Lamassu

''Lama'', ''Lamma'', or ''Lamassu'' (Cuneiform: , ; Sumerian: lammař; later in Akkadian: ''lamassu''; sometimes called a ''lamassuse'') is an Assyrian protective deity.

Initially depicted as a goddess in Sumerian times, when it was called ''Lamma'', it was later depicted from Assyrian times as a hybrid of a human, bird, and either a bull or lion—specifically having a human head, the body of a bull or a lion, and bird wings, under the name ''Lamassu''. In some writings, it is portrayed to represent a goddess. A less frequently used name is ''shedu'' (Cuneiform: , ; Sumerian: alad; Akkadian, ''šēdu''), which refers to the male counterpart of a ''lamassu''. ''Lamassu'' represent the zodiacs, parent-stars or constellations.

Goddess Lama

The goddess Lama appears initially as a mediating goddess who precedes the orans and presents them to the deities. The protective deity is clearly labelled as Lam(m)a in a Kassite stele unearthed at Uruk, in the temple of Ishtar, goddess to which she had been dedicated by king Nazi-Maruttash (1307–1282 BC). It is a goddess wearing a ruffled dress and wearing a horned tiara symbolizing the deity, with two hands raised, in sign of prayer. Agnès Spycket proposed that similar female figures appearing in particular in glyptics and statuary from the Akkadian period, and in particular in the presentation scenes (common especially in the Paleo-Babylonian era) were to be considered as Lam(m)a. This opinion is commonly followed and in artistic terminology these female figures are generally referred to as Lam(m)a. From Assyrian times, Lamma becomes a hybrid deity, half-animal, half-human.

File:Statuette en cuivre déesse Lama - Isin-Larsa.jpg, Statuette of the goddess Lama, probably made in a workshop on the outskirts of Mesopotamia. Isin-Larsa period (2000-1800 BC). Royal Museums of Art and History - Brussels
File:Cylinder seal MET DP-12499-010.jpg, Cylinder seal showing the representation of a devotee (center) by goddess Lamma (left), to Ishtar (right). Babylonian, –17th century BC, Metropolitan Museum of Art
File:Stele of the protective goddess Lama MET DP-1556-001.jpg, Stele with inscription showing the protective deity Lam(m)a, dedicated by king Nazi-Maruttash to goddess Ishtar, from Uruk (1307-1282 BC). Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Iconography

From Assyrian times, ''lamassu'' were depicted as hybrids, with bodies of either winged bulls or lions and heads of human males. The motif of a winged animal with a human head is common to the Near East, first recorded in Ebla around 3000 BC. The first distinct ''lamassu'' motif appeared in Assyria during the reign of Tiglath-Pileser II as a symbol of power.

Assyrian sculpture typically placed prominent pairs of ''lamassu'' at entrances in palaces, facing the street and also internal courtyards. They were represented as "double-aspect" figures on corners, in high relief. From the front they appear to stand, and from the side, walk, and in earlier versions have five legs, as is apparent when viewed obliquely. Lumasi do not generally appear as large figures in the low-relief schemes running round palace rooms, where winged genie figures are common, but they sometimes appear within narrative reliefs, apparently protecting the Assyrians.

The colossal entrance figures were often followed by a hero grasping a wriggling lion, also colossal in scale and in high relief. In the palace of Sargon II at Dur-Sharrukin, a group of at least seven ''lamassu'' and two such heroes with lions surrounded the entrance to the "throne room", "a concentration of figures which produced an overwhelming impression of power." They also appear on cylinder seals. Notable examples include those at the Gate of All Nations at Persepolis in Iran, the British Museum in London, the Louvre in Paris, the National Museum of Iraq in Baghdad, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, and the University of Chicago Oriental Institute. Several examples left ''in situ'' in northern Iraq were destroyed in the 2010s by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant when they occupied the area, as were those in the Mosul Museum.

Terminology

''Lamassu'' represent the zodiacs, parent-stars, or constellations. They are depicted as protective deities because they encompass all life within them. In the Sumerian ''Epic of Gilgamesh'', they are depicted as physical deities as well, which is where the lamassu iconography originates, physical representations or embodiments of divine higher principles associated with specific celestial origins. Although ''lamassu'' had a different iconography and portrayal in the culture of Sumer, the terms "''lamassu''", "''alad''", and "''shedu''" evolved throughout the Assyro-Akkadian culture from the Sumerian culture to denote the Assyrian-winged-man-bull symbol and statues during the Neo-Assyrian Empire. Eventually, female ''lamassu'' were identified as "''apsasû''".

