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HOME :
Near Eastern Art :
Assyrian Art : Assyrian Stone Seal
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Assyrian Stone Seal - OS.062
Origin: Mesopotamia
Circa: 900
BC
to 600
BC
Dimensions:
1" (2.5cm) wide
Collection: Near Eastern
Medium: Stone
Additional Information: F
£9,000.00
Location: Great Britain
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| Description |
Although archaeological excavations reveal
that
the land of the Assyrians had been inhabited
as
early as 5000 B.C., it was not until the reign of
King Sargon of Akkad in 2371 B.C. that the
Assyrians first rose to glory. Under Sargon, the
kingdom rapidly expanded north to the city of
Ashur and as far west as the Mediterranean,
controlled by a central government based in
Akkad. By 1813 B.C., King Shamshi-Adad I
united the cities of Ashur, Nineveh, and Arbel
into one cohesive administrative unit. These
three
cities, as well as Arrapkha and Kalhu (later
known
as Nimrud), form the historical core of the
Assyrian Kingdom which would remain a
credible
force throughout the Mediterranean world for
the
next millennium. While various parts of
Assyrian
territory were annexed for brief periods of time
by neighboring civilizations, this core remained
firmly intact. The Assyrians experienced
another
Golden Age, lasting from the 9th until the 7th
Century B.C. (this period is referred to as
“Neo-
Assyrian”). During this period, the kingdom
grew
to its largest extent, encompassing the lands
from parts of modern Iran to the
Mediterranean,
from Anatolia to Egypt. However, it proved
difficult even for the powerful Assyrian
monarchs
to maintain control over this vast territory for
very long. By the end of the 7th Century, the
Assyrian Kingdom began to collapse under the
weight of assaults from the Babylonians to the
south and the newly founded Medes Kingdom
to
the east. In 612 B.C., Nimrud burned for the
second time in three years, followed by the
sacking of Ashur and Nineveh, effectively
ending
Assyrian control of the ancient Near East.
- (OS.062)
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