Gallery of 25 Masks From the Ancient World (Image Gallery) p. 6

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by Mark Cartwright
published on 15 May 2020

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The Mask of Warka

by Osama Shukir Muhammed Amin
published on 21 March 2019

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The Mask of Warka — View Full-Size Image

The mask of Warka, the first almost complete and life-size depiction of the human face in history, with respect to its anatomical details. It is made of marble and is about 20 cm tall. The eyes may have been inlaid with shells and lapis lazuli. The head might have been part of a large cult statue or was attached to a wall. It may represent the Sumerian goddess Inanna (Akkadian Ishtar). It was excavated by a German archaeological team in 1939, in a temple dedicated to Inanna at the Sumerian city of Uruk (modern-day Warka), southern Iraq, It dates back to the Jemdet Nasr period, 3000-2900 BCE.

Iraq Museum, Baghdad.

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