Inside an Assyrian Palace
Secret Treasures of the Richelieu Wing
The Cour Khorsabad
These great winged bulls with human heads are protective spirits guarding the entrance to the palace of Sargon II.
In the 8th century BC, the Assyrian Empire covered the Near East from Assyria to the north of present day Iraq. King Sargon II decided to move the capital to Dur-Sharrukin, the present-day Khorsabad, near Mosul. There he had a great city and an immense palace built.
One of the courtyards of this palace is evoked here. On the wall reliefs, formerly painted, we see scenes of court life, military campaigns, and protective figures, like the legendary hero Gilgamesh, subduing a lion in his arms.
When Sargon died, his son transferred the capital to Nineveh. Dur-Sharrukin remained unfinished and gradually was abandoned. It was not rediscovered until the 19th century, by French archaeologists
The five-footed bulls
They have five feet! In this way they appear at once immobile and in motion. Between their feet, an inscription recalls the work of King Sargon II and curses whoever harms the palace.