Mosaic Map of the Ancient World in the Walters Art Museum, September 2009

Walters Art Museum


The Walters Art Museum, located in Baltimore, Maryland's Mount Vernon neighborhood, is a public art museum founded in 1934. The museum's collection was amassed substantially by two men, William Thompson Walters (1819–1894), who began serious collecting when he moved to Paris at the outbreak of the American Civil War, and his son Henry Walters (1848–1931), who refined the collection and rehoused it…  (read more)

Mosaic Map of the Ancient World in the Walters Art…

Detail of Egypt on the Mosaic Map of the Ancient W…

Detail of Greece on the Mosaic Map of the Ancient…

Detail of the Ancient Near East on the Mosaic Map…

Sumerian Dedication Nail in the Walters Art Museum…

01 Sep 2009 695
Dedication Nail Creator: Sumerian (Artist) Period: ca. 2100 BC (Neo-Sumerian) Medium: baked clay (Ceramics) Accession Number: 48.1457 Measurements: Body H: 6 5/16 x Diam: 1 3/4 in. (16 x 4.5 cm); Diam of Head: 2 11/16 in. (6.9 cm) Geography: Lagash (present-day Telloh, Iraq) (Place of Discovery) Clay nails such as this one inscribed with the name of King Gudea of Lagash were embedded in the upper parts of walls, sometimes with the head protruding. They may have developed from the custom of hammering a peg into a wall to signal ownership. This example bears a dedication to a deity and would have symbolically marked a temple as divine property. Text from: art.thewalters.org/detail/3157/dedication-nail/

Sumerian Deity Holding a Foundation Peg in the Wal…

01 Sep 2009 456
Deity Holding a Foundation Peg Creator: Sumerian (Artist) Period: ca. 2100 BC (Neo-Sumerian) Medium: cast bronze (Metal) Accession Number: 54.790 Measurements: 6 15/16 x 1 11/16 x 2 13/16 in. (17.7 x 4.3 x 7.2 cm) Geography: Lagash (present-day Telloh, Iraq) (Place of Discovery) A deity, wearing a divine horned headdress, kneels with a foundation peg inscribed with King Gudea's name. Though the inscription is mostly defaced, it was probably dedicated to the Ningirsu, god of the city of Lagash. Text from: art.thewalters.org/detail/7006/deity-holding-a-foundation...

Anatolian Fertility Figurine in the Walters Art Mu…

01 Sep 2009 399
"Tel Halaf" Fertility Figurine Creator: Syrian (Artist) Period: 5000-4000 BC Medium: terracotta with traces of pigment (Ceramics) Accession Number: 48.2741 Measurements: 3 3/16 x 1 15/16 x 2 1/8 in. (8.15 x 5 x 5.46 cm) As early as the 7th millennium BC, cultures in the Near East began to create organized settlements with well-developed religious and funerary practices. The Halaf culture of Anatolia (central Turkey) and northern Syria arose around 5000 BC and produced remarkable female figurines with distinctive fertility attributes. This statuette is seated with legs extended, her arms cradling her protruding breasts. Bands of pigment emphasize the full, rounded forms of her limbs and suggest facial features, a necklace, and loincloth. Text from: art.thewalters.org/detail/34867/tel-halaf-fertility-figur...

Iranian Jar in the Walters Art Museum, September 2…

01 Sep 2009 340
Small Jar with Birds, Rosettes, and Geometric Patterns Creator: Iranian (Artist) Period: 1800-1500 BC (Old Babylonian) Medium: ceramic with paint (Ceramics) Accession Number: 48.2395 Measurements: 3 9/16 x 3 3/16 in. (9.1 x 8.1 cm) Geographies: Tepe Giyan (in present-day Iran) (Place of Origin) The simplicity of this design is characteristic of the painted pottery from the site of Tepe Giyan in western Iran. The birds may represent ostriches. Such pottery has been found in burials along with jewelry and weapons. Text from: art.thewalters.org/detail/34478/small-jar-with-birds-rose...

Nude Female Figurine in the Walters Art Museum, Se…

01 Sep 2009 306
Nude Female Figurine The marks on this figurine's genital indicate that it may be a fertility votive. Ornaments may have originally been attached to the holes in the headdress. Creator: Syrian (Artist) Period: 2000-1600 BC Medium: terracotta (Ceramics) Accession Number: 48.2402 Measurements: 4 3/4 x 1 13/16 x 7/8 in. (12.1 x 4.6 x 2.3 cm) Geographies: Syria (Place of Origin), north Syria (Place of Discovery) Text from: art.thewalters.org/detail/31678/nude-female-figurine/

Cylinder with Building Dedication in the Walters A…

01 Sep 2009 353
Cylinder with Building Dedication Creator: Babylonian (Artist) Period: 604-562 BC (Neo-Babylonian) Medium: baked clay (Ceramics) Accession Number: 48.1800 Measurements: 9 1/16 x 5 1/8 in. (23 x 13 cm) Geographies: Babylonia (in present-day Iraq) (Place of Origin) In the first millennium BC, building dedications were written on cylinders with tapering ends, such as this, which were then concealed in walls. Here, the extensive text in three columns commemorates the rebuilding of the temple of the god Lugal-Marada at Marad by King Nebuchadnezzar II. Text from: art.thewalters.org/detail/16469/cylinder-with-building-de...

