Head of Gudea, ruler of Lagash
Head of Gudea, ruler of Lagash
Dateca. 2120 BCE
Mediumdiorite
Dimensionsobject: 7 1/2 x 7 x 7 in. (19.1 x 17.8 x 17.8 cm)
base: 8 x 4 1/2 x 4 5/8 in. (20.3 x 11.4 x 11.7 cm)
ClassificationSCULPTURE
Credit LineSBMA, Gift of Wright S. Ludington
Object number1991.104
Subject(s)
- men
- portraits
- heads and faces
Collection
- Antiquity
Sub-Collection(s)
- Middle Eastern
On View
Not on viewLabel TextLagash was one of the most important city-states in the southern part of modern-day Iraq after the fall of the Akkadian Empire. Gudea ruled Lagash at the end of the third millennium BCE and over twenty surviving portrait statues of the ruler form the largest collection of sculpture from this period. The statues were placed in city temples and show Gudea in royal costume, usually including the same woolen cap with snail-curl decorations seen on this head. Full statues show him either standing or seated, with his hands clasped in a gesture of prayer. The calm engagement of the face, with its wide-open eyes and strong but serene expression, communicates the power, wisdom, and piety that were central to Sumerian ideas of kingship.
