The Assyrian lion weights are a group of bronze statues of lions, discovered in archaeological excavations in or adjacent to ancient
Assyria
Assyria ( Neo-Assyrian cuneiform: , romanized: ''māt Aššur''; syc, ܐܬܘܪ, ʾāthor) was a major ancient Mesopotamian civilization which existed as a city-state at times controlling regional territories in the indigenous lands of the A ...
.
The first published, and the most notable, are a group of sixteen bronze
Mesopotamian weights found at
Nimrud
Nimrud (; syr, ܢܢܡܪܕ ar, النمرود) is an ancient Assyrian city located in Iraq, south of the city of Mosul, and south of the village of Selamiyah ( ar, السلامية), in the Nineveh Plains in Upper Mesopotamia. It was a m ...
in the late 1840s and now in the
British Museum
The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docum ...
. They are considered to date from the 8th century BCE, with
bilingual inscription
In epigraphy, a multilingual inscription is an inscription that includes the same text in two or more languages. A bilingual is an inscription that includes the same text in two languages (or trilingual in the case of three languages, etc.). Mul ...
s in both
cuneiform
Cuneiform is a logo- syllabic script that was used to write several languages of the Ancient Middle East. The script was in active use from the early Bronze Age until the beginning of the Common Era. It is named for the characteristic wedge- ...
and
Phoenician characters; the latter inscriptions are known as
CIS II 1-14.
Nimrud weights
The Nimrud weights date from the 8th century BCE and have
bilingual inscription
In epigraphy, a multilingual inscription is an inscription that includes the same text in two or more languages. A bilingual is an inscription that includes the same text in two languages (or trilingual in the case of three languages, etc.). Mul ...
s in both
cuneiform
Cuneiform is a logo- syllabic script that was used to write several languages of the Ancient Middle East. The script was in active use from the early Bronze Age until the beginning of the Common Era. It is named for the characteristic wedge- ...
and
Phoenician characters. The Phoenician inscriptions are epigraphically from the same period as the
Mesha Stele
The Mesha Stele, also known as the Moabite Stone, is a stele dated around 840 BCE containing a significant Canaanite inscription in the name of King Mesha of Moab (a kingdom located in modern Jordan). Mesha tells how Chemosh, the god of Moab, ...
. They are one of the most important groups of artifacts evidencing the "Aramaic" form of the Phoenician script. At the time of their discovery, they were the oldest Phoenician-style inscription that had been discovered.
The weights were discovered by
Austen Henry Layard
Sir Austen Henry Layard (; 5 March 18175 July 1894) was an English Assyriologist, traveller, cuneiformist, art historian, draughtsman, collector, politician and diplomat. He was born to a mostly English family in Paris and largely raised in It ...
in his earliest excavations at
Nimrud
Nimrud (; syr, ܢܢܡܪܕ ar, النمرود) is an ancient Assyrian city located in Iraq, south of the city of Mosul, and south of the village of Selamiyah ( ar, السلامية), in the Nineveh Plains in Upper Mesopotamia. It was a m ...
(1845–51). A pair of
lamassu
''Lama'', ''Lamma'', or ''Lamassu'' (Cuneiform: , ; Sumerian: lammař; later in Akkadian: ''lamassu''; sometimes called a ''lamassus'') is an Assyrian protective deity.
Initially depicted as a goddess in Sumerian times, when it was called ''La ...
were found at a gateway, one of which had fallen against the other and had broken into several pieces. After lifting the statue, Layard's team discovered under it sixteen lion weights. The artefacts were first deciphered by
Edwin Norris
Edwin Norris (24 October 1795 – 10 December 1872) was a British philologist, linguist and intrepid orientalist who wrote or compiled numerous works on the languages of Asia and Africa. His best-known works are his uncompleted ''Assyrian Dic ...
, who confirmed that they had originally been used as weights.
The set form a regular series diminishing in size from 30 cm to 2 cm in length. The larger weights have handles cast on to the bodies, and the smaller have rings attached to them. The group of weights also included stone weights in the shape of ducks. The weights represent the earliest known uncontested example of the Aramaic
numeral system
A numeral system (or system of numeration) is a writing system for expressing numbers; that is, a mathematical notation for representing numbers of a given set, using digits or other symbols in a consistent manner.
The same sequence of symbo ...
. Eight of the lions are represented with the only known inscriptions from the short reign of
Shalmaneser V
Shalmaneser V ( Neo-Assyrian cuneiform: , meaning "Salmānu is foremost"; Biblical Hebrew: ) was the king of the Neo-Assyrian Empire from the death of his father Tiglath-Pileser III in 727 BC to his deposition and death in 722 BC. Though Shalman ...
