Royal Statuary of the Early Dynastic Period
Nov 28, 2013 22:26:18 GMT -5
Post by us4-he2-gal2 on Nov 28, 2013 22:26:18 GMT -5
Reviewing - Marchesi/Marchetti 2011
In preparation for a paper which I am preparing for this semester's Mesopotamian Archaeology class (under Prof. Clemens Reichel) I am reviewing Royal Statuary of Early Dynastic Mesopotamia, a book published in 2011 by Eisenbrauns and authored by Gianni Marchesi and Nicolo Marchetti. The paper I am writing is intended to examine royal imagery of the early periods (thesis still pending?), and in the process I came across this wonderful and amazing treatment of the royal Sumerian statuary.
Marchesi/Marchetti take a painstaking and exhaustive approach in this book, so thorough I don't know what else I can say about this stuff that isn't already detailed in the book. They begin by re-examining Mesopotamian chronology, an effort made with the intent of giving firm archaeology context to the pieces discussed. They then give a complete overview of Early Dynastic history and royal titles before discussing the sequence of ED rulers. The inscriptions found on royal statues are given fresh translations. Finally after some 185 pages of analysis, the stage is set for the discussion of the statues themselves.
Not to say that the book is without problems, controversies and what many would find objectionable conclusions - but it is undoubtedly a work of quality.
Below I will post some of the key artifacts discussed by the authors, the oldest statuary of the Early Dynastic kings - only the statues of the Urukian "priest-king" (may) represent older royal statuary. My notes so far are rough and preliminary and may need to undergo revision before I apply this data to my upcoming paper. Before this reading, I had only known this statuary from occasional and sporadic references in the scholarly literature - Most information comes directly from the authors, although occasional I make an obvious observation i.e. posture: folded hands. In the below, "Cat. 1" stands for "catalogue 1" and so on, this references the catalogue at the back of the book.
Initially I will post notes on 4 of the 12 key statues discussed in the 2011 work. Some preliminary impressions - it seems that ED royal statuary comes exclusively (?) from temple contexts. Early Sumerian kings followed the Mesopotamian custom of votive statuary. In these contexts, the ruler is not shown with the customary headgear, so often present in other media. In earliest examples, the style of the rulers seems indistinguishable from non-royal votive statuary, a theme Marchesi and Marchetti seem to isolate - they chart the development of a royal visual style.
Cat. 1: ED II: king HAR.TU, king of PA.GAR (Hattam) (pg. 130)
ED II (see pg. 129 n.3)
C
ontext: pg. 129 Found in main level 1 of šara temple at Tell
Agrab (although the god may turn out to be Iluma’tim).
Posture: Folded hands
Features: narrow waist, wide shoulders, planes intersecting at sharp angles, carving of the hair and beard, all suggest ED II.
Clothing: Skirt- all that remains is upper edge rolled over at the
waist and the initial part of a rear tassel, place, as usual , at the left
Additionally: See Marchestti comments to cat.3 ‘nothing to distinguish cat.1/2/3 from nonroyal statuary of the period.’
Inscription pg. 164:
1. HAR.TU
2. lugal PA.GAR
3. DINGIR-MA.TUM
4. sul an(/dingir)
5. amar nu-nam-ama
1. HAR.TU
2. king of PA.GAR
3. Illuma’tim
4. the young one of heaven(or, of the gods)
5. the calf of Nunam’ama
Cat. 2 – ED II: Tun’ak “Ginak” , ensi of unknown city
pg. 130 Similar in style to examples from Tutub and Tell Agrab, as observed by the editor. The portrayal of the hair and beard with wavy lines and the two-dimensional, nonnaturalistic rendering of volume are also valuable chronological indicators. As in the case of other pieces studied here (Cat. 1 and Cat. 3) there is nothing in this statue to distinguish it from other, nonroyal statues of the same period, all of which depict standing figures with the hands clasped over the chest.
Context: ?
Posture: Folded hands
Features: “The portrayal of the hair and beard with wavy lines and the two-dimensional, nonnaturalistic rendering of volume are also valuable chronological indicators.”
Clothing: ?
Inscription pg. 167
1- tun3-ak
2- PA.TE.SI BAHARr.E2
1- Tun’ak
2- viceroy [ensi] of BARHAR2.E2
Cat.3: ED II? - “Nebo” (ruler’s actual name is Urlammarak) , ensi of AN.PA[x] (location unknown) or of dPA[x] (unknown deity)
Context: Unknown, acquired from art dealer 1854. [Figure is 15 cm high, hands folded – possible a votive figurine from a temple context (?)] - however, if inscription is to be understood as offerer and offerree format (as in cat.1) than this would suggestible be from a temple context as well – see pg. 168 n.2
Posture: [Folded hands]
Features: pg. 130 The bearded figure, whose nose had already been mended in ancient times, has hair parted in the middle and locks falling forward over the shoulders, as was characteristic in the ED II and ED IIIa (c.f. 1.2) The full rather than inlaid eyes could indicate that the statue must be attributed to the later of the two phases. The inscription on the back, however, seems to be characteristic of the earlier period.
Clothing: ?
Note from Juliane Reade, Nabu 2000/73: 54-4-1, 31 = 91667. Upper part of man, 15 cm high. Calcite (BMRL), slightly pink. Purchased in 1854 from Felix Jones, who commanded a ship on the Tigris (e.g. Layard 1853: 473). The material suggests an unusual source, but the piece is certainly authentic. Braun-Holzinger (1977: 75, 84; 1991: 255) ascribed the statue to her «Stilstufe I∞, and pointed out that at least one of two inscriptions on its back must have been added at a later date, but her suggested provenance near Babylon is unsafe. At some stage the nose was aseparate attachment. Illustrated in colour by Reade (2000: 43, fig. 38).
sepoa.fr/wp/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/2000-4.pdf
material: limestone
Inscription:
-1 ur:dlammar (KAL)
-2 NIG2: PA.SI.AN.PA
1. Urlammarak,
2. [ensi] viceroy of AN.PA.x
cat. 4 ED IIIa - Epa’e lugal of Adab
Context: pg. 130 Unknown, acquired from art market. Excavated during damaging looting to the site of Adab in the 1990s. Inscription and dedication of to Nin’egalak suggests a possible find spot at the temple of In’anak in Tell IV of Adab. (pg.131)
Posture: [Folded hands]
Features: pg. 131 - Sculture shows a beardless figure whose head was presumable shaven, like that of the statue of Lugaldalu, which it resembles in style. Although not too distant chronologically from Lugaldalu, Epa’e, given the more archaic iconography of the skirt, was probably a ruler of the Early Dynastic IIIa. The dedication to Nin’egalak –a form of In’anak- suggests that the statue may have come from Tell IV at Adab, where Banks had found teracotta stamps of Naramsuyin for bricks of the temple of In’anak, which he hence located in that spot.
Clothing: Archaic iconography of skirt suggests ED IIIa pg. 131
Inscription:
1. é-rú
2. (d)nin- é-gal(GA<L>)
3. é-pa- è
4. kugal arabx(UD.”NUN”)
1. The builder
2. of Nin’egalak
3. Epa’e
4. king of Adab
