Barcelona Cultura

The Lion of Babylon

This lion relief dates back to around 575 BC and was found on the processional route that skirted the sanctuary of Babylon, located in present-day Iraq. It is made of glazed polychrome terracotta and is part of the exhibtion Brick by Brick. Ceramics Applied to Architecture and is featured in the section “The protected house”: which features pieces that today seem ornamental but that we know had a protective function. In fact, the lion was a symbol of the goddess of war and desire and protector of the city, Ixtar.

The piece is on loan from the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Vorderasiatisches Museum, where it arrived during the 1930's was restored and remounted after being found on the ground in Iraq. In the photos, you can Stefan Geismeier, of the Pergamon Museum, supervising its installation at the Design Museum.

Brick by Brick. Ceramics Applied to Architecture is an international exhibition that features 12 loaned works from around the world including; The Louvre (Paris), the Benaki Museum (Athens), the Museo Nazionale Etrusco di Villa Giulia (Rome), the Museo Civico Archeologico delle Acque Chianciano Terme (Siena), the Fundação Calouste Gulbenkian/Museo Calouste Gulbenkian (Lisbon) and the Ashmolean Museum (Oxford).

Ajuntament de Barcelona