Statue of Gilgamesh, University of Sydney

The Statue of Gilgamesh at the University of Sydney, Camperdown, was created by Lewis Batros on commission from the Assyrian community, and unveiled in 2000.[1] The 2.5m statue depicts Gilgamesh, an ancient Sumerian king of the city-state of Uruk whose legendary exploits are told in the Epic of Gilgamesh, an Akkadian epic poem written during the late second millennium BC, based on much earlier material.

Gilgamesh Statue
Gilgamesh statue at the University of Sydney
ArtistLewis Batros
Year2000
Dimensions2.5 m (8 ft 2 in)
ConditionGood
LocationUniversity of Sydney
Coordinates33.887237°S 151.186146°E / -33.887237; 151.186146
Statue of Gilgamesh full view
Waist up view of Gilgamesh the side
Inscription of the story of Gilgamesh on the statue
Gilgamesh statue back outfit details

The Gilgamesh Cultural Centre, on behalf of the Assyrian community, presented the statue to the University to commemorate its sesquicentenary. The statue was unveiled by Dame Leonie Kramer, A.C., and D.B.E., on 15 October 2000. It is located in the Camperdown/Darlington Campus of the University of Sydney between the Old Teachers College Building and the Women's Sports Centre, facing towards the Charles Perkins Centre.[2]

History

Gilgamesh was a king of Uruk in the land of Sumer,[3] Mesopotamia. Gilgamesh is described as a demigod of superhuman strength, as he was two-thirds God from his mother, Ninsun, and one-third human from his father, the former king, Lugalbunda.[4] Gilgamesh built the city walls of Uruk to defend his people.[5] Gilgamesh fought the demon Humbaba (or Huwawa), along with wild man Enkidu and brought his head back to Uruk on a raft. The pair also defeated the Bull of Heaven sent by the furious goddess Ishtar. These conquered beasts can be linked to the creature in the statue as a representation of Gilgamesh's strength and power. Gilgamesh is seen as a worldly-wise, cultured king and protector who is at the centre of human society.[6] The statue was erected to celebrate the might and power of Gilgamesh and commemorate his achievements as a protector and king.

Inscription

Situated with the Statue of Gilgamesh is a bronze plaque with an inscription of the story of Gilgamesh, which reads:

Gilgamesh, Assyrian King of Uruk during the third millennium BC, is part god and part man. He sets out on a quest to seek immortality. In the source of his quest, he finds compassion, friendship, courage, love and peace. In the 19th century, Sir Austen Henry Layard found clay tablets recounting The Epic of Gilgamesh in Ashourbanipal's 8th century BC library at Nineveh. This epic, one of the oldest written stories, is the basis of many myths, legends and tales, including modern ones.

Artist

The statue was sculpted by Lewis Batros, whose other sculptures are exhibited in Fairfield and Sydney Olympic Park in Australia, in Moscow, and in the US.[7] He has done many Assyrian-inspired works, some of which have been controversial,[8] including a 4.5-metre-high (15 ft) monument to Assyrian victims of genocide commissioned by Fairfield council. He obtained a degree in fine art in 1986 and migrated to Australia in 1990.[9] Many of Batros' works take inspiration from Assyrian heritage, stories, art and culture.[10]

References
  1. Stone , D, 2012. The Epic of Gilgamesh: Statue brings ancient tale to life. MUSE, 12/2781, 28
  2. University of Sydney (2015). Physical Description. [online] University of Sydney. Available at: http://sydney.edu.au/documents/about/heritage/gcp_chapter3.pdf [Accessed 3 April 2015].
  3. Abusch, Tzvi (1 February 2015). Male and Female in the Epic of Gilgamesh. Eisenbrauns. p. 1.
  4. Ziolkowski, Theodore (November 2011). Gilgamesh among Us Modern Encounters with the Ancient Epic (PDF). CORNELL UNIVERSITY PRESS. p. 2. doi:10.7591/9780801463419-003. ISBN 9780801463419.
  5. Dalley, Stephanie (2000). Myths from Mysotamia. United Kingdom: Oxford University Press.
  6. Jones, Lindsay (2005). Encyclopedia of Religion. Detroit, MI: Macmillan Reference USA. pp. 3486–3489. ISBN 978-0-02-865733-2.
  7. Matheson, Melissa. "Assyrian Monument Designer Explains the Art of Suffering." Assyrian Monument Designer Explains the Art of Suffering. 12 January 2010. Retrieved 8 May 2017. http://www.aina.org/news/20100112170438.htm.
  8. Matheson, Melissa. "Assyrian Monument Designer Explains the Art of Suffering." Assyrian Monument Designer Explains the Art of Suffering. 12 January 2010. Retrieved 8 May 2017. http://www.aina.org/news/20100112170438.htm.
  9. Aina.org, (2015). Turkey Blasts Australia on Assyrian Genocide Monument. [online] Available at: http://www.aina.org/news/20100810190225.htm [Accessed 3 April 2015].
  10. Design, UBC Web. "Assyrian Genocide Monument | Monument Australia". monumentaustralia.org.au. Retrieved 10 May 2017.
  • Ziolkowski, T. (2011). Gilgamesh among us: Modern encounters with the ancient epic. Ithaca: Cornell University Press.
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