Assyrian Bas-relief with the Head of a Winged Genius

3D Image

Geoffrey Marchal
by
published on 11 June 2018

Bas-relief with the head of a winged genius, Nimrud, north-westerly palace (Iraq), neo-Assyrian empire, reign of Ashurnasirpal II, 883-859 BCE, gypsum stone. Musée du Cinquantenaire (Brussels, Belgium). Made with ReMake and ReCap Pro from AutoDesk.

The winged genius relief, a fragment of a panel at least 2.3 meters high, and the associated “standard inscription” were part of a ritual scene repeated many times in the palace of Ashurnasirpal II, Nimrud. The figure wears a horned crown, a traditional attribute of a protective deity who has to defend the king against demons and help him to defeat his enemies. All the details are carefully rendered, in accordance with the Assyrian canon: the divine tiara, the long hair and the curly beard, the beautiful dangle earrings or the fringed garment. The bas-relief creates plays of light that distort the genius to make an impressive guardian of the new residence of the sovereign.

For more updates, please consider to follow me on Twitter at @GeoffreyMarchal.

Remove Ads
Advertisement

Free for the World, Supported by You

World History Encyclopedia is a non-profit organization. For only $5 per month you can become a member and support our mission to engage people with cultural heritage and to improve history education worldwide.

World History Encyclopedia is a non-profit organization. Please support free history education for millions of learners worldwide for only $5 per month by becoming a member. Thank you!

Become a Member  

References

Cite This Work

APA Style

Marchal, G. (2018, June 11). Assyrian Bas-relief with the Head of a Winged Genius. World History Encyclopedia. Retrieved from https://www.worldhistory.org/image3d/217/assyrian-bas-relief-with-the-head-of-a-winged-geni/

Chicago Style

Marchal, Geoffrey. "Assyrian Bas-relief with the Head of a Winged Genius." World History Encyclopedia. Last modified June 11, 2018. https://www.worldhistory.org/image3d/217/assyrian-bas-relief-with-the-head-of-a-winged-geni/.

MLA Style

Marchal, Geoffrey. "Assyrian Bas-relief with the Head of a Winged Genius." World History Encyclopedia. World History Encyclopedia, 11 Jun 2018. Web. 10 Nov 2024.

Membership