Bassetki statue
Encyclopedia
The Bassetki statue is a monument from the Akkadian period (2350–2100 BCE) in Mesopotamia
that was found in the 1960s near the town of Bassetki in Duhok Governorate, northern Iraq
. The statue was cast from pure copper
, weighs 150 kilograms (330.7 lb) and shows a seated, nude human figure on a round pedestal. Only the lower part of the figure is preserved. The pedestal contains an inscription in Akkadian
indicating that the statue once stood in the doorway of a palace of the Akkadian ruler Naram-Sin. The statue was looted from the Iraq Museum
during the 2003 invasion of Iraq
but subsequently retrieved and returned to the museum.
near the town of Bassetki in Duhok Governorate, northern Iraq
. The Bassetki statue was among the many artifacts that were looted from the Iraq Museum
during the 2003 invasion of Iraq
. During the theft, it had been dropped several times, as could be determined from a trail of cracks in the floor of the museum. It was listed number 2 on a list of the 30 most-wanted antiquities that were stolen from the museum. Its recovery came about after the American 812th Military Police Company raided a house and arrested three people in October 2003. They revealed the location of the Bassetki statue, which turned out to be coated in axle grease and hidden in a cesspool
. It was subsequently fished out and displayed in the Iraq Museum on 11 November, together with over 800 stolen small objects that had also been retrieved.
using the lost-wax process. The statue's base has a diameter of 67 centimetres (26.4 in) and is 25 centimetres (9.8 in) high. The preserved part of the figure itself is 18 centimetres (7.1 in) high. The statue weighs 150 kilograms (330.7 lb). According to several scholars, the statue stands out for its naturalistic rendering of the human body. This naturalism was a new development characteristic for the Akkadian period. The Bassetki statue contains a cuneiform
inscription written in Old Akkadian
. The inscription deals with the Akkadian ruler Naram-Sin (2254–2218 BCE), grandson and third successor of Sargon of Akkad
, the founder of the Akkadian Empire. It recounts that, after Naram-Sin crushed a large-scale revolt against his rule, the inhabitants of the city of Akkad asked the gods to make Naram-Sin the god of their city, and that they built a temple for him in the middle of the city.
Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia is a toponym for the area of the Tigris–Euphrates river system, largely corresponding to modern-day Iraq, northeastern Syria, southeastern Turkey and southwestern Iran.Widely considered to be the cradle of civilization, Bronze Age Mesopotamia included Sumer and the...
that was found in the 1960s near the town of Bassetki in Duhok Governorate, northern Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
. The statue was cast from pure copper
Copper
Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu and atomic number 29. It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. Pure copper is soft and malleable; an exposed surface has a reddish-orange tarnish...
, weighs 150 kilograms (330.7 lb) and shows a seated, nude human figure on a round pedestal. Only the lower part of the figure is preserved. The pedestal contains an inscription in Akkadian
Akkadian language
Akkadian is an extinct Semitic language that was spoken in ancient Mesopotamia. The earliest attested Semitic language, it used the cuneiform writing system derived ultimately from ancient Sumerian, an unrelated language isolate...
indicating that the statue once stood in the doorway of a palace of the Akkadian ruler Naram-Sin. The statue was looted from the Iraq Museum
National Museum of Iraq
The National Museum of Iraq is a museum located in Baghdad, Iraq. It contains precious relics from Mesopotamian civilization.-Foundation:...
during the 2003 invasion of Iraq
2003 invasion of Iraq
The 2003 invasion of Iraq , was the start of the conflict known as the Iraq War, or Operation Iraqi Freedom, in which a combined force of troops from the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and Poland invaded Iraq and toppled the regime of Saddam Hussein in 21 days of major combat operations...
but subsequently retrieved and returned to the museum.
Discovery, theft and recovery
The Bassetki statue was discovered in the 1960s during construction work on a road between Duhok and ZakhoZakho
Zakho is a district and a town in Northern Iraq located a few kilometers from the Iraqi-Turkish border.Zakho is a province of the Dohuk Governorate. The city has 200,000 inhabitants. It may have originally begun on a small island in the Little Khabur which currently flows through the city...
near the town of Bassetki in Duhok Governorate, northern Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
. The Bassetki statue was among the many artifacts that were looted from the Iraq Museum
National Museum of Iraq
The National Museum of Iraq is a museum located in Baghdad, Iraq. It contains precious relics from Mesopotamian civilization.-Foundation:...
during the 2003 invasion of Iraq
2003 invasion of Iraq
The 2003 invasion of Iraq , was the start of the conflict known as the Iraq War, or Operation Iraqi Freedom, in which a combined force of troops from the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and Poland invaded Iraq and toppled the regime of Saddam Hussein in 21 days of major combat operations...
. During the theft, it had been dropped several times, as could be determined from a trail of cracks in the floor of the museum. It was listed number 2 on a list of the 30 most-wanted antiquities that were stolen from the museum. Its recovery came about after the American 812th Military Police Company raided a house and arrested three people in October 2003. They revealed the location of the Bassetki statue, which turned out to be coated in axle grease and hidden in a cesspool
Cesspit
A cesspit, or cesspool is a pit, conservancy tank, or covered cistern, which can be used to dispose of urine and feces, and more generally of all sewage and refuse. It is a more antiquated solution than a sewer system. Traditionally, it was a deep cylindrical chamber dug into the earth, having...
. It was subsequently fished out and displayed in the Iraq Museum on 11 November, together with over 800 stolen small objects that had also been retrieved.
Description
The statue consists of a seated nude, male figure on a round base. The upper body and the head of the figure have not been preserved. It was cast from pure copperCopper
Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu and atomic number 29. It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. Pure copper is soft and malleable; an exposed surface has a reddish-orange tarnish...
using the lost-wax process. The statue's base has a diameter of 67 centimetres (26.4 in) and is 25 centimetres (9.8 in) high. The preserved part of the figure itself is 18 centimetres (7.1 in) high. The statue weighs 150 kilograms (330.7 lb). According to several scholars, the statue stands out for its naturalistic rendering of the human body. This naturalism was a new development characteristic for the Akkadian period. The Bassetki statue contains a cuneiform
Cuneiform script
Cuneiform script )) is one of the earliest known forms of written expression. Emerging in Sumer around the 30th century BC, with predecessors reaching into the late 4th millennium , cuneiform writing began as a system of pictographs...
inscription written in Old Akkadian
Akkadian language
Akkadian is an extinct Semitic language that was spoken in ancient Mesopotamia. The earliest attested Semitic language, it used the cuneiform writing system derived ultimately from ancient Sumerian, an unrelated language isolate...
. The inscription deals with the Akkadian ruler Naram-Sin (2254–2218 BCE), grandson and third successor of Sargon of Akkad
Sargon of Akkad
Sargon of Akkad, also known as Sargon the Great "the Great King" , was an Akkadian emperor famous for his conquest of the Sumerian city-states in the 23rd and 22nd centuries BC. The founder of the Dynasty of Akkad, Sargon reigned in the last quarter of the third millennium BC...
, the founder of the Akkadian Empire. It recounts that, after Naram-Sin crushed a large-scale revolt against his rule, the inhabitants of the city of Akkad asked the gods to make Naram-Sin the god of their city, and that they built a temple for him in the middle of the city.