The Ain Ghazal statues are some of the oldest large-size depictions of the human form. These range from 8000-7000 BCE and were found in Ain Ghazal (hence the name) in Jordan. Some of the cache are distributed (London, Paris, Abu Dhabi) while the rest are (hopefully still) on display at the museum in Amman, Jordan.
This piece was, thankfully for me, on display at the Louvre while I visited.
The status is made of limestone plaster applied over a reed core. The latter has, of course, long since disappeared. While most of the body is stylistically carved, the face has been created with care, the eyes being outlined with bitumen.
We cannot guess what the purpose was behind these statues, the commonest guess being that they represent some sort of ancestor worship. They were found carefully buried in holes under abandoned houses so maybe there was a component of ancestor spirits guarding the dwelling as well?
Either way, it left me spellbound to look across nine millennia into the eyes of my/our ancestors… Museums really are time machines for people with the imagination to travel!
I need to fill this up with much better content than I had populated it with earlier. Why I write a blog maybe? I started blogging in 2009 or thereabouts. I was a newly turned atheist and wanted to converse with others of the same persuasion. We're not exactly a big population group in India! It didn't go very well and I sort of lost interest, posting a few things now and then.
I got a lot more regular over the last few months and have been posting almost daily since February '15. There were many reasons why I gradually became more regular in posting, but one way or the other, here I am! So this blog has taken shape, being at different points in time my showcase, my comedy club, my art gallery, my book club, my therapist, my close friend, my innermost self....but always my little corner of the world. You are all welcome to visit and I hope you stay awhile!
A few points about me because I don't want to lead anyone on(and trust me this does become an issue more often than I'd care to admit).
I'm Indian, the brown-skinned variety; if race, ethnicity or skin colour is an issue, you don't have to get to know me any more than what you see on my blog.
I'm 40, so if age is an issue, please be informed accordingly.
I was a doctor, an ophthalmic surgeon for 10 years before I quit practice.
Lovely sculpture. I’ve been meaning to try one myself. We’ll see. Another interesting subject to add to my reading list. I’ve been reading up on ancient Babylonian sun worship over the past week. Sorting through facts and made up facts has been a challenge. (I’ve had to check every source’s source.)
Some amount of story-telling is unavoidable. Though no one tried guessing what a ‘mukku’ and a ‘pikku’ were, come to think of it. Kramer seems to have been a go-to authority on the texts, from what I have read.
hbhatnagar 
Lovely sculpture. I’ve been meaning to try one myself. We’ll see. Another interesting subject to add to my reading list. I’ve been reading up on ancient Babylonian sun worship over the past week. Sorting through facts and made up facts has been a challenge. (I’ve had to check every source’s source.)
LikeLiked by 1 person
Posted by Sabiscuit | 28/11/2020, 12:15 PM😀 I know the feeling of extreme tiredness that brings, not to mention the frustration.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Posted by hbhatnagar | 29/11/2020, 11:18 AM😭I’m totally confused now, and I’ve decided to make up my own version. Which is the same thing I suspect many of these “scholars” have done.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Posted by Sabiscuit | 29/11/2020, 11:28 AMSome amount of story-telling is unavoidable. Though no one tried guessing what a ‘mukku’ and a ‘pikku’ were, come to think of it. Kramer seems to have been a go-to authority on the texts, from what I have read.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Posted by hbhatnagar | 29/11/2020, 11:41 AMThanks. I’ll check him out. 😘🌹
LikeLiked by 1 person
Posted by Sabiscuit | 29/11/2020, 12:36 PM