The Master of Animals, Lord of Animals, or Mistress of the Animals is a motif in ancient art showing a human between and grasping two confronted animals.[1] The motif is very widespread in the art of the Ancient Near East and Egypt. The figure may be female or male, it may be a column or a symbol, the animals may be realistic or fantastical, and the human figure may have animal elements such as horns, an animal upper body, an animal lower body, legs, or cloven feet. Although what the motif represented to the cultures that created the works probably varies greatly, unless shown with specific divine attributes, when male the figure is typically described as a hero by interpreters.[2]
Mistress of animals (Potnia Theron) Pithos with relief, 625-600 BC, National Archaeological Museum of Athens
The motif is so widespread and visually effective that many depictions probably were conceived as decoration with only a vague meaning attached to them.[3] The Master of Animals is the "favorite motif of Achaemenian official seals", but the figures in these cases should be understood as the king.[4]
The human figure may be standing, as found from the fourth millennium BC, or as kneeling on one knee found from the third millennium BC. They are usually shown looking frontally, but in Assyrian pieces typically they are shown from the side. Sometimes the animals are clearly alive, whether fairly passive and tamed, or still struggling, rampant, or attacking. In other pieces they may represent dead hunter's prey.[5]
Other associated representations show a figure controlling or "taming" a single animal, usually to the right of the figure. But the many representations of heroes or kings killing an animal are distinguished from these.[6]
"Master of the Animals" stamp seals, Tepe Giyan, Iran, 5000-4000 BCE.[7]
The earliest known depiction of such a motif appears on stamp seals of the Ubaid period in Mesopotamia.[8] The motif appears on a terracotta stamp seal from Tell Telloh, ancient Girsu, at the end of the prehistoric Ubaid period of Mesopotamia, c. 4000 BC.[9][10][11]
Gebel el-Arak Knife (c. 3450 BC). Naqada II, Egypt
The motif also was given the topmost location of the famous Gebel el-Arak Knife in the Louvre, an ivory and flint knife dating from the Naqada II d period of Egyptian prehistory, which began c. 3450 BC. Here a figure in Mesopotamian dress, often interpreted to be a god, grapples with two lions. It has been connected to the famous Pashupati seal from the Indus Valley civilization (2500-1500 BC), showing a figure seated in a yoga-like posture, with a horned headress (or horns), and surrounded by animals.[12]
This in turn is related to a figure on the Gundestrup cauldron, who sits with legs part-crossed, has antlers, is surrounded by animals, and grasps a snake in one hand and a torc in the other. This famous and puzzling object probably dates to 200 BC, or possibly as late as 300 AD, and although found in Denmark, it may have been made in Thrace.
A form of the motif appears on a belt buckle of the Early Middle Ages from Kanton Wallis, Switzerland, which depicts the biblical figure of Daniel between two lions.[13]
The purse-lid from the Sutton Hoo burial of about 620 AD has two plaques with a human between two wolves, and the motif is common in Anglo-Saxon art and related Early Medieval styles, where the animals generally remain aggressive. Other notable examples of the motif in Germanic art include one of the Torslunda plates, and helmets from Vendel and Valsgärde.[14]
In the art of Mesopotamia the motif appears very early, usually with a "naked hero", for example at Uruk in the Uruk period (c. 4000 to 3100 BC), but was "outmoded in Mesopotamia by the seventh century BC".[15] In Luristan bronzes the motif is extremely common, and often highly stylized.[16] In terms of its composition this motif compares with another very common motif in the art of the ancient Near East and Mediterranean, that of two confronted animals flanking and grazing on a Tree of Life, interpreted as representing an earth deity.
Master of animals, Susa I (4200-3800 BC), Louvre Museum
Terracotta stamp seal with Master of Animals motif, Tell Telloh, ancient Girsu, End of Ubaid period, c. 4000 BC [17][18]
Single bull-man wrestling with a lion, Mesopotamia, 3rd millennium BC
Although such figures are not all, or even usually, deities, the term may be a generic name for a number of deities from a variety of cultures with close relationships to the animal kingdom or in part animal form (in cultures where that is not the norm). These figures control animals, usually wild ones, and are responsible for their continued reproduction and availability for hunters.[21] They sometimes also have female equivalents, the so-called Mistress of the Animals.[22]
Many Mesopotamian examples may represent Enkidu, a central figure in the Ancient MesopotamianEpic of Gilgamesh. They all may have a Stone Age precursor who was probably a hunter's deity. Many relate to the horned deity of the hunt, another common type, typified by Cernunnos, and a variety of stag, bull, ram, and goat deities. Horned deities are not universal however, and in some cultures bear deities, such as Arktos, might take the role, or even the more anthropomorphic deities who lead the Wild Hunt. Such figures are also often referred to as 'Lord of the forest' or 'Lord of the mountain'.
