Bilder eines Weltreichs

The present study focuses on the Balawat Gate of Salmanassar III. (858-824 BC). It is the first ever detailed research devoted to one of the most important but so far less known monuments of ancient Assyrian art. Based on detailed drawings of all preserved parts of the monument, which make this piece of art fully accessible for the first time, a thorough analysis of its iconography and stylistic elements has been possible. This does not only facilitate a better understanding of the depicted scenes and the position of the monument within the overall development of Assyrian art but does also lay the basis for a comparison with the rich textual sources of the period. A discussion of the art historical, the archaeological and the textual evidence allows an understanding of the function and purpose of this monument also as an example for other finds of the same kind. Through the combination of the observations concerning the monument itself, the textual evidence and field work conducted by the author at the Tigris-Tunnel, which is depicted on one of the bronze strips, a more detailed dating of the time of the making of the monument has been possible.