© British Museum
Gudea, King of Lagash
Artist: Sumerian
Location: British Museum
Date: circa 2100 BC
Materials: mottled green dolorite
Dimensions: height: 73.6cm
Grant:
Amount Paid: £5,300 (Total: £7,500)
Vendor: Mme Luiz de Sousa Barbosa
Review number: 778 (1931)
Provenance:
Found at Lagash circa 1924.
Description:
This imposing bust is of Gudea, ruler of Lagash, a city in ancient Sumer and a site of spectacular archaeological importance. A pious man, Gudea commissioned numerous statues of himself standing or seated in prayer. During a period of political unrest, Girsu, the religious center of Lagash was ravaged and statues were decapitated. Thus, all of the Gudea figures found during the excavations between 1877 and 1933, were discovered without heads. This statue was discovered as a torso and finished with a head which does not match the surface of the break, but is still believed to be the original. Traces of gold on the fingernails indicate they were originally gold-plated.
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