The motif of the Assyrian-winged-man-bull called ''Aladlammu'' and ''Lamassu'' interchangeably is not the ''lamassu'' or alad of Sumerian origin, which were depicted with different iconography. These monumental statues were called aladlammû or ''lamassu'' which meant "protective spirit". In Hittite, the Sumerian form is used both as a name for the so-called "tutelary deity", identified in certain later texts with the goddess Inara, and a title given to similar protective deities.

Mythology

The ''lamassu'' is a celestial being from ancient Mesopotamian religion bearing a human head, symbolising intelligence; a bull's body, symbolizing strength; and an eagle's wings, symbolizing freedom. Sometimes it had the horns and the ears of a bull. It appears frequently in Mesopotamian art. The ''lamassu'' and shedu were household protective spirits of the common Assyrian people, becoming associated later as royal protectors, and were placed as sentinels at entrances. The Akkadians associated the god Papsukkal with a ''lamassu'' and the god Išum with ''shedu''.

To protect houses, the ''lamassu'' were engraved in clay tablets, which were then buried under the door's threshold. They were often placed as a pair at the entrance of palaces. At the entrance of cities, they were sculpted in colossal size, and placed as a pair, one at each side of the door of the city, that generally had doors in the surrounding wall, each one looking toward one of the cardinal points.

In modern culture

The British 10th Army, which operated in Iraq and Iran in 1942–1943, adopted the ''lamassu'' as its insignia. A bearded man with a winged bull body appears on the logo of the United States Forces – Iraq.

A man with a bull's body is found among the creatures that make up Aslan's army in '' The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe'' by C. S. Lewis. He appears at the Stone Table, challenging the White Witch "with a great bellowing voice". In the film ''Alexander'' (2004), ''lamassu'' are seen at the Ishtar Gate in Babylon. In the Disney film '' Aladdin'' (1992), a gold ''lamassu'' can be found in the scene where Aladdin and Abu enter the cave in the desert to find the lamp.

Michael Rakowitz, a Northwestern University professor of Art Theory & Practice, won a Fourth Plinth commission to recreate the ''Lamassu'' that stood in Nineveh, Iraq, from 700 BC until it was destroyed by ISIS in 2015. Rakowitz's sculpture was displayed in London's Trafalgar Square from 2018 to 2020.

The lamassu is also often used as a representation of Assyrian culture by the modern Assyrian people, and use it to pay homage to their ancient ancestry.

Games

Lammasu 'sic''and shedu are two distinct types of good- aligned creatures in the role-playing game ''Dungeons & Dragons'', with lammasu having the bodies of winged lions and shedu depicted as human-headed winged bulls.

Lammasu appear in the '' Magic: The Gathering'' trading card game as the white card Hunted Lammasu in the '' Ravnica'' expansion, as well as the white card Venerable Lammasu found in the Khans of Tarkir expansion.

In the Games Workshop miniatures wargame, ''Warhammer Fantasy Battle'', the Lamasu was a mount for the Chaos Dwarf army. It has since returned as part of the ''Storm of Magic'' expansion release.

In the video game ''Heroes of Might and Magic VI'', the lamasu 'sic''is a recruitable elite creature of the necropolis faction (undead).

A Lamassu appears in '' Prince of Persia 3D'' at the end of the Floating Ruins level, where the prince rides on it to the Cliffs. It is also appears in the ending of the game, where the Prince and Princess ride it to an unknown destination.

