Plan your visit. 225 Madison Avenue at 36th Street, New York, NY 10016.

Plan your visit. 225 Madison Avenue at 36th Street, New York, NY 10016.

Founding Figures: Copper Sculpture from Ancient Mesopotamia, ca. 3300–2000 B.C.

May 13 through August 21, 2016

Rotate Figure

Standing about a foot tall, the small yet monumental “foundation figures” in ancient Mesopotamia were not created to be seen by mortal eyes. Cast in copper and placed beneath the foundation of a building, often a temple, they were intentionally buried from prying humans. Perhaps only intended for the gods, they combine both abstract and natural forms and were created at the behest of royal rulers concerned with leaving a record of their humanity, deeds, and civilization.

Surviving examples are exceedingly rare and Founding Figures brings together ten outstanding works, including ancient cylinder seals, from several public and private collections such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Babylonian Collection of Yale University. With the Morgan’s own “Foundation Figure of King Ur-Namma” serving as centerpiece, the exhibition demonstrates how the medium of copper allowed sculptors to explore a variety of forms with a fluidity not available in traditional stone, resulting in figures of exceptional grace and delicacy. Enlarged impressions of scenes engraved on cylinder seals, maps, and other visual tools are also displayed to provide historical and cultural context.

Founding Figures is made possible with generous support from Jeannette and Jonathan Rosen.

A Neo Sumerian Copper Foundation Figure of King Ur-Namma (detail). Mesopotamian, Third Dynasty of Ur, ca. 2112–2004 B.C. reign of King Ur-Namma, ca. 2112–2094 B.C. The Morgan Library & Museum.

Selected Images

Foundation Figure of a Kneeling God Holding a Peg, Second Dynasty of Lagash, reign of Gudea, ca. 2144–2124 B.C., Copper alloy. The Morgan Library & Museum, Purchase, 1974.

Priest King Feeding His Flock, Sumerian, Uruk IV period, ca. 3300–3100 B.C., Cylinder seal. Marble. Yale Babylonian Collection; NBC 2579.

 

Priest King Feeding His Flock, Sumerian, Uruk IV period, ca. 3300–3100 B.C., Modern impression of a marble cylinder seal. Yale Babylonian Collection; NBC 2579.

Seated Goddess Before Figures Carrying Boxes on Their Heads, One Placed on an Altar, Sumerian, Early Dynastic IIIa period, ca. 2600–2500 B.C, Modern impression of a marble cylinder seal. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Gift of Martin and Sarah Cherkasky, 1984; 1984.383.5.

Foundation Figure in the Form of a Nail Surmounted by the Bust of a God, Sumerian, Early Dynastic III period, ca. 2600–2300 B.C., Copper alloy. Private collection.

Figure of a Priest King (?), Sumerian, Uruk IV period, ca. 3300–3100 B.C., Copper alloy. Private collection.

Foundation Figure in the Form of a Peg Surmounted by the Bust of King Shulgi, Neo- Sumerian, Ur III period, reign of Shulgi, ca. 2094– 2047 B.C. Copper alloy. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Rogers Fund, 1959; 59.41.1

Foundation Figure in the Form of a Peg Surmounted by the Bust of King Ur-Namma, Neo- Sumerian, Ur III period, reign of Ur-Namma, ca. 2112–2094 B.C. Inscribed in Sumerian, To Inanna the lady of Eanna, his lady, Ur-Namma the mighty king, King of Ur, King of Sumer and Akkad, her temple he built, to its place he restored it. Copper alloy. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Gift of Mrs. William H. Moore, 1947; 47.49

Kneeling Nude Heroes Holding Gatepost Standards, Akkadian, ca. 2250–2150 B.C. Inscribed in Sumerian, Shatpum son of Shallum, Cylinder seal, Red jasper. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Lent by Jeannette and Jonathan P. Rosen; L.2011.55.2

Man Carrying a Box, Possibly for Offerings, Sumerian, Early Dynastic I–II period, ca. 2900– 2600 B.C., Copper alloy. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1955; 55.142.

Kneeling Nude Heroes Holding Gatepost Standards, Akkadian, ca. 2250–2150 B.C. Inscribed in Sumerian, Shatpum son of Shallum, Modern impression of a red jasper cylinder seal. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Lent by Jeannette and Jonathan P. Rosen; L.2011.55.2