. Other similar bronze lion weights were excavated at
Abydos Abydos may refer to:
*Abydos, a progressive metal side project of German singer Andy Kuntz
*Abydos (Hellespont), an ancient city in Mysia, Asia Minor
* Abydos (''Stargate''), name of a fictional planet in the ''Stargate'' science fiction universe ...
in western Turkey (also in the British Museum) and the Iranian site of
Susa
Susa ( ; Middle elx, 𒀸𒋗𒊺𒂗, translit=Šušen; Middle and Neo- elx, 𒋢𒋢𒌦, translit=Šušun; Neo- Elamite and Achaemenid elx, 𒀸𒋗𒐼𒀭, translit=Šušán; Achaemenid elx, 𒀸𒋗𒐼, translit=Šušá; fa, شوش ...
by the French archaeologist
Jacques de Morgan
Jean-Jacques de Morgan (3 June 1857, Huisseau-sur-Cosson, Loir-et-Cher – 14 June 1924) was a French mining engineer, geologist, and archaeologist. He was the director of antiquities in Egypt during the 19th century, and excavated in Memp ...
(now in the
Louvre
The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is the world's most-visited museum, and an historic landmark in Paris, France. It is the home of some of the best-known works of art, including the ''Mona Lisa'' and the '' Venus de Milo''. A central ...
in Paris).
There are two known systems of weights and measures from the ancient Middle East. One system was based on a weight called the
mina which could be broken down into sixty smaller weights called
shekel
Shekel or sheqel ( akk, 𒅆𒅗𒇻 ''šiqlu'' or ''siqlu,'' he, שקל, plural he, שקלים or shekels, Phoenician: ) is an ancient Mesopotamian coin, usually of silver. A shekel was first a unit of weight—very roughly —and became c ...
s. These lion weights, however, come from a different system which was based on the ''heavy mina'' which weighed about a kilogram. This system was still being used in the
Persian period and is thought to have been used for weighing metals.
The Lion weights were catalogued as
CIS II 1-14, making them the first Aramaic inscription in the monumental
Corpus Inscriptionum Semiticarum
The ("Corpus of Semitic Inscriptions", abbreviated CIS) is a collection of ancient inscriptions in Semitic languages produced since the end of 2nd millennium BC until the rise of Islam. It was published in Latin. In a note recovered after his de ...
Gallery
File:Assyrian Lion weight.png, 1864 sketch of a Lion weight
File:British Museum - Room 55 (21196668931).jpg, Close up
File:Assyrian Lion and Duck weight inscriptions, Lions 1-8.jpg, 1856 sketch of the inscriptions from Lions 1-8
File:Assyrian Lion and Duck weight inscriptions, Lions 9-15 and Ducks 1-5.jpg, 1856 sketch of the inscriptions from Lions 9-15 and Ducks 1-5
File:Assyrian lion weights in the Corpus Inscriptionum Semiticarum.jpg, The Lion weights in the CIS
Abydos weight
The second discovery of a lion weight was in
Abydos Abydos may refer to:
*Abydos, a progressive metal side project of German singer Andy Kuntz
*Abydos (Hellespont), an ancient city in Mysia, Asia Minor
* Abydos (''Stargate''), name of a fictional planet in the ''Stargate'' science fiction universe ...
(modern Turkey), dated to the 5th century BCE. It is currently in the British Museum, with ID number E32625.
It contains an Aramaic inscription known as KAI 263 or CIS II 108.
File:Corpus Inscriptionum Semiticarum CIS II 108 (from Abydos, Turkey) (cropped).jpg, Another large Assyrian lion weight with Aramaic
The Aramaic languages, short Aramaic ( syc, ܐܪܡܝܐ, Arāmāyā; oar, 𐤀𐤓𐤌𐤉𐤀; arc, 𐡀𐡓𐡌𐡉𐡀; tmr, אֲרָמִית), are a language family containing many varieties (languages and dialects) that originated i ...
inscription in the British Museum's collection, from Abydos Abydos may refer to:
*Abydos, a progressive metal side project of German singer Andy Kuntz
*Abydos (Hellespont), an ancient city in Mysia, Asia Minor
* Abydos (''Stargate''), name of a fictional planet in the ''Stargate'' science fiction universe ...
, Turkey, 5th century BC
File:Lion weight.jpg, Contemporary picture of BM lion weight from Abydos
File:British Museum - Room 51 (21079197871).jpg, Close up
File:Abydos lion weight.png, Calvert 1860 sketch
Susa weight
A bronze lion weight discovered in 1901 at the
Palace of Darius in Susa
The Palace of Darius in Susa was a palace complex that was built at the site of Susa, Iran, during the reign of Darius I over the Achaemenid Empire. The construction was conducted parallel to that of Persepolis. Manpower and raw materials from ...
, dated to the 5th century BCE, is now in the
Louvre
The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is the world's most-visited museum, and an historic landmark in Paris, France. It is the home of some of the best-known works of art, including the ''Mona Lisa'' and the '' Venus de Milo''. A central ...
with ID number Sb 2718.
