The Queen of the Night

this large Babylonian plaque, found in southern Iraq, was made bewteen 1800 and 1750 B.C. It is made of baked straw-tempered clay, modelled in high relief and probably stood in a shrine. The figure could be the demones Lilitu, known in the Bible as Lilith, or a Mesopotamian goddess. The figure wears the horned headdress characteristic of a Mesopotamian deity and holds a rod ann ring of justice, symbols of her divinity. Her long multi-coloured wings hang downwards, indicating that she is a goddess of the Underworld. the book explores the symbolism and history behind this beautiful and highly unusual relief.