Assyria as a Bronzeworking Centre in the Late Assyrian Period

Abstract

This chapter shows that Assyria has been seriously underestimated as a centre of bronze production, and that there was in fact a thriving industry producing large amounts of bronzework, some of it in a distinctively Assyrian style. In dealing with Late Assyrian bronzework there are some special problems, not generally encountered with the bronzework of other areas, and it is partly because of these that bronzeworking in Assyria has not been regarded as a major industry in its own right. The chapter considers what might be termed “fixtures and fittings”, objects that were presumably commissioned for palaces, temples and important administrative buildngs and can to all intents and purposes be termed Assyrian. Outstanding are the strips of bronze sheet decorated with embossed and chased designs that were applied to wooden door-leaves.