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How did Assyrian reliefs depict the stages of a military campaign?

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The Great Ziggurat of Ur in Iraq, a massive ancient brick structure with broad staircases and terraced levels, stands alone in a barren landscape. — Mesopotamian art and architecture Ziggurat at Ur (modern Tall al-Muqayyar, Iraq), constructed c. 2100 bce.

Assyrian relief carving served as a primary medium for glorifying the king through extended pictorial narratives of his military achievements. These reliefs depicted the stages of a campaign using episodic arrangements to represent successive events.1

A typical campaign narrative followed a chronological progression:
* Preparation: The Assyrian army is shown preparing for war.1
* Movement: Led by the king, the army is depicted crossing difficult terrain while advancing toward a target.1
* Conflict: The narrative illustrates the attack on a walled city, followed by its capture, burning, and demolition.1
* Aftermath: The scenes conclude with the punishment of enemy leaders and the celebration of the victory.1

In later periods, such as the 7th-century palaces of Sennacherib and Ashurbanipal, these narratives became increasingly complex, utilizing episodic repetition to suggest the progress of fighting across the full height of the stone slabs. Significant individuals or specific episodes were often identified by short inscriptions, which helped clarify the sequence of events without disrupting the overall design.1