Funerary Head of an Elamite
Susa
15th-14th centuries BC
Painted unbaked clay
H 0.24 m; W 0.15 m
Sb 2836
Description
"In the middle of the second millennium, the Susians buried
their dead in family vaults under their houses. Next to the head of
the deceased, which was probably veiled, they frequently placed a
portrait, executed at the moment of death. It is the only example
from the East of a genuinely funerary art which aims at personal
likeness. This one shows the typical Elamite, with its severe
expression characteristic of a tough population which had strong
links with mountain dwellers."
- Louvre