Bulletin of the Asia Institute, a Non-Profit Corporation
A Statue of the Chief Priest from Hatra
Author(s): WATHIQ AL-SALIHI
Source: Bulletin of the Asia Institute, New Series, Vol. 5 (1991), pp. 35-40
Published by: Bulletin of the Asia Institute, a Non-Profit Corporation
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A Statue of the Chief Priest from Hatra
WATHIQ A L - S A L I Η Γ
The excavations of the Directorate of Antiqui- worked. The weight of his body is borne on his
ties at the Eastern Gate of Hatra in 1979 pro- left leg; the right leg is slightly bent at the knee
vided us with a variety of evidence, some and turns outwards. He is barefoot, the feet be
which strengthened our earlier suggestions ing exceptionally detailed, the toes carefully
concerning the military architecture of the carved and the instep indicated,
construction of the previously excavated He wears a tunic and a himation. The knee
Northern Gate.1 Also uncovered in the course length, long-sleeved tunic is decorated with
of the season
were materials of epigraphical various types of ornamentation. Four vertical
importance which shed fresh light on certain rows of small discs, equally spaced, divide the
aspects of the life of the city.2 In addition, a front of the tunic and frame different designs;
number of limestone and local marble sculp- only a small area of the tunic is shown where it
tures came to light along with a group of is not covered by the himation. The center panel
graffiti incised on the plastered walls of the probably contained vine leaves, and on the right
rooms adjacent to the gate.3 Here I confine my- side of his chest is the image of a nude Aphro
self to a study of one statue, significant because dite carved in low relief surrounded by vine
of its unique iconography among the sculptures scrolls,which are also shown in the very small
of Hatra and because it offers certain stylistic portion of the tunic visible above the right knee,
traits that may provide a solid basis for the Aphrodite leans on a pole to her left, resting her
chronological evaluation of the undated sculp- head on the palm of her left hand in a gesture of
tures from Hatra. reflection (fig. 2). The weight of her body is car
was found in the debris of the open
The statue ried by her left leg, while the right is bent at the
court that precedes the main entrance of the knee and turned outward. She places her flexed
Eastern Gate. This location was important for right arm on her waist.
the Hatrenes, the Arabs, as well as for visitors The depiction of a divinity on the garment in
to the city, for it contained statues of certain dicates that the wearer belongs either to the rul
guardian gods in addition to a stele inscribed ing dynasty or the nobility.5 Similar images
with a specific warning concerning the death appear on several statues of the kings and nobles
penalty imposed for thievery whether by the in- of Hatra, of Hercules-Nergal, Athena-Iââarbel,
habitants or visitors.4 The Northern Gate gave Hermes, and Smy3, the standard. However, this
similar warning. That the statue was placed in is the first instance of Aphrodite shown on a gar
the same location as the stele may have impli- ment. Her representations at Hatra are few6 in
cations for the identity of the person portrayed. contrast to those at Assur,7 Seleucia-on-the
I discuss the pertinent inscription below. Tigris,8 and Dura-Europos9 where terra-cotta
The life-size limestone statue (fig. 1) of a figurines of the goddess were found in abun
male figure is 1.86 meters high, standing on an dance. Probably she was assimilated to Ishtar,
irregularly shaped base 13 cm high. He turns in her Mesopotamian counterpart,
a three-quarter stance, his body carved on a di- The folds of the statue's tunic are indicated
agonal to the background; thus, his left side is by sharp curved ridges, particularly on the right
not carved while his right side is carefully arm and shoulder, created by the movement of
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cm
Fig. 1. Statue of the chief priest found at the Eastern Gate of Hatra.
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al-salihi: A Priest from Hatra
his arm. On his arm is a band composed of two parts of the bird that would face the spectator
eight-petal rosettes bordered by two rows of are most carefully done. The eagle stands 38
beads, doubtless representing jewels. The hi cm high on a rectangular base decorated with
mation is drawn over his left shoulder and car an elongated rectangle on the right side, the
ried around the body, passing under the left front only roughly carved. Head and part of the
arm where it falls along his left side, partially neck are missing. He carries an abundance of
concealed by the figure of the eagle. The diago jewelry (fig. 3): the neck torque is decorated
nally draped himation has thick, rippled edges with alternating discs and rectangles, and at
worked with deep diagonal incisions. The folds tached to it are two elaborately designed bands
of the robe fan out over the legs from a point on consisting of discs and rectangles of different
his left side, under the right hand, in confor sizes with large medallions. The bands on the
mity with the position of the body. left side of the eagle were not carved. A her
Several horizontal slashes were cut on the ringbone chain encircles the neck; it is part of a
front of the himation. They were intended to
form the "H"-shaped vestment which is com
mon on some of the statues of priests. This vest
ment, or special sacrificial apron, was worn by
Dqf3, the priest of Shrine XI.10 The apron, with
•vkvi
its outline carved upon the himation, is similar
to that worn by the priest of Shrine VI where it
is bordered by embroidered beads.11 Other rep
resentations of priests from Hatra do not show
this special vestment.12 But when it does appear,
as on a statue of a priest found in the Great
Temple, it is shown as a decoration on top of the
himation. Furthermore, this special priestly
vestment does not appear on the sculptures or in
# ·• · Λ
the paintings of the contemporary cities of
Dura-Europos and Palmyra.13 But the same type -»IPI;i
of slashings occur on a torso found in the course > m η
of the excavations of the eastern corridor of the : *>7
Square temple of Sms.14 The headless torso
wears the tunic and himation, similar to those
worn by our figure, and on the himation appear
the "H" slashings that indicate we are in the
presence of a priest or a high priest.
