Mari's Priestess
Scenes of sacrifice found at Mari show that women took part in these ceremonies back then. This female figure wears a type of headdress called a polos, which resembles a high cylindrical crown, bulging out to a rounded top and secured with a headband across the forehead. Figurines of this type have been identified as priestesses, or at least women who played a special role in ritual ceremonies.The garment worn by the woman shown here covers her head like a veil, giving her an air of solemnity. It is rare for figures to be presented in a sitting position. This one is seated on a stone chair decorated with a row of spindle shapes between two rows of chevrons in order to make it look like a piece of wooden furniture.
Era: Early Bronze Age (about 2500 BC).
Substance: gypsum.
Dimensions: 23 x 14 x 34 cm.
Text: Michel Fortin (p. 281).
Photography: Jacques Lessard.
Collection of the National Museum of Damascus.
Michel Fortin, Syria, Land of Civilization. Les Éditions de l'Homme, Musée de la Civilisation de Québec 1999.
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