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The White Obelisk is a large stone monolith found at the ancient
Assyria Assyria ( Neo-Assyrian cuneiform: , romanized: ''māt Aššur''; syc, ܐܬܘܪ, ʾāthor) was a major ancient Mesopotamian civilization which existed as a city-state at times controlling regional territories in the indigenous lands of the A ...
n settlement of
Nineveh Nineveh (; akk, ; Biblical Hebrew: '; ar, نَيْنَوَىٰ '; syr, ܢܝܼܢܘܹܐ, Nīnwē) was an ancient Assyrian city of Upper Mesopotamia, located in the modern-day city of Mosul in northern Iraq. It is located on the eastern ba ...
, northern
Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
. Excavated by the British archaeologist
Hormuzd Rassam Hormuzd Rassam ( ar, هرمز رسام; syr, ܗܪܡܙܕ ܪܣܐܡ; 182616 September 1910), was an Assyriologist and author. He is known for making a number of important archaeological discoveries from 1877 to 1882, including the clay tablets tha ...
in 1853, it is one of only two intact obelisks to survive from the
Assyrian empire Assyrian may refer to: * Assyrian people, the indigenous ethnic group of Mesopotamia. * Assyria, a major Mesopotamian kingdom and empire. ** Early Assyrian Period ** Old Assyrian Period ** Middle Assyrian Empire ** Neo-Assyrian Empire * Assyr ...
, the other being the
Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III The Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III is a black limestone Assyrian sculpture with many scenes in bas-relief and inscriptions. It comes from Nimrud (ancient Kalhu), in northern Iraq, and commemorates the deeds of King Shalmaneser III (reigned 858 ...
. Both are now preserved in the
British Museum The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docum ...
. The White Obelisk dates to the beginning of the
Neo-Assyrian Empire The Neo-Assyrian Empire was the fourth and penultimate stage of ancient Assyrian history and the final and greatest phase of Assyria as an independent state. Beginning with the accession of Adad-nirari II in 911 BC, the Neo-Assyrian Empire grew ...
and has been variously ascribed to the reigns of
Ashurnasirpal I Aššur-nāṣir-apli I, inscribed m''aš-šur-''PAB-A, “the god Aššur is the protector of the heir,” was the king of Assyria, 1049–1031 BC, and the 92nd to appear on the ''Assyrian Kinglist''. He was the son and successor of Šamši-Adad ...
(c. 1040 BC),
Tiglath-Pileser II Tiglath-Pileser II (from the Hebraic form Spelled as "" "Tiglath-Pileser" in the Books of Kings () or as "" "Tilgath-Pilneser" in the Books of Chronicles (). of Akkadian ''Tukultī-apil-Ešarra'') was King of Assyria The king of Assyria (Akkadia ...
(c. 950 BC) or
Ashurnasirpal II Ashur-nasir-pal II ( transliteration: ''Aššur-nāṣir-apli'', meaning " Ashur is guardian of the heir") was king of Assyria from 883 to 859 BC. Ashurnasirpal II succeeded his father, Tukulti-Ninurta II, in 883 BC. During his reign he embarke ...
(c. 870 BC).


Discovery

The obelisk was discovered at
Nineveh Nineveh (; akk, ; Biblical Hebrew: '; ar, نَيْنَوَىٰ '; syr, ܢܝܼܢܘܹܐ, Nīnwē) was an ancient Assyrian city of Upper Mesopotamia, located in the modern-day city of Mosul in northern Iraq. It is located on the eastern ba ...
by the Iraqi archaeologist
Hormuzd Rassam Hormuzd Rassam ( ar, هرمز رسام; syr, ܗܪܡܙܕ ܪܣܐܡ; 182616 September 1910), was an Assyriologist and author. He is known for making a number of important archaeological discoveries from 1877 to 1882, including the clay tablets tha ...
in July 1853. According to the excavator's report, it was found about 60 metres to the northeast of
Sennacherib Sennacherib ( Neo-Assyrian cuneiform: or , meaning " Sîn has replaced the brothers") was the king of the Neo-Assyrian Empire from the death of his father Sargon II in 705BC to his own death in 681BC. The second king of the Sargonid dynas ...
's palace at a depth of about 5 metres below the surface of the mound. It was then shipped to London via
Bombay Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — List of renamed Indian cities and states#Maharashtra, the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' fin ...
on HMS Akbar in March 1854, arriving in the British
capital Capital may refer to: Common uses * Capital city, a municipality of primary status ** List of national capital cities * Capital letter, an upper-case letter Economics and social sciences * Capital (economics), the durable produced goods used fo ...
in February 1855, where it was immediately deposited in the national collection.British Museum Collection
/ref>


