Babylonian culture

Babylonian culture refers to the ancient civilization centered in the city of Babylon, in what is now Iraq, known for its rich traditions in art, architecture, astronomy, medicine, and law, most notably the Code of Hammurabi. Key aspects include massive temples to polytheistic gods like Marduk, development of architectural elements like the pilaster and column from brick use, advanced astronomical observation, and the practice of reading and writing, often from translated Sumerian texts like the Epic of Gilgamesh.

Bronze Age to Early Iron Age Mesopotamian culture is sometimes summarized as "Assyro-Babylonian", because of the close ethnic, linguistic and cultural interdependence of the two political centers. The term "Babylonia", especially in writings from around the early 20th century, was formerly used to also include Southern Mesopotamia's earliest pre-Babylonian history, and not only in reference to the later city-state of Babylon proper. This geographic usage of the name "Babylonia" has generally been replaced by the more accurate term Sumer or Sumero-Akkadian in more recent writing, referring to the pre-Assyro-Babylonian Mesopotamian civilization.

The Babylonians were polytheistic, worshipping a pantheon of gods and goddesses, with Marduk as the chief patron god of Babylon. Temples were elaborate structures housing cult statues that were treated as the gods themselves. The Babylonians created massive temples of brick, developing pilasters, columns, frescoes, and enameled tiles. Gem-cutting was a highly refined art, and they produced three-dimensional statues. 

Babylonians translated and preserved much of ancient Sumerian literature, including epic works like the Epic of Gilgamesh. Both men and women learned to read and write, and there is evidence of a public school system. 

They meticulously recorded astronomical phenomena, compiling extensive catalogues of stars and constellations and developing methods to predict celestial events. Basic medical practices like diagnosis and prognosis were introduced, and various illnesses with their symptoms were catalogued. 

The Code of Hammurabi is a famous example of Babylonian legal tradition, comprising 282 laws focused on contracts and family law. Families were typically monogamous, though polygamy was allowed in certain situations. Marriage agreements and divorce were structured by law. 

Astronomy: 

Babylonian astronomers made extensive records of celestial phenomena and developed a new empirical approach to astronomy during the 8th and 7th centuries BCE. They recognized planets as periodic phenomena and used observations for the good of the state.

Tablets dating back to the Old Babylonian period document the application of mathematics to the variation in the length of daylight over a solar year. Centuries of Babylonian observations of celestial phenomena are recorded in the series of cuneiform script tablets known as the 'Enūma Anu Enlil'. The oldest significant astronomical text that we possess is Tablet 63 of 'Enūma Anu Enlil', the Venus tablet of Ammi-Saduqa, which lists the first and last visible risings of Venus over a period of about 21 years and is the earliest evidence that the phenomena of a planet were recognized as periodic. 

The oldest rectangular astrolabe dates back to Babylonia c. 1100 BC. The MUL.APIN, contains catalogues of stars and constellations as well as schemes for predicting heliacal risings and the settings of the planets, lengths of daylight measured by a water clock, gnomon, shadows, and intercalations. The Babylonian GU text arranges stars in 'strings' that lie along declination circles and thus measure right-ascensions or time-intervals, and also employs the stars of the zenith, which are also separated by given right-ascensional differences.

Among the sciences, astronomy and astrology still occupied a conspicuous place in Babylonian society. Astronomy was of old standing in Babylonia. The zodiac was a Babylonian invention of great antiquity; and eclipses of the sun and moon could be foretold. There are dozens of cuneiform records of original Mesopotamian eclipse observations.

Babylonian astronomy was the basis for much of what was done in ancient Greek astronomy, in classical, in Sasanian, Byzantine and Syrian astronomy, astronomy in the medieval Islamic world, and in Central Asian and Western European astronomy. Neo-Babylonian astronomy can thus be considered the direct predecessor of much of ancient Greek mathematics and astronomy, which in turn is the historical predecessor of the European (Western) Scientific Revolution.

During the 8th and 7th centuries BC, Babylonian astronomers developed a new approach to astronomy. They began studying philosophy dealing with the ideal nature of the early universe and began employing an internal logic within their predictive planetary systems. This was an important contribution to astronomy and the philosophy of science and some scholars have thus referred to this new approach as the first scientific revolution. This new approach to astronomy was adopted and further developed in Greek and Hellenistic astronomy.

In Seleucid and Parthian times, the astronomical reports were of a thoroughly scientific character; how much earlier their advanced knowledge and methods were developed is uncertain. The Babylonian development of methods for predicting the motions of the planets is considered to be a major episode in the history of astronomy.

The only Babylonian astronomer known to have supported a heliocentric model of planetary motion was Seleucus of Seleucia (b. 190 BC). Seleucus is known from the writings of Plutarch. He supported the heliocentric theory where the Earth rotated around its own axis which in turn revolved around the Sun. According to Plutarch, Seleucus even proved the heliocentric system, but it is not known what arguments he used.

Mathematics:

The Babylonians devised a sexagesimal (base 60) numeral system, which is the basis for modern divisions of time (60 seconds in a minute, 60 minutes in an hour) and circles (360 degrees). They had knowledge of the Pythagorean theorem long before Pythagoras and estimated the square root of two to seven places.

Babylonian mathematical texts are plentiful and well edited. In respect of time they fall in two distinct groups: one from the First Babylonian dynasty period (1830–1531 BC), the other mainly Seleucid from the last three or four centuries BC. In respect of content there is scarcely any difference between the two groups of texts. Thus Babylonian mathematics remained stale in character and content, with very little progress or innovation, for nearly two millennia.

The Babylonian system of mathematics was sexagesimal, or a base 60 numeral system. From this we derive the modern-day usage of 60 seconds in a minute, 60 minutes in an hour, and 360 (60 × 6) degrees in a circle. The Babylonians were able to make great advances in mathematics for two reasons. First, the number 60 has many divisors (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 10, 12, 15, 20, and 30), making calculations easier. Additionally, unlike the Egyptians and Romans, the Babylonians had a true place-value system, where digits written in the left column represented larger values (much as in our base-ten system: 734 = 7×100 + 3×10 + 4×1). Among the Babylonians' mathematical accomplishments were the determination of the square root of two correctly to seven places (YBC 7289). They also demonstrated knowledge of the Pythagorean theorem well before Pythagoras.

The ner of 600 and the sar of 3600 were formed from the unit of 60, corresponding with a degree of the equator. Tablets of squares and cubes, calculated from 1 to 60, have been found at Senkera, and a people acquainted with the sun-dial, the clepsydra, the lever and the pulley, must have had no mean knowledge of mechanics. A crystal lens, turned on the lathe, was discovered by Austen Henry Layard at Nimrud along with glass vases bearing the name of Sargon; this could explain the excessive minuteness of some of the writing on the Assyrian tablets, and a lens may also have been used in the observation of the heavens.

The Babylonians might have been familiar with the general rules for measuring area. They are also known for the Babylonian mile, which was a measure of distance equal to about 11 kilometres (7 mi) today. This measurement for distances eventually was converted to a time-mile used for measuring the travel of the Sun, therefore, representing time. (Eves, Chapter 2) The Babylonians used also space time graphs to calculate the velocity of Jupiter. This is an idea that is considered highly modern, traced to the 14th century England and France and anticipating integral calculus.

Medicine: 

Ancient Babylonian medical texts introduced the concepts of diagnosis, prognosis, physical examination, and prescriptions. 

We find [medical semiotics] in a whole constellation of disciplines.... There was a real common ground among these [Babylonian] forms of knowledge... an approach involving analysis of particular cases, constructed only through traces, symptoms, hints.... In short, we can speak about a symptomatic or divinatory [or conjectural] paradigm which could be oriented toward past present or future, depending on the form of knowledge called upon. Toward future... that was the medical science of symptoms, with its double character, diagnostic, explaining past and present, and prognostic, suggesting likely future....

— Carlo Ginzburg

The oldest Babylonian (i.e., Akkadian) texts on medicine date back to the First Babylonian dynasty in the first half of the 2nd millennium BC although the earliest medical prescriptions appear in Sumerian during the Third Dynasty of Ur period. The most extensive Babylonian medical text, however, is the Diagnostic Handbook written by the ummânū, or chief scholar, Esagil-kin-apli of Borsippa, during the reign of the Babylonian king Adad-apla-iddina (1069–1046 BC).

Along with contemporary ancient Egyptian medicine, the Babylonians introduced the concepts of diagnosis, prognosis, physical examination, and prescriptions. In addition, the Diagnostic Handbook introduced the methods of therapy and aetiology and the use of empiricism, logic and rationality in diagnosis, prognosis and therapy. The text contains a list of medical symptoms and often detailed empirical observations along with logical rules used in combining observed symptoms on the body of a patient with its diagnosis and prognosis.

The symptoms and diseases of a patient were treated through therapeutic means such as bandages, creams and pills. If a patient could not be cured physically, the Babylonian physicians often relied on exorcism to cleanse the patient from any curses. Esagil-kin-apli's Diagnostic Handbook was based on a logical set of axioms and assumptions, including the modern view that through the examination and inspection of the symptoms of a patient, it is possible to determine the patient's disease, its aetiology and future development, and the chances of the patient's recovery.

