Stone panel from the North Palace of Ashurbanipal

Nineveh, northern Iraq
Neo-Assyrian, about 645 BC

Hunting deer

This fragmentary alabaster wall panel comes from the left-hand section of a series in the palace of King Ashurbanipal (reigned 669-631 BC). The sculptors' depiction of the detail of the hunt is typical of Assyrian relief carving. A herd of deer hunted from the left flee, only to discover that a net has been cast across their escape route. A huntsman is grappling with a stag entangled in the net.

Mesopotamian rulers liked to portray themselves hunting. It demonstrated their superiority over the dangerous forces of nature. The importance of the hunt in Ashurbanipal's reliefs suggests that he also enjoyed the sport.

The quality of the final work, even sometimes within the confines of a single panel, was very variable. The right-hand side of this one has not been fully smoothed, probably because it was at the edge of a composition.