Page:A History of Art in Chaldæa & Assyria Vol 2.djvu/181

On the Representations of Animals. 153 inspiration had to do with war, the only bird we find often repro- duced is the eagle, the symbol of victory, who floats over the chariot of the king, and the vulture who devoured where they fell the bodies of the enemies of Assyria ; and even these images are rather careless and conventional, which may perhaps be ■M«<<<<<<<<<<<<<<^<<< «« «««««««««« <<<<<<«<<<< <<<<«<^< <<<<<<<< « « « «  MHtjr Fig. 75. — Embroidery on the king's robe ; from Layard. accounted for by their partially symbolic character and their frequent repetition. 1 A group of partridges rising and, in those sculptures of the later Sargonids in which the artists show a love for picturesque detail, birds hopping in the trees or watching over their nestlings, have been mentioned as showing technical Fig. 76. — Fight between a man and an ostrich. Chalcedony. National Library, Paris. excellence of the same kind as the hunting scenes. 2 The ostrich appears on the elaborate decorations of the royal robes (Fig. 75) and upon the cylinders (Fig. 76). Perhaps it was considered sacred. 1 Layard, Nineveh, vol. ii. p. 437» 2 Layard, Monuments, series ii. plates 32 (Khorsabad), and 40 (Kouyundjik).-' VOL. II. X