The Standard of Ur - baileystevens.com · The Standard of Ur Discovered in 1927 Dates to the Early Dynastic Period Found in a royal tomb by British Archaeologist Charles Leonard Woolley

The Standard of Ur Bailey Stevens July 2018

Key Information

Title: The Standard of Ur

Artist: Unknown

Date: c. 4,500-4,600 years old

Materials: Wooden Box inlaid with mosaic of shell, red limestone, and lapis lazuli

Size: 8.5’ X 19.5’

Replica Current Location: British Museum, London

Ur Culture

Sumerian metropolis in Southern Mesopotamia (Modern Day Iraq)

Advanced civilization who build some of the world’s first cities

Patriarchal, monotheistic

Prosperous - Tombs found filled with rare metals (Gold, Silver)

The city died when the rivers that provided water to the cities irrigation systems changed course, causing the city to dry up

The Standard of Ur

Discovered in 1927

Dates to the Early Dynastic Period

Found in a royal tomb by British Archaeologist Charles Leonard Woolley

Woolley thought the piece was a standard (royal emblem), however it is now thought to more likely be a box for a musical instrument

Most of the wood decayed over time.Woolley and his team poured plaster into the places the wood would have laid to discover the standards original form.

War Side and Peace Side may be interrelated or unlinked- we don’t know

Personal Ur Assignment The Standard of Ur represents the culture from which its designer(s) came.

You will design one side of your own musical box that represents the culture of the music you enjoy listening to (country, classical, rap, etc.) on an 12’ X 18’’ piece of paper.

You will be graded according to the general assignment rubric.

You will have the rest of this class period, most of next period, and half of Friday’s class to complete this assignment.

Requirements for appropriate technique:

Piece uses the entire length of the paper

There are between 2-5 parallel bands mimicking the Standard

A genre of music is apparent, along with the students connection to that genre

There is a clear subject in the piece

Content is coherent