Inlaid frieze

Site: Mari (Tell Hariri), Temple of Shamash Date: Late Early Dynastic period, ca. 2600-2350 B.C. Material: Mother-of-pearl, ivory,..

Description

In the center of the incomplete and heavily restored scene two priests offer a powerful ram in sacrifice, grasping its legs in a very realistic way. In this recon- structed composition the priest is joined by three worshipers dressed in traditional robes with fringed or tasseled edges. Many fragments of such inlays, made of mother-of-pearl, slate, ivory, and colored limestone,

were found in the temples at Mari. Similar inlaid com- positions have been found in a number of Mesopotamian cities, the most famous being from the Royal Cemetery at Ur. That fine example, referred to as the Standard of Ur (in the British Museum), depicts scenes of war and peace on what is possibly the sounding box of a musical instrument.

Even if it were possible to reconstruct the frame to fit the pieces of mosaic, it is no longer possible to establish the original sequence of the Mari inlays. Ac- cording to recent explanations, at least some of the pieces may have belonged to inlaid wall decorations. Similar inlaid figures have meanwhile been found at Ebla (Tell Mardikh).

  • Site: Mari (Tell Hariri), Temple of Shamash

  • Date: Late Early Dynastic period, ca. 2600-2350 B.C.

  • Material: Mother-of-pearl, ivory, red limestone,

  • Height and length of reconstructed frieze: 17.1 x 25.7 cm

  • Archaeological Mission:

  • Museum No.: Damascus S 1922 – National Museum Of Damascus (2011)

  • VMS Code: Dam 0308/49 LOB

Excavation Site Location

References

  • Parrot, André. Mari. Collection des Ides photographiques 7. Neuchâtel and Paris: Éditions Ides et Calendes, 1953, p. 48, fig. 19.
  • Tokyo National Museum. The Exhibition of Treasures of Syrian Antiquity. Tokyo: Tokyo Shimbun, 1977, no. 49.
  • Kohlmeyer, Kay, and Eva Strommenger, eds. Land des Baal: Syrien, Forum der Völker und Kulturen. Mainz am Rhein: Philipp von Zabern, 1982.

Relevant Publications

  • De Graeve, M.-C. “De ‘standaart’ van Mari.” Dissertation, Catholic University of Louvain, 1972 — unresolved bibliographic record.a

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