Our statue wears a plain torque around his
neck decorated in the center with a large disc
flanked on either side by vertical rectangles.
These ornaments may have represented pre
cious stones. On his wrist he wears a simple
bracelet; however, the cuff of his sleeve, which
could be mistaken for a second bracelet, is di
vided into equal squares, each of which con
tains a large disc.
His right arm, bent at the elbow, reaches
across his body to support, along with his left
hand, a statue of an eagle that he carries
against his chest. Most of eagle's body is carved
in the round, save some parts in high relief, es
|||
pecially where it is in contact with the figure Fig. 2. Aphrodite embroidered on the tunic.
or was left uncarved or roughly modelled. The
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al-salihi: A Priest from Hatra
necklace whose pendant has a double horse
shoe ornament, one inside the other. This is a
common motif in Hatrene jewelry, appearing
on many representations of the eagle15 as well
as on at least two representations of Hercules
GndD.16 Some of the jewelry from an eagle was W
found inlaid with precious stone.17
'
The eagle was worshipped at Hatra, as indi v
cated by numerous testimonia. His image was
found with those of other deities, his name re
corded with those of the gods of Hatra. Some
times the eagle was referred to as Mrn NsrD,
"Our Lord the Eagle," and in other instances
portrayed as the symbol of the great god. On
the basis of some sculptural and inscribed evi \ /, ,
dence, we believe that the representation of the
eagle with widespread wings was actually a
symbol of Sms, the chief deity of Hatra, and the
eagle with folded wings was the incarnation of I
Mru, the head of the Triad of Hatra whose wor
ship was widespread. However, Mru is an epi
thet of Sms, as indicated by a very important
inscription.
The elaborate hairdo of the statue is its most κ >
striking feature. It is divided in an unprece
dented manner into two differently arranged
parts. The upper part, high above the forehead, f
is composed of several beautifully arranged
snail curls collected by a ribbon tied in a bow,
the ends curving upward and flaring out. The
lower half shows the hair in the front and sides
pulled tightly upwards, tied by the same ribbon. f
The softness of the hair is carefully indicated
with equally spaced incisions. The oval-shaped Fig. 3. Front of the eagle with jewelry.
beard is divided into countless locks portrayed
by short wavy lines. A unique mustache curls
upwards starting from either end of the mouth.
His eyes are almond-shaped, the eyelids indi namely a deviation from the frozen frontality
cated by two parallel lines. The rather large which was usually followed. The figure directs
circles mark the irises. A frown line is drawn his movements, attention, and gaze not to the
between the eyebrows and several faint lines on front but to his left, and this action is supple
the forehead combine to give the figure a sol mented by a three-dimensional portrayal of his
emn look. The sculptor paid special attention legs, as if to translate his movement into a nat
to the individual's exact features, among which ural gesture. The man, his attention focused on
are the high cheek bones and the prominent the eagle, probably was either part of a larger
nose with the line on either side. A circular seal relief or the statue was incomplete, especially
is carved below his temple, next to his ear, in its concealed left side. However, the sculp
which might have been a sign that only the tor carefully carved the side which would be
statues of kings, lords, or their equal may bear. seen by the spectator. The proportions em
The carving of the statue is extremely suc ployed for the head in relation to the body, and
cessful, and the sculptor tried to convey a trend the relation of the arms and legs to the torso are
in Hatrene sculptures, previously unknown, close to natural proportions. And some specific
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al-salihi: A Priest from Hatra
elements, such as the relationship of the length believe that the statue belongs to the period in
of the forearm to that of the thigh, which seem which Hatra was ruled by the lords, and specifi
to be equal, were done with a keen and careful cally to the reign of Nsru who ruled a.d. 114—
understanding of human anatomy found in only 138. Furthermore, the slashings on the hima
a few examples of Hatrene sculpture. tion indicate that he is a priest or, in fact, a
The lack of an accompanying inscription high priest ApkiD ibD, a title only bestowed on
makes the identity of the individual uncertain; Nsru.21 So it may be appropriate to suggest that
thus, we have to depend mainly on external our statue represents Nsru, and its provenance
evidence which involves stylistic analogy with may enhance further the identity of the por
other works as well as some religious concepts trayed figure, because Nsru was involved in the
associated with the clergy of Hatra. The restoration works carried on at the gates of the
coiffure is, in general, similar to that of Nsru city for the purpose of consolidating the fortifi
Mry3, who appeared on his victory relief cations and the presence of the inscriptions
carved on the lintel of the shrine of Issarbel which mention his name22 along with his rep
Athena (V).18 He is shown reclining on his resentations as commemorative symbols of his
left side celebrating his victory over Trajan, victory over the Roman army led by Trajan.
when the latter the city in a.d. 117.
besieged
But Trajan's campaign was doomed to failure
due to the city's formidable defences and to Notes
the bravery of the inhabitants. Nsru's hair on
*
the relief is
pulled high over the forehead,
Professor of Archaeology, College of Arts, Uni
similar to that of our statue, but due to the versity of Baghdad.
