Mesopotamia was, for many archaeologists, the birth-place of civilisation. Indeed, it is from the region ‘between the rivers’ (Mesopotamia comes from Greek meso-, between, and potamos, river) that we see many of the great innovations which led to civilised human societies: they were among the first to live in cities, to build temples, and to write. The remarkable achievements of the Mesopotamians coincided with similar civilisations in Central Asia (the Bactria-Margiana Archaeological Complex), the Indian subcontinent (the Indus Valley Civilisation) and in Egypt; together, these regions were known as the Fertile Crescent, the arc of riverine agricultural civilisations which are considered the predecessors to all major European, North African, and Near Eastern societies. What we call Mesopotamia was, in fact, not a single society or culture. Instead, it referred to a bewildering array of city-states, each with their own government, practices and culture. But certain features were common to them all. The pantheon of gods was broadly the same, despite regional variations in depiction and emphasis; the architectural style was mostly similar; the writing system, known as Cuneiform, was shared, though rendering numerous languages; and each was a centralised ‘Palace’ or ‘Hydraulic’ economy, in which the vital task of organising the water supply to irrigate the fields was managed by a priest-king, who, in return, received a portion of the surplus of the farms, which was then re-distributed to the non-agricultural members of society.

The Mesopotamian religion was not congregational. The temples were closed-off spaces, accessible only to those with the esoteric knowledge required of a priest. Indeed, the very structure of the temple was designed to be impenetrable and to over-awe the low-lying buildings around. Most were built as ziggurats, great mudbrick pyramids which required months of labour from hundreds of men, with a single staircase which led to the shrine at the top. Individuals expressed their own worship through household shrines, which were centred on the hearth, or through the wearing and using of amulets and other ritual objects. But for the wealthy, there was another option. In order to be included in the sacrifices to the gods provided for by the state, the elite were able to represent themselves within the temple, in the form of votive sculptures. While they may not have had the knowledge or been through the purity rituals required of a priest, their sculpture – which was believed to contain something of their essence – could be placed within the temple in a posture of worship, transmitting their own prayers to the gods.

This figure of a man is one such votive sculpture. He is depicted in the traditional pose of a worshipper: standing with his legs together, his arms bent at the elbow, hands clasped in front of his chest, his eyes wide in a mode of reverence, and his mouth tightly closed. In this pose, he is very similar to the figures of worshippers from the Sumerian site at Tell Asmar, in what is now Iraq. This figure is very similar in style, with a long square beard, flat face, and long hair. He is naked to the waist, and wears around his hips the loincloth version of the kaunakes, a kind of material made of tufted wool, which was the most distinctive outfit of the Mesopotamian world. This figure represents, and therefore is occupied by the spirit of, a very significant personage in Sumerian society. While it is unlikely that he was a king – royal figures tend to be larger, more figural, and inlaid with shell, lapis lazuli, or other precious stones – this figure is nonetheless a dramatic testament to the life and worship of an important individual in the life of his city-state.