Archer Frieze
Name/Title
Archer FriezeEntry/Object ID
06NE14109Description
A polychrome relief of a standing archer facing right holding a spear.Type of Sculpture
ReliefArtwork Details
Medium
PlasterContext
One panel from a frieze at the Palace of Darius the Great (548-486 BCE). The original location of the frieze of archers in the Palace of Darius is unknown, as the bricks and fragments were found scattered throughout the palace. The frieze displays two symmetrical lines of soldier-archers. Each archer holds a spear with both hands, with his bow and quiver over his shoulder. The archers are bearded and wear laced ankle boots, long Persian robes, and diadems. The frieze was inspired by the Processional Way in Babylon, constructed by Nebuchadnezar II (604-562 BCE). However, the technique involved is different. The Babylonians used clay for their bricks, but this Persian frieze has bricks of a siliceous clay. They are decorated in low relief and with glazes of green, blue, white and yellow.Made/Created
Date made
510 BCE - 510 BCETime Period
ArchaicEthnography
Culture/Tribe
Near Eastern - Persian