Man Holding a Vase in the Walters Art Museum, Sept…

01 Sep 2009 296
Man Holding a Vase Babylonian, ca. 2000-1000 BC Terracotta, mold-made #48.1808 Figures holding vases are common in Mesopotamian art and are associated with the importance of fresh water for agriculture. Text from the Walters Art Museum label.

Near Eastern Fertility Figurine in the Walters Art…

01 Sep 2009 344
Female Mesopotamian Figure Creators: Babylonian (Artist) Period: 1000-500 BC (Neo-Assyrian (?); Neo-Babylonian (?)) Medium: mold-made terracotta (Ceramics) Accession Number: 48.1807 Measurements: 3 11/16 x 1 1/2 x 1 1/16 in. (9.3 x 3.8 x 2.7 cm) Geographies: Babylonia (in present-day Iraq) (Place of Origin) Terracotta figurines of standing nude women are the most common type of Babylonian votive. Sometimes the figure clasps her hands in front of her, as seen here, while in other examples the figure holds her breasts or suckles a baby. These mass-produced fertility figurines served as votive offerings or as charms to aid in conception and childbirth. Text from: art.thewalters.org/detail/33218/female-mesopotamian-figure/

Bearded Figurine with Necklace in the Walters Art…

01 Sep 2009 311
Bearded Figurine with Necklace Creator: Syrian (Artist) Period: 2400-2000 BC Medium: terracotta (Ceramics) Accession Number: 48.2401 Measurements: H: 5 3/8 x W: 2 3/4 x D: 1 5/16 in. (13.7 x 7 x 3.4 cm) Geographies: Syria (Place of Origin), north Syria (Place of Discovery) Text from: art.thewalters.org/detail/28886/bearded-figurine-with-nec...

Babylonian Foundation Tablet in the Walters Art Mu…

01 Sep 2009 418
Foundation Tablet Creator: Mesopotamian (Artist) Period: 1834-1823 BC (Old Babylonian; Isin-Larsa) Medium: Egyptian blue (Ceramics) Accession Number: 48.2481 Measurements: H: 2 3/16 x W: 3 x D: 7/8 in. (5.6 x 7.6 x 2.2 cm) Geographies: Larsa (in present-day Iraq) (Place of Origin) The emphasis on sumptuous materials, such as precious metals and stones, is a common characteristic of foundation deposits. This tablet resembles the semiprecious stone lapis lazuli, prized by the Mesopotamians, although it is in fact made from a less costly material known as "Egyptian blue." It bears an inscription of King Warad-Sin, ruler of the city-state of Larsa, with a prayer and a dedication. Text from: art.thewalters.org/detail/17796/foundation-tablet/

Iranian Beaked Jug in the Walters Art Museum, Sept…

01 Sep 2009 345
Beaked Jug Creator: Iranian (Artist) Period: 1100-700 BC Medium: ceramic (Ceramics) Accession Number: 48.2093 Measurements: 7 x 12 5/8 x 8 in. (17.8 x 32 x 20.3 cm) Geographies: Luristan, Iran (Place of Origin) The elongated spout of this vessel is bird-shaped, with the head of the bird curving back towards its tail. The imaginative shape is typical of Iranian ceramics of this period. Text from: art.thewalters.org/detail/25946/beaked-jug/

Ibex-Shaped Vessel in the Walters Art Museum, Sept…

01 Sep 2009 572
Ibex-Shaped Vessel The ribbed horn of an ibex (a type of wild goat) forms the handle of this vessel. Made for ritual use, liquid, perhaps oil, could be poured into the tail and out of the animal's mouth. Creator: Iranian (Artist) Period: ca. 1000 BC Medium: ceramic (Ceramics) Accession Number: 48.2228 Measurements: 9 13/16 x 8 7/16 x 4 15/16 in. (25 x 21.5 x 12.5 cm); from nose to end: 8 7/16 in. (21.5 cm) (w.) Geography: Iran (Place of Origin) Text from: art.thewalters.org/detail/38788/ibex-shaped-vessel/

Iranian Pin with Winged Monster in the Walters Art…

01 Sep 2009 421
Pin with Winged Monster Creator: Iranian (Artist) Period: 8th-7th century BC Medium: cast bronze (Metal) Accession Number: 54.2581 Measurements: 2 3/4 x 8 9/16 x 13/16 in. (7 x 21.8 x 2.1 cm) Geography: Luristan, Iran (Place of Discovery) Provenance: Natacha Rambova Collection [no. L67.27.9 at tip of pin]; Professor Donald E. Hanson, New York; Walters Art Museum, Baltimore, 1981, by gift. Text from: art.thewalters.org/detail/12441/pin-with-winged-monster/

Detail of an Iranian Pin with Winged Monster in th…

01 Sep 2009 295
Pin with Winged Monster Creator: Iranian (Artist) Period: 8th-7th century BC Medium: cast bronze (Metal) Accession Number: 54.2581 Measurements: 2 3/4 x 8 9/16 x 13/16 in. (7 x 21.8 x 2.1 cm) Geography: Luristan, Iran (Place of Discovery) Provenance: Natacha Rambova Collection [no. L67.27.9 at tip of pin]; Professor Donald E. Hanson, New York; Walters Art Museum, Baltimore, 1981, by gift. Text from: art.thewalters.org/detail/12441/pin-with-winged-monster/

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