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The Babylonian and Assyrian empires in Mesopotamia in the 2nd
millennium BCE were renowned for their sculpture and architecture.
LEARNING OBJECTIVE [ edit ]
Summarize the characteristics of both Babylonian and Assyrian art during the second millenium
BCE.
KEY POINTS [ edit ]
The art of Mesopotamia during this period is sometimes summarized as Assyro-Babylonian
because of the close cultural interdependence of the two political centers.
The main emphasis was on clay and stone sculpture, many examples of which are durable enough
to have survived to the present day, in the form of cylinder seals, free-standing figures,
and reliefs of various sizes, and cheap plaques of moldedpottery.
While Assyrian artists were greatly influenced by the Babylonianstyle, a distinctly Assyrian
artistic style began to emerge in Mesopotamia around 1500 BC.
Babylonian culture preferred free-standing sculpture to reliefs.The Assyrians preferred the reliefform and developed a style of large and exquisitely detailed narrative friezes in painted stone
or alabaster, portraying royal activities such as hunting or war.
A paucity of stone in the region made sun baked bricks and clay the building material of choice
for the Babylonians, although the Assyrians used stone as well.
One of the most remarkable achievements of Mesopotamian architecture was the development of
the ziggurat, a massive structure taking the form of a terraced step pyramid of successively
receding stories or levels, with a shrine or temple at the summit.
TERMS [ edit ]
Mesopotamia
A region in Southwest Asia, spanning from the rivers Euphrates and Tigris, that is the site of one
of the most ancient civilizations in the history of man.
pilaster
A rectangular column that projects partially from the wall to which it is attached; it gives the
appearance of a support, but is only for decoration.
relief
A type of artwork in which shapes or figures protrude from a flat background.
Give us feedback on this content: FULL TEXT [edit ]
The second millennium BCE marks the
transition from the MiddleBronze Age to
the LateBronze Age. The most
prominent cultures in the ancient Near
East during this period were Babylonia
and Assyria. They were both located
inMesopotamia; the former in the south
and the latter in the north. Both cultures
were renowned for their great empires and
their cultural and artistic achievements.
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The art of Mesopotamia during this period is sometimes summarized as Assyro-Babylonian,
because of the close cultural interdependence of the two political centers. It was considered
some of the finest in western Eurasia, rivaling that of Ancient Egypt in sophistication and
grandeur.
The main emphasis was on sculpture, mostly in clay, but sometimes in stone as well. Many
examples are durable enough to have survived to the present day. Very little painting has
survived; archeological evidence suggests that it was mostly used for geometrical and plantbased decorative schemes, although most sculptures were also painted. The most common
surviving forms of second millennium BCE Mesopotamian art are cylinder seals, relatively
small free-standing figures, andreliefs of various sizes. These included cheap plaques, both
religious and otherwise, of molded pottery for private homes, .
Babylonian culture somewhat preferred free-standing sculpture to reliefs and depictions of
human figures were realistic, if sometimes clumsily executed. The Assyrians, on the other
hand, developed a style of large and exquisitely detailed narrative reliefs in painted stone
or alabaster. Intended for palaces, these reliefs depict royal activities such as battles or
hunting. Predominance is given to animal forms, particularly horses and lions, which are
represented in great detail. Human figures arestatic and rigid by comparison, but also
minutely detailed. The Assyrians produced very little free-standing sculpture with the
exception of colossal guardian figures, usually lions and winged beasts, that flanked fortified
royal gateways. While Assyrian artists were greatly influenced by the Babylonian style, a
distinctly Assyrian artistic style began to emerge in Mesopotamia around 1500 BC .
The Burney Relief
The Burney Relief is a Mesopotamian terracotta plaque in high relief of the Old­Babylonian period,
depicting a winged, nude, goddess­like figure with bird's talons, flanked by owls, and perched upon
supine lions. The relief is dated between 1800 and 1750 BCE. It originates from southern Iraq, but the
exact find­site is unknown. Apart from its distinctive iconography, the piece is noted for its high relief
and relatively large size, which suggests that is was used as a cult relief, which makes it a very rare
survival from the period.
The Mesopotamians regarded "the craft of building" as a divine gift taught to men by the gods
and architecture flourished in the region during the second millennium BCE. A paucity of
stone in the region made sun baked bricks and clay the building material of choice.
Babylonian architecture featured pilasters andcolumns, as well as frescoes and enamelled
tiles. Assyrian architects were strongly influenced by the Babylonian style but used stone as
well as brick in their palaces, which were lined with sculptured and colored slabs of stone
instead of being painted. One of the most remarkable achievements of Mesopotamian
architecture was the development of theziggurat, a massive structure taking the form of a
terraced steppyramid of successively receding stories or levels, with a shrine or temple at the
summit. The first surviving ziggurats date from the fourth millennium BCE, but they
continued to be a popular architectural form in the late third and early second millennium
BCE as well .
Chogha Zanbil Ziggurat
The Chogha Zanbil ziggurat was built in 1250 BC by Untash­Napirisha, the king of Elam to honor the
Elamite god Inshushinak. The kingdom of Elam was located east of Mesopotamia and Chogha Zanbil is
located in present­day Iran­­one of the few ziggurats outside Mesopotamia.