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This and the next several ivories come from the approximately twelve thousand ivory pieces and fragments that were found in the royal compound in the city of Samaria, capital of the Northern Kingdom…
The lotus image on this ivory from Samaria was originally an Egyptian symbol of the life-giving power of the god Ra—experienced through the fragrance of the flower—and of the afterlife.
The battle between a wild bull and a lion, which are among the most powerful animals, is a common theme in ancient Near Eastern art. In this panel from Samaria, the lion’s claws are embedded in the…
Sphinxes are among the most ubiquitous images on Iron Age Levantine ivories. The sphinx combines the features of several animals; it has the head of a human, the wings of an eagle, and the body of a…
Musicians on ritual stand, Ashdod, late 11th or early 10th century BCE. Music and dance played an important role in Israel and the ancient Near East in both daily life and special occasions such as…
Palm imagery is a common motif in decorative architectural elements like window balustrades. Each of the four columns in this partial restoration from the biblical period is six inches in diameter and…
About a thousand items that had accumulated over time were found in the repository of Cave 25 in the Ketef Hinnom cemetery. They included jewelry, ivory and bone inlays, arrowheads, tools, and a large…
Engraved tridacna (clam) shells like this one from Arad seem to have been used as cosmetic containers in the Near East and Mediterranean worlds in the late seventh and early sixth centuries BCE. This…
The chalice, covered with red slip (a thin mixture of red clay and water), consists of a tall, hollow stand and a separate bowl; both parts are decorated with downturned petals. Together they stand…
The palm and the palmette are common iconographic elements in ancient Near Eastern art, appearing, for example, in ivory decoration (see Ivory and Bone Carvings and Engraved Seashells) and in Assyrian…