Esagil-kin-apli discovered a variety of illnesses and diseases and described their symptoms in his Diagnostic Handbook. These include the symptoms for many varieties of epilepsy and related ailments along with their diagnosis and prognosis. Later Babylonian medicine resembles early Greek medicine in many ways. In particular, the early treatises of the Hippocratic Corpus show the influence of late Babylonian medicine in terms of both content and form.

Art and architecture

The Neo-Babylonian Empire saw a resurgence of monumental architecture under Nebuchadnezzar II. Constructed around 575 BCE, the magnificent Ishtar Gate is magnificent gate was made of brilliantly colored, glazed bricks decorated with reliefs of bulls, lions, and dragons. Hanging Gardens is a lush series of tiered gardens that may have been created for Nebuchadnezzar's wife, though its existence is a subject of historical debate. Nebuchadnezzar rebuilt the Etemenanki towering ziggurat, which is believed to be the inspiration for the biblical Tower of Babel.

In Babylonia, an abundance of clay, and lack of stone, led to greater use of mudbrick; Babylonian, Sumerian and Assyrian temples were massive structures of crude brick which were supported by buttresses, the rain being carried off by drains. One such drain at Ur was made of lead. The use of brick led to the early development of the pilaster and column, and of frescoes and enameled tiles. The walls were brilliantly coloured, and sometimes plated with zinc or gold, as well as with tiles. Painted terracotta cones for torches were also embedded in the plaster. In Babylonia, in place of the relief, there was greater use of three-dimensional figures—the earliest examples being the Statues of Gudea, that are realistic if somewhat clumsy. The paucity of stone in Babylonia made every pebble precious, and led to a high perfection in the art of gem-cutting.

Craftsmanship: 

Due to a lack of stone, Babylonian architects primarily used mud bricks for their impressive temples and structures. The Babylonians were skilled artisans, producing pottery, textiles, and intricate gem-cutting due to the scarcity of stone. 

Literature and education

Cuneiform: Babylonian texts, written in cuneiform on clay tablets, were meticulously recorded and preserved. Epic of Gilgamesh: Much of Babylonian literature was adapted from Sumerian texts, with the Epic of Gilgamesh being one of the most famous. Libraries and education: Libraries existed in most towns, and both men and women learned to read and write. The extinct Sumerian language was also a subject of study. 

There were libraries and temples in most towns; an old Sumerian proverb averred that "he who would excel in the school of the scribes must rise with the dawn". Women as well as men learned to read and write, and in Semitic times, this involved knowledge of the extinct Sumerian language, and a complicated and extensive syllabary.

A considerable amount of Babylonian literature was translated from Sumerian originals, and the language of religion and law long continued to be written in the old agglutinative language of Sumer. Vocabularies, grammars, and interlinear translations were compiled for the use of students, as well as commentaries on the older texts and explanations of obscure words and phrases. The characters of the syllabary were all arranged and named, and elaborate lists of them were drawn up.

There are many Babylonian literary works whose titles have come down to us. One of the most famous of these was the Epic of Gilgamesh, in twelve books, translated from the original Sumerian by a certain Sin-liqi-unninni, and arranged upon an astronomical principle. Each division contains the story of a single adventure in the career of Gilgamesh. The whole story is a composite product, and it is probable that some of the stories are artificially attached to the central figure.

Philosophy

The origins of Babylonian philosophy can be traced back to early Mesopotamian wisdom literature, which embodied certain philosophies of life, particularly ethics, in the forms of dialectic, dialogs, epic poetry, folklore, hymns, lyrics, prose, and proverbs. Babylonian reasoning and rationality developed beyond empirical observation.

It is possible that Babylonian philosophy had an influence on Greek philosophy, particularly Hellenistic philosophy. The Babylonian text Dialogue of Pessimism contains similarities to the Agnostic thought of the sophists, the Heraclitean doctrine of contrasts, and the dialogs of Plato, as well as a precursor to the maieutic Socratic method of Socrates. The Milesian philosopher Thales is also known to have studied philosophy in Mesopotamia.

According to the assyriologist Marc Van de Mieroop, Babylonian philosophy was a highly developed system of thought with a unique approach to knowledge and a focus on writing, lexicography, divination, and law. It was also a bilingual intellectual culture, based on Sumerian and Akkadian.

Law and governance

The strength of Babylonian society came from a centralized government and a clear legal system. One of the most famous Babylonian contributions is the Code of Hammurabi, written around 1754 BCE. It is one of the oldest deciphered legal texts of its length in the world, consisting of 282 laws that established social order and economic rules.

Religion and mythology

Babylonians were polytheistic, worshipping a large pantheon of gods and goddesses. Marduk is the chief patron god of Babylon and head of the mythological pantheon. The Babylonian creation myth, recorded in the Enûma Eliš, tells of the rise of Marduk to supremacy. It explains that humanity was created from a god's blood to serve the other gods. Elaborate cult statues of deities were housed in towering temples, where they were ritually fed and cared for by priests. The massive, stepped pyramids known as ziggurats served as temples believed to be the dwelling places of the gods.

Legacy

Babylonia, and particularly its capital city Babylon, has long held a place in the Abrahamic religions as a symbol of excess and dissolute power. Many references are made to Babylon in the Bible, both literally (historical) and allegorically. The mentions in the Tanakh tend to be historical or prophetic, while New Testament apocalyptic references to the Whore of Babylon are more likely figurative, or cryptic references possibly to pagan Rome, or some other archetype. The legendary Hanging Gardens of Babylon and the Tower of Babel are seen as symbols of luxurious and arrogant power respectively.

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Babylonian landscaping

Babylonian landscaping, specifically referring to the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, is characterized by its impressive tiered structure, sophisticated irrigation system, and abundant use of diverse plant life. It represents a fusion of architectural and engineering prowess, creating a lush, green oasis in the arid Mesopotamian landscape. 

The Hanging Gardens were not truly hanging but rather built on a series of tiered, elevated terraces, resembling a large, green mountain. The gardens were supported by massive stone columns and walls, and potentially included features like vaulted terraces and stone balconies, demonstrating advanced engineering techniques. 

An elaborate system lifted water from the Euphrates River to irrigate the gardens, ensuring the survival of a variety of plants. The gardens featured a wide array of trees, shrubs, and flowers, some of which were exotic and not native to the region, showcasing the wealth and power of the Babylonian empire. 

The Hanging Gardens were not just a beautiful landscape but also carried symbolic meaning, representing fertility, abundance, and the triumph of civilization over nature. The concept of the Hanging Gardens has inspired modern landscaping, particularly the use of vertical gardens and sustainable irrigation practices. 

Hanging Gardens of Babylon

The Hanging Gardens of Babylon were one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World listed by Hellenic culture. They were described as a remarkable feat of engineering with an ascending series of tiered gardens containing a wide variety of trees, shrubs, and vines, resembling a large green mountain constructed of mud bricks. It was said to have been built in the ancient city of Babylon, near present-day Hillah, Babil province, in Iraq. The Hanging Gardens' name is derived from the Greek word κρεμαστός (kremastós, lit. 'overhanging'), which has a broader meaning than the modern English word "hanging" and refers to trees being planted on a raised structure such as a terrace.

According to one legend, the Hanging Gardens were built alongside a grand palace known as The Marvel of Mankind, by the Neo-Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar II (who ruled between 605 and 562 BC), for his Median wife, Queen Amytis, because she missed the green hills and valleys of her homeland. This was attested to by the Babylonian priest Berossus, writing in about 290 BC, a description that was later quoted by Josephus. The construction of the Hanging Gardens has also been attributed to the legendary queen Semiramis and they have been called the Hanging Gardens of Semiramis as an alternative name.

The Hanging Gardens are the only one of the Seven Wonders whose location has not been definitively established. No extant Babylonian texts mention the gardens and no definitive archaeological evidence has been found in Babylon. Three theories have been suggested to account for this: first, that the gardens were purely mythical, and the descriptions found in ancient Greek and Roman writings (including those of Strabo, Diodorus Siculus and Quintus Curtius Rufus) represented a romantic ideal of an eastern garden; second, that they existed in Babylon but were destroyed sometime around the first century AD; and third, that the legend refers to a well-documented garden that the Assyrian King Sennacherib (704–681 BC) built in his capital city of Nineveh on the River Tigris, near the modern city of Mosul.

Descriptions in classical literature

There are five principal writers whose descriptions of Babylon exist in some form today. These writers concern themselves with the size of the Hanging Gardens, their overall design and means of irrigation, and why they were built.

Josephus (c. 37–100 AD) quotes a description of the gardens by Berossus, a Babylonian priest of Marduk, whose writing c. 290 BC is the earliest known mention of the gardens. Berossus described the reign of Nebuchadnezzar II and is the only source to credit that king with the construction of the Hanging Gardens.

In this palace he erected very high walls, supported by stone pillars; and by planting what was called a pensile paradise, and replenishing it with all sorts of trees, he rendered the prospect an exact resemblance of a mountainous country. This he did to gratify his queen, because she had been brought up in Media, and was fond of a mountainous situation.

