The Tell al-'Ubaid Copper Lintel or ''Imdugud Relief'' is a large copper panel found at the ancient
Sumer
Sumer () is the earliest known civilization, located in the historical region of southern Mesopotamia (now south-central Iraq), emerging during the Chalcolithic and Early Bronze Age, early Bronze Ages between the sixth and fifth millennium BC. ...
ian city of
Tell al-'Ubaid in southern
Iraq
Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...
. Excavated by the English archaeologist
Henry Hall in 1919, the frieze is one of the largest metal sculptures to survive from ancient
Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia is a historical region of West Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the Fertile Crescent. Today, Mesopotamia is known as present-day Iraq and forms the eastern geographic boundary of ...
and is now preserved in the
British Museum
The British Museum is a Museum, public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is the largest in the world. It documents the story of human cu ...
.
Discovery
The sculpture was discovered in 1919 at the base of a temple foundation made from mud and brick at the isolated Sumerian site of Tell al-'Ubaid, close to the ancient city of
Ur in southern Iraq.
Archaeologists
Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...
have determined from extant inscriptions and sculptures that the temple was dedicated to the goddess
Ninhursag
Ninḫursaĝ ( ''Ninḫarsang''; ), sometimes transcribed Ninursag, Ninḫarsag, or Ninḫursaĝa, also known as Damgalnuna or Ninmah, was the ancient Sumerian mother goddess of the mountains, and one of the seven great deities of Sumer. She ...
. Based on where it was originally found, it has been suggested that the copper panel was located above the temple door, in full view of the
congregation. Soon after its discovery, the sculpture was shipped to
London
London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
as part of the British Museum's share of the finds.
British Museum Collection
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Description
This impressive metal relief was found in a parlous state and had to be heavily restored by conservators afters its discovery. The central figure in the restored lintel shows the lion-headed eagle Imdugud who is the symbol of the god Ningirsu
Ninĝirsu was a Mesopotamia, Mesopotamian god regarded as the tutelary deity of the city of Girsu, Ĝirsu, and as the chief god of the local pantheon of the state of Lagash. He shares many aspects with the god Ninurta. Ninĝirsu was identified as ...
. Flanking either side of the god are two stags, one of whose heads has been restored. The relief was beaten out of a very large piece of copper
Copper is a chemical element; it has symbol Cu (from Latin ) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkish-orang ...
and almost seems to stand apart from the background. For an object of this size to survive is unusual as most metal artefacts were melted down for their bullion
Bullion is non-ferrous metal that has been refined to a high standard of elemental purity. The term is ordinarily applied to bulk metal used in the production of coins and especially to precious metals such as gold and silver. It comes from ...
value in antiquity.
See also
*Copper Bull
The Copper Bull is a copper sculpture found at the site of Tell al-'Ubaid near the ancient city of Ur, now in southern Iraq, by Leonard Woolley, Sir Leonard Woolley in 1923. The sculpture, which dates from about 2600 BC, is now in the British Muse ...
References
Bibliography
* H.R. Hall and C.L. Woolley, ''Ur Excavations'', vol. I: Al-Uba (London, Oxford University Press, 1927)
* T. C. Mitchell, ''Sumerian art: illustrated by objects from Ur and Al-'Ubaid'' (London, The British Museum Press, 1969)
*H.W.F. Saggs, Babylonians (London, The British Museum Press, 1995)
*D. Collon, Ancient Near Eastern art (London, The British Museum Press, 1995)
* M. Roaf, Cultural atlas of Mesopotamia (New York, 1990)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tell al-'Ubaid Copper Lintel
Middle Eastern sculptures in the British Museum
Sumerian art and architecture
Sculpture of the ancient Near East
Ancient art in metal
Archaeological discoveries in Iraq