TITLE/LOCATION/DATE:

Audience Hall of Darius and
Xerxes
Persepolis, Iran 520-465 BCE
Persian

MATERIALS:
Limestone

FORM:
The 72 vast columns—only 14 of which remain standing today—created a hallway structure that was only open
to the air on three sides. The building was 65.6 feet, or 6 stories, high
Before both Alexander the Great and time ruined the audience hall, the columns were topped with statues of bull and bear heads.
Between the two heads was a place for the ceiling beams—which were made of precious woods including cedar, ebony, and teak to
rest.

CONTENT:
Two giant staircases, located on the north and east sides, gave people access to the hall. These staircases were heavily decorated with
reliefs that depict the ambassadors of the many nations that were under the rule of Darius. The figures were all carved with a great
attention to detail, so archaeologists and art historians have been able to learn a lot about the various cultures that made up the Persian
empire by studying these reliefs. The stairs featured carvings of the Kings Guard.

FUNCTION:
Xerxes I, one of the most famous architects in the ancient world, designed the structure. These halls were most
likely used for banquets and receptions, and it was here that the king would have received tribute.

CONTEXT:
The ancient Persians tolerated the diversity of cultures and languages of the people they conquered. It turns out that not forcing people
to give up their cultures and ways of life made them happier and less likely to rebel. The apadana exemplifies the peaceful, cultural
exchange that occurred between the ancient Mediterranean and the Near East. Just as Greek and Roman architecture is characterized
by public structures, the audience hall of Darius and Xerxes parallels the import and focus given to monumental structures by the
Persians. Besides serving as a receiving place, the audience hall is also thought to have been the site of major festival, the details of
which have been lost to history.

INTERPRETATION:
The walls leading to the apadana feature reliefs depicting hundreds of people of 23 different backgrounds bringing gifts to the
treasury. Furthermore, the apadana pays tribute to elements of Greek architecture, as the massive columns and semi-open structures
parallel the ancient Athenian Parthenon.

INNOVATION/CONVENTION:
The columns and semi-open structures parallel the ancient Athenian Parthenon. While the Persians were open to more than just Greek
influence (as exemplified by the multicultural reliefs on the apadana walls), the fact that Xerxes used Greek influence so readily
signaled the prevalent diversity of ancient Persia. The columns had a bell shaped base that is an inverted lotus blossom.

DETAILS/TERMS/DEFINITIONS:

The audience hall is an example of a hypostyle hall, but the Ancient Persians called it an apadana. The word apadana is derived from
the Persian word for “unprotected” and refers to the open nature of the building.

TITLE/DATE/LOCATION:
Lamassu Dur Sharrukin (Modern Kuorsabad, Iraq)
Neo-Assyrian
720-705 BCE

MATERIAL:
Alabaster

FORM:
The artist carved the Lamassu sculptures from megaliths, or single pieces of massive stone. The Lamassu sculptures stand
approximately 13 feet tall. They feature the body of a bull with the face of a bearded man, most likely the king, with incredibly
detailed facial features. The eyes gaze in an intense stare; the beard covers the face in ringlets. The ears are those of a bull while the
wings feature a decorative pattern along the entire span. They have five legs.

FUNCTION:
On the bottom of the sculpture, cuneiform text declares the king the ultimate ruler and protector of the palace. In fact, the Lamassu
sculptures guarded the gates of the king’s palace, so they were like the protectors of the protector of the palace. During the Neo-Assyrian Empire (c.883-612), large monumental bulls, often with wings and always with human heads, were placed as gateway
guardians at the entrances of royal palaces like Khorsabad and Nineveh. The general idea behind them was that they warded off evil.
(In jargon: they were apotropaic figures.)

CONTEXT:
Due to the threat of violence, ancient Assyrians lined their palaces with these “protective” sculptures. The cuneiform on the Lamassu
sculptures speaks to the king’s authority and power—they have a bull’s body because the animal symbolized fierceness and strength
to the ancient Assyrians. For the kings of ancient Mesopotamia, nothing was more important than demonstrating their strength and
power.

INTERPRETATION:
In the Near East, impending and monumental feats of architecture signified heavily fortified and opulent palaces. The Lamassu—being
colossal, winged beasts—acted as guardians of the citadel. In one modern interpretation, they combine the strength of a bull, the
freedom of an eagle, and the intelligence of a human being.
Sargon II built a capitol at Khorsabad surrounded by a city wall with seven gates.

ARTISTIC DECISIONS:
The protective spirits placed at either side of each gate as guardians; also bore the weight of the arches above the gates. The sculptor
gave these guardian figures five legs so that they appear to be standing firmly when viewed from the front but striding forward when
seen from the side. Lamassu protected and supported important doorways in Assyrian palaces.

DETAILS/TERMS/DEFINITIONS:
Recent attacks by ISIS militants has been recorded in videos and articles on line. Several lamassu that were on display in Mosul and
other sites inside Iraq have been destroyed. This one has been protected in the Louvre.

ARTIST: PERIOD/STYLE: PATRON:
MATERIAL/TECHNIQUE:
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ARTIST: PERIOD/STYLE: PATRON:

The Code of Hammurabi Babylon (modern Iraq)
Susian/Babylonian Art
1792-1750 BCE

MATERIAL:
Basalt

FORM:

At the top of the stele, a small relief depicts Hammurabi receiving the Code from the Sun god, Shamash. Hammurabi and Shamash are equal in size, suggesting their equal importance. Carved in composite view. Shamash sits on a throne, and hands a sceptor and ring to Hammurabi.

CONTENT:
The Code of Hammurabi, carved below the figures, consists of 282 laws and represents one of the most significant finds in the ancient
Mediterranean because it contains evidence of an organized written language. Ancient Babylonians wrote the Code in Akkadian
using cuneiform script. The sun god Shamash appears resting on a Ziggurat and handing Hannurabi a rope, ring and rod of kingship.
Shamash wears a crown of 4 rows of horns.

CONTEXT:
Hammurabi of the city state of Babylon conquered much of northern and western Mesopotamia and by 1776 B.C.E., he is the most far-reaching leader of Mesopotamian history, describing himself as “the king who made the four quarters of the earth obedient.”
Hammurabi understood that uniting the entire region of Mesopotamia would take a consolidation of the various laws governing all
the city-states—a project that turned into the Code of Hammurabi. Though Hammurabi carefully drafted his legal code himself, he
portrayed it as divinely inspired and told everyone he’d been chosen by the gods to set forth these new laws.

INTERPRETATION:
Hammurabi is usually regarded as a ruthless ruler, but he passionately advocated his version of justice, which set laws for each stratum
of society (nobility, commoners, and slaves). His laws issued punishments equal to the crime committed and allowed justice—at least,
Hammurabi’s idea of justice—to prevail in his kingdom. What is interesting about the representation of Hammurabi on the legal
code stele is that he is seen as receiving the laws from the god Shamash, who is seated, complete with thunderbolts coming from his
shoulders. The emphasis here is Hammurabi’s role as pious theocrat, and that the laws themselves come from the god.

INNOVATION/CONVENTION:
Artistic traditions of the ancient Near East subsequently influenced classical Greek and Roman writings and justice systems. The Code
of Hammurabi is one such example.