egyptian art, they do not make up the entire artistic history of the country. On the contrary, perhaps the most replicated example of classic Egyptian art, from the Old Kingdom, can be found in their rendering of the human form. An interest in portraiture developed early in Egypt. (Gardner, 75) Whether painted on pottery, or cut into rock, the figures all had notably Egyptian characteristics. "The seated statue is one of only a very small number of basic formulaic types employed by the sculptors of the Old Kingdom." (Gardner, 75)
The ancient Greek was one of the most well-known civilization throughout history. This civilization was known for their history, philosophy, religion, and specially sculpture. One of the dominant ones was their sculpture. By studying the ancient Greek sculpture, one can see that there were different shifts. Historians tell us that these different shifts took place during the Stone Age, the Bronze Age, the Dark Ages, the Archaic, the Classical, and the Hellenistic Age. The three major shifts in ancient Greek sculptural development that we need to analyze are the Archaic, the Classical, and the Hellenistic sculpture.
Many humans have been interested in different forms of art throughout all of history. Countless people have spent endless hours researching, studying, and learning about different pieces of art. Although each piece of art is unique to in own appearance, time, and meaning, many similarities can be found. Stonehenge and the Great Pyramid are two historical works of art that can be studied via comparison. Looking at the two pieces, many differences and similarities can be observed.
The votive statues were created by worshipers of the ancient Mesopotamian gods. They were crafted out of materials such as limestone, alabaster, gypsum, and other such materials (Votive Statues). These statues were created around 2900 to 2350 BCE at the Square Temple at Eshnunna. The creators of these statues created them in their own likeness to be held at the Square Temple, a place of worship to their gods. It was the worshipers belief that the gods would bless these statues and in turn, bless the creators (Department of Ancient Near Eastern Art, 2004). Worship of the gods was a huge part of the culture of Ancient Mesopotamia, as such these votive statues played a major role in that culture.
Over the history of man, there have been many prosperous empires that ruled in different parts of the world. Babylon and Egypt are two of these empires that ruled almost 500 years apart, but had one thing in common, great artistic works. Wall paintings such as the Babylonian work Investiture of Zimrilim, and the Egyptian Queen Neferati Making an Offering to Isis are examples of the great works of their times. Both pieces are rich in meaning and background, share many similarities, but differences can be seen in their style due to the time periods.
What is known is no less intriguing. How curious is the parallel between the story of Utnapishtim and the Hebrew account of Noah. How symbolic is the description of Enkidu, the prototypical natural man, as he sheds his animalistic behaviors in preference for the pleasures of human society. How extraordinary is the description of the snake, whose stealing of the essence of immortality from Gilgamesh results in the snake's rebirth each time it sheds its skin.
The pieces of sculpture are both carved using the subtractive method of sculpting from stone. However, the types of stone used were very different. The sculpture of Mycerinus and Kha-merer-nebty II was carved from a stone called greywacke, a dark colored, very hard stone the Egyptians prized for sculpture despite the fact t...
Sculptures were one of the most important things in the Egyptian world. They were important because they had a very important function in the tombs as substitute for the mummification. These were made out of wood, clay, and other different materials, but the majority of the statues were made of stone. Some examples that are in the textbook of the sculptures are Khafe, and the seated scribe. Khafe was an enthroned divine ruler with a perfect body. The pose he is making is of complete stillness which showed off the body, this sculpture was made out of the stone called diorite which is a dark stone, it was hard to get as they had brought it 400 miles from the Nile River. The Seated Scribe was characterized as the portrait of the Egyptian god-kings didn’t extend to the portrayal of non-elite individuals. He had signs that he was aging which is a sign that is inappropriate for an Egyptian to age they should stay nice and young looking like Khafre did but the seated scribe was different then him. He seemed to be more relaxed and not worried about what he looked like but how he lived his life. The painting I thought was the most interesting was Goats treading seed and cattle fording a canal because it was showing how they used the Nile River for the passage to the afterlife and how they were combined with stereotypical poses for the human and aminals with unconventional postures and such detail to the
The artworks of Mesopotamia, Ancient Egypt, the Aegean cultures, and Ancient Greece have similarities that not only reflect objects and images, but also the media, style and representation. These countries were not always wealthy, clever, creative and powerful enough to gain supplies, but they all find a way to create art with what they had. They have all influenced on each other’s cultures and belief through their artistic values and ways, ranging from the materials and tools they use, position and representation of their monuments and their religious intent.
The “Sacred Tree,” (fig. 1) was originally positioned behind the king’s throne. The scene shows two genii, sometimes with birds’ heads and sometimes with men’s heads and the horned hats of gods. Each of the winged figures holds a bucket and reaches out with an oval object toward a stylized “tree.” The composition has been read as being based on bilateral symmetry, with the vertical stalk-like structure crowned by a palmette. A meticulous examination reveals that although balanced, it has many discrepancies on both sides that deviate from perfect mirror symmetry. Ashurnasirpal appears twice, shown from two sides, dressed in ceremonial robes and holding a mace connoting his authority. The figure of the king on the right makes an invocative gesture a god in a winged disk in the top center of the relief. Ashur, the national god or Shamash, the god of the sun and justice, may be identified as the god who confers the king divine right. On the left, the king holds a ring, an ancient Mesopotamian symbol of divine kingship, in one...
In the 7th century Assyrians became powerful and they to started inventing rich designs to decorate the walls of the palaces and temples. Then the Greek began there sculpting in the 6th century BC the sculptures of this time and place had there own way of art. They gave their pieces life by making the face of the person with a smile; they gave it arms and eyes rigid legs. The Greek wanted statues and stories of their gods to decorate the temples and other buildings.
Mesopotamia was the first civilization on Earth, known for its agricultural achievements, the wheel, and a system of writing. Located in modern day Iraq, this “Fertile Crescent” was a frequent destination of many travelers, thieves, and other civilizations. As many civilizations collided within the area, many new advancements, and new forms of art and literature arose. Babylonian mythology was written to explain three main ideas: natural phenomenon, the creation of the world and the creation of humans. There were eight main gods in Babylonian mythology, and each was created based on events in the world around the Babylonians (Semitic Mythology 1). Anu was the head of the gods and reigned over the heavens. His army of stars appeared each night. Enlil and Ea both guarded the waters, but Enlil controlled hurricanes and flooding. Marduk was known as the creator of the world. In killing the chaotic Tiamat, he used her body to create heaven and earth. Sin and Shamash were the moon and sun gods, respectively. Ishtar was the goddess of sexuality and Tammuz was the god of the harvest (Mythology 1). Babylonian mythology focused on explaining the events occurring around their daily life. A god or a goddess’s ...