Diodorus Siculus (active c. 60–30 BC) seems to have consulted the 4th century BC texts of both Cleitarchus (a historian of Alexander the Great) and Ctesias of Cnidus. Diodorus ascribes the construction to a "Syrian king". He states that the garden was in the shape of a square, with each side approximately four plethra long. The garden was tiered, with the uppermost gallery being 50 cubits high. The walls, 22 feet thick, were made of brick. The bases of the tiered sections were sufficiently deep to provide root growth for the largest trees, and the gardens were irrigated from the nearby Euphrates.

Quintus Curtius Rufus (fl. 1st century AD) probably drew on the same sources as Diodorus. He states that the gardens were located on top of a citadel, which was 20 stadia in circumference. He attributes the building of the gardens to a "Syrian king", again for the reason that his queen missed her homeland.

The account of Strabo (c. 64 BC – 21 AD) possibly based his description on the lost account of Onesicritus from the 4th century BC. He states that the gardens were watered by means of an Archimedes' screw leading to the gardens from the Euphrates river.

The last of the classical sources thought to be independent of the others is A Handbook to the Seven Wonders of the World by the paradoxographer Philo of Byzantium, writing in the 4th to 5th century AD (not to be confused with the earlier engineer of the same name). The method of raising water by screw matches that described by Strabo. Philo praises the engineering and ingenuity of building vast areas of deep soil, which had a tremendous mass, so far above the natural grade of the surrounding land, as well as the irrigation techniques.

Historical existence

It is unclear whether the Hanging Gardens were an actual construction or a poetic creation, owing to the lack of documentation in contemporaneous Babylonian sources. There is also no mention of Nebuchadnezzar's wife Amytis (or any other wives), although a political marriage to a Median or Persian would not have been unusual. Many records exist of Nebuchadnezzar's works, yet his long and complete inscriptions do not mention any garden. However, the gardens were said to still exist at the time that later writers described them, and some of these accounts are regarded as deriving from people who had visited Babylon. Herodotus, who describes Babylon in his Histories, does not mention the Hanging Gardens, although it could be that the gardens were not yet well known to the Greeks at the time of his visit.

To date, no archaeological evidence has been found at Babylon for the Hanging Gardens. It is possible that evidence exists beneath the Euphrates, which cannot be excavated safely at present. The river flowed east of its current position during the time of Nebuchadnezzar II, and little is known about the western portion of Babylon. Rollinger has suggested that Berossus attributed the Gardens to Nebuchadnezzar for political reasons, and that he had adopted the legend from elsewhere.

Identification with Sennacherib's gardens at Nineveh

Oxford scholar Stephanie Dalley has proposed that the Hanging Gardens of Babylon were actually the well-documented gardens constructed by the Assyrian king Sennacherib (reigned 704–681 BC) for his palace at Nineveh; Dalley posits that during the intervening centuries the two sites became confused, and the extensive gardens at Sennacherib's palace were attributed to Nebuchadnezzar II's Babylon. Archaeological excavations have found traces of a vast system of aqueducts attributed to Sennacherib by an inscription on its remains, which Dalley proposes were part of an 80-kilometre (50 mi) series of canals, dams, and aqueducts used to carry water to Nineveh with water-raising screws used to raise it to the upper levels of the gardens.

Dalley bases her arguments on recent developments in the analysis of contemporary Akkadian inscriptions. Her main points are:

The name Babylon, meaning "Gate of the Gods", was the name given to several Mesopotamian cities. Sennacherib renamed the city gates of Nineveh after gods, which suggests that he wished his city to be considered "a Babylon".

Only Josephus names Nebuchadnezzar as the king who built the gardens; although Nebuchadnezzar left many inscriptions, none mentions any garden or engineering works. Diodorus Siculus and Quintus Curtius Rufus specify a "Syrian" king. By contrast, Sennacherib left written descriptions, and there is archaeological evidence of his water engineering. His grandson Assurbanipal pictured the mature garden on a sculptured wall panel in his palace.

Sennacherib called his new palace and garden "a wonder for all peoples". He describes the making and operation of screws to raise water in his garden.

The descriptions of the classical authors fit closely to these contemporary records. Before the Battle of Gaugamela in 331 BC Alexander the Great camped for four days near the aqueduct at Jerwan. The historians who travelled with him would have had ample time to investigate the enormous works around them, recording them in Greek. These first-hand accounts have not survived into modern times, but were quoted by later Greek writers.

King Sennacherib's garden was well-known not just for its beauty – a year-round oasis of lush green in a dusty summer landscape – but also for the marvelous feats of water engineering that maintained the garden. There was a tradition of Assyrian royal garden building. King Ashurnasirpal II (883–859 BC) had created a canal, which cut through the mountains. Fruit tree orchards were planted. Also mentioned were pines, cypresses and junipers, almond trees, date trees, ebony, rosewood, olive, oak, tamarisk, walnut, terebinth, ash, fir, pomegranate, pear, quince, fig, and grapes. A sculptured wall panel of Assurbanipal shows the garden in its maturity. One original panel and the drawing of another are held by the British Museum, although neither is on public display. Several features mentioned by the classical authors are discernible on these contemporary images.

Of Sennacherib's palace, he mentions the massive limestone blocks that reinforce the flood defences. Parts of the palace were excavated by Austin Henry Layard in the mid-19th century. His citadel plan shows contours which would be consistent with Sennacherib's garden, but its position has not been confirmed. The area has been used as a military base in recent times, making it difficult to investigate further.

The irrigation of such a garden demanded an upgraded water supply to the city of Nineveh. The canals stretched over 50 kilometres (31 mi) into the mountains. Sennacherib was proud of the technologies he had employed and describes them in some detail on his inscriptions. At the headwater of Bavian (Khinnis) his inscription mentions automatic sluice gates. An enormous aqueduct crossing the valley at Jerwan was constructed of over two million dressed stones. It used stone arches and waterproof cement. On it is written:

Sennacherib king of the world king of Assyria. Over a great distance I had a watercourse directed to the environs of Nineveh, joining together the waters.... Over steep-sided valleys I spanned an aqueduct of white limestone blocks, I made those waters flow over it.

Sennacherib claimed that he had built a "Wonder for all Peoples", and said he was the first to deploy a new casting technique in place of the "lost-wax" process for his monumental (30 tonne) bronze castings. He was able to bring the water into his garden at a high level because it was sourced from further up in the mountains, and he then raised the water even higher by deploying his new water screws. This meant he could build a garden that towered above the landscape with large trees on the top of the terraces – a stunning artistic effect that surpassed those of his predecessors.

Plants

The gardens, as depicted in artworks, featured blossoming flowers, ripe fruit, burbling waterfalls and terraces exuberant with rich foliage. Based on Babylonian literature, tradition, and the environmental characteristics of the area, some of the following plants may have been found in the gardens:

Olive (Olea europaea)

Quince (Cydonia oblonga)

Common pear (Pyrus communis)

Fig (Ficus carica)

Almond (Prunus dulcis)

Common grape vine (Vitis vinifera)

Date palm (Phoenix dactylifera)

Athel tamarisk (Tamarix aphylla)

Mt. Atlas mastic tree (Pistacia atlantica)

Imported plant varieties that may have been present in the gardens include cedar, cypress, ebony, pomegranate, plum, rosewood, terebinth, juniper, oak, ash tree, fir, myrrh, walnut, and willow. Some of these plants were suspended over the terraces and draped over its walls with arches underneath.

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Assyrian art

Assyrian art is characterized by its large-scale, narrative relief carvings, and sculptures that depict the power, military victories, and religious beliefs of the Assyrian empire. These artworks, often found in palaces and temples, served both decorative and symbolic purposes, showcasing the empire's strength and divine favor. 

Assyrian art is renowned for its detailed relief carvings, often in gypsum alabaster, that adorned palace walls and city gates. These carvings depicted scenes of warfare, hunting, religious deities, and daily life, with a strong emphasis on the king's heroic deeds and victories. Alongside the visual imagery, Assyrian art frequently incorporated written inscriptions, often in cuneiform, that provided context and further emphasized the king's achievements and lineage. 

Individual relief panels were often combined to tell a larger story, allowing viewers to follow the narrative through the sequence of images. Assyrian art was rich in political and religious symbolism. The carvings often depicted the king's divine right to rule and the power of Assyrian gods. 

Figures were sometimes depicted using composite views, where different body parts were shown from different perspectives (e.g., a profile face with a forward-facing eye). Assyrian artists often used hieratic scale, where the size of figures was determined by their importance, with the king typically depicted as the largest figure. Assyrian art also featured intricate patterns on clothing, weapons, and other objects, demonstrating the high level of craftsmanship.

Assyrian art adorned both public spaces like palace walls and private spaces like the king's living quarters, demonstrating the empire's reach and the king's power. Lamassu figures, These large, winged, human-headed bull or lion figures served as protective guardians at entrances to palaces and temples. 

Assyrian sculpture

Assyrian sculpture is the sculpture of the ancient Assyrian states, especially the Neo-Assyrian Empire of 911 to 612 BC, which was centered around the city of Assur in Mesopotamia (modern-day Iraq) which at its height, ruled over all of Mesopotamia, the Levant and Egypt, as well as portions of Anatolia, Arabia and modern-day Iran and Armenia. It forms a phase of the art of Mesopotamia, differing in particular because of its much greater use of stone and gypsum alabaster for large sculpture.

