Images

The Wanfo Cave, part of the Longmen Grottoes, containing 15,000 Buddha figures. 680 CE. Henan Province, China.

The hindquarters of a terracotta statue of a sitting dog. The inscription mentions that it was dedicated to the goddess of healing, Gula, by an official, Ninurta-Resushu, for his king Nazi-Maruttash. The goddess...

The lion engraved on this duck-shaped weight shows that this is an official palace weight and therefore a royal property. Neo-Assyrian Period, 800-700 BCE. From the North-West Palace at Nimrud, Northern Mesopotamia...

This terracotta plaque was used to protect households from enemies. 800-500 BCE. From Southern Mesopotamia, modern-day Iraq. (British Museum, London)

This glass vessel was carved out of a solid block and the center was drilled out thereafter. Neo-Assyrian Period, reign of Sargon II, 721-705 BCE. From the North-West Palace at Nimrud, Northern Mesopotamia, modern-day Iraq...

Detail of a much larger gypsum wall relief showing the climax of a royal lion hunt. The lion is shown in his final death throes, blood pouring from his mouth. From the North Palace of Ashurbanipal II at Nineveh, Mesopotamia...

Colossal sandstone statue of Amenhotep IV, known as Akhenaten from the 5th year of his reign. Karnak, Amarna Period, 18th Dynasty.

Painted limestone relief, possibly depicting Akhenaten and Nefertiti, from Amarna, 18th Dynasty, c. 1335 BCE. Neues Museum, Berlin.

This votive stone mace head was polished and incised with four lines of cuneiform inscriptions. It was a dedication to the god Igalim by Gudea, ruler of Lagash. Lagash II period, c. 2150 BCE. From Lagash, Southern Mesopotamia...

This clay tablet preserves a copy of a royal inscription of king Hammurabi of Babylon (reigned 1792-1750 BCE; Old Babylonian Period), which had been found in an ancient temple. The writer has attempted to...