Imdugud relief This copper alloy relief panel depicts Imdugud, lion-headed god with the body of an eagle, at centre in frontal view with wings extended and claws embedded in the haunches of two stags (in profile with heads facing forward) whose antlers extend beyond the edge of the panel. The stags’ antlers may have been attached with lead pins found nearby. It was attached to a wooden lintel that was protected by a layer of bitumen. The panel, measuring 259.08 cm x 106.68 cm, was found by Henry Hall during excavations in 1919 at the base of the temple-tower of the goddess Ninhursag at Tell Al-‘Ubaid (near Ur) in present day Iraq. It is dated at ca. 2500 BC (4500 BCE), and was acquired by the British Museum in 1919. This artwork dates from the early portion of the Assyrian empire, and can be seen as one bookend to that period of civilization.