1. W. Al-Salihi, "Hatra Excavation at the North
slight weathering of the surface of the relief,
ern Gate," Sumei 36 (1980), 158-89.
the details of the arrangement of the curls and
2. The expedition of the 25th season of excava
the loose hair below are not clearly shown.
tion consisted of Muhammed Subhi Abdullah and
This hair style is unique and does not occur on
Kadim Al-Azzaw. The excavation report and inscrip
any other sculptural representation, neither of tions are being prepared for publication by Dr. fabir
Nsru nor of any individual. K. Ibrahim, of Mosul. Some of the in
University
We have two other reliefs attributed to Nsru scriptions were included in his published disserta
on the basis of inscribed evidence. They are tion, Pie-Islamic Settlement in Jaziiah, Baghdad
carved on two voussoirs of the southern small (1986). I wish to express my thanks to Dr. M. S. Ab
iwan of the so-called of the Triad,19 dullah for permission to study and publish the
Temple
statue.
which was constructed by Nsru himself ac
3. Ibrahim, Jaziiah, pp. 157-60, pis. 145-53,
cording to the numerous inscriptions uncov
ered during the excavations of the temple. 160-66, 169a-71.
4. W. Al-Salihi, "Inscriptions of Hatra," Sumei
Nsru had two different hair styles on the two
34 (1978), 70f., and "Military Considerations in the
reliefs. On the first, his hair is divided into Defence of Hatra," submitted for publication in Me
three separate parts characterized by large snail also 195f.
sopotamia·, Ibrahim, Jaziiah,
curls, while on the second voussoir, his hair is 5. S. Downey, "Images of Deities Used in the
rather short and combed in straight lines with Decoration of Costumes at Hatra," Sumei 39 (1983),
some covering the upper part of the forehead. 211-16.
Both of these slabs carry Nsru's name. How 6. W. Al-Salihi, "Two new statues of the god
dess Aphrodite," Afaq Aiabia (1987). F. Safar and
ever, we have no solid evidence by which we
M. A. Hatia, the the sun
can determine which of the buildings, the Mustapha, city of (Bagh
dad, 1974), 110-11, 113.
Temple of the Triad or the Shrine Issarbel
7. W. Andrae, Die aichaischen Ischtai-Tempel
Athena (V), was constructed first in his reign.
in Assui, WVDOG 39 (Leipzig, 1922), 84-87.
But a close examination of the sculptural
8. W. Van Ingen, Figuiines fiom Seleucia-on-the
style of three other architectural reliefs which
Tigiis (Ann Arbor, 1934), 61-65.
belong to the back wall of the same temple re 9. S. The Stone and Plastei
Downey, Sculptuie,
veals that the treatment of the facial features The Excavations at Dura-Europos, Final Report II.2
and the rendering of the folds of the garments (Los Angeles, 1977), 35-46.
resemble those of our statue.20 Therefore, I 10. Safar and Mustapha, Hatia, p. 317, fig. 325.
39
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al-salihi: A Priest from Hatra
11. Ibid., p. 25a, fig. 252. reclining figure as Wigs even though Nsru's name is
12. Ibid., p. 253, figs. 244, 245. incised exactly above the figure.
13. M. Colledge, The Ait of Palmyra (London, 19. H. Al-Najafy, "The inscriptions of Hatra,"
1976); Downey, Sculpture, 291. Sumer 39 (1983), p. 183, nos. 358-59.
14. Safar and Mustapha, Hatra, p. 60, fig. 1. 20. Safar and Mustapha, Hatra, pp. 113-15, figs.
15. Ibid., pp. 144-46, figs. 135-37. 88-90, and Colledge, Parthian Period, pis. 26-a,
16. W. Al-Salihi, "Further notes on Hercules 27-b, 30-a.
Gnd3 at Hatra," Sumer 38 (1982), 137-40, and "The 21. Al-Najafy, Inscriptions, p. 181, no. 352; Ibra
Excavations of Shrine XIII at Hatra," Mesopotamia, him, fazirah, 200.
in press. 22. For Nsru's inscription of the Northern Gate,
17. Safar and Mustapha, Hatra, p. 284, fig. 278. see W. Al-Salihi, "Inscriptions of Hatra," Sumer 31
18. Ibid., p. 247, fig. 237. M. Colledge, The (1975), pp. 187f., no. 335; for the Eastern Gate, see
Parthian Period, Iconography of Religions xiv, 3 Ibrahim, fazirah, 200.
(Leiden, 1986), p. 45, pi. 44, mistakenly refers to the
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