Narrator: This winged genius, or genie, was carved almost 3000 years ago. It was made for the palace of Ashurnasirpal II, king of the mighty Assyrian Empire. Today, the empire would include Iraq, parts of Iran, Kuwait, Syria and Turkey. 

An Assyrian genie was believed to have magical powers. Curator Renee Dreyfus:

Dreyfus: It protected the king from any diseases, ill fortune - and even death. Ashurnasirpal II lavished great attention on his royal palace in Nimrud, which was his capital city.

Narrator: The genie’s magnificent wings are matched by his skillfully carved curled hair, beard and jewelry. He would originally have been one of a pair of genies, guarding an image of the king in a royal audience chamber.

Below are intricately carved ivory plaques. They were found in the palace that belonged to Ashurnasirpal's son, also in Nimrud. Most would have been used to decorate wooden furniture such as thrones. 

Dreyfus: Both unworked and carved ivories were thought of as precious substances, and they were highly prized. The ivories were often painted and inlaid in color and sometimes overlaid with gold.

Narrator: The carvings were made by artists who came from Syria and Phoenicia - today’s Lebanon. These were then part of the Assyrian empire.

Dreyfus: So these artists created plaques that borrowed heavily from Egyptian art - you can see that here, and especially where it depicts fantastic composite animals and floral settings.