Much the best-known works are the huge lamassu guarding entrance ways, and Assyrian palace reliefs on thin slabs of alabaster, which were originally painted, at least in part, and fixed on the wall all round the main rooms of palaces. Most of these are in museums in Europe or America, following a hectic period of excavations from 1842 to 1855, which took Assyrian art from being almost completely unknown to being the subject of several best-selling books, and imitated in political cartoons.

The palace reliefs contain scenes in low relief which glorify the king, showing him at war, hunting, and fulfilling other kingly roles. Many works left in situ, or in museums local to their findspots, have been deliberately destroyed in the recent occupation of the area by ISIS, the pace of destruction reportedly increasing in late 2016, with the Mosul offensive.

Other surviving types of art include many cylinder seals, a few rock reliefs, reliefs and statues from temples, bronze relief strips used on large doors, and small quantities of metalwork. A group of sixteen bronze weights shaped as lions with bilingual inscriptions in both cuneiform and Phoenician characters, were discovered at Nimrud. The Nimrud ivories, an important group of small plaques which decorated furniture, were found in a palace storeroom near reliefs, but they came from around the Mediterranean, with relatively few made locally in an Assyrian style.

Palace reliefs

The palace reliefs were fixed to the walls of royal palaces forming continuous strips along the walls of large halls. The style apparently began after about 879 BC, when Ashurnasirpal II moved the capital to Nimrud, near modern Mosul in northern Iraq. Thereafter, new royal palaces, of which there was typically one per reign, were extensively decorated in this way for the roughly 250 years until the end of the Assyrian Empire. There was subtle stylistic development, but a very large degree of continuity in subjects and treatment.

Compositions are arranged on slabs, or orthostats, typically about 7 feet high, using between one and three horizontal registers of images, with scenes generally reading from left to right. The sculptures are often accompanied with inscriptions in cuneiform script, explaining the action or giving the name and extravagant titles of the king. Heads and legs are shown in profile, but torsos in a front or three-quarters view, as in earlier Mesopotamian art. Eyes are also largely shown frontally. Some panels show only a few figures at close to life-size, such scenes usually including the king and other courtiers, but depictions of military campaigns include dozens of small figures, as well as many animals and attempts at showing landscape settings.

Campaigns focus on the progress of the army, including the fording of rivers, and usually culminates in the siege of a city, followed by the surrender and paying of tribute, and the return of the army home. A full and characteristic set shows the campaign leading up to the siege of Lachish in 701; it is the "finest" from the reign of Sennacherib, from his palace at Nineveh and now in the British Museum. Ernst Gombrich observed that none of the many casualties ever come from the Assyrian side. Another famous sequence there shows the Lion Hunt of Ashurbanipal, in fact the staged and ritualized killing by King Ashurbanipal of lions already captured and released into an arena, from the North Palace at Nineveh. The realism of the lions has always been praised, and the scenes are often regarded as "the supreme masterpieces of Assyrian art", although the pathos modern viewers tend to feel was perhaps not part of the Assyrian response.

There are many reliefs of minor supernatural beings, called by such terms as "winged genie", but the major Assyrian deities are only represented by symbols. The "genies" often perform a gesture of purification, fertilization or blessing with a bucket and cone; the meaning of this remains unclear., Especially on larger figures, details and patterns on areas such as costumes, hair and beards, tree trunks and leaves, and the like, are very meticulously carved. More important figures are often shown larger than others, and in landscapes more distant elements are shown higher up, but not smaller than, those in the foreground, though some scenes have been interpreted as using scale to indicate distance. Other scenes seem to repeat a figure in a succession of different moments, performing the same action, most famously a charging lion. But these were apparently experiments that remain unusual.

The king is often shown in narrative scenes, and also as a large standing figure in a few prominent places, generally attended by winged genies. A composition repeated twice in what is traditionally called the "throne-room" (though perhaps it was not) of Ashurbanipal's palace at Nimrud shows a "Sacred Tree" or "Tree of Life" flanked by two figures of the king, with winged genies using the bucket and cone behind him. Above the tree one of the major gods, perhaps Ashur the chief god, leans out of a winged disc, relatively small in scale. Such scenes are shown elsewhere on the robe of the king, no doubt reflecting embroidery on the real costumes, and the major gods are normally shown in discs or purely as symbols hovering in the air. Elsewhere the tree is often attended to by genies.

Women are relatively rarely shown, and then usually as prisoners or refugees; an exception is a "picnic" scene showing Ashurbanipal with his queen. The many beardless royal attendants can probably be assumed to be eunuchs, who ran much of the administration of the empire, unless they also have the shaved heads and very tall hats of priests. Kings are often accompanied by several courtiers, the closest to the king probably often being the appointed heir, who was not necessarily the oldest son.

The enormous scales of the palace schemes allowed narratives to be shown at an unprecedentedly expansive pace, making the sequence of events clear and allowing richly detailed depictions of the activities of large numbers of figures, not to be paralleled until the Roman narrative column reliefs of the Column of Trajan and Column of Marcus Aurelius.

Lamassu

Lamassu were protective minor deities or spirits, the Assyrian version of the "human-headed bull" figure that had long figured in Mesopotamian mythology and art. Lamassu have wings, a male human head with the elaborate headgear of a divinity, and the elaborately braided hair and beards shared with royalty. The body is that of either a bull or a lion, the form of the feet being the main difference. Prominent pairs of lamassu were typically placed at entrances in palaces, facing the street and also internal courtyards. They were "double-aspect" figures on corners, in high relief, a type earlier found in Hittite art. From the front they appear to stand, and from the side, walk, and in earlier versions have five legs, as is apparent when viewed obliquely. Lamassu do not generally appear as large figures in the low-relief schemes running round palace rooms, where winged genie figures are common, but they sometimes appear within narrative reliefs, apparently protecting the Assyrians.

The colossal entrance way figures were often followed by a hero grasping a wriggling lion, also colossal and in high relief; these and some genies beside lamassu are generally the only other types of high relief in Assyrian sculpture. The heroes continue the Master of Animals tradition in Mesopotamian art, and may represent Enkidu, a central figure in the ancient Mesopotamian Epic of Gilgamesh. In the palace of Sargon II at Khorsabad, a group of at least seven lamassu and two such heroes with lions surrounded the entrance to the "throne room", "a concentration of figures which produced an overwhelming impression of power". The arrangement was repeated in Sennacherib's palace at Nineveh, with a total of ten lamassu. Other accompanying figures for colossal lamassu are winged genies with the bucket and cone, thought to be the equipment for a protective or purifying ritual.

Lamassu also appear on cylinder seals. Several examples left in situ in northern Iraq have been destroyed in the 2010s by ISIL when they occupied the area. Colossal lamassu also guarded the start of the large canals built by the Assyrian kings. In the case of temples, pairs of colossal lions guarding the entrances have been found.

Construction

There are outcrops of the "Mosul marble" gypsum rock normally used at several places in the Assyrian realm, though not especially close to the capitals. The rock is very soft and slightly soluble in water, and exposed faces degraded, and needed to be cut into before usable stone was reached. There are reliefs showing quarrying for Sennacherib's new palace at Nineveh, though concentrating on the production of large lamassu. Blocks were extracted, using prisoners of war, and sawed into slabs with long iron saws. This may have happened at the palace site, which is certainly where the carving of orthostats was done, after the slabs had been fixed into place as a facing to a mud-brick wall, using lead dowels and clamps, with the bottoms resting on a bed of bitumen. For some reliefs an "attractive fossiliferous limestone" is used, as in several rooms in the South-West Palace at Nineveh. In contrast to the orthostats, the lamassu were carved, or at least partly so, at the quarry, no doubt to reduce their enormous weight.

The alabaster stone is soft but not brittle, and very suitable for detailed carving with early Iron Age tools. There can be considerable differences in style, and quality, between adjacent panels, suggesting that different master carvers were allocated these. Probably the master drew or incised the design on the slab before a team of carvers laboriously cut away the background areas and finished carving the figures. Scribes then set out any inscriptions for cutters to follow, after which the slab was polished smooth, and any paint added. Scribes are shown directing carvers in another relief (on the Balawat Gates) showing the creation of a rock relief; presumably they ensured that the depiction of royal and religious aspects of the subjects was as it should be.

The reliefs only covered the lower parts of the walls of rooms in the palaces, and higher areas were often painted, at least in patterns, and at least sometimes with other figures. Brightly coloured carpets on the floor completed what was probably a striking decor, largely in primary colours. None of these have survived, but we have some door-sills carved with repeated geometric motifs, presumed to imitate the carpets.

After the palaces were abandoned and lost their wooden roofs, the unbaked mud-brick walls gradually collapsed, covering the space in front of the reliefs, and largely protecting them from further damage from the weather. Relatively few traces of paint remain, and these are often on heads and faces – hair and beards were black, and at least the whites of eyes white. Possibly metal leaf was used on some elements, such as small scenes shown decorating textiles. Julian Reade concludes that "It is nonetheless puzzling that more traces of painting [on sculpture] have not been recorded".

