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Head of a Warrior

This stone statue, broken off just below the neck, represents the head of a man. The eyes are almond-shaped and ringed with thin lids. The eyebrows are rendered as thick arcs that meet on the bridge of the nose. The lower portion of the nose is broken off, along with the mouth. There is a prominent chin and high cheekbones. The face is clean-shaven, with a distinctly articulated jawline. The ears are precisely modeled in raised relief. The hairline is indicated by a row of curls. An incised wavy line runs from each curl to the top of the head. A large vertical crack runs from the hairline to the chin. Another vertical crack runs from above the man’s right ear to the jaw. A large chunk is missing from behind the right ear. The back of the head is marred by a blunt impact. The closest parallel for this head occurs on an Akkadian stela (c. 2300 BCE) excavated at Susa in Iran (1), one of the many Mesopotamian objects taken to Susa by the Elamite king Shutruk-Nahhunte I around 1158 BCE. It is a victory monument showing a warrior armed with a glaive conducting a row of bound prisoners. The warrior’s hair is depicted very similarly to that of the this statue head; thus, this head may represent an Akkadian warrior, or perhaps a king or prince in the guise of a warrior. NOTES: 1. Louvre Sb 3; see P. O. Harper et al. (eds.), The Royal City of Susa: Ancient Near Eastern Treasures in the Louvre (New York, 1992) no. 105.

c. 2340-2180 BCE

Sculpture

Dark limestone

7.51 cm (2 15/16 in.)

Harvard Art Museums