Victory Stele of Naram-Sin is a famous Mesopotamian artwork created between 2254 and 2218 BCE. It commemorates the victory of Akkadian ruler Naram-Sin over King Satuni of the Lullubi mountain people. The stele has been created in relief and measures six and a half feet. It shows the king at the top, followed by his Akkadian army. The defeated Lullubi people are shown begging for mercy or lying dead. Victory Stele of Naram-Sin was rediscovered in 1898 during an excavation led by Jacques de Morgan. It resides in the Louvre Museum and is one of the most famous examples of Akkadian art. Know more about its discovery, description, purpose and analysis.
Table of Contents
- The Key Questions
- S1 – Akkadian Art Overview
- S2 – Discovery
- S3 – Purpose
- S4 – Description
- S5 – Analysis
- Main Sources
The Key Questions
Akkad was a region in Mesopotamia in what is now central Iraq. The early inhabitants of this region spoke a language known as Akkadian, from which they get their name. To the south of Akkad was the region of Sumer, the earliest known civilization in Mesopotamia. While Akkadian is a Semitic language, Sumerians spoke a non-Semitic language.
Sargon was the ruler of Akkad from around 2334 to 2279 BCE. He and his descendants established control over a large part of the ancient Near Eastern world. They brought together the Akkadian and Sumerian speakers under one rule to establish the Akkadian Empire. With its capital at Akkad, the empire governed a large region across Mesopotamia to Anatolia, Arabia, Iran, and as far west as Cyprus in the Mediterranean Sea. It lasted from 2,334 to 2,193 BCE.
Naram-Sin was the grandson of Sargon and a great ruler himself. His title was ‘King of the Four Quarters’, or ‘Ruler of the World’. His reign lasted from 2,254 to 2,218 BCE. Stele is a monument erected to commemorate an important event or person.
S1 – Akkadian Art Overview
S2 – Discovery
The Victory Stele of Naram-Sin was not found in Mesopotamia but at the Iranian site of Susa. It was taken there by Elamite king Shutruk-Nahhunte as part of war booty in 12th century BCE. It was re-discovered in 1898 during excavations of the site, led by French geologist and archaeologist Jacques de Morgan. It was moved to the Louvre Museum in Paris, where it still resides.
S3 – Purpose
In the Akkadian Empire, steles were often erected to celebrate important victories of their rulers. The Stele of Naram-Sin was sculpted to celebrate the victory of King Naram-Sin over King Satuni of the Lullubi mountain people, who lived in the region of present-day Iran. The Naram-Sin Stele differs from previous such monuments in the sense that it is suggestive of the ruler’s proximity to the divine. This can be inferred from his horned crown, previously reserved for the Gods.
S4 – Description
The stele has been created in relief and measures six and a half feet. It shows Naram-Sin leading his army up the steep slopes of the Lullubi mountain. He is the focus of the scene standing at the top. He is separated from the soldiers by his larger size and the open space around him. His foot is placed on the naked bodies of the defeated enemy soldiers. The Lullubi ruler is before him, placed on the right of the stele, begging for mercy.
In front of Naram-Sin is a defeated Lullubi soldier, who clutches a spear that the king has thrust through his neck. Naram-Sin carries other weapons including spears, a bow and arrows, and a battle-axe. He is depicted as the most powerful member of his army, displaying a god-like ability to slaughter his enemies.
The Akkadian soldiers follow their king in an orderly march. This is in contrast of the chaotic enemy soldiers who beg for mercy or lie contorted in death. One of the defeated soldiers is falling head-first down the mountainside while one collapses near Naram-Sin after being transfixed with a spear. Apart from the combatants, solar deities may be seen at the top of the stele, perhaps attesting Naram-Sin’s victory.
S5 – Analysis
The Victory Stele of Naram-Sin differs from earlier Mesopotamian artworks in an important aspect. Unlike the neat horizontal levels used for narration earlier, it has a unified composition with the figures placed in the same pictorial space. The triangular composition, with the king at its top, is organized in a series of ascending diagonals in keeping with the slope of the mountain.
In keeping with earlier Mesopotamian art, hieratic scale is used to indicate the importance of the king, i.e. his higher status is shown through his larger size. Further, more details are used to represent him. The bold musculature of his limbs and his powerful stance sets him apart as the key figure in the scene.
Main Sources
S2:-
“Victory Stele of Naram-Sin, Louvre Museum, Paris”. Archived from the original.
Pelzel, Suzanne M. (January 1977). “Dating the Early Dynastic Votive Plaques from Susa”. Journal of Near Eastern Studies.
S3: –
Farthing, Stephen. “ART: The Whole Story”. Thames & Hudson. pp21.
Janson, H. W., Davies, Penelope J. E. “Janson’s History of Art: The Western Tradition”. pp30, 32.
S4:-
Janson, H. W., Davies, Penelope J. E. “Janson’s History of Art: The Western Tradition”. pp30, 32.
Mittman, Asa Simon. “Art Appreciation: Power – comparisons and connections”. Smarthistory
Bahrani, Zainab. (2017). “Mesopotamia – Ancient Art and Architecture”. Thames & Hudson. pp125.
S5:-
Farthing, Stephen. “ART: The Whole Story”. Thames & Hudson. pp21.
Janson, H. W., Davies, Penelope J. E. “Janson’s History of Art: The Western Tradition”. pp30, 32.