Images

A commercial letter (clay tablet) enclosed by an envelope (a clay covering). The letter was supposed to be opened by the recipient. 2nd millennium BCE, Mesopotamia, Iraq. (The Sulaimaniya Museum, Iraq).

Wall relief of Apkallu with standard inscription of Ashurnasirpal II from Nimrud (ancient Kalhu), c. 880 BCE.

This pottery coffin contains a woman's skeleton inside it, and it was found in Faida district, near modern Dukok city, Iraq. 1st millennium BCE. (The Sulaimaniya Museum, Iraq).

This partially broken document mentions the name of King Nur-Adad, king of Larsa, 1921-1905 BCE. (The Sulaimaniya Museum, Iraq).

This door lintel was sculpted with the shape of different gods' heads. Each god represents one day of the week. 2nd to 3rd century CE. From Hatra, Modern Al-Jazeera Region, Ninawa Governorate, Iraq. (The Sulaimaniya Museum, Iraq).

This is a replica of one of the many paintings in the Chauvet Cave, located south of France, dated back to c. 30,000 years ago, during the late stage of the Palaeolithic (Old Stone Age).

This auroch was made of glazed terracotta bricks and once decorated part of the processional street at Babylon. From Babylon, Mesopotamia, Iraq. Reign of King Nebuchadnezzar II, 604-562 BCE. (Istanbul Archeological Museums/Ancient Orient...

These two marble vases were inscribed with the name of Naram-Sin, king of Sumer and Akkad. Reign of Naram-Sin, 2254-2218 BCE. From Mesopotamia, Iraq. (Istanbul Archeological Museums/Ancient Orient Museum, Istanbul, Turkey).

Lugal-Dalu was probably a local ruler of Adab. The inscriptions on the statue's right shoulder describe the depicted man as "king of Adab" and the statue as an offering to the temple of the god Esar (or E-Shar), the greatest god of the city...

A terracotta tablet with cuneiform inscriptions that narrates a love poem. This is the oldest love poem ever known. The poem was probably written by an unknown woman who was chosen as a bride for Shu-Sin, King of Ur, III dynasty. The poem...