In the lowest band on the peace side (FIG. 2-9), men carry provi-
sions, possibly war booty, on their backs. Above, attendants bring
animals, perhaps also spoils of war, and fish for the great banquet
depicted in the uppermost register. There, seated dignitaries and a
larger-than-life “king” (third from the left) feast, while a lyre player
and singer entertain the group. Art historians have interpreted the
scene both as a victory celebration and as a banquet in connection
with cult ritual. The two are not necessarily incompatible. The ab-
sence of an inscription prevents connecting the scenes with a specific
event or person, but the Standard of Ur undoubtedly is another early
example of historical narrative.
BULL-HEADED LYREFrom the “King’s Grave” at Ur comes a
fragmentary lyre (FIG. 2-10) that, when intact, probably resembled
the instrument depicted in the feast scene (FIG. 2-9,top right) on the
Standard of Ur.A magnificent bull’s head (FIG. 2-10,left) caps the in-
strument’s sound box. It is fashioned of gold leaf over a wooden
core. The hair, beard, and details are lapis lazuli. The sound box (FIG.
2-10,right) also features bearded—but here human-headed—bulls
in the uppermost of its four inlaid panels. Imaginary composite
creatures are commonplace in the art of the ancient Near East and
Egypt. On the Ur lyre, a heroic figure embraces the two man-bulls in
a heraldic composition (symmetrical on either side of a central fig-
ure). His body and that of the scorpion-man in the lowest panel are
in composite view. The animals are, equally characteristically, solely
in profile: the dog wearing a dagger and carrying a laden table, the
lion bringing in the beverage service, the ass playing the lyre, the
jackal playing the zither, the bear steadying the lyre (or perhaps
dancing), and the gazelle bearing goblets. The banquet animals al-
most seem to be burlesquing the kind of regal feast reproduced on
the peace side of the Standard of Ur.The meaning of the sound-box
scenes is unclear. Some scholars have suggested, for example, that
the creatures inhabit the land of the dead and that the narrative has
a funerary significance. In any event, the sound box is a very early
specimen of the recurring theme in both literature and art of
animals acting as people. Later examples include Aesop’s fables in
ancient Greece, medieval bestiaries,and Walt Disney’s cartoon ani-
mal actors.CYLINDER SEALSA banquet is also the subject of a cylinder
seal (FIG. 2-11) found in the tomb of “Queen” Pu-abi and inscribed
with her name. (Many historians prefer to designate her more con-
servatively and ambiguously as “Lady” Pu-abi.) The seal is typical
of the period, consisting of a cylindrical piece of stone engraved to
produce a raised impression when rolled over clay (see “Mesopo-
tamian Seals,” page 39). In the upper zone, a woman, probably Pu-
abi, and a man sit and drink from beakers, attended by servants. Be-
low, male attendants serve two more seated men. Even in miniature
and in a medium very different from that of the Standard of Ur,the
Sumerian artist employed the same figure types and followed the
same compositional rules. All the figures are in composite views
with large frontal eyes in profile heads, and the seated dignitaries are
once again larger in scale to underscore their elevated position in the
social hierarchy.38 Chapter 2 THE ANCIENT NEAR EAST2-10Bull-headed
lyre from tomb 789
(“King’s Grave”), Royal
Cemetery, Ur (modern
Tell Muqayyar), Iraq,
ca. 2600 bce.Lyre (left):
Gold leaf and lapis lazuli
over a wooden core,
5 5 high. Sound box
(right): Wood with inlaid
gold, lapis lazuli, and
shell, 1 7 high. Univer-
sity of Pennsylvania
Museum of Archaeology
and Anthropology,
Philadelphia.
This lyre from a royal
grave at Ur is adorned
with a bearded bull’s
head of gold leaf and
lapis lazuli, and inlaid
figures of a Gilgamesh-
like hero and animals
acting out scenes of
uncertain significance.
1 ft.1 ft.