Foundation nail of Ur Ba'u
Tello, ancient Girsu
Neo-Sumerian period, IInd dynasty of Lagash (circa 2130 BC)
Copper
H 29 cm
AO 311
Description
"Foundation deposits were buried under the temples. These
deposits were composed of a stone tablet and of a pointed copper
figurine, intended to anchor, symbolically, the building. The
figurine of the foundation of Ur Ba'u, Prince of Lagash, shows a
god, half-kneeling, forcing a nail. It was placed in a large vase
with a limestone tablet on which were listed the temples built
during his reign."
- Louvre