Art of Mesopotamia
The land between two rivers
Writing is the mother of eloquence and the father of artists.
Ancient Babylonian proverb
Images: Lizard-headed woman nursing a child, from Ur, Iraq, c. 4000 BCE. Iraq Museum. Photo by Osama Shukir Muhammed Amin ·· Statue of Gudea, c. 2144–2124 BCE. Metropolitan Museu. Photo by Marie-Lan Nguyen ·· Assyrian winged bull (lamassu), 865-860 BCE. British Museum. Photo by Sanjar Alimov
Mesopotamia, the land between rivers, was the birthplace of some of the most important developments in human history, such as agriculture, the wheel, and possibly writing. In the words of historian Paul Kriwaczek, “if history, as by most definitions, begins with writing, then the birth, rise and fall of ancient Mesopotamia occupies a full half of all history.”
Unlike Ancient Egypt, which maintained a relative cultural uniformity throughout its history, Mesopotamia was a melting pot of peoples and cultures with different characteristics, such as the Sumerians, Assyrians, Akkadians and others. Moreover, cultural exchange (voluntary or otherwise) with other civilisations, such as the Phoenicians in the west and the Persians in the east, resulted in a much greater artistic variety than that produced on the banks of the Nile. Indeed, Mesopotamia’s importance for the history of art is not lesser than that of Egypt, although its fame among the general public is inferior to that of ‘the gift of the Nile’.
Although modern archaeology has made great strides towards uncovering the details of the history and art of Mesopotamia, armed conflicts and political instability in the area have irreparably destroyed some of its most remarkable testimonies, as well as leading to the looting of an enormous quantity of works of art.
G. Fernández · theartwolf.com
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