The Lion Hunt Of Assurbanipal Analysis

The Lion Hunt of Assurbanipal II is a stunning work. It is a story of the kings area hunt, or fight not really much of a hunt if it is in an arena carved into giant stone tablets. I believe that these pieces are suppose to depict an actual event. The reason for this is the highly natural look to the piece. Everything is still stylized and in the conventions of the time period. However, everything is highly detailed more so then other works seen around this time which leads me to believe that this may have been an actual event rather then just a fictional story to show the kings power. The works displaying an actual Lion Hunt to show that the king Assurbanipal II is master of the natural world and can slay even the mightiest of its creatures. This makes sense with the culture of the time. The king was suppose to be essentially a god or at least an all powerful figure so killing a powerful and violent beast that could slay any one of his soldiers makes …show more content…
Assurbanipal depicted himself with soldiers and servants close to him. While not odd, compare it to Darius who is depicted with his son Xerxes standing behind his throne in his palace. This sends a message to me, whether it be unintentional or not. Assurbanipal was concerned with only his appearance, his legacy, his power. Depicting himself as a conquer of the wildness of nature. While Darius included his son in his royal depiction. This leads me to infer that Assurbanipal cared more about the present and his personal abilities for his people. Darius on the other hand cared about the long term legacy of his empire. Depicting his son as he goes about his business, involving his son, and making sure that the people knew that they could trust prince as much as they trusted their king. That sends a more powerful message to me then Assurbanipal killing lions. Though that may just be my personal tastes flaring