During the 1930-1931 season, archaeologists from the Oriental Institute found three bronze/copper statuettes in one of the rooms of the first Temple Oval at Khafajah. The largest statuette is now in the National Museum, Baghdad. The two smaller statuettes are both held by the Oriental Institute. The naked male figures, which are thought to represent heroes, are each set on a four-legged stand. It is likely that they were used to support offerings placed before an altar or cult statue.
Henri Frankfort, Field Director of the Iraq Expedition
Excavated by The Oriental Institute 1930-1931
What is Conservation?
Ever wonder what a conservator does? Oriental Institute Museum conservator Laura Laura D'Alessandro tells you all about her job in this video.
Frankfort, H. and H.A., John A. Wilson, and Thorkild Jacobsen. Before Philosophy: The Intellectual Adventure of Ancient Man. Baltimore: Penguin Books, 1946.
Kramer, Samuel Noah. Cradle of Civilization. Alexandria, VA: Time-Life Books, 1967.
Roaf, Michael. Cultural Atlas of Mesopotamia and the Ancient Near East. New York: Facts on File, 1990.