Other narrative reliefs

Apart from the alabaster wall reliefs, all found in palaces, other objects carrying relatively large reliefs are bronze strips used to reinforce and decorate large gates. Parts of three sets have survived, all from the 9th century BC and the relatively minor city of Imgur-Enlil, modern Balawat. The Balawat Gates were all double gates about 20 foot high, with both the front and back sides decorated with eight bronze repoussé strips, each carrying two registers of narrative reliefs some five inches high. There were presumably equivalents at other Assyrian sites, but at the collapse of the empire the buildings at Balawat caught fire "before they had been efficiently looted" by the enemy, and remained hidden in the ashes and rubble; gypsum slabs were not worth the trouble of looting, unlike bronze. The subjects were similar to the wall reliefs, but on a smaller scale; a typical band is 27 centimetres high, 1.8 metres wide, and only a millimetre thick.

In stone there are reliefs of a similar size on some stelae, most notably two in rectangular obelisk form, both with stepped tops like ziggurats. These are the early 11th-century White Obelisk of Ashurnasirpal I and the 9th century Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III, both in the British Museum, which also has the fragmentary "Broken Obelisk" and "Rassam Obelisk". Both have reliefs on all four sides in eight and five registers respectively, and long inscriptions describing the events. The Black and Rassam Obelisks were both set up in what seems to have been the central square in the citadel of Nimrud, presumably a very public space, and the White in Nineveh. All record much the same types of scenes as the narrative sections of wall-relief, and the gates. The Black Obelisk concentrates on scenes of the bringing of tribute from conquered kingdoms, including Israel, while the White also has scenes of war, hunting, and religious figures. The White Obelisk, from 1049–1031, and the "Broken Obelisk" from 1074–1056, predate the earliest known wall-reliefs by 160 years or more, but are respectively in worn and fragmentary condition.

The Black Obelisk is of special interest as the lengthy inscriptions, with names of places and rulers that could be related to other sources, were of importance in the decipherment of cuneiform script. The Obelisk contains the earliest writing mentioning both the Persian and Jewish peoples, and confirmed some of the events described in the Bible, which in the 19th century was regarded as timely support for texts whose historical accuracy was under increasing attack. Other, much smaller pieces with helpful inscriptions were a set of sixteen weight measures in the form of lions.

Statues and portrait stelae

There are very few large free-standing Assyrian statues and, with one possible exception (below), none have been found of the major divinities in their temples. Possibly others existed; any in precious metals would have been looted as the empire fell. Two statues of kings are similar to the portraits in palace reliefs, though seen frontally. They came from temples, where they showed the king's devotion to the deity. The Statue of Ashurnasirpal II is in the British Museum, and that of Shalmaneser III in Istanbul.

There is a unique female statue in the British Museum, missing its extremities, which was found in the temple of Ishtar at Nineveh. It carries an inscription on the back that King Ashur-bel-kala erected it for the "titilation" or enjoyment of the people. It might represent Ishtar, goddess of love among other things, in which case it would be the only known Assyrian statue of a major divinity. All these have standing poses, though seated statues were already known in Mesopotamian art, for example about a dozen statues of Gudea, who ruled Lagash c. 2144 – 2124 BC.

Like other Near-Eastern cultures, the Assyrians erected stelae for various purposes, including marking boundaries. Many just carry inscriptions, but there are some with significant relief sculpture, mostly a large standing portrait of the king of the day, pointing at symbols of the gods, similar in pose to those in palace reliefs, surrounded by a round-topped frame.

Similar figures of kings are shown in rock reliefs, mostly around the edges of the empire. Those shown being made on the Balawat Gates are presumably the ones surviving in poor condition near the Tigris Tunnel. The Assyrians probably took the form from the Hittites; the sites chosen for their 49 recorded reliefs often also make little sense if "signalling" to the general population was the intent, being high and remote, but often near water. The Neo-Assyrians recorded in other places, including metal reliefs on the Balawat Gates showing them being made, the carving of rock reliefs, and it has been suggested that the main intended audience was the gods, the reliefs and the inscriptions that often accompany them being almost of the nature of a "business report" submitted by the ruler. A canal system built by the Neo-Assyrian king Sennacherib (reigned 704–681 BC) to supply water to Nineveh was marked by a number of reliefs showing the king with gods.

Other reliefs at the Tigris tunnel, a cave in modern Turkey believed to be the source of the river Tigris, are "almost inaccessible and invisible for humans". Probably built by Sennacherib's son Esarhaddon, Shikaft-e Gulgul is a late example in modern Iran, apparently related to a military campaign. The Assyrians added to the Commemorative stelae of Nahr el-Kalb in modern Lebanon, where Ramses II, Pharaoh of Egypt, had rather optimistically commemorated the boundary of his empire many centuries earlier; many later rulers added to the collection. The Assyrian examples were perhaps significant in suggesting the style of the much more ambitious Persian tradition, beginning with the Behistun relief and inscription, made around 500 BC for Darius the Great, on a far grander scale, reflecting and proclaiming the power of the Achaemenid empire.

Excavations

Iraq was part of the Ottoman Empire throughout the 19th century, and the government was content to allow foreign excavations and the removal of finds with little hindrance. Even in the 1870s excavators were often only regulated by a regime intended for mining operations, and had to pay a tax based on a proportion of the value of material removed.

The character of the palace reliefs made excavation relatively straightforward, if the right site was chosen. Assyrian palaces were built on high mud-brick platforms. Test trenches were started in various directions, and once one of them had hit sculpture, the trenches had only to follow the lines of the wall, often through a whole suite of rooms. Most trenches could be open to the sky, but at Nimrud, where one palace overlay another, tunnels were necessary in places. Layard estimated "that he had exposed nearly two miles of sculptured walls in Sennacherib's palace alone", not to mention the Library of Ashurbanipal he found there. His excavation practices left a lot to be desired by modern standards; the centres of rooms were not only not excavated, but the material removed from the trench in one room might be deposited in another, compromising later excavations. Typically the slabs were sawn to roughly a third of their original depth, to save weight in carrying them back to Europe, which was typically more complicated and difficult than digging them up.

Botta

The first hint of future discoveries came in 1820 when Claudius Rich, British Resident (a sort of local ambassador or consul) in Baghdad, and an early scholar of the ancient Near East, went to Mosul and the site of ancient Nineveh, where he was told of a large relief panel that had been found and soon broken up. His account was published in 1836; he also brought back two small fragments. In 1842 the French consul in Mosul, Paul-Émile Botta, hired men to dig at Kuyunjik, the largest mound at Nineveh. Little was found until a local farmer suggested they try Khorsabad (ancient Dur-Sharrukin) nearby, where "a short trial was dramatically successful", as a palace of Sargon II was found a few feet below the surface, with plentiful reliefs, although they had been burned and disintegrated easily.

Press reports of Botta's finds, from May 1843, interested the French government, who sent him funds and the Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres sent him Eugène Flandin (1809–1889), an artist who had already made careful archaeological drawings of Persian antiquities in a long trip beginning in 1839. Botta decided there was no more to find at the site in October 1844, and concentrated on the difficult task of getting his finds back to Paris, where the first large consignments did not arrive until December 1846. Botta left the two huge lamassu now in the British Museum as too large to transport; Henry Rawlinson, by now British Resident in Baghdhad, sawed them into several pieces for transport in 1849. In 1849 Monument de Ninive was published, a sumptuously illustrated and exemplary monograph in 4 volumes by Botta and Flandin.

Layard and Rassam

Austen Henry Layard (1817–1894) was in the early 1840s "a roving agent attached to the embassy at Constantinople", who had already visited Nimrud in 1840. In 1845 he persuaded Sir Stratford Canning, the ambassador in Constantinople, to personally fund an expedition to excavate there. On his first day digging at Nimrud, with only six workers in November 1845, slabs were found, initially only with inscriptions, but soon with reliefs. He continued to dig until June 1847, with the British government, through the British Museum, taking over the funding from Canning in late 1846, repaying his expenditure. The volume of finds was such that getting them back to Britain was a major task, and many pieces either were reburied, or reached other countries. Layard had recruited the 20-year old Hormuzd Rassam in Mosul, where his brother was British Vice-consul, to handle the pay and supervision of the diggers, and encouraged the development of his career as a diplomat and archaeologist.

Layard returned to England in June 1847, also taking Rassam, who he had arranged to study at Cambridge. He left a few workers, mainly to keep other diggers off the sites, as the French were digging again. His finds were arriving in London, to great public interest, which he greatly increased by publishing a string of books, especially Nineveh and its Remains in 1849. The mistaken title arose because Henry Rawlinson had at that point become convinced that the Nimrud site was actually the ancient Nineveh, though he changed his mind soon after. By October 1849 Layard was back in Mosul, accompanied by the artist Frederick Cooper, and continued to dig until April 1851, after which Rassam took charge of the excavations. By this stage, thanks to Rawlinson and other linguists working on the tablets and inscriptions brought back and other material, the Assyrian cuneiform was at the least becoming partly understood, a task that progressed well over the next decade.

