Focus on this artwork and discuss the History.
The Guennol Lioness, an Elamite figure believed to have been created circa 3000–2800 B.C., was on loan to the Brooklyn Museum of Art until it was purchased at auction by an English collector. Its historical significance is that it is thought to have been created at approximately the same time as the first known use of the wheel, the development of cuneiform writing, and the emergence of the first cities.Such anthropomorphic figures, merging animal and human features, can be seen in the top and bottom registers of the trapezoidal front panel of the famous Great Lyre from the "King's Grave" (circa 2650–2550 B.C.), discovered by British archaeologist Sir Leonard Woolley early in the twentieth century at Ur in present-day Iraq.
Many ancient Near East deities were represented in anthropomorphic figures. Such images evoked the Mesopotamian belief in attaining power over the physical world by combining the superior physical attributes of various species. It is possible that the nearby Sumerians borrowed this powerful artistic hybrid from the Proto-Elamites. The lioness was the frequent subject of veneration among cultures with exposure to the characteristic hunting techniques of the species that feature well-coordinated hunting by its female members.
Brooklyn Museum of Art use of the wheel cuneiform Leonard Woolley Great Lyre Lion Elam Ur lion Proto-Elamites deities Brooklyn Museum species Near East Mesopotamia Iraq anthropomorphic Proto-Elamite Sumer