Page:A History of Art in Chaldæa & Assyria Vol 2.djvu/96

CHAPTER II. SCULPTURE. 5 i. — The principal themes of Chaldœo- Assyrian Sculpture. The Egyptian notions as to a future life had much to do with the rapidity with which the art of sculpture was developed during the early years of their history. There was a close relation between their religion and the rites it implied, on the one hand, and the peculiar characteristics of the most ancient Memphite sculptures on the other. We cannot say the same of Chaldaea. So far as our present knowledge extends, we have no reason to suppose that the first efforts of the Mesopotamian sculptor w^ere directed to providing the umbra, the immaterial inhabitant of the tomb, with a material support which should resemble as closely as possible the body of flesh and bones that, in spite of every precaution, would sooner or later end in dust and nothingness. No monument has come down to us in which we can recognize a portrait image executed for a sepulchre. 1 And yet the basis of the Chaldaean religion was similar to that of Egypt. Taken as a whole, the beliefs as to a posthumous life were the same in both countries. Why then had they such different effects upon the arts ? For this we may give several reasons. The first is the comparatively small importance forced upon the Chaldaean tomb by the nature of the soil. In mere coffins of terra-cotta, and even in those narrow brick vaults that are met with at certain points, at Mugheir and Warka for instance, there is no room for a single statue, still less for the crowds of images held by a Gizeh or Sakkarah mastaba. Add 1 A few terra-cotta statuettes have certainly been found, but these seem to be idols rather than images of the defunct.