Initially Rassam's finds dwindled, in terms of large objects, and the British even agreed to cede the rights to half the Kuyunjik mound to the French, whose new consul, Victor Place, had resumed digging at Khorsabad. The British funds were running out by December 1853, when Rassam hit upon the palace of Ashurbanipal, which was "in some respects the finest sculptured palace of all", in the new French area of Kuyunjik. Fortunately, Place had not started digging there, and according to Rassam "it was an established rule that whenever one discovered a new palace, no one else could meddle with it, and thus,... I had secured it for England". The new palace took until 1855 to clear, being finished by the Assyrian Exploration Fund, established in 1853 to dig for the benefit of British collections.

Although it was not yet realized, by "the close of excavations in 1855, the hectic Heroic Age of Assyrian archaeology ended", with the great majority of surviving Assyrian sculpture found. Work has continued up to the present day, but no new palaces have been found at the capitals, and finds have mostly been isolated pieces, such as Rassam's discovery in 1878 of two of the Balawat Gates. Many of the pieces reburied have been re-excavated, some very quickly by art dealers, and others by the Iraqi government in the 1960s, leaving them on display in situ for visitors, after the sites were configured as museums. These were already damaged in wars in the 1990s, and have probably been systematically destroyed by Daesh in the 2010s.

Collections

Examples of Assyrian art: The Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III, a limestone monument showcasing conquered kings paying tribute to the Assyrian empire. Relief carvings from the Northwest Palace at Nimrud, depicting a variety of scenes including battles, hunting, and religious rituals. Lamassu figures from the Khorsabad palace, illustrating the protective nature of these mythical beings. Reliefs depicting Ashurbanipal hunting lions, showcasing the king's strength and bravery. 

As a result of the history of excavations, much the best single collection is in the British Museum, followed by the site museums and other collections in Iraq, which in the 20th century were the largest holdings when taken together, though after the wars of the 21st century their current holdings are uncertain. The fate of the considerable number of pieces that have been found and then reburied is also uncertain. At the peak of excavations, the volume found was too large for the British and French to manage, and many pieces either were diverted at some point on their journey to Europe, or were given away by the museums. Other pieces were excavated by diggers working for dealers. As a result, there are significant groups of large lamassu corner figures and palace relief panels in Paris, Berlin, New York, and Chicago. Many other museums have panels, especially a group of college museums in New England, with the museum at Dartmouth College having seven panels. Altogether there are some 75 pieces in the United States.

Apart from the British Museum, in the United Kingdom, the Ashmolean Museum has 10 reliefs (2 large, 8 small) Bristol City Museum and Art Gallery has 3 large reliefs, and the National Museum of Scotland (2.4 x 2.2 m), and Victoria and Albert Museum one relief each.

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Babylonian art

Babylonian art encompasses the visual creations produced by the inhabitants of ancient Babylonia, a civilization that thrived in Mesopotamia. It is characterized by its elaborate patterns, intricate carvings, and vibrant colors, often incorporating religious symbolism and depicting scenes of daily life and royal power. 

Characteristic

Clay was a primary material, especially in the early periods, used for tablets, sculptures, and even architecture like ziggurats. Later, more durable materials like diorite were used for sculptures and reliefs. Visual art in Babylonia was not intended to simply imitate or replicate reality, the goal was to produce a representation that acted as a stand-in or substitute for the real thing. This representation was then perceived as part of actual reality. 

Babylonian temples are massive structures of crude brick, supported by buttresses, the rain being carried off by drains. One such drain at Ur was made of lead. The use of brick led to the early development of the pilaster and column, and of frescoes and enamelled tiles. The walls were brilliantly coloured, and sometimes plated with zinc or gold, as well as with tiles. Painted terracotta cones for torches were also embedded in the plaster. 

Babylonian art frequently features deities, particularly Marduk, and religious rituals. The king's image and authority were often depicted in art, highlighting his piety and strength. Figures were often depicted in stiff profiles, meant to convey timelessness and a sense of static power. Vibrant colors, such as red and black, were often employed, especially in painted reliefs and murals. 

Babylonian artists also created functional objects like cylinder seals for identification and authentication. Monumental stepped temple pyramids, like the Ziggurat of Etemenanki, were prominent architectural features. Relief Sculpture and Murals were used to decorate buildings and tell stories. 

Due to its abundance, clay was widely used for various art forms, including tablets, sculptures, and building materials. Techniques like firing and glazing were used to strengthen and preserve clay art. 

History

First Babylonian Dynasty (1830–1531 BC)

From the 18th century BC, Hammurabi (1792 BC to 1750 BC), the Amorite ruler of Babylon, turned Babylon into a major power and eventually conquered Mesopotamia and beyond. He is famous for his law code and conquests, but he is also famous due to the large amount of records that exist from the period of his reign. During the period Babylon became a great city, which was often the seat of the dominant power. The period was not one of great artistic development, these invaders failing to bring new artistic impetus, and much religious art was rather self-consciously conservative, perhaps in a deliberate assertion of Sumerian values. The quality of execution is often lower than in preceding and later periods. Some "popular" works of art displayed realism and mouvement, such as the statuette of a walking four-headed god from Ishchali, attributed to the period between 2000 and 1600 BC.

The Burney Relief is an unusual, elaborate, and relatively large (20×15 inches) terracotta plaque of a naked winged goddess with the feet of a bird of prey, and attendant owls and lions. It comes from the 18th or 19th century BC, and may also be moulded. Similar pieces, small statues or reliefs of deities, were made for altars in homes or small wayside shrines, and small moulded terracotta ones were probably available as souvenirs from temples.

The Investiture of Zimri-Lim, now in the Louvre, is a large palace fresco that is the outstanding survival of Mesopotamian wall-painting, although comparable schemes were probably common in palaces.

After the death of Hammurabi, the first Babylonian dynasty lasted for another century and a half, but his empire quickly unravelled, and Babylon once more became a small state. The Amorite dynasty ended in 1595 BC, when Babylonia fell to the Hittite king Mursilis, after which the Kassites took control.

Neo-Babylonian period (626–539 BC)

The famous Ishtar Gate, part of which is now reconstructed in the Pergamon Museum in Berlin, was the main entrance into Babylon, built in about 575 BC by Nebuchadnezzar II, the king of the Neo-Babylonian Empire, who exiled the Jews; the empire lasted from 626 BC to 539 BC. The walls surrounding the entrance way are decorated with rows of large relief animals in glazed brick, which has therefore retained its colours. Lions, dragons and bulls are represented. The gate was part of a much larger scheme for a processional way into the city, from which there are sections in many other museums. Large wooden gates throughout the period were strengthened and decorated with large horizontal metal bands, often decorated with reliefs, several of which have survived, such as the various Balawat Gates.

Other traditional types of art continued to be produced, and the Neo-Babylonians were very keen to stress their ancient heritage. Many sophisticated and finely carved seals survive. After Mesopotamia fell to the Persian Achaemenid Empire, which had much simpler artistic traditions, Mesopotamian art was, with Ancient Greek art, the main influence on the cosmopolitan Achaemenid style that emerged, and many ancient elements were retained in the area even in the Hellenistic art that succeeded the conquest of the region by Alexander the Great.

Examples

The Ishtar Gate - A magnificent structure adorned with glazed bricks depicting lions, dragons, and other symbols. 

The Burney Relief (Queen of the Night) - A baked clay relief depicting a winged female figure, likely a goddess, from around 1800 BC. 

Cylinder Seals - Small, intricately carved seals used to make impressions on clay tablets and other objects. 

Stele of Hammurabi - A basalt stele inscribed with the Code of Hammurabi, showcasing a relief of the king receiving laws from the sun god.

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Choker

A choker is a close-fitting necklace worn around the neck, typically 14 to 16 inches long. It's a type of necklace that sits high on the neck, often with little to no dangle, and can be made from a variety of materials like velvet, leather, metal, or beads. 

Chokers have been around for centuries, with examples found in ancient civilizations and periods like the French Revolution and the 1920s. Contemporary chokers come in a wide array of styles, including those made with pearls, chains, velvet ribbons, or even tattoo-like designs. 

Chokers can be paired with various outfits, from casual to formal, and are often seen as a versatile accessory. Chokers can carry various meanings, from fashion statements to symbols of empowerment, rebellion, or even protection, depending on the wearer and the context. 

Composition

A choker is a close-fitting necklace worn around the neck, typically 14 inch to 16 inch in length. Chokers can be made of a variety of materials, including velvet, plastic, beads, latex, leather, metal, such as silver, gold, or platinum, etc. They can be adorned in a variety of ways, including with sequins, studs, or a pendant.

The choker necklace comes in many variations. It can consist of one or more strands of strung chains or beads, or it can be a ribbon, cord, or strap, all of which may or may not be adorned with pearls, precious and semiprecious stones, rhinestones, or other decorative elements. Medallions, cameos, and pendants are commonly worn with these tight necklaces; brooches and tie -pins are best worn in those made of velvet or grosgrain.

The clasp by which this necklace is held around the neck is most often a classic jewelry clasp, more or less ornate. Connecting the two ends of the piece, it is generally closed at the nape of the neck, more rarely at the front. Textile chokers can also be attached with hook-and-loop fasteners; those of sufficient length are simply held by a knot. The leather choker is often fitted with a buckle.