The Greek god shown as "Master of Animals" is usually Apollo as a hunting deity.[23]Shiva has the epithet Pashupati meaning the "Lord of animals", and these figures may derive from an archetype.[24] Chapter 39 of the Book of Job has been interpreted as an assertion of the deity of the Hebrew Bible as Master of Animals.[25]
^Ross, Micah (ed), From the Banks of the Euphrates: Studies in Honor of Alice Louise Slotsky, pp. 174-177, 2008, Eisenbrauns, ISBN1575061449, 9781575061443, Google books
^Teissier, Beatrice, Ancient Near Eastern Cylinder Seals from the Marcopolic Collection, p. 46, 1984, University of California Press, ISBN0520049276, 9780520049277, google books
^"Horse Cheekpiece" by "OWM", in Notable Acquisitions, 1980-1981, pp. 7-8, 1981, Metropolitan Museum of Art, ISBN0870992848, 9780870992841, google books
^Doak, Brian R., Consider Leviathan: Narratives of Nature and the Self in Job, 2014, Fortress Press, ISBN145148951X, 9781451489514, google books; Job:39, NIV
References
Aruz, Joan, et al., Assyria to Iberia at the Dawn of the Classical Age, 2014, Metropolitan Museum of Art, ISBN0300208081, 9780300208085, google books
Frankfort, Henri, The Art and Architecture of the Ancient Orient, Pelican History of Art, 4th ed 1970, Penguin (now Yale History of Art), ISBN0140561072
Garfinkel, Alan P., Donald R. Austin, David Earle, and Harold Williams, 2009, "Myth, Ritual and Rock Art: Coso Decorated Animal-Humans and the Animal Master". Rock Art Research 26(2):179-197. , The Journal of the Australian Rock Art Research Association (AURA) and of the International Federation of Rock Art Organizations (IFRAO)]
Werness, Hope B., Continuum Encyclopedia of Animal Symbolism in World Art, 2006, A&C Black, ISBN0826419135, 9780826419132, google books
Further reading
Hinks, Roger (1938). The Master of Animals, Journal of the Warburg Institute, Vol. 1, No. 4 (Apr., 1938), pp. 263–265
Chittenden, Jacqueline (1947). The Master of Animals, Hesperia, Vol. 16, No. 2 (Apr. - Jun., 1947), pp. 89–114
Slotten, Ralph L. (1965). The Master of Animals: A study in the symbolism of ultimacy in primitive religion, Journal of the American Academy of Religion, 1965, XXXIII(4): 293-302
Bernhard Lang (2002). The Hebrew God: Portrait of an Ancient Deity, New Haven: Yale University Press, pp. 75–108
Yamada, Hitoshi (2013). "The "Master of Animals" Concept of the Ainu", Cosmos: The Journal of the Traditional Cosmology Society, 29: 127–140
Garfinkel, Alan P. and Steve Waller, 2012, Sounds and Symbolism from the Netherworld: Acoustic Archaeology at the Animal Master’s Portal. Pacific Coast Archaeological Society Quarterly 46(4):37-60
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Master of Animals.
