Gardners Art through the Ages A Global History

INANNA A fragmentary white marble female head (FIG. 2-4)

from Uruk is also an extraordinary achievement at so early a date.

The head, one of the treasures of the Iraq Museum in Baghdad, dis-

appeared during the Iraq war of 2003 but was later recovered. (FIG.

2-4,which shows the head during its presentation at a press confer-

ence after its recovery, gives an excellent idea of its size. Other miss-

ing items from the museum that were later recovered, in some cases

damaged, include FIGS. 2-5and 2-12.) The lustrous hard stone used

to carve the head had to be brought to Uruk at great cost, and the

Sumerians used the stone sparingly. The “head” is actually only a

face with a flat back. It has drilled holes for attachment to the rest of

the head and the body, which may have been wood. Although found

in the sacred precinct of the goddess Inanna, the subject is un-

known. Many scholars have suggested that the face is an image of

Inanna, but a mortal woman, perhaps a priestess, may be portrayed.

Often the present condition of an artwork can be very mislead-

ing, and the Uruk head is a dramatic example. Its original appear-

ance would have been much more vibrant than the pure white frag-

ment preserved today. Colored shell or stone filled the deep recesses

for the eyebrows and the large eyes. The deep groove at the top of the

head anchored a wig, probably made of gold leaf. The hair strands

engraved in the metal fell in waves over the forehead and sides of the

face. The bright coloration of the eyes, brows, and hair likely over-

shadowed the soft modeling of the cheeks and mouth. The missing

body was probably clothed in expensive fabrics and bedecked with

jewels.

WARKA VASEThe Sumerians, pioneers in so many areas, also

may have been the first to use pictures to tell coherent stories.

Sumerian narrative art goes far beyond the Stone Age artists’ tenta-

tive efforts at storytelling. The so-called Warka Vase (FIG. 2-5) from

Uruk (modern Warka) is the first great work of narrative relief

34 Chapter 2 THE ANCIENT NEAR EAST

2-4Female head (Inanna?), from Uruk (modern Warka), Iraq,

ca. 3200–3000 bce.Marble, 8high. Iraq Museum, Baghdad.

The Sumerians imported the marble for this head at great cost. It may

represent the goddess Inanna and originally had inlaid colored shell

or stone eyes and brows, and a wig, probably of gold leaf.

2-5Presentation of offerings to Inanna (Warka Vase), from Uruk

(modern Warka), Iraq, ca. 3200–3000 bce.Alabaster, 3^1 – 4 high.

Iraq Museum, Baghdad.

In this oldest known example of Sumerian narrative art, the sculptor

divided the tall stone vase’s reliefs into registers, a significant break

with the haphazard figure placement found in earlier art.

1 in.

1 ft.