Divinity In Mesopotamian Art

There are many examples of art portraying the importance of a person in art from the Mesopotamian, Egyptian, and Roman eras. In the Mesopotamian art, we can denote importance by the presence of a hierarchy of scale, meaning the more important the figure is, the larger they are portrayed. We can also see important figures with symbols of divinity. Mesopotamia was the birthplace of monotheistic religions such as Christianity and Islam, but there also is art from Mesopotamia that denotes a polytheistic religion, or a religion that believes in more than one god. My favorite example of both elements afore mentioned from the Mesopotamian era is the Victory Stele of Naram-Sin. The Stele of Naram-Sin was made to commemorate the Mesopotamian ruler,

The hierarchy of scale is seen in the sculpture as Naram-Sin stands high above his army and the people he has vanquished, about twice the size of the other figures in the Stele. He is the only figure in this sculpture that is shown with his face in profile and his shoulders forward. This sculpture also shows the Akkadians, Naram-Sin’s people, had polytheistic beliefs in terms of divinity. Not only are the suns, or stars, at the top of the sculpture portraying the divinity guiding Naram-Sin to his victory, but Naram-Sin himself is wearing a horned helmet, which was a symbol of divinity to the Akkadians, showing that Naram-Sin was believed to be godlike himself. Another way that you can tell Naram-Sin is an important ruler from this sculpture is the way his army and the people he has conquered look to him. One is even looking back at Naram-Sin as his feet are turned the other way, fleeing from the

One such example is the statue Augustus of Primaporta. It was made for Augustus, who took the throne and brought Pax Romana to the people, a time of peace. The first thing to note about this sculpture is that many copies were made and distributed throughout the empire. This shows the importance of Augustus as the Roman leader. Because the Roman Empire was so large, many Romans never got to see their leader in person. The replication of the Augustus of Primaporta statue meant that all people could at least see an idealized representation of their leader. This sculpture is, like many other sculptures of important people, idealized. Like Khafre, Augustus is made to look handsomer, younger, and stronger than actually was. Another way we can tell Augustus was a prominent figure is by the canon his proportions adheres to. It is similar to the canon used in the Greek sculpture, “The Doryphoros.” He uses this to portray his desire to bring Rome its own “golden age,” like the Golden Age of the Greeks. Divinity is also shown in this sculpture, like the sculptures from Mesopotamia and Egypt. Pulling on Augustus’ garments we see Cupid, son of the Greek God Venus. Augustus had traced his ancestry back to Venus, so he put cupid there as a reminder of his divine blood line. He also claimed to be the son of the god Julius Caesar. On his breastplate we see the representation of Augustus’ divinity,