The Sumerian word lama, which is rendered in Akkadian as lamassu, refers to a beneficient protective female deity. The corresponding male deity was called alad, in Hebrew šed (שד) or in Akkadian, šêdu.[1] In art they were depicted as winged bulls and lions; both forms had the heads of human males. There are still surviving figures of šêdu in bas-relief and some statues in museums. Notable examples of šêdu/lamassu held by museums include those at the British Museum, Musée du Louvre, Metropolitan Museum of Art and one extremely large example kept at the Oriental Institute, Chicago. They are generally attributed to the ancient Assyrians.[2] [3] To protect houses the shedu were engraved in clay tablets, which were buried under the door's threshold. At the entrance of palaces often placed as a pair. At the entrance of cities they were sculpted in colossal size, and placed as a pair, one at each side of the door of the city, that generally had buttdoors in the surrounding wall, each one looking towards one of the cardinal points.
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Bull man
The bull man is a demon from Mesopotamian mythology. He is a human above the waist and a bull below the waist. He also has the horns and the ears of a bull. The bull man helps people fight evil and chaos. He holds the gates of dawn open for the sun god Shamash and supports the sun disc. He is often shown on Cylinder Seals. It appears frequently in Mesopotamian art, sometimes with wings. Statues of the bull-man were often used as gatekeepers. Over time it evolved into a friendly, protective demon. In Akkadian, he is called Gud-elim, or "The Horned Bull".
Lammasu in fiction
Lammasu are a type of good-aligned creature in the role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons and in the Magic: The Gathering trading card game as the white card Hunted Lammasu in the Ravnica: City of Guilds expansion. In Demon: The Fallen the lammasu are a house of fallen angels; see Houses in Demon: The Fallen. Lammasu is also a large bull-like creature in service of the Chaos Dwarfs in Warhammer Fantasy Battle. A bull with a man's head is found among the creatures that make up Aslan's army in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. Like the mythical shedu, the bull-man fights evil in the form of the White Witch's army. In Alexander, Lamassu are seen at the Ishtar Gate in Babylon.
Gallery
British Museum Collection
 The British Museum - Human Headed Winged Lions and Reliefs from Nimrud with the Gates of Balawat |
 The British Museum - Human Headed Winged Bulls from Khorsabad |
 The British Museum - Human Headed Winged Lion and Bull from Nimrud, companion pieces in Metropolitan Museum of Art |
 The British Museum - Assyrian Sculpture, notice the colossal Lion Lamassu |
Musée du Louvre Collection
 Musée du Louvre - Human Headed Winged Bulls from Khorsabad, otherwise known as Lamassu's |
 Musée du Louvre - Human Headed Winged Bulls, Sculpture and Reliefs from Khorsabad, note the Lamassu in the foreground is a cast from the Oriental Institute, Chicago |
 Musée du Louvre - Human Headed Winged Bulls and Reliefs from Khorsabad |
 Musée du Louvre - Human Headed Winged Bulls and Reliefs from Khorsabad |
Metropolitan Museum of Art Collection
 The Metropolitan Museum of Art - Human Headed Winged Lion and Bull from Nimrud, companion pieces in the British Museum |
Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago Collection
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See also
References
- ^ An illustrated dictionary, Gods, Demons and Symbols of Ancient Mesopotamia. (2003; Jeremy Black and Anthony Green, The British Museum Press; ISBN 0-7141-1705-6)
- ^ http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ancient/cultures/mesopotamia_gallery_09.shtml
- ^ http://www.ancientneareast.net/religion_mesopotamian/lamassu.html
