Figurines, Slaves and Soldiers: The Iron Age Figurines from the Euphrates Valley, North Syria

2600 years ago Kar Shalmaneser was a bustling commercial city on the Euphrates River. A glorious royal residence, reminiscent of the magnificence of the Assur palaces was built on the remains of thousands of years of prior occupation; King Shalmaneser III’s home away from home when visiting the outlying provinces of his great empire. In the middle city, merchants created small-scale enterprises, selling their products as far away as the capital Assur. One such businessman , possibly named Hanni, may have had such a workshop, where archaeological excavations have recovered a number of baked clay figurines, human and animal… • Who made them? • What purpose did they serve? • How can archaeologists think about figurines? • Why are figurines so fascinating? This book challenges traditional ways of thinking about figurines. Based on her doctoral research, Victoria Clayton offers a thought-provoking approach to the interpretation of these never-before published Iron Age figurines from the site of Kar Shalmaneser (present day Tell Ahmar) which are part of a tradition of Upper Euphrates figurine making.