Nimrud

Findings

Nimrud. Ivory depicting a griffon.

According to their finding place, they date back to the reign of Sin-shar-ishkun. However, it is not certain that they are contemporary to the king. In fact, after the first Neo-Babylonian attack against the Assyrian empire, which inflicted considerable damage to Nimrud itself, the fort was rebuilt and a large quantity of objects present in Nimrud were rearranged. These objects include a considerable number of ivories, mostly in the Phoenician style, depicting winged genies, sphinxes, griffons and heads of humans and deities; in addition to the ivories, a countless number of glass paste objects depicting wings of sphinxes, lotus flowers, other floral and vegetable elements and human head profiles are also present.

Nimrud. Iron and bronze brazier depicting the walls of a city.

In addition to these objects, large seashells displaying varying degrees of workmanship (from rough to semi-complete) and whose function is uncertain were also found. Close to these shells, an iron and bronze brazier depicting the walls and towers of a city was also found.