A history of art in Chaldæa & Assyria, Vol. 2 (of 2) — Inside the Classic

From Cylinder to Relief: Tracing Shared Conventions

The authors argue that intaglio is 'only a bas-relief reversed and greatly diminished in size,' and that the style of contemporary sculpture is reflected in gem-cutting 'as the objects of nature are reflected in the mirror of the human eye.' They support this by comparing a cornelian cylinder from the Sargonid period (seventh century B.C.) with palace wall reliefs: the winged personage grasping two quadrupeds by their forepaws is 'very like the winged genius whom we encounter so often on the walls of the palaces.' The description of the cylinder's execution as 'firm and significant, though a little dry and hard' echoes their earlier assessments of Assyrian sculpture. This cross-medium comparison is a recurring method throughout the volume.

The Limits of Mesopotamian Naturalism

While acknowledging technical progress—by the seventh century B.C. artists used 'all the precious stones that were afterwards engraved by the Greeks and Romans'—the authors insist that Mesopotamian work remained inferior to Greek because 'oriental art never had the knowledge of the nude or the passion for beauty of form.' They note that even the best cylinders, such as a New York Museum example showing Izdubar and Hea-bani fighting a bull and lion, display 'breadth and truth' comparable to the statues from Tello, but still lack the polish that 'enabled the Greeks to express the subtlest contours of the living form.' This comparative judgment is stated as a matter of artistic tradition rather than skill.

Excavation History and Architectural Evidence

The chapter on civil and military architecture opens with a history of excavations, focusing on the palace of Sargon at Khorsabad. The authors provide detailed plans, sections, and descriptions of gateways, harem courts, and hanging gardens. They note that the mound of Khorsabad was still a village before excavations began, and they trace the recovery of the palace layout through systematic digging. The architectural discussion is closely tied to the sculptural and industrial arts later in the volume, as the same sites—Khorsabad, Nimroud, Koyunjik—yielded the reliefs, statues, and cylinder seals analyzed in subsequent chapters.

Readers interested in the technical aspects of ancient craftsmanship will find the sections on gem-engraving particularly rewarding, as the authors reconstruct tools and processes from the artifacts themselves. The volume's strength lies in its willingness to make explicit comparisons—between media, between periods, and between Mesopotamian and Greek art—while grounding those comparisons in observable details of the objects.

The rain kept drumming against the window while I pored over the Assyrian seals, tracing how a few engraved lines could hold an entire hunt. Somewhere between the cylinder impressions and the relief carvings, I remembered a different sort of patience—how wet plaster catches a brushstroke differently than dry stone. That's what sent me reaching for Fresco Painting — Story, Setting & Ideas, which now sits open beside the other, both smelling faintly of damp paper.