Elamite Bronze Statue, 3000 BC to 2000 BC
Bronze
height 20 cm
height 7 7/8 in
height 7 7/8 in
ES.4688
An exceptional Elamite bronze statue representing a striding figure with ibex horns, a skin draped around the shoulders, and upturned boots. The statue is solid-cast, with an attractive and uniform...
An exceptional Elamite bronze statue representing a striding figure with ibex horns, a skin draped around the shoulders, and upturned boots. The statue is solid-cast, with an attractive and uniform patina. The figure -perhaps a hero, a demon, or a shaman- steps forward with the left foot, wearing the upturned boots associated with highland regions. His head is adorned with the mighty horns of the ibex. Ibex motifs are very common in Elamite art, appearing in sculpture, on cylinder seals, and on pottery.
The figure exhibits the fundamental artistic and iconographic characters of the Proto-Elamite period: a realistic and naturalistic representation of human forms with great attention paid to proportions and anatomical traits, along with a tendency to blend human and natural forms, perhaps in association with shamanic rituals that can be guessed and subsumed only from the scant archaeological sources. All in all this stunning artefact epitomises the outstanding tradition of metalworking that characterised the Proto-Elamite period.
An attractive comparable is exhibited at the Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York), Accession Number: 2007.280.
Elam was an ancient kingdom of Asia, situated north of the Persian Gulf and east of the Tigris River, and corresponding approximately to the present-day province of Khuzistan in Iran. The capital of Elam and its most fabled city was Susa, today the city of Shush. This powerful empire has been overshadowed in history by the rival kingdoms of Babylon and Assyria. However, the Elamite Empire deserves to be placed in a list of the world’s most important and influential ancient cultures. Archaeological signatures for the area exist as far back as the sixth millennium B.C. The empire itself was founded in around 3200 B.C., and it lasted – in various guises – almost continuously until the mid first millennium B.C.; much of its history is also documented using the world’s earliest deciphered alphabet, which makes it of extraordinary value to historians and archaeologists. The earliest phases are somewhat unclear.
The most extensively researched portions of the sequence start with the Old Elamite Period (OEP), which began around 2700 B.C. and saw the conquest of Elam by Enmebaragesi of Kish. King lists indicate a temporary domination of Sumer (Iraq) by later dynasties within the OEP, although Elam was herself briefly dominated by strong Sumerian rulers. Struggles with the Akkadians and repeated conquests in both directions characterized much of the Avan Dynasty; diplomatic relations between the Sumer and Elam improved, but perhaps only because the former’s power was waning. The Elamites sacked Ur in 2004 BC, and led Ibbi Sin into captivity. Later dynasties in the OEP saw burgeoning power structures throughout the Elamite Empire, leading to the rise of the Anshanite dynasties around 1500 B.C. and the arrival of the Middle Elamite Period (MEP).
Akkadian influence waned during this period, and Elamite gained strength; Elamite influence likewise burgeoned, capturing and sacking cities and artworks from the Babylonians and other neighbours. The power of the empire waned dramatically towards the end of the MEP with the inbred king Khutelutush-In- Shushinak, who was the product of his father and sister. Under his unsteady rule, the Elamite Empire fell into obscurity for almost three centuries, allowing their foes to reclaim their territory and plunder. The rise of the Neo- Elamite period is little understood, but in time the empire regained its former strength.
The figure exhibits the fundamental artistic and iconographic characters of the Proto-Elamite period: a realistic and naturalistic representation of human forms with great attention paid to proportions and anatomical traits, along with a tendency to blend human and natural forms, perhaps in association with shamanic rituals that can be guessed and subsumed only from the scant archaeological sources. All in all this stunning artefact epitomises the outstanding tradition of metalworking that characterised the Proto-Elamite period.
An attractive comparable is exhibited at the Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York), Accession Number: 2007.280.
Elam was an ancient kingdom of Asia, situated north of the Persian Gulf and east of the Tigris River, and corresponding approximately to the present-day province of Khuzistan in Iran. The capital of Elam and its most fabled city was Susa, today the city of Shush. This powerful empire has been overshadowed in history by the rival kingdoms of Babylon and Assyria. However, the Elamite Empire deserves to be placed in a list of the world’s most important and influential ancient cultures. Archaeological signatures for the area exist as far back as the sixth millennium B.C. The empire itself was founded in around 3200 B.C., and it lasted – in various guises – almost continuously until the mid first millennium B.C.; much of its history is also documented using the world’s earliest deciphered alphabet, which makes it of extraordinary value to historians and archaeologists. The earliest phases are somewhat unclear.
The most extensively researched portions of the sequence start with the Old Elamite Period (OEP), which began around 2700 B.C. and saw the conquest of Elam by Enmebaragesi of Kish. King lists indicate a temporary domination of Sumer (Iraq) by later dynasties within the OEP, although Elam was herself briefly dominated by strong Sumerian rulers. Struggles with the Akkadians and repeated conquests in both directions characterized much of the Avan Dynasty; diplomatic relations between the Sumer and Elam improved, but perhaps only because the former’s power was waning. The Elamites sacked Ur in 2004 BC, and led Ibbi Sin into captivity. Later dynasties in the OEP saw burgeoning power structures throughout the Elamite Empire, leading to the rise of the Anshanite dynasties around 1500 B.C. and the arrival of the Middle Elamite Period (MEP).
Akkadian influence waned during this period, and Elamite gained strength; Elamite influence likewise burgeoned, capturing and sacking cities and artworks from the Babylonians and other neighbours. The power of the empire waned dramatically towards the end of the MEP with the inbred king Khutelutush-In- Shushinak, who was the product of his father and sister. Under his unsteady rule, the Elamite Empire fell into obscurity for almost three centuries, allowing their foes to reclaim their territory and plunder. The rise of the Neo- Elamite period is little understood, but in time the empire regained its former strength.