Image: Lammasu

Description: This is the Assyrian Lamassu at the Oriental Institute Museum at the University of Chicago. Gypsum (?) Khorsabad, entrance to the throne room Neo-Assyrian Period, ca. 721-705 B.C. OIM A7369 This 40 ton statue was one of a two flanking the entrance to the throne room of King Sargon II. A protective spirit known as a lamassu, it is shown as a composite being with he head of a human, the body and ears of a bull, and the wings of a bird. When viewed from the side, the creature appears to be walking; when viewed from the front, to be standing still. Thus it is actually represented with five, rather than four legs. Being approximately 2700 years old, copyright does not apply to this statue.
Title: Lammasu
Credit: Trjames (Own work)
Usage Terms: Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0
License: CC-BY-SA-3.0
License Link: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/
Attribution Required?: Yes