@article{2016,title={HUNTING ACTIVITIES OF THE KINGS UNTIL THE END NEW ASSYRIAN ERA FROM EARLY PERIODS OF MESOPOTAMIA IN THE LIGHT OF CUNEIFORM SOURCES AND ARCHAEOLOGICAL FINDINGS},abstractNode={We are able to evaluate the royal hunt in Mesopotamia thanks to some documents compiled for various reasons, especially kings’ annals and ınscriptions. The most important visual materials, which inform us about hunting, consist of cylinder seals, seal impressions and particularly wall reliefs in palaces collected from different periods. Hunting was without doubt not merely a passion or a sports activity for the kings in Mesopotamia but also one of the most effective ways to demonstrate their power and courage. Especially records of Assyrian kings, cylindear seals of early period of Mesopotamia and wall reliefs in Assyrian palaces are rich information sources about hunting activities of the kings. In royal hunt, hunting strong and dangerous animals such as lions and bulls was of great importance. Hunting scenes that were portrayed in detail, clearly and vividly are very common at the walls of Nimrud and Ninive palaces. In these reliefs king’s fighting with lions and bulls were depicted in a chariot or different standing positions of the kings. We can say that hunting dangerous and exotic animals was a life style for some kings especially hunting of lions and fierce bulls. Among these kings the most remarkable ones were Asurnasirpal II ve Asurbanipal with a deep passion in hunting in the New Assyrian period. Kings also hunted elephants, leopards, gazelles, deer species, birds, wild donkeys, monkeys, ostriches and other unfamiliar animals as well as lions and wild animals. Written sources and archaeological findings show that such kind of hunting was not been developed in society but only as a culture associated with the palace . Kings in their documents stated that they learned hunting from Gods. They also mentioned that the animals were presented by Gods for hunting and took order from them. These records demonstrate us that kings got permission and help from Gods before hunting. Kings named themselves ‘like a lion’ or ‘like a wild bull’ and exaggerated their powers and attributed themselves the features of fierce animals. In this study, we aim to evaluate the subject gathering information on royal hunt in cuneiform sources and archeological datas that available until the end New Assyrian Era from early periods of Mesopotamian.},author={},year={2016},journal={The Journal of Academic Social Science Studies}}