| Patterns in the distribution
| “Linguistic
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CONTEXT FIRST
A STUDY ON THE PURPOSE OF THE NIMRUD WALL RELIEFS,
COMBINING THEIR SPATIAL CONTEXT AND IMAGERY
Bo K.H. Schubert
Leiden University
Abstract
During the last decades, a large amount of research has been carried out concerning Neo-Assyrian pala-
ces. The most well-known features of these palaces are the wall reliefs that adorned the palace walls, which
have been extensively studied as well. These wall reliefs are mainly studied in isolation, often focussing on
the iconography of the images and their meaning, without looking at their spatial context. The aim of this
study is to investigate the purpose of the wall reliefs in the Northwest Palace of Nimrud, combining both
the images depicted on the wall reliefs and their spatial context. Since the wall reliefs are often associated
with ideologies and propaganda, this study will investigate other possible functions of the wall reliefs as
well. First, the wall reliefs and the suites in which they are located will be considered, in order to see if a
connection can be detected between them. Second, the wall reliefs will be examined in connection to the
rooms that had the same function.
Keywords
Archaeology of the Near East, Mesopotamia, Assyrian Empire, Northwest Palace, Ashurnasirpall II
E-mail: [email protected]
I
ntroduction
Assyrian palaces have been extensively studied
over the past decades, with a main focus on the
royal palaces at Nimrud, Khorsabad and Nineveh
(Barjamovic 2011; Kertai 2015; Oates and Oates
2001). Many of these studies have concerned
themselves with the wall reliefs that adorned
the palace walls. These reliefs have mainly been
investigated in isolation, concerning the images
themselves, their possible meaning, and their
iconography (Albenda 1994; Ataç 2010; Watanabe
2014; Winter 2010). The reliefs are often associated
hunting scenes and scenes of warfare (Liverani
1979; Reade 1979; Watanabe 2002). It is however
problematic to make claims about these matters
without studying the reliefs in their spatial contexts.
Few visitors were allowed to enter the palace, yet
p. 14 | VOL III | INTER-SECTION | 2017
in order for the wall reliefs to be designated as a
medium for propaganda, the reliefs needed to be
seen by an audience.
In this article, Ashurnasirpall II’s (r. 883 – 859)
Northwest Palace at Nimrud will be investigated
is particularly well suited for this research, since a
great range of themes can be recognised within the
depictions on the wall reliefs and the locations of the
wall reliefs in the palace have been reconstructed
by Meuszynski (1981), and Paley and Sobolewski
(1987; 1992; 1997). 1 These reconstructions make it
possible to study the reliefs in their original context.
This article provides an examination of the spatial
context of the wall reliefs in association with their
imagery.