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Assistant Professor
Dr. Amir Abdullah Al-Jumaily
College of Archaeology
University of Mosul
Geographical Sense in the Artistic Works of the Ancient Iraqi Artist
Abstract
It seems that the geographical information and concepts which we
rely on through reading the annals issued by the ancient Iraqi kings, a part
of their campaigns were engraved in their facts in the countries and vast
parts of the ancient near east, were consolidated with what support their
narration and clarify the narrative aspects of those campaigns. That what
became clear through many of artworks found in various Mesopotamian
archaeological sites, which included natural scenes and different
geographical environments allude and refer to the event theatre which
witnessed an invasion on a battle in a certain area.

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These works refer actually to the conformity of information

mentioned in those campaigns with the narration of the cuneiform text of
that king's campaign, which told a mention of many geographical sites
passed or happened in those sites; whereas the words of those artists
became materialistic residues and indicators undoubtedly or to distorted
to affirm the correctness of those information, exactness, and the truth of
their representation, distinguishing various terrains and environments and
scenes which show a succession of events those campaigns. Moreover;
those engravers who achieved those words enjoyed having high
geographical sense. This the Assyrian the artist (engraver) accompanied
the military campaigns, he was painting clay drafts and sketch the details
of the battles, on his returning to Assyria, he started engraving those
scenes on the sculptures or the wall panels in the royal palaces. Also,
groups of them were found in Assyrian sites.
It seems that their existing and accompanying the campaigns to take a
true impression of the atmospheres of the places and battle front in the
field, then the places and ways which the campaign passed. Elements of
nature and its items, then the environmental resources surprisingly such
as: mountains, rivers, valleys, springs, waterfalls, marshes, stars, forests,
different kinds of trees, birds, fishes, etc., then to make them prominent in
the art work to give them portraying dimension of taking into
consideration meanwhile some of the engraving rules like balance of
nature, and embodiment, but the perspective, rates, measurements were
absent in portraying some of these elements.
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Botta and Flandin, Monument de Ninive II,88; SAA, Vol.IV, 1846 50.


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mttimti
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1. Thomason, Allison. Karmel, Representations of the North Syrian Landscape in
Neo Assyrian Art, (B.A.S.O.R), n 321, 2001.
2. Barnett, R.D., Bleibreu, E., Sculptures from the SouthwestPalace of Sennacherib
at Nineveh, BritishMuseum.


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(1) Botta and Flandin, Monument de Ninive II,88; Starr, I, Queries to the Sungod,
Vol. IV., (Helsinki, 1990), (SAA), P.96
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SAA,Vol.XV.Opcit:

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(1) Thomason, A.K., Representations of the North Syrian landscape in Neo
Assyrian Art, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, 2001, P. 63.
(2) Marcus, M.I, Geography as an Organizing Principle in the Imperial Art of the
Shalamanser III, IRAQ 49, 1987, P. 77.
(3) Reade, J. E., Studies in Assyrian Geography, Part 1 and Suite: Sennacherib and
the Waters of Nineveh, 1978, P. 48.
(4) Albenda, P., Monumental Art of the Assyrian Empire: Dynamics of Composition
Styles.Monographs on the Ancient Near East 3: 1. Malibu: Undena, 1998, P. 63.
(5) Thomason, Op. Cit, P. 65.

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(1) Cosgrove, D. and Daniles, S., The Iconography of Landscape: Essays on the
Symbolic Representation Design and Use of Past Environments, Cambridge
Studies in Historical Geography 9. Cambridge: CambridgeUniversity, 1988, P.1.
(2) Thomason, Op. Cit, P. 66.

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(1) Marcus, M.I., Geography as Visual Ideology: Landscape, Knowledge and Power
in Neo Assyrian Art, 1995, PP. 193 202, in Neo Assyrian Geography, ed.
Liverani. M., Quaderni di GeografiaStorica 5.Rome: Universit di Roma.
(2) Russell, J. M., Sennacheribs Palace without Rival at Nineveh, Chicago:
University Chicago, 1991, P. 209.

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10- Albenda, P., Monumental Art of the Assyrian Empire: Dynamics
of Composition Styles.Monographs on the Ancient Near East" 3:
1. Malibu: Undena, 1998.
11- Barnett, R.D., Bleibreu, E., Sculptures from the Southwest
Palace of Sennacherib at Nineveh, British Museum.
12- Botta and Flandin, Monument de Ninive II,88.
13- Starr, I, Queries to the Sungod, Vol. IV., (Helsinki, 1990), (SAA).
14- Cosgrove, D. and Daniles, S., The Iconography of Landscape:
Essays on the Symbolic Representation Design and Use of Past
Environments, Cambridge Studies in Historical Geography 9.
Cambridge: Cambridge University, 1988.
15- Marcus, M.I, Geography as an Organizing Principle in the
Imperial Art of the Shalamanser III, IRAQ 49, 1987.
16- Marcus, M.I., Geography as Visual Ideology: Landscape,
Knowledge and Power in Neo Assyrian Art, 1995, in Neo
Assyrian Geography, ed. Liverani. M., Quaderni di
GeografiaStorica 5. Rome: Universit di Roma.
17- Reade, J.E., Studies in Assyrian Geography, Part I-II, RA
72(1978).
18- Russell, J. M., Sennacheribs Palace without Rival at Nineveh,
Chicago: University Chicago, 1991.

19- Thomason, A.K., Representations of the North Syrian landscape

in Neo Assyrian Art, Southern Illinois University
Edwardsville,2001.