Sadigh Galleries Mesopotamian Collection

The Mesopotamian Lion Man is shown as a man above the waist and a lion below. He stands upright and carries a staff. He is called Uridimmus ("Mad Lion').

New York, NY (prHWY.com) April 12, 2011 - One of our most popular items are Mesopotamian artifacts. Here are some information regarding artifacts of ancient Mesopotamia.

Mesopotamian Statues:

Unlike some later monotheistic religions, in Mesopotamian mythology there existed no systematic theological tractate on the nature of the deities. Examination of ancient myths, legends, ritual texts, and images reveals that most gods were conceived in human terms. They had human or humanlike forms, were male or female, engaged in intercourse, and reacted to stimuli with both reason and emotion. Being similar to humans, they were considered to be unpredictable and oftentimes capricious. Unlike humans, however, they were immortal and, like kings and holy temples, they possessed a splendor called melammu. Melammu is a radiance or aura, a glamour that the god embodied. It could be fearsome or awe inspiring. Gods also had families. Possessing powers greater than that of humans, many gods were associated with astral phenomena such as the sun, moon, and stars, others with the forces of nature such as winds and fresh and ocean waters, yet others with real animals -- lions, bulls, wild oxen -- and imagined creatures such as fire-spitting dragons.
The Mesopotamian Lion Man is shown as a man above the waist and a lion below. He stands upright and carries a staff. He is called Uridimmus ("Mad Lion'). He may represent the Sumerian God, Utu, or the Akkadian God, Samas, who brings the beneficent light of the sun to Earth. He is the God of truth, justice and rectitude, a destroyer of evil and a protector of kings. As Samas, he enables the king Etana to free an eagle which has been trapped in a pit by the serpent. Samas brings the plant of life to Etana and enables him to fly to heaven on the eagles back.
Each city-state was associated with a city-god and a major sanctuary dedicated to this principal deity, and from the Sumerian mythology we know that the city itself was believed to have been founded by those patron deities, and the whole land belonged to them. This necessarily provided a strong sense of local identity for the inhabitants of this city-state, who took pride in their city god; and brought a very strong sense of belonging to a common cultural identity.

The appearance of bronze objects is the beginning of the Bronze Age.

Statues were not thought to be actual gods but were regarded as being imbued with the divine presence. Being humanlike, they were washed, dressed, given food and drink, and provided with a lavishly adorned bedchamber.

Mesopotamian Cylinder Seals:

Cylinder seals were first made in Mesopotamia, modern-day Iraq, soon after 3000 BC. Paper had not been invented, so documents were written in cuneiform (wedge-shaped characters made into wet clay to provide pictorial symbols for words and syllables) on clay tablets and then wrapped in clay envelopes. The seals were used to make an impression (or "seal") in the soft clay, to indicate that the message on the tablet was genuine. In the same way, important documents are still sometimes "sealed" by making an impression in bright red sealing wax. People continued to use cylinder seals to seal ancient documents for about three thousand years.

Mesopotamian Weapons:

Maces were commonly dedicated to the gods, who are often shown wielding one in depictions on cylinder seals and sculptures. Many hundreds of mace heads been excavated in temples where they were left to demonstrate the piety of the donor.
Some Mesopotamian piriform mace heads, including one found at Tell Agrab and dated to Early Dynastic Sumeria c.3000 BC, have fluting on them - early proto-flanges. Some votive (for religious ceremony). Mesopotamian mace heads are very impractical weapons; some are made of pottery or glass while others are extremely large, up to 25 cm diameter.

In ancient Mesopotamia, spear and axe were two popular weapons for their army. They were made of metal and stone, if you got the chance to touch it, you'd feel that these weapons are as hard as a rock, and they were really uneasy to break. The Greek writer Herodotus had described Mesopotamia's weapons before. He quoted, "The Assyrians went to war with helmets upon their heads made of brass, and plated in a strange fashion which is not easy to describe. They carried shields, lances, and daggers a lot like the Egyptians; but in addition they had wooden clubs knotted with iron, and linen corselets."

The Mesopotamians also used swords of metal and javelins.

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