All Topics  
Standard of Ur

 
Standard of Ur

 
   Email Print
   Bookmark   Link
 

 

Standard of Ur
 
 
  Topics Standard of Ur Topic Home

The Standard of Ur (also known as the "Battle Standard of Ur," or the "Royal Standard of Ur") is a Sumer
Sumer

Sumer was a civilization and a historical region located in Southern Iraq , known as the Cradle of civilization. It lasted from the first settlement of Eridu in the Ubaid period through the Uruk period and the Dynastic periods until the rise of Babylon in the early 2nd millennium BC....
ian artifact
Artifact (archaeology)

In archaeology, an artifact or artefact is any object made or modified by a human archaeological culture, and often one later recovered by some archaeological endeavor....
 excavated from what had been the Royal Cemetery in the ancient city of Ur
Ur

Ur is modern Tell el-Mukayyar, Iraq, and was a city in ancient Sumer. Once a coastal city near the mouth of the then Euphrates river on the Persian Gulf, Ur is now well inland....
 (located in modern-day Iraq
Iraq

Iraq , officially the Republic of Iraq , is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros Mountains, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
 south of Baghdad
Baghdad

Baghdad is the Capital of Iraq and of Baghdad Governorate, with which it is also coterminous. With a municipal population estimated at 6.5 million, it is the largest city in Iraq, and the second largest city in the Arab World....
).






Discussion
Ask a question about 'Standard of Ur'
Start a new discussion about 'Standard of Ur'
Answer questions from other users
Full Discussion Forum



Encyclopedia


Standard of Ur War
Ur Lyre
The Standard of Ur (also known as the "Battle Standard of Ur," or the "Royal Standard of Ur") is a Sumer
Sumer

Sumer was a civilization and a historical region located in Southern Iraq , known as the Cradle of civilization. It lasted from the first settlement of Eridu in the Ubaid period through the Uruk period and the Dynastic periods until the rise of Babylon in the early 2nd millennium BC....
ian artifact
Artifact (archaeology)

In archaeology, an artifact or artefact is any object made or modified by a human archaeological culture, and often one later recovered by some archaeological endeavor....
 excavated from what had been the Royal Cemetery in the ancient city of Ur
Ur

Ur is modern Tell el-Mukayyar, Iraq, and was a city in ancient Sumer. Once a coastal city near the mouth of the then Euphrates river on the Persian Gulf, Ur is now well inland....
 (located in modern-day Iraq
Iraq

Iraq , officially the Republic of Iraq , is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros Mountains, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
 south of Baghdad
Baghdad

Baghdad is the Capital of Iraq and of Baghdad Governorate, with which it is also coterminous. With a municipal population estimated at 6.5 million, it is the largest city in Iraq, and the second largest city in the Arab World....
). The Standard of Ur dates from around 2600 - 2400 BCE, and was excavated by British archaeologist Sir Leonard Woolley
Leonard Woolley

Sir Charles Leonard Woolley was a British archaeologist best known for his excavations at Ur in Mesopotamia. He is considered to have been one of the first "modern" archaeologists, and was knighted in 1935 for his contributions to the discipline of archaeology....
 in the 1920s.

It is essentially a hollow wooden box measuring 21.59 x 49.53 cm, (8.5 x 19.5 inches) inlaid with a mosaic
Mosaic

Mosaic is the art of creating images with an assemblage of small pieces of colored glass, stone, or other material. It may be a technique of Decorative arts, an aspect of interior decoration or of cultural and spiritual significance as in a cathedral....
 of shell, red limestone
Limestone

File:Limestone Formation In Waitomo.jpgLimestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the mineral calcite . The deposition of limestone strata is often a by-product and indicator of biological activity in the geology record....
 and lapis lazuli
Lapis lazuli

Lapis lazuli is a semi-precious stone prized since antiquity for its intense blue color.Lapis lazuli has been mined in the Badakhshan province of Afghanistan for 6,500 years, and trade in the stone is ancient enough for lapis jewelry to have been found at Predynastic Egyptian sites, and lapis beads at neolithic burials in Mehrgarh, the C...
. It is currently in a reconstructed state, as the effects of time over the last several millennia had decayed the wooden frame and bitumen
Bitumen

Bitumen is a mixture of organic compounds liquids that are highly viscous, black, sticky, entirely soluble in carbon disulfide, and composed primarily of highly condensed polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons....
 glue which had cemented the mosaic in place. Its original function is not conclusively understood. Leonard Wooley suggested that it had been carried on a pole, borne as a standard. It has also been speculated that it was the soundbox of a musical instrument.

The Standard of Ur has two main panels, which have been named "War
War

...
" and "Peace
Peace

Peace is a term that most commonly refers to an absence of aggression, violence or hostility, but which also represents a larger concept wherein there are healthy or newly-healed interpersonal relationship or international relations, safety in matters of social or economic welfare, the acknowledgment of equality and fairness in political re...
." "War" is one of the earliest representations of a Sumerian army, engaged in what is believed to be a border skirmish and its aftermath. Battle scenes include four-wheeled chariots, drawn by teams of some sort of equids (possibly onagers or domestic asses ) trampling enemies (although these solid-wheeled early chariots must have been rather unwieldy in battle, and it is likely that they were used primarily for transport and defense); spearmen clad in armored cloaks; and other infantrymen
Infantry

Infantry are soldiers who are primarily trained for the role of fighting on foot. A soldier in the infantry is known as an infantryman. Infantry units have more physically demanding training than other branches of armies, and place a greater emphasis on fitness, physical strength and aggression....
 bearing sickle-like knives or axes. Panels also depict prisoners, wounded, naked, and humiliated, being presented to the king.

"Peace" portrays a banquet scene. Attendants parade animals, fish, and other goods (possibly war booty
Booty

Booty may refer to:* A nautical term for treasure* American slang for buttocks...
) before seated figures, while a lyrist
Lyre

The lyre is a string instrument well known for its use in classical antiquity and later. The recitations of the Ancient Greece were accompanied by lyre playing....
 entertains the throng.

The Standard of Ur is currently housed in London
London

London is the capital of both England and the United Kingdom, and the most populous municipality in the European Union. An important settlement for two millennia, History of London goes back to its founding by the Roman Empire....
's British Museum
British Museum

The British Museum is a museum of human history and culture situated in London. Its collections, which number more than 7 million Object , are amongst the largest and most comprehensive in the world and originate from all continents, illustrating and documenting the story of human culture from its beginning to the present....
.

Further reading