[Georges Lampre, 1905]
La Représentation du lion à Suse
Mémoires de la Délégation scientifique en Perse, VIII It is not inscribed.
File:Lion-shaped weight-Sb 2718-P5280901-gradient.jpg, Bronze lion weight from the Palace of Darius in Susa
The Palace of Darius in Susa was a palace complex that was built at the site of Susa, Iran, during the reign of Darius I over the Achaemenid Empire. The construction was conducted parallel to that of Persepolis. Manpower and raw materials from ...
, Louvre, 5th century BC
File:Susa lion weight.jpg, 1905 photographs
Khorsabad weight
A similar discovery was made by
Paul-Émile Botta
Paul-Émile Botta (6 December 1802 – 29 March 1870) was an Italian-born French scientist who served as Consul in Mosul (then in the Ottoman Empire, now in Iraq) from 1842, and who discovered the ruins of the ancient Assyrian capital of Dur-Shar ...
in the 1840s at
Khorsabad. It is currently in the
Louvre
The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is the world's most-visited museum, and an historic landmark in Paris, France. It is the home of some of the best-known works of art, including the ''Mona Lisa'' and the '' Venus de Milo''. A central ...
, under ID number AO 20116.
Edmond Pottier Edmond François Paul Pottier (13 August 1855, Saarbrücken – 4 July 1934, Paris) was an art historian and archaeologist who was instrumental in establishing the Corpus vasorum antiquorum. He was a pioneering scholar in the study of Ancient Greek ...
Musée du Louvre: catalogue des Antiquités assyriennes
Paris, Musées nationaux, 1924, Disponible sur : , n° 143: "Le lion de Khorsabad doit, en effet, avoir eu, d'après les circonstances de la découverte, une autre destination que celle d'un poids. Botta imaginait, parce qu'il y avait un autre anneau de bronze scellé au-dessus du lion dans le mur (voir notre n° 178), qu'une chaîne réunissait les deux anneaux et qu'on avait ainsi l'impression de lions de bronze enchaînés devant les murailles, comme des gardiens." It measures 29cm high by 41cm long, and is not inscribed.
[
Despite the signifiant similarities to the other lions, Botta considered it was part of a door system, not a weight.][ Botta wrote in his ''Monument De Ninive'':]
Celte petite statue, comme je l'ai déjà dit, a été trouvée scellée sur une dalle qui pavait l'enfoncement formé par la saillie du taureau et du massif du côté droit de la porte F. Il y en a eu de semblables nonseulement de l'autre côté de cette porte, mais encore à tontes les grandes entrées du monument, car on retrouve les dales sur lesquelles elles étaient fixées; mais celle-ci est la seule qui n'ait pas disparu, et rien ne prouve mieux avec quelle avidité on a, lors de la destruction des édifices, enlevé tout ce qui avait quelque valeur. Ce lion est représenté couché, les pattes antérieures en avant, sur une base carrée audessous de laquelle est une forte tige conique qui pénétrait dans un trou du pavé. La statue est massive, et fondue d'une seule pièce avec la plinthe et l'anneau qui s'élève au milieu du dos. Elle a quarante-deux centimètres de long.
File:Roaring Lion Khorsabad Louvre AO 20116 14012018 2.jpg, At the Louvre
File:Roaring Lion Khorsabad Louvre AO 20116 14012018 3.jpg, At the Louvre
File:Khorsabad bronze lion.jpg, Botta 1850 sketch
See also
* Assyrian lion
* Canaanite and Aramaic inscriptions
The Canaanite and Aramaic inscriptions, also known as Northwest Semitic inscriptions, are the primary extra-Biblical source for understanding of the society and history of the ancient Phoenicians, Hebrews and Arameans. Semitic inscriptions may oc ...
Bibliography
* Edwin Norris
Edwin Norris (24 October 1795 – 10 December 1872) was a British philologist, linguist and intrepid orientalist who wrote or compiled numerous works on the languages of Asia and Africa. His best-known works are his uncompleted ''Assyrian Dic ...
(1856)
On the Assyrian and Babylonian Weights
Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland, Volume 16 (editio princeps In classical scholarship, the ''editio princeps'' (plural: ''editiones principes'') of a work is the first printed edition of the work, that previously had existed only in manuscripts, which could be circulated only after being copied by hand.
For ...
)
* Frederic Madden (1864)
History of Jewish coinage, and of money in the Old and New Testament
B. Quaritch
* Fales, Frederick Mario (1995)
Assyro-Aramaica : the Assyrian lion-weights
in Immigration and Emigration within the Ancient Near East, pages 33–55; editor: Festschrift E. Lipinski, Peeters
British Museum description
References
{{Louvre Museum
8th-century BC works
1845 archaeological discoveries
Lion weights
Cuneiform
Phoenician inscriptions
Middle Eastern sculptures in the British Museum
Nimrud
Weighing instruments
Lions in art
Archaeological artifacts