lamassu

I took my Rhetoric and Logic art students on a field trip to the Oriental Institute at the University of Chicago. (I teach at a private classical school and the designation Rhetoric means high school, Logic means junior high.)

We have been studying ancient art in my art history classes. The visit to see Sumerian, Babylonian, Egyptian, and Syrian artifacts fit right in with our study of ancient Mesopotamia. This museum is extremely cool. There is a gigantic lamassu installed in the central room. The lamassu is a 16-foot tall, 40-ton, human-headed winged bull.

I have always loved to see these ancient figures. And our guide told us that many of these are being destroyed in Iraq and Syria.














The photos below show the art projects that my students completed after our study of lamassu. We made 7 inch high colossal lamassu replicas out of air dry clay and wood.