Description

The White Obelisk is a very large four-sided pillar made from white
limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms w ...
with engraved decoration in relief on all sides of the
obelisk An obelisk (; from grc, ὀβελίσκος ; diminutive of ''obelos'', " spit, nail, pointed pillar") is a tall, four-sided, narrow tapering monument which ends in a pyramid-like shape or pyramidion at the top. Originally constructed by An ...
, with an inscription at the top. The carvings show campaigns and recreational activities (including a hunt) of an Assyrian king that has been identified as either
Ashurnasirpal I Aššur-nāṣir-apli I, inscribed m''aš-šur-''PAB-A, “the god Aššur is the protector of the heir,” was the king of Assyria, 1049–1031 BC, and the 92nd to appear on the ''Assyrian Kinglist''. He was the son and successor of Šamši-Adad ...
,
Tiglath-Pileser II Tiglath-Pileser II (from the Hebraic form Spelled as "" "Tiglath-Pileser" in the Books of Kings () or as "" "Tilgath-Pilneser" in the Books of Chronicles (). of Akkadian ''Tukultī-apil-Ešarra'') was King of Assyria The king of Assyria (Akkadia ...
or
Ashurnasirpal II Ashur-nasir-pal II ( transliteration: ''Aššur-nāṣir-apli'', meaning " Ashur is guardian of the heir") was king of Assyria from 883 to 859 BC. Ashurnasirpal II succeeded his father, Tukulti-Ninurta II, in 883 BC. During his reign he embarke ...
. According to Julian Reade, the style of dress suggests that this impressive stela was set up under the reign of Ashurnasirpal I, since many courtiers wear a Fez-like hat, which is only known from sculptural work made in the thirteenth century BC. If this is the case, the White Obelisk is one of the earliest representations of Assyrian art in existence.


Inscription and reliefs

The preserved part of the inscription at the top of the obelisk describes the Assyrian king as a great conqueror, taking booty, prisoners and herds of animals to the city of
Assur Aššur (; Sumerian: AN.ŠAR2KI, Assyrian cuneiform: ''Aš-šurKI'', "City of God Aššur"; syr, ܐܫܘܪ ''Āšūr''; Old Persian ''Aθur'', fa, آشور: ''Āšūr''; he, אַשּׁוּר, ', ar, اشور), also known as Ashur and Qal'a ...
. On each of the four sides of the obelisk are eight rows of panels with
relief Relief is a sculptural method in which the sculpted pieces are bonded to a solid background of the same material. The term '' relief'' is from the Latin verb ''relevo'', to raise. To create a sculpture in relief is to give the impression that th ...
representations. Engraved on them are various scenes including military expeditions of the king, the monarch receiving tribute, great banquets of courtiers and the
hunting Hunting is the human activity, human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, or killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to harvest food (i.e. meat) and useful animal products (fur/hide (skin), hide, ...
of wild animals. One set of religious scenes is accompanied by an inscription, which explains that the scene depicts the king pouring a
libation A libation is a ritual pouring of a liquid, or grains such as rice, as an offering to a deity or spirit, or in memory of the dead. It was common in many religions of antiquity and continues to be offered in cultures today. Various substanc ...
in front of the goddess
Ishtar Inanna, also sux, 𒀭𒊩𒌆𒀭𒈾, nin-an-na, label=none is an ancient Mesopotamian goddess of love, war, and fertility. She is also associated with beauty, sex, divine justice, and political power. She was originally worshiped in Su ...
, who was the principal deity of Nineveh.


See also

*
Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III The Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III is a black limestone Assyrian sculpture with many scenes in bas-relief and inscriptions. It comes from Nimrud (ancient Kalhu), in northern Iraq, and commemorates the deeds of King Shalmaneser III (reigned 858 ...


References


Bibliography

* * * * {{British Museum 11th-century BC steles 1853 archaeological discoveries Middle Eastern sculptures in the British Museum Sculpture of the Ancient Near East Assyrian art and architecture Ancient obelisks Victory steles Cultural depictions of Ashurbanipal Assyrian inscriptions