page_title: Lamassu
hierarchical_section_title: Lamassu
caption_attribution_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.
context_page_description: Lama, Lamma or Lamassu is a Sumerian protective deity. Initially depicted as a female deity in Sumerian times, when it was called Lamma, it was later depicted from Assyrian times as a hybrid of a human, bird, and either a bull or lion—specifically having a human head, the body of a bull or a lion, and bird wings, under the name Lamassu. In some writings, it is portrayed to represent a female deity. A less frequently used name is shedu, which refers to the male counterpart of a lamassu. Lammasu represent the zodiacs, parent-stars or constellations.
context_section_description: Lama, Lamma or Lamassu (Cuneiform: 𒀭𒆗, an.kal; Sumerian: ᵈlammař; later in Akkadian: lamassu; sometimes called a lamassus) is a Sumerian protective deity. Initially depicted as a female deity in Sumerian times, when it was called Lamma, it was later depicted from Assyrian times as a hybrid of a human, bird, and either a bull or lion—specifically having a human head, the body of a bull or a lion, and bird wings, under the name Lamassu. In some writings, it is portrayed to represent a female deity. A less frequently used name is shedu (Cuneiform: 𒀭𒆘, an.kal×bad; Sumerian: ᵈalad; Akkadian, šēdu), which refers to the male counterpart of a lamassu. Lammasu represent the zodiacs, parent-stars or constellations.
caption: Lamassu from Dur-Sharrukin. University of Chicago Oriental Institute. Syrian limestone  Neo-Assyrian Period, c. 721–705 BCE
exif: {"Image Make": "Canon", "Image Model": "20D", "Image Artist": "Thomas R. James", "Image Copyright": "Creative Commons - Attribution + Noncommercial + ShareAlike (by-nc-sa)", "Image ExifOffset": "167"}