In a bas relief, Ashurbanipal is depicted as a great slayer of lions. The 2,700-year-old sculpt shows him fending off the kings of the jungle with bow and arrow, in a chariot, and on horseback. One panel, showing the lions' planned release, says otherwise.
(BBC) -- If you want big answers, start small. Take, for example, the sprawling sculpted slabs of ancient alabaster known as the Lion Hunt of Ashurbanipal. At first glance, the 7th-Century BC gypsum panels, which once adorned the walls of a royal palace in Nineveh, Upper Mesopotamia, are a confusing chaos of arrows splitting muscle.
Nestled in the fertile region around the River Tigris and Euphrates, the historical region of ancient Mesopotamia has long been regarded as one of the earliest cradles of civilization. Home to ancient cultures of Assyria, Babylon, and Sumer, it was also the home of diverse gods and goddesses.
Thanks to plenty of snow and a sculptor's hand, a Skokie neighborhood is home to a temporary art installation. On display in the 8900 block of Bronx Avenue last week was a snow sculpture of a mythical winged bull with a human head, an Assyrian symbol, said Odicho Kifarkis. The Skokie resident created the snow sculpture and plans to continue creating more works of art throughout the season.
Some months after our wedding, my wife and I were driving in the car listening to Assyrian music. A particularly jaunty tune engaged my attention and I asked: "What is all that about? Is this a song of joy or, as is often the case with the music where I am from, are there deep, profound meanings here that have absolutely nothing to do with the music?" "This is about a bridge in Assyria," my wife...
On the outskirts of Sydney lives an extraordinary artist whose work is bringing others closer to Christ. Syriac Catholic Ghusoon Durdur and her family were forced to leave their home in Bakhdida, northern Iraq when they were threatened by ISIS.