Abstract
AbstractAncient Near Eastern literature includes numerous metaphors, similes, and other figures of speech referring to ceramics. This paper presents selected examples of Sumerian, Akkadian, Egyptian, and Biblical texts using clay, empty or filled vessels, potsherds, potters and the tools of their trade, and potters′ quarters. By examining systematically for the first time the literary, art historical, and archaeological contexts for ceramic imagery, new light may be shed on the role and meaning of ceramics in the ancient Near East. Among the topics considered are: (1) the importance of ceramics in creation imagery; (2) the nature of ceramic death and destruction imagery; (3) ceramic imagery with cornucopial connotations; and (4) literary perceptions of clay, pottery, and the status of potters. The material assembled in this study adds significantly to the evidence gleaned from stylistic and technical analysis of ancient Near Eastern ceramics.
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