History

Golden choker necklaces were crafted by Sumerian artisans around 2500 BC and according to curators from the Jewelry Museum of Fine Arts, chokers have been around for thousands of years, appearing in Ancient Egypt, in addition to the Sumerians in Mesopotamia. Often made with gold or lapis, the necklaces were thought to be protective and imbued with special powers.

Chokers were also later worn in the 1st century A.D. They are mentioned in the Talmud, book Shabbat, chapter 6 as a common women's accessory.

19th Century

Neck jewelry that is very similar to a choker was widespread in the Renaissance and the 19th century.

Ballerinas and the upper class in the late 19th century commonly wore certain types of chokers. However, at that same time, in the late 19th century, a plain, thin, red or black ribbon choker had ties to prostitution, as seen in Manet's Olympia (1861).

The 19th-century fashion for broad chokers reached its peak around 1900 in part due to Queen Alexandra of the United Kingdom wearing one to hide a small scar. Chokers were popular into the 1920s and again in the '40s as colliers de chien. In particular, the term dog collars or colliers de chien caught on, and these designs – incorporating luxe diamonds, pearls, lace, and velvet – could be seen as objects of the elite because the best kinds were custom-made to fit one's neck perfectly. In 1944 Life magazine stated that "a dowager fashion of 40 years ago" was being revived by young women, illustrating the trend with photos of models wearing the now vaguely rebellious "dog collars".

In Bavaria, chokers are often worn with traditional costumes, although in this case they are called a choker and are often a velvet ribbon with pearls or brooches.

Modern fashion

In today's fashion, the choker can also be found as a stretchy collar made of mesh or braided stretchy materials in various colors. Made of leather and with an O-ring attached to the front, chokers were initially frequently seen in BDSM and Gothic culture, until corresponding models also became established in mainstream fashion. 

In the modern era, chokers have been popular with some celebrities, including Gwyneth Paltrow, who wore one to the 1999 Academy Awards. Paris Hilton wore three inches of Swarovski around her neck in 2002. Rihanna has also been featured wearing chokers.

In the 2010s, the choker became a popular fashion among transgender women, due not only to its association with femininity but also because of its potential to hide the Adam's apple without performing a tracheal shave.

Material

In earlier times, the piece of jewelry often consisted of a single row of pearls or beads of the same size, often with a large gemstone. Today, chokers are available in a variety of colors, shapes, and materials.

Manufacturing

Chokers can be bought, but it is also very simple to make them because you can easily buy ribbon in a haberdashery: the choices of materials (satin, velvet, lace mainly), colors and widths are varied.

Decorations can be sewn on, such as flat beads, which have holes that make sewing easier. Other ornaments can also be hung on them, such as a Christian cross, among other examples.

Of course, all that remains is to sew the ribbon ties: before that, you have to put the ribbon around your neck to measure it correctly, so that in the end it doesn't float or tighten too much.

The fasteners can be a simple Velcro fastener, which can also be found in haberdashery stores, or small individual fasteners, similar to corset or bra fasteners. However, it seems that this type of fastener sold individually no longer exists.

Matching clothes

This necklace is enhanced by V- necks, boat necks or even with off-the-shoulder dresses. It can possibly be accompanied by a normal collar.

In literature

The fantastic plot of an undead woman guillotined in Paris during the Terror, whose head and life are held in place by a dark choker, has been dramatized by several short story writers. Weeping at the foot of the scaffold, the beautiful stranger is discovered by a young German who "brings her home, spends the night with her, and discovers her the next day dead in her bed before learning that had been decapitated the day before; the collar unfastened, the head rolls away ."

Washington Irving (1783-1859) imagined this story in "The Adventure of the German Student" published in the collection Tales of a Traveller (1824).

Petrus Borel (1809-1859) adapted it in Gottfried Wolfgang (1839, published in 1843).

Alexandre Dumas père (1802-1870) drew inspiration from it for the short story The Woman with the Velvet Necklace (1849). He brought the German author of fantastic tales E. TA Hoffmann to Paris during the revolutionary era. One evening, at the Théâtre de l'Opéra, he fell madly in love with the beautiful ballerina Arsène. Embodying a nymph, she was curiously adorned with a "strange" velvet necklace held by a "dismal diamond clasp" in the shape of a guillotine.

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Gold lunula

A Gold lunula is a crescent-shaped ornament, typically made of thin gold, that was popular during the Early Bronze Age, primarily in Ireland and other parts of Europe. These ornaments are thought to have been worn as necklaces or collars, and their distinctive crescent shape is the origin of their name, derived from the Latin word "lunula" meaning "little moon". 

Gold lunulae are characterized by their crescent or half-moon shape, crafted from thin, hammered gold. They often have expanded terminals that are twisted at an angle to the main body. Gold lunulae can be categorized into different styles, including Classical, Unaccomplished, and Provincial, based on their design and craftsmanship. 

The lunula is considered an iconic object of the Early Bronze Age, and their presence in archaeological contexts suggests their importance in the material culture of that period. These ornaments are primarily associated with the Early Bronze Age and are found in various regions of Europe, with the highest concentration in Ireland. While their exact purpose is not definitively known, they are generally believed to have been worn as decorative neck ornaments, potentially for ceremonial or ritualistic purposes. 

Overview

A gold lunula (pl. gold lunulae) was a distinctive type of late Neolithic, Chalcolithic, and—most often—early Bronze Age necklace, collar, or pectoral shaped like a crescent moon. Most are from Prehistoric Ireland. They are normally flat and thin, with roundish spatulate terminals that are often twisted to 45 to 90 degrees from the plane of the body. Gold lunulae fall into three distinct groups, termed Classical, Unaccomplished and Provincial by archaeologists. Most have been found in Ireland, but there are moderate numbers in other parts of Europe as well, from Great Britain to areas of the continent fairly near the Atlantic coasts. Although no lunula has been directly dated, from associations with other artefacts it is thought they were being made sometime in the period between 2400 and 2000 BC; a wooden box associated with one Irish find has recently given a radiocarbon dating range of 2460–2040 BC.

Of the more than a hundred gold lunulae known from Western Europe, more than eighty are from Ireland; it is possible they were all the work of a handful of expert goldsmiths, though the three groups are presumed to have had different creators. Several examples have a heavily crinkled appearance suggesting that they had been rolled up at some point. One Irish example, from Ballinagroun, has had its original Classical engraved decoration beaten over to erase it (not quite successfully), and then a new Unaccomplished scheme added. This and the fact that it had been folded over several times suggest that it had been in use for a long time before it was deposited. The first two examples illustrated show roughly the range of widths of the lowest part of the lunula that is found. Finds in graves are rare, perhaps suggesting they were regarded as clan or group property rather than personal possessions, and though some were found in bogs, perhaps suggesting ritual deposits, more were found on higher ground, often under standing stones.

Most gold lunulae have decorative patterns very much resembling beaker pottery from roughly the same period, using geometrical patterns made up of straight lines, with zig-zags and criss-cross patterns, and many different axes of symmetry. The curving edges of the lunula are generally followed by curving border-lines, often with decoration between them. The decoration is typically most dense at the tips and edges, and the broad lower central area is often undecorated between the borders. The decoration also resembles that on amber and jet spacer necklaces, which are thought to be slightly later in date.

Typology

Gold lunulae have been classified into groups as follows:

Classical, perhaps all made in Ireland, on average the widest, heaviest and also thinnest group. They are thin enough to be flexible when worn, and for the incised decoration to appear as relief on their underside. One aspect of the skill with which they are made is the variation in thickness across the piece, with the inner edge often three times thicker than the middle and the outer edge twice as thick.

Unaccomplished, similar in their range of design motifs, but narrower and less skillfully executed; a small number are undecorated. All Irish.

Provincial, so named as all except one example were found outside Ireland. Thicker and more rigid, they were probably all or mostly made outside Ireland. Their decoration can be more varied, and is divided into two groups: "dot-line", found in Scotland and Wales, and "linear", found in Cornwall, Belgium and north Germany, as well as the Irish example. The northern coast of France has both types. Punches, not otherwise used in lunulae, are used for the dots in "dot-line" types.

It used to be thought that these groups were produced in chronological sequence, but this is now much less certain, although the Ballinagroun lunula does show Unaccomplished decoration replacing Classical when it was reworked. In one large sample of 39 lunulae, the 19 Classical averaged 54 grams, with the 12 Unaccomplished averaging 40 g. Finds of Classical lunulae are concentrated in the north of Ireland, probably near the sources of gold, with Unaccomplished find spots mostly forming a "peripheral border" around this area. A few Classical lunulae have been found on the north Cornish coast and in southern Scotland.

Three Provincial lunulae were discovered in Kerivoa, Brittany (Kerivoa-en-Bourbriac, Côtes-d'Armor) in the remains of a box with some sheet gold and a rod of gold. The rod had its terminals hammered flat in the manner of the lunulae. From this it is thought that Lunulae were made by hammering a rod of gold flat so it became sheet-like and fitted the desired shape. Decoration was then applied by impressing designs with a stylus. The stylus used often leaves tell-tale impressions on the surface of the gold and it is thought that all the lunulae from Kerivoa, and another two from Saint-Potan, Brittany and Harlyn Bay, Cornwall were all made with the same tool. This suggests that all five lunulae were the work of one craftsperson and the contents of the Kerivoa box their tools of trade.

