Assyrian Temple Guardians
Lately in my readings I seem to be coming across quite a few pictures of Assyrian Temple Guardians or statues of a winged human-headed bull. Actually, there hasn’t been much info in these books about these creatures but it reminded me that I had taken a photo of one at the British Museum.
The statue is a winged human-headed bull from the North-West Palace of Ashurnasirpal II (883-859 BC) at the Assyrian capital Kalhu (Nimrud) and it was one of a pair that was used to combat demonic forces.
There’s numerous things that interest me about this statue. The first is naturally, its size. Its 3.090 m in height by 3.150 m in length.
The second striking thing about this creature is that it has 5 legs. It was made this way by whoever sculpted it in order to be viewed from two different angles. Steadfast if you were facing it and going through the gate. Striding forward into action if you viewed it from the side.
The books I have name these guardians Genies or Djinn, while the British Museum notes that they were known to the Assyrians as Lamassu.
Having only a smattering of knowledge about Assyrian gods, and mythological deities I decided to do a bit of research to clarify some points.
According to Wikipedia: Amongst archaeologists dealing with ancient Middle Eastern cultures, any spirit lesser than God is often referred to as a ‘Djinn’, especially when describing stone reliefs or other forms of art. This practice draws on the original meaning of the term genie for simply a spirit of any sort.
Further Exploration:
- The British Museum: Colossal statue of a winged human-headed bull from the North-West Palace of Ashurnasirpal II
- Wikipedia: Shedu
- Wikpedia: Genie
