White obelisk

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White obelisk next to the black obelisk in the British Museum

The White Obelisk from the Aššur-nâṣir-aplis II period is a Neo-Assyrian limestone obelisk with bas-reliefs from Nineveh in northern Iraq .

It is now in the British Museum in London . Its dating has long been controversial, as details of its reliefs differ from contemporary representations in the palace reliefs of Nimrud . Therefore it was proposed as an alternative to assign it to the earlier Aššur-nâṣir-apli I. and thus to the 11th century BC. To date. However, due to correspondence between the inscriptions on the obelisk and the annals of Aššur-nâṣir-apli II, the later date can be confirmed and the monument can be dated to the early reign of this king.

The closest stylistic parallel to the white obelisk is the black obelisk . In contrast to this, however, the white obelisk has eight circumferential registers that are barely divided by edges. The representations mainly show battle and hunting scenes, as well as cult acts and feasts.

literature

  • W. Orthmann, Babylonian-Assyrische Rundplastik , in: Ders., Der Alte Orient , Berlin, 1985, p. 315.