Incised furniture plaque with two ibexes flanking a stylized palmette tree
Unknown Artist
ca. 9th–8th century BCE
Medium
Ivory
Dimensions
1 in. × 4 1/16 in. × 3/16 in. (2.6 × 10.35 × 0.5 cm)
Classification
Ivory/Bone-Sculpture
Culture & Period
Assyrian · Neo-Assyrian
Department
Ancient Near Eastern Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Rogers Fund, 1957
Accession Number
57.27.5
Tags
Art Historical Context
This delicate ivory plaque, dating to around the 9th–8th century BCE, hails from the Neo-Assyrian and once adorned elite furniture in the opulent palaces of ancient Mesopotamia. Measuring just 1 by 4 inches, it features two graceful ibexes—mountain goats symbolizing power and the wild frontiers—flanking a stylized palmette tree at its center. Such motifs evoked fertility, protection, and the natural world tamed by imperial might, reflecting the Assyrians' mastery over vast territories from modern-day Iraq to Syria. Crafted through precise incising techniques, where fine lines were carved into...