Gallery

File:A pair of lamassus from the Throne Room, Room B, of the North-West Palace at Nimrud, Iraq, 9th century BC. The British Museum.jpg, The British Museum – human-headed winged lions and reliefs from Nimrud with the Gates of Balawat
File:Winged Human-headed Bulls.JPG, The British Museum – human-headed winged bulls from Dur-Sharrukin
File:BM; RM8 - ANE, Nimrud Palace Reliefs 75 South + East Wall (S) ~ Central Palace of Tiglath-pileser III (744-727 B.C) + Full Elevation & Viewing South.1.JPG, The British Museum – human-headed winged lion and bull from Nimrud, companion pieces in Metropolitan Museum of Art
File:Human-headed Winged Bulls Gate Khorsabad - Louvre 01a.jpg, Louvre – human-headed winged bulls from Dur-Sharrukin
File:Louvre room 229-Khorsabad-19676 AO0004.002.jpg, Louvre – human-headed winged bulls, sculpture and Reliefs from Dur-Sharrukin.
File:Louvre room 229-Khorsabad-27841 AO004.001.jpg, Louvre – human-headed winged bulls and reliefs from Dur-Sharrukin, in their wider setting of reliefs
File:Human-headed Winged Bulls Gate Khorsabad - Louvre 02aa.jpg, Louvre – human-headed winged bulls and reliefs from Dur-Sharrukin
File:Human-headed winged lion (lamassu) MET DP252320.jpeg, The Metropolitan Museum of Art – human-headed winged lion and bull from Nimrud, companion pieces to those in the British Museum
File:Lammasu2.jpg, Detail, University of Chicago Oriental Institute. Possibly gypsum, Dur-Sharrukin, entrance to the throne room,
File:Reverse of the Lamassu.jpg, Cuneiform script on the back of a lamassu in the University of Chicago Oriental Institute
File:Cylinder Seal, Achaemenid, modern impression 05.jpg, Modern impression of Achaemenid cylinder seal, fifth century BC. A winged solar disc legitimises the Achaemenid emperor, who subdues two rampant Mesopotamian lamassu figures
File:Seal of United States Forces - Iraq.svg, Seal of United States Forces – Iraq
File:British 10th Army Plaque.JPG, Insignia of the British 10th Army
File:SAVAK.svg, Insignia of the SAVAK of Iran
File:Parsi Fire Temple Entrance FORT MUMBAI.jpg, The entrance of a fire temple in Fort Mumbai displaying a lamassu
File:Head of lamassu. Marble, 8th century BCE, from Assur, Iraq. Ancient Orient Museum, Istanbul.jpg, Head of lamassu. Marble, eighth century BC, from Assur, Iraq. Museum of the Ancient Orient, Istanbul.
File:Head of a lamassu from the palace of Esarhaddon, from Nimrud, Iraq, 7th century BC. The British Museum.jpg, Head of a lamassu from the palace of Esarhaddon, from Nimrud, Iraq, seventh century BC, the British Museum
File:Lamassu from the Throne Room (Room B) of the North-West Palace at Nimrud, Iraq, 9th century BC. The British Museum, London.jpg, Lamassu from the Throne Room (Room B) of the North-West Palace at Nimrud, Iraq, ninth century BC, the British Museum, London
File:Ասորիների ցեղասպանության հուշահամալիր, Երևան.jpg, Lamassu on an Assyrian Genocide memorial in Yerevan

See also

* Mythological hybrid
* List of hybrid creatures in mythology
* Anzû (older reading: Zû), Mesopotamian monster
* Apis, Ancient Egyptian religion deity anthropomorphic bull
* Buraq, Islamic mythological human torso-equine body hybrid
* Centaur, Greek mythological human torso-equine body hybrid
* Cherubim, Abrahamic religious celestial human-winged hybrid
* Chimera, Greek mythological hybrid monster
* Enlil, ancient Mesopotamian deity: patriarch deity of supreme universal strength
* Griffin or griffon, lion-bird hybrid
* Harpy, Greek mythological hybrid human torso-bird body hybrid
* Jinn, pre-Islamic Arabian celestial beings, human-winged hybrid
* Kamadhenu, Hindu bovine goddess
* Lakhmu, Akkadian deity also known as Lammasu
* Lamashtu, ancient Mesopotamian female demons
* Manticore, Persian sphinx-like creature
* Mermaid, Europen, Asian and African folklore, female human torso-fish tail hybrid
* Minotaur, Greek mythology: bull-man hybrid
* Pamola, the Abenaki-origin indigenous American "winged-moose" spirit protecting Mount Katahdin
* Pegasus, winged stallion in Greek mythology
* Sharabha, Hindu mythology: lion-bird hybrid
* Simurgh, Iranian mythical flying creature
* Sphinx, mythical creature with lion's body and human head
* Thunderbird, mythological bird-like spirit in North American indigenous peoples' mythology
* Yali, Hindu mythological lion-elephant-horse hybrid
* Ziz, giant griffin-like bird in Jewish mythology

Citations

General references

* Frankfort, Henri, ''The Art and Architecture of the Ancient Orient'', Pelican History of Art, 4th ed 1970, Penguin (now Yale History of Art),

External links

Webpage about the Šêdu in the Louvre Museum

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Assyrian art and architecture
Assyrian culture
Avian humanoids
Cattle deities
Mesopotamian goddesses
Mesopotamian legendary creatures
Horned goddesses
Human-headed mythical creatures
Lion goddesses
Sphinxes
Sumerian art and architecture
Tutelary goddesses