User:MatthewJamesclements/sandbox

The statue of Gilgamesh at the University of Sydney

HISTORY

Gilgamesh was the king of the Mesopotamian city of Uruk. He was worshiped and praised for his warrior abilities, building abilities, wisdom and judgement. He was thought to be part man and part god as he was the son of the goddess Ninsun (Bernard, 2012) and the Preist- King Lugalbanda (Mark, 2010). Gilgamesh is one of two main characters in the ancient Mesopotamian mythology the Epic of Gilgamesh. The Epic reveals characteristics of Gilgamesh that are paralleled within the university to contextualise the desired epideictic rhetoric for the occasion of the commemorative artwork, such as Gilgamesh’s continual quest for immortality, where through his quest for knowledge he discovers his realisation of self-mortality (Stone, 2012). He has characteristics such as strength and power (large hands, holding the lion, large muscular body), perseverance (attention to detail in the statue), and historical importance.

PURPOSE

The statue is a communicative piece of text and utilises epideictic rhetoric to praise the Mesopotamian king Gilgamesh. Gilgamesh is portrayed by Batros as a powerful masculine figure, with a beaded beard holding a lion in one hand. Gilgamesh’s statue was crafted in the year 2000, which the Gilgamesh cultural centre on behalf of the Assyrian community donated to the university of Sydney to honour the universities 150th anniversary that same year (Bernard, 2012). The statue is built in brass, with a stone plinth and gravel base, a brass plaque denoting the life of Gilgamesh is also attached. The text conveys a sense of commemoration and celebration of the past. And uses both visual and alphabetical modes to convey this through the text on the plaque, and the proud build of the statue. The text is highly accessible, being located by a campus road, and on a popular pedestrian thoroughfare to a new building. Whilst the piece takes the myth for granted, it does not necessarily attempt to represent it as a literal truth, and as such, no higher powers are alluded to. It is a reasonably simple message, focusing entirely upon commemoration and veneration, with very little emotion present.

ARTIST

Lewis Batros and donated by the Gilgamesh Cultural Centre on behalf of the Assyrian community celebrating the university's sesquicentenary in 2000.The author effectively establishes a sense of reflection and commemoration, and efficiently communicates between the Assyrian community that has a cultural stake in the story of Gilgamesh, and the university, which has a stake in the history. The author assumes very little knowledge on the behalf of the observer, and stands on the line between fiction and truth, referring to Gilgamesh as both a historical and mythological character.

Bernard 2012, ‘Gilgamesh the first superhero’, Museum Victoria, Web log post, 22 March, Viewed 3rd April 2015, http://museumvictoria.com.au/about/mv-blog/mar-2012/gilgamesh-the-first-superhero/.

Mark, JJ 2010 ‘Gilgamesh’, Ancient History Encyclopedia, October 13, Viewed 3rd April 2015,http://www.ancient.eu/gilgamesh/

Stone, D 2012, ‘The Epic Of Gilgamesh Statue Brings Ancient Tale to Life’, MUSE, Viewed 3rd April 2015, http://www.academia.edu/7833008/MUSE_Art_Culture_Antiquities_Natural_History_02_July_2012