Assyrian sculpture and Balawat Gates (Room 6)
11th – 8th centuries BC
eyeOpener gallery tour / Free / Daily,
15.45–16.25
Large stone sculptures and reliefs were a striking feature of
the palaces and temples of ancient Assyria (modern northern Iraq).
An entrance to the royal palace of King Ashurnasirpal II (883-859
BC) at Nimrud was flanked by two colossal winged human-headed
lions. A gigantic standing lion stood at the entrance to the nearby
Temple of Ishtar, the goddess of war.
These sculptures are displayed in Rooms 6a and 6b alongside
fragments and replicas of the huge bronze gates of Shalmaneser III
(858-824 BC) from Balawat.
A Black Obelisk also on display shows the same king receiving
tribute from Israel and is displayed with obelisks and stelae
(vertical inscribed stone slabs) from four generations of Assyrian
kings.