British Museum Top 20 03 Colossal Statue of a Winged Lion [8 of 30]
3. Colossal statue of a winged lion - from the palace of Ashurnasirpal II at Nimrud in northern Iraq, about 883-859 BC, 3.5m high by 3.7m wide. Stone mythological guardians, sculpted in relief or in the round, were often placed at gateways to ancient Mesopotamian palaces to protect them from demonic forces. This winged lion has five legs so that when viewed from the front it is standing firm, and when viewed from the side it appears to be striding forward against any evil. It wears ropes like other protective spirits.