A Unique Urartian Belt in the Van Museum

Abstract

This article introduces a new Urartian belt decorated with war scenes exhibited in the Van Museum. It is composed of three fragments and shows within a frieze a scene different from the known war scenes, since this one is arranged in a narrative manner. The scenes illustrating the defeated enemy soldiers are of special interest. The Urartian soldiers depicted on the Urartian belts always wear conical helmets and have no beard except for the bowman in the chariot. The enemy soldiers can easily be distinguished from the Urartian warriors with regard to their dresses and positions. Based on available comparisons, this belt can be dated to the first half of the 8th cent. B.C. Its special importance lies in the depiction of a narrative scene with chronological order.