The Ancient Near Eastern art piece that I have chosen to write about is The Ishtar Gate. I chose this piece of architecture because when I look it at I get the feeling of a very powerful civilization. From the structures sheer size, to its bold colors, and to all of the materials and skills that were needed to create it.
The first thing that is striking about The Ishtar Gate is the pure size of it. With the gate it self standing at 40ft tall and its four crenellated, military defense, towers standing at 100ft tall. The structure is very blocky and sturdy looking, and to anyone standing near it, it would look very formidable. It's easily understandable why Babylonia would want to create such a powerful ceremonial enterence to give patronage towards their god Marduk, and toward their goddess Ishtar.
The second thing that really makes The Ishtar Gate stand out is the colors that were chosen to decorate it. The majority of the bricks are a very vibrant and bright blue color that gives it the impression of being made out of lapis lazuli, which was in it self very expensive stone. This strong color was then complemented by gold images and patterns, adding to the buildings richness. Which definitely shows the new power that has come to Babylonia in both the form of strength and wealth.
These colors were comprised of a thin glass glaze that was placed over the surface of the bricks before being fired in a kiln. However along with these glazed bricks there are specially molded turquoise, blue, and gold-colored bricks that were used to form images and symbols of the gods and of the goddess Ishtar.
The symbols that you can find patterning around the gate are: lions which represent the goddess Ishtar; dragons that are composed of a body and head of a snake, the forelegs of a lion, and the hind legs of a bird of prey symbolizing the god Marduk; and there were also bulls with blue horns that represented the storm god Adad.
These specially molded bricks have a form to them, and they pop off the blue brick background. When looking at closer images of them you can see intricate details that really make them stand out. With the Ishtar lions you can see muscle mass in the figure and its mouth is wide open and showing off its sharp teeth. This creates a very strong and powerful image of the goddess, and great detail is even given to her in the lions mane which is made up of a pattern of diamond shapes.
Marduk's dragons also have this very powerful form in their lion legs, and especially in their bird of prey legs. The claws on the bird feet are very sharp and dangerous looking compared to the rest of the form creating the dragon. All of the areas in the form that are similar to a snake are a lot softer and curvier by comparison. However these areas are also full of more diamond shaped details that give the impression of a snakes scales. These scales can also be seen in details of the bird like feet.
Adad's bull figures are given form through muscle, but not as much as Ishtar's lions, and most of the detail seems to go to their manes, tails, faces, and horns which give it a very decorative look compared to the lions and dragons.
Another interesting pattern that can be found at the bottom of the gate is a row of bricks that have a flower design on the. I'm not sure what kind of flowers they are or what purpose they hold, but they remind me of daisies. And they add a feminine touch to the gate, which could be another way to connect it to the goddess Ishtar since this gate is supposed to embody her and her power.
All of these elements put together create the image of a very power set of gods as well as a very powerful and wealthy civilization.
4 comments:
Wow, I did not realize that the Istar Gate was that tall! The description for Marduk's dragon gave me a great sense of what this creature looks like and the power it signifies, defiantly an unusual looking creature.
I as well am very impressed with the size of this structure; it is impressive to me that so many years ago man was able to create such a large and powerful structure. I also think it is cool that the people dedicated such precious materials to this work, it was obviously very important to make a grand presentation at the gate. In many cultures including this one I find it interesting that the people chose certain animals and figures to represent power and strength such as the lion, snake and even the flowers you mention all had important meanings.
The Ishtar Gate is really tall! It is, in fact, a double gate. Unfortunately, the gate is so tall that is has only been partially reconstructed in the Pergamon Museum in Berlin. The part that is shown in the museum is only the smaller, frontal part. The larger part (comprising the second part of the gate in the back) was considered to be too large to fit within the constraints of the museum space. The whole larger gate is in storage, which I think is so disappointing!
-Prof. Bowen
I agree with what you had to say about Ishtar's gate. I find it interesting as well that (at least from the Hittite empire) the goddess Ishtar was not only the goddess of beauty and fertility, but also of war. Her image was widely known as being with her twin aids, and her pet lion. So with that in mind this gate (to me) makes so much logical sense that they would take such time in all the details as well as the military benefiting size of it. I dont know much about the other historical god incorporated into this gate, but all in all i believe this gate to be a stunning tribute to a once worshiped goddess. :) I enjoyed reading your post!
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