Axe Inscribed with the Name of Untash-Napirisha
Unknown · Reign of Untash-Napirisha, c. 1340-1300 BC
Small enough to sit in the palm, this ceremonial axe is made of silver with a copper blade and carries the name of Untash-Napirisha, king of Elam in the fourteenth century BC. The triangular blade issues from the jaws of a lion, and a small boar crouches on the moulded butt of the socket, so that the weapon reads as a chain of predators. The Elamite inscription is a dedication, the king offering the piece to a god.
The axe was found at Chogha Zanbil, the religious city Untash-Napirisha founded near Susa around its huge ziggurat, in the temple of the goddess Kiririsha. Precious metal weapons of this kind were never meant for battle: they were royal gifts to the gods, displayed in sanctuaries as tokens of the king's piety and power. The combination of silver and copper, cast and joined with great skill, shows the level of Elamite metalwork at the height of the kingdom. The piece came to the Louvre through the division of finds from the French excavations at Chogha Zanbil.
Did You Know? The king's name on the blade turns a tiny axe into a signed royal gift more than three thousand years old.
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