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The Master of Animals Lord of Animals or Mistress of the Animals is a motif in ancient art showing a human between and grasping two confronted animals 1 The motif is very widespread in the art of the Ancient Near East and Egypt The figure may be female or male it may be a column or a symbol the animals may be realistic or fantastical and the human figure may have animal elements such as horns an animal upper body an animal lower body legs or cloven feet Although what the motif represented to the cultures that created the works probably varies greatly unless shown with specific divine attributes when male the figure is typically described as a hero by interpreters 2 Egyptianizing gold pendant showing the Lord of the Animals Minoan 1700 1500 BC Aegina Treasure British Museum Mistress of animals Potnia Theron Pithos with relief 625 600 BC National Archaeological Museum of Athens The motif is so widespread and visually effective that many depictions probably were conceived as decoration with only a vague meaning attached to them 3 The Master of Animals is the favorite motif of Achaemenian official seals but the figures in these cases should be understood as the king 4 The human figure may be standing as found from the fourth millennium BC or as kneeling on one knee found from the third millennium BC They are usually shown looking frontally but in Assyrian pieces typically they are shown from the side Sometimes the animals are clearly alive whether fairly passive and tamed or still struggling rampant or attacking In other pieces they may represent dead hunter s prey 5 Other associated representations show a figure controlling or taming a single animal usually to the right of the figure But the many representations of heroes or kings killing an animal are distinguished from these 6 Contents 1 Art 2 Deity figures 3 Notes 4 References 5 Further reading 6 External linksArt Edit Master of the Animals stamp seals Tepe Giyan Iran 5000 4000 BCE 7 The earliest known depiction of such a motif appears on stamp seals of the Ubaid period in Mesopotamia 8 The motif appears on a terracotta stamp seal from Tell Telloh ancient Girsu at the end of the prehistoric Ubaid period of Mesopotamia c 4000 BC 9 10 11 Gebel el Arak Knife c 3450 BC Naqada II Egypt The motif also was given the topmost location of the famous Gebel el Arak Knife in the Louvre an ivory and flint knife dating from the Naqada II d period of Egyptian prehistory which began c 3450 BC Here a figure in Mesopotamian dress often interpreted to be a god grapples with two lions It has been connected to the famous Pashupati seal from the Indus Valley civilization 2500 1500 BC showing a figure seated in a yoga like posture with a horned headress or horns and surrounded by animals 12 This in turn is related to a figure on the Gundestrup cauldron who sits with legs part crossed has antlers is surrounded by animals and grasps a snake in one hand and a torc in the other This famous and puzzling object probably dates to 200 BC or possibly as late as 300 AD and although found in Denmark it may have been made in Thrace A form of the motif appears on a belt buckle of the Early Middle Ages from Kanton Wallis Switzerland which depicts the biblical figure of Daniel between two lions 13 The purse lid from the Sutton Hoo burial of about 620 AD has two plaques with a human between two wolves and the motif is common in Anglo Saxon art and related Early Medieval styles where the animals generally remain aggressive Other notable examples of the motif in Germanic art include one of the Torslunda plates and helmets from Vendel and Valsgarde 14 In the art of Mesopotamia the motif appears very early usually with a naked hero for example at Uruk in the Uruk period c 4000 to 3100 BC but was outmoded in Mesopotamia by the seventh century BC 15 In Luristan bronzes the motif is extremely common and often highly stylized 16 In terms of its composition this motif compares with another very common motif in the art of the ancient Near East and Mediterranean that of two confronted animals flanking and grazing on a Tree of Life interpreted as representing an earth deity Master of animals Susa I 4200 3800 BC Louvre Museum Terracotta stamp seal with Master of Animals motif Tell Telloh ancient Girsu End of Ubaid period c 4000 BC 17 18 Gebel el Arak Knife ivory handle front after c 3450 BC Soapstone stamp with depicting an ibex headed character taming snakes Lorestan 4th millennium BC Louvre Museum Protective Master from the harp found at Ur dated circa 2600 BCE Chlorite Jiroft culture Iran ca 2500 BC Bronze Age I a cloven footed human flanked by scorpions and lionesses Luristan bronze finial in the form of the Master of Animals Achaemenid seal impression with the Persian king subduing two Mesopotamian lamassu Iranian Master of Animals with two snakes Indus valley civilization seal with human flanked by two lions 2500 1500 BC 19 20 Impression from the Pashupati seal Indus Valley civilization One of the Minoan snake goddess figurines about 1600 BC Detail of the Gundestrup Cauldron antlered figure Confronted animals here ibexes flank a Tree of Life from Sasanian Iran fifth or sixth