Ancient Art Critique, Essay Example

Let us begin by looking at The Law Code of Hammurabi (c. 1780 BCE), a seven foot, four inch tall work of art that has come to be emblematic of the ancient Mesopotamian civilization (http://www.louvre.fr/llv/oeuvres/detail_notice.jsp?CONTENT%3C%3Ecnt_id=10134198673226487&CURRENT_LLV_NOTICE%3C%3Ecnt_id=10134198673226487&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=9852723696500800&fromDept=true&baseIndex=16&bmLocale=en). Ancient Mesopotamia, largely modern day Iraq, or the land situated between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers, is considered to be the cradle of civilization. The discovery of this came in 1901. It had been removed from its original, public location when a plunderer came through the area ago. The Code is black and made of basalt (volcanic rock) stele (a slab, usually taller than it is wide). It holds cuneiform script of 36,000 lines (Hammurabi, 2008) and is written in Akkadian, an extinct Semitic language. It holds multiple significances as a work of art, history, and literature. As art, its top portion is in bas relief and depicts a kingly investiture from Shamash, the Sumerian god of the Sun. The king, Hammurabi himself, has his right hand placed to his mouth as a sign of respect. He wears a gown and a turban. As a piece of history, its carved words provide an exceptional source of information about society, religion, and economy. As literature, it reveals the most comprehensive legal code of its era. The back of the stele is smooth from top to bottom and has writing all over it. The weight of the slab is about four tons, and it is 27.5 inches wide. This work is housed at the Louvre Museum in Paris, France, as part of its permanent collection.

Next, we have the striking piece, “Molded Plaque with a King or God Carrying a Mace” (2000-1700 BCE). This is a part of the Near Eastern Antiquities Collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. Just look at this work (http://www.metmuseum.org/works_of_art/collection_database/ancient_near_eastern_art/molded_plaque_with_a_king_or_a_god_carrying_a_mace/objectview.aspx?page=2&sort=5&sortdir=asc&keyword=&fp=1&dd1=3&dd2=24&vw=1&collID=24&OID=30001252&vT=1) ! This is an unglazed ceramic plaque and is typical of works that were made from forms and mass produced to wide audiences of that period. This was an inexpensive process for the production of pieces. The usual subjects of these forms were mythological, erotic, or religious in nature. These were found in temples and in homes. The piece is small, only 4.75 inches tall and 2.75 inches wide. The grayish wall plaque bears a profile figure with a scepter, a symbol of authority. His beard is braided. He wears metal bracelets on each wrist. He looks like he is striding, barefooted, and confidently forward, as if on an important mission. The person wears a short skirt and a round headdress, a common adornment of rulers of that day. He stands tall, like the one reflected in the example above. It is possible that this person is a god, but more likely is a king (Heilbrunn, 2010). The piece is from the ancient Babylonian city of Isin-Larsa, which is located about 15 miles southeast of the ruins of Erech near the east bank of the Shatt-en-Nil canal. This example is well preserved, showing no sign that it has ever been broken. This piece comes from near the original location of the first object we considered here.

References

“Hammaurabi.” The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition, 2008. Retrieved April 30, 2010 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-Hammurabi.html

Louvre. (2010). Near East Antiquities: Mesopotamia. Retrieved April 30, 2010 from (http://www.louvre.fr/llv/oeuvres/detail_notice.jsp?CONTENT%3C%3Ecnt_id=10134198673226487&CURRENT_LLV_NOTICE%3C%3Ecnt_id=10134198673226487&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=9852723696500800&fromDept=true&baseIndex=16&bmLocale=en

Heilbrunn (2000). Molded plaque with a king or a god carrying a mace. Timeline of Art History. New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Retrieved April 30, 2010 from http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/32.39.2

Metropolitan Museum. (2010). Ancient Near Eastern Art: Highlights. Retrieved April 30, 2010 from http://www.metmuseum.org/works_of_art/collection_database/ancient_near_eastern_art/molded_plaque_with_a_king_or_a_god_carrying_a_mace/objectview.aspx?page=2&sort=5&sortdir=asc&keyword=&fp=1&dd1=3&dd2=24&vw=1&collID=24&OID=30001252&vT=1