Lunulae were probably replaced as neck ornaments firstly by gold torcs, found from the Irish Middle Bronze Age, and then in the Late Bronze Age by the spectacular gorgets of thin ribbed gold, some with round discs at the side, of which 9 examples survive, 7 in the National Museum of Ireland.

The shape is sometimes found into the Iron Age, now also in silver, though the relation to the much earlier Bronze Age lunulae may be tenuous. A bronze example from the Welsh Llyn Cerrig Bach lake deposit (200 BC – 100 AD) has an embossed medallion with a triskele-based design in Celtic La Tène style, although it lacks the fastening at the back and has holes that are presumably for fixing it to a surface. It has been suggested it fitted around the pole of a chariot, or was attached to a shield, or worn by a statue. Two silver examples from Chão de Lamas, Coimbra in Portugal of about 200 BC should perhaps be considered as flattened and widened torcs; similar pieces are worn by figures in sculpture from the same culture.

Recent finds

The known corpus continues to expand slowly. The UK Portable Antiquities Scheme has recorded three incomplete finds in England in recent years, in 2008, 2012 and 2014, the last only missing one terminal. In 2009 the Coggalbeg hoard surfaced in Ireland; it had actually been discovered in 1945 when cutting peat, but kept hidden. The hoard, including a lunula of the Classical type, is now in the National Museum of Ireland.

The place of manufacture of the golden examples is Ireland (Blessington), but they have also been found in Germany (Butzbach and Schulenburg), France (Bourbriac), Poland, Scandinavia and Great Britain (Harlyn Cornwall, Llanllyfni Wales).  The gold lunula, which was found in the Pattensen district of Schulenburg, is the only gold lunula from Lower Saxony, while three copper lunulae have been found from another site, the copper hoard from Osnabrück in 2016. The Irish lunulae are usually interpreted as neck jewelry (Ross in County Westmeath). However, since they have never been found in a grave context, their use or how they were worn in Central and Northern Europe is unknown.

Portuguese lunulae are usually made of slate. They were probably worn with the points downwards, as suggested by the position of the usually two eyelets. Examples of this type have been recovered in the caves of Cascais and at the site of Trigache 2. The lunula from Cabeço da Arruda 2, which has five holes, does not provide any precise indication of how it was worn, nor does the multi-hole fragment from Pedra dos Mouros. The arrangement of the holes, however, suggests various possibilities. There are also unholemed finds from Praia das Maçãs and Trigache 3, as well as the golden lunula from Cabeceiras de Basto and lunulae that are clearly engraved on statue menhirs such as those at Portela de Mogos.

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Lanyard

A lanyard is a cord or strap, often worn around the neck, wrist, or attached to a belt, used to hold and display items like ID badges, keys, or small tools. Originally used by sailors and soldiers to secure items and prevent loss, lanyards are now widely used for identification, security, and convenience in various settings. 

The term "lanyard" in French meaning strap, and its use dates back to the 15th century in military and naval contexts. A lanyard is a length of cord, webbing, or strap that may serve any of various functions, which include a means of attachment, restraint, retrieval, activation, and deactivation. A lanyard is also a piece of rigging used to secure or lower objects aboard a ship. 

Lanyards primarily serve as a way to keep items easily accessible and visible, preventing loss or misplacement. They are typically made from durable materials like nylon, polyester, or woven fabric. Lanyards can be customized with logos, colors, and different attachments. They can also feature safety breakaways to prevent injury in case of snagging. 

Lanyard is convenience to carrying keys, whistles, small tools, or other items. Also used as part of a uniform to denote rank or qualification. Helping to identify authorized personnel and visitors. Displaying ID badges or access control cards, especially in workplaces, schools, and events. 

Origins

The earliest references to lanyards date from 15th century France: "lanière" was a thong or strap-on apparatus.

Bosun's pipe, marlinspike, and small knives typically had a lanyard consisting of a string loop tied together with a diamond knot. It helped secure the item and gave an extended grip over a small handle.

In the French military, lanyards were used to connect a pistol, sword, or whistle (for signaling) to a uniform semi-permanently. Lanyards were used by mounted cavalry on land and naval officers at sea. A pistol lanyard can be easily removed and reattached by the user, but will stay connected to the pistol whether it is drawn for use or it is placed into a holster for carrying.

In the military, lanyards of various colour combinations and braid patterns are worn on the shoulders of uniforms to denote the wearer's qualification or regimental affiliation. In horse regiments, lanyards were worn on the left, enabling a rider to pull a whistle from the left tunic pocket and maintain communication with his troop. Members of the British Royal Artillery wear a lanyard which originally held a key for adjusting the fuzes of explosive shells.

Functions

An attachment lanyard is a light duty tether worn around the neck, shoulder, wrist or attached to the belt as a sling to conveniently carry items such as keys or identification cards, or as a safety harness to prevent accidental dropping of valuable handheld items such as a camera.

A restraint lanyard is a safety lanyard used by construction workers, such as a lineman.

A retrieval lanyard is a nylon webbing lanyard used to raise and lower workers into confined spaces, such as storage tanks.

An activation lanyard is a lanyard used to fire an artillery piece or arm the fuze on a bomb leaving an aircraft.

A deactivation lanyard is a dead man's switch, where pulling a lanyard free will disable a dangerous device.

Styles and materials

The style, design or material used will vary depending on end-purpose of the lanyard. Lanyard materials include polyester, nylon, satin, silk, polyethylene terephthalate (PET), braided leather or braided paracord.

Common styles

Polyester imprinted lanyards

Nylon imprinted lanyards

Tube imprinted lanyards

Dye-sublimated lanyards or full-color lanyards

Accessory for electronics

Lanyards are widely used with small electronic devices such as cameras, MP3 players and USB flash drives to prevent loss or dropping. Electronics designed to take a lanyard usually have a small through-hole built into a corner or edge of the case or anchored to the frame of the device; the corresponding lanyard generally has a loop of thread on the end that is attached to that hole with a simple knot, usually a cow hitch. Some earphones incorporate the audio signal into the lanyard, meaning it doubles up as headphone cords as well. The Wii Remote wrist strap is a form of lanyard, keeping the device attached to a player's arm during the often vigorous movements involved in its use.

Badge or identification holder

Lanyards are commonly used to display badges, tickets or ID cards for identification where security is required, such as businesses, corporations, hospitals, prisons, conventions, trade fairs, and backstage passes used in the entertainment industry. Such lanyards are often made of braided or woven fabric or split with a clip attached to the end. A plastic pouch or badge holder with at least one clear side is attached to the lanyard with the person's name badge or ID card. Occasionally, small items like business cards, pens or tools can be placed behind the badge for easy access. Lanyards can also be used as keychains, particularly in situations where keys can easily be lost, such as gyms, public pools and communal showers.

In these cases, lanyards may be customised with the related name and/or logo of the event, business, or organisation. Lanyards can feature a variety of customisation techniques including screen-printing, Jacquard loom weaving, heat transfer, and offset printing.

Safety strap

Lanyards are also often attached to dead man's switches or "kill switches" on dangerous machinery, such as large industrial cutting or slicing machines, vehicles, jet-skis or trains, and exercise treadmills, so that if the operator suddenly becomes incapacitated, their fall will pull on the lanyard attached to their wrist, which will then pull the switch to immediately stop the machine or vehicle.

Some law enforcement officers and members of the military utilise specialised lanyards to keep sidearms from falling to the ground during missions.

Many ID card lanyards have a built-in feature known as a "breakaway" closure. Breakaway lanyards release when pulled or when pressure is applied. This prevents choking or hanging. Lanyards with a breakaway feature are most often used in hospitals and healthcare clinics, schools, nursing homes, child care facilities, and factories that require employees to operate machinery.

Lineman lanyards

Lineman lanyards are used by lineworker utility and other workers to prevent falls, although similar straps are also used recreationally by mountain climbers. This type of lanyard will have a section of heavy-duty nylon strapping attached to a metal ring or carabiner which tightens around an attachment point. The strap may be a fixed length or adjustable, and will attach to the wearer to support them against a fixed object or pole.

Uniform accessories

Certain lanyards are still worn on uniforms as decorations similar to an aiguillette or fourragère. Among these are the Orange Lanyard in the Military William Order of the Netherlands and the German Armed Forces Badge of Marksmanship.

A white lanyard has formed part of the uniform of Britain's Royal Artillery (RA) since the end of the 19th century. Originally a simple cord carrying a fuse key, the braided and whitened lanyard became the recognised distinction of a Gunner. The distinction was extended to women of the Auxiliary Territorial Service attached to RA units during World War II. Certain battalions descended from the Durham Light Infantry wore green lanyards to denote their past links with the regiment, whose uniform had a dark green facing colour from 1903 onwards.

Royal Naval Rating wear a white lanyard when dressed in No. 1 uniform, the origin of the lanyard was to carry a pouch of gunpowder for the cannon.

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