Statuette of a Striding Figure
Ancient Mesopotamian
3000-2800 BCE
Medium
Copper
Dimensions
17.2 × 5.7 × 5.7 cm (6 3/4 × 2 1/4 × 2 1/4 in.)
Classification
ritual objects
Department
Arts of Greece, Rome, and Byzantium
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
206785
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
Cast in solid copper and executed with a remarkable degree of sophistication, this statuette is thought to represent a supernatural being that served as an intermediary between the physical world and the spiritual realm. It depicts a muscular, bearded male wearing a headdress of goat horns and ears, a raptor skin over his shoulders, a cylindrical belt around his trim waist, and ankle boots with long, curved toes. His eyes are inlaid with bits of shell or stone; the now-missing pupils were probab...