Tell Asmar Hoard are a group of 12 sculptures discovered in 1933-34 during an excavation in the Diyala region of Iraq. They belong to the Sumerian period of ancient Mesopotamia and are believed to be more than 4,500 years old. The most striking aspect of the statues is that they have been reduced to basic geometrical shapes. This is extremely rare for the period and perhaps the reason that they are among the most famous artworks from Mesopotamia. Know more about the Tell Asmar Hoard including their discovery, description and purpose.
Table of Contents
The Key Questions
The Sumerians were not the first residents of Mesopotamia. It is not known from where they came and who they replaced. They are believed to have been permanently settled in the region by middle of 6th millennia BCE. Their civilization was the first major civilization to develop in Mesopotamia. It flourished from before 4,000 BCE to around 2,340 BCE.
Sumer is among the first complex societies to develop in the world, along with Indus Valley and Egypt. It is responsible for many firsts in the history of mankind. These include the first city-state of Uruk; the first organized religion; the first known written language, cuneiform; the first irrigation system; and the first wheeled vehicles.
S1 – Sumerian Art Overview
S2 – Discovery
Eshnunna was a city state in ancient Mesopotamia. Known now as Tell Asmar, it lies in Diyala Governorate of modern Iraq, about 80 kilometers northeast of Baghdad. In the 1930s, the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago carried out excavations in the Diyala region. These excavations were led by University of Chicago archaeologist Henri Frankfort.
In 1933-34, the Tell Asmar Hoard was discovered at the site beneath the floor of the Square Temple, a temple dedicated to the god Abu. The statues were neatly stacked in several layers within a pit which measured 85 by 50 cm. They were dated to the Early Dynastic Period of Mesopotamia which lasted from around 2,900 BCE to 2,334 BCE.
S3 – Description
The Tell Asmar Hoard comprises of a group of 12 statues of both male and female. They have been captured in frontal poses with their hands clasped at the waist in front of them. The height of the statues varies from 23 cm to 72 cm. Scholars have identified the two large figures as the god of vegetation Abu, and his consort.
All the statues have been carved out of limestone and alabaster. The male heads are often bearded and long-haired, but some are clean-shaven with shaved heads. The female figurines have been mostly depicted with uncovered braided hairstyles or with a turban-like headdress. The females have full-length drapery while the males wear fringed skirts hanging from a belt.
The most striking aspects of the statues is that they have been reduced to basic geometrical shapes. Frankfort described it as “the human body…ruthlessly reduced to abstract plastic forms.” Another important aspect is that they have large, almost round eyes which stare in front of them. Depicting enlarged eyes was a way of warding off evil in Mesopotamia, known today as an apotropaic device.
S4 – Purpose
In all probability, the Tell Asmar Hoard statues stood on rectangular bases and were placed in the temple’s cella. They must have represented the depicted figures as worshipers. The purpose of art in ancient Mesopotamia was not to imitate the external resemblance of the subjects. Artworks were supposed to be active forces that channeled the energy of the individuals for eternity. Thus, the Tell Asmar Hoard probably represented people standing in worship in front of the deity for eternity.
Main Sources
S2:
Evans, Jean M. (Oct 2007). “The Square Temple at Tell Asmar and the Construction of Early Dynastic Mesopotamia, ca. 2900–2350 B.C.E.” American Journal of Archaeology.
Hirst, K. Kris. (Jul 23, 2019). “The Tell Asmar Sculpture Hoard of Prayerful People”. ThoughtCo.
Frankfort, Henri. (1939). “Sculpture of the Third Millennium B.C. from Tell Asmar and Khafãjah”. University of Chicago Press.
S3:
Janson, H. W., Davies, Penelope J. E. “Janson’s History of Art: The Western Tradition”. pp25, 26.
Bahrani, Zainab. (2017). “Mesopotamia – Ancient Art and Architecture”. Thames & Hudson. pp70, 71.
Hirst, K. Kris. (Jul 23, 2019). “The Tell Asmar Sculpture Hoard of Prayerful People”. ThoughtCo.
S4:
Bahrani, Zainab. (2017). “Mesopotamia – Ancient Art and Architecture”. Thames & Hudson. pp71, 72.