Sumerian Art: Did you mean...?

The Weld-Blundell Prism, the most complete version of the Sumerian King List extant, from Larsa, c. 1827-1817 BCE. Ashmolean Museum, Oxford.

Carved stone cuneiform tablets in Sumerian. Left: Temple of Ningirsu, Girsu. Right: Temple of Nindara, Ur. Dating around 2141-2122 BCE.

Ancient Egyptian art was created to serve a practical purpose, not for its own sake, and so every piece had a specific function. At the same time, these works were crafted in accordance with the cultural value of ma'at (harmony) and so attention...

Enheduanna (circa 2300 BCE) is the world's first author and was the daughter (either literally or figuratively) of the great empire-builder Sargon of Akkad (reign 2334-2279 BCE). Her name translates from the Akkadian as "high priestess of...

Scribes in ancient Mesopotamia were highly educated individuals trained in writing and reading on diverse subjects. Initially, their purpose was to record financial transactions through trade, but in time, they were integral to every aspect...

Chinese culture developed from small communities such as Banpo Village (c. 4500 BCE) through the early Xia Dynasty (c. 2070-1600 BCE) and the great dynastic periods that followed after, creating some of the most striking and memorable works...

Shell inlay depicting a standing and naked man (ordinary individual or priest) offering a libation. Excavated by Sir Henry Layard for the Department of Antiquities in Iraq. This object was part of the objects allotted to the British Museum...

Sargon of Akkad (reign 2334-2279 BCE) was the king of the Akkadian Empire of Mesopotamia, the first multinational empire in history, who united the disparate kingdoms of the region under a central authority. He is equally famous today as...

Ishtar (Inanna in Sumerian sources) is a primary Mesopotamian goddess closely associated with love and war. This powerful Mesopotamian goddess is the first known deity for which we have written evidence. While largely unknown in the modern...

Limestone statue of a Sumerian female in a gesture of prayer. The eye sockets were filled in with white shell set in bitumen. She wears a Sumerian garment with a bare right shoulder. Front view. From the Temple of Sin, Khafajah (also Khafaje...