century AD Cincinnati Art Museum Ptolemaic period 305 30 BC Egyptian cippus of Horus Museum of Fine Arts Boston Luristan bronze horse bit cheekpiece with Master of Animals motif about 700 BCDeity figures Edit Assyrian hero grasping a lion and a snake Single bull man wrestling with a lion Mesopotamia 3rd millennium BC Although such figures are not all or even usually deities the term may be a generic name for a number of deities from a variety of cultures with close relationships to the animal kingdom or in part animal form in cultures where that is not the norm These figures control animals usually wild ones and are responsible for their continued reproduction and availability for hunters 21 They sometimes also have female equivalents the so called Mistress of the Animals 22 Many Mesopotamian examples may represent Enkidu a central figure in the Ancient Mesopotamian Epic of Gilgamesh They all may have a Stone Age precursor who was probably a hunter s deity Many relate to the horned deity of the hunt another common type typified by Cernunnos and a variety of stag bull ram and goat deities Horned deities are not universal however and in some cultures bear deities such as Arktos might take the role or even the more anthropomorphic deities who lead the Wild Hunt Such figures are also often referred to as Lord of the forest or Lord of the mountain The Greek god shown as Master of Animals is usually Apollo as a hunting deity 23 Shiva has the epithet Pashupati meaning the Lord of animals and these figures may derive from an archetype 24 Chapter 39 of the Book of Job has been interpreted as an assertion of the deity of the Hebrew Bible as Master of Animals 25 Notes Edit Arruz 303 304 Ross Micah ed From the Banks of the Euphrates Studies in Honor of Alice Louise Slotsky pp 174 177 2008 Eisenbrauns ISBN 1575061449 9781575061443 Google books Frankfort 75 Teissier Beatrice Ancient Near Eastern Cylinder Seals from the Marcopolic Collection p 46 1984 University of California Press ISBN 0520049276 9780520049277 google books Horse Cheekpiece by OWM in Notable Acquisitions 1980 1981 pp 7 8 1981 Metropolitan Museum of Art ISBN 0870992848 9780870992841 google books Arruz 308 Stamp seal British Museum The British Museum Charvat Petr 2003 Mesopotamia Before History Routledge p 96 ISBN 9781134530779 Site officiel du musee du Louvre cartelfr louvre fr Brown Brian A Feldman Marian H 2013 Critical Approaches to Ancient Near Eastern Art Walter de Gruyter p 304 ISBN 9781614510352 Charvat Petr 2003 Mesopotamia Before History Routledge p 96 ISBN 9781134530779 Werness 270 Gaimster Marit 1998 Vendel period bracteates on Gotland Gaimster Marit 1998 Vendel period bracteates on Gotland Frankfort 30 31 Uruk 75 78 79 347 2nd quote Frankfort 343 347 Site officiel du musee du Louvre cartelfr louvre fr Brown Brian A Feldman Marian H 2013 Critical Approaches to Ancient Near Eastern Art Walter de Gruyter p 304 ISBN 9781614510352 Possehl Gregory L 2002 The Indus Civilization A Contemporary Perspective Rowman Altamira p 146 ISBN 9780759116429 Kosambi Damodar Dharmanand 1975 An Introduction to the Study of Indian History Popular Prakashan p 64 ISBN 9788171540389 Garfinkel Arruz 303 304 Arruz 303 304 308 Werness 270 Doak Brian R Consider Leviathan Narratives of Nature and the Self in Job 2014 Fortress Press ISBN 145148951X 9781451489514 google books Job 39 NIVReferences EditAruz Joan et al Assyria to Iberia at the Dawn of the Classical Age 2014 Metropolitan Museum of Art ISBN 0300208081 9780300208085 google books Frankfort Henri The Art and Architecture of the Ancient Orient Pelican History of Art 4th ed 1970 Penguin now Yale History of Art ISBN 0140561072 Garfinkel Alan P Donald R Austin David Earle and Harold Williams 2009 Myth Ritual and Rock Art Coso Decorated Animal Humans and the Animal Master Rock Art Research 26 2 179 197 Section The Animal Master The Journal of the Australian Rock Art Research Association AURA and of the International Federation of Rock Art Organizations IFRAO Werness Hope B Continuum Encyclopedia of Animal Symbolism in World Art 2006 A amp C Black ISBN 0826419135 9780826419132 google booksFurther reading EditHinks Roger 1938 The Master of Animals Journal of the Warburg Institute Vol 1 No 4 Apr 1938 pp 263 265 Chittenden Jacqueline 1947 The Master of Animals Hesperia Vol 16 No 2 Apr Jun 1947 pp 89 114 Slotten Ralph L 1965 The Master of Animals A study in the symbolism of ultimacy in primitive religion Journal of the American Academy of Religion 1965 XXXIII 4 293 302 Bernhard Lang 2002 The Hebrew God Portrait of an Ancient Deity New Haven Yale University Press pp 75 108 Yamada Hitoshi 2013 The Master of Animals Concept of the Ainu Cosmos The Journal of the Traditional Cosmology Society 29 127 140 Garfinkel Alan P and Steve Waller 2012 Sounds and Symbolism from the Netherworld Acoustic Archaeology at the Animal Master s Portal Pacific Coast Archaeological Society Quarterly 46 4 37 60 Wikimedia Commons has media related to Master of Animals External links EditMaster of the Animals at Encyclopaedia Britannica Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Master of Animals amp oldid 1133569721, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
