orthostat

Orthostats (stone slabs set at the base of a wall) from Malatya on the Euphrates show Tarhun in his bull-drawn chariot receiving libations from a king dressed in his traditional robes, and there is a relief showing his battle with the dragon. At Carchemish was…

Basalt orthostats, as yet unsculptured, anticipated those of the Neo-Assyrian palaces; and mural paintings, like those at Mari, decorated the chambers of an upper story in the Cretan manner. The earlier palace produced a single stone head that illustrates the contemporary Syrian sculpture style at its…

…their buildings are the sculptured orthostats that line the bases of the walls, often of coarse, black basalt awkwardly alternating with white limestone. Columns are of wood, with bases and capitals of stone, and monolithic statues, more than life-size, are a common feature. Fortifications are still an important aspect of…