The Lion Metaphor in Neo-Assyrian Royal Seals

This study examines the depictions on Neo-Assyrian royal seals in an attempt to reveal the metaphorical connection between the king and the lion. In this context, royal inscriptions were also scanned, and the identifications between the king and the lion mentioned in the documents were identified. Typologically, Neo-Assyrian royal seals are divided into two main types. In the first type, the king's contest with a lion is depicted. In the seals belonging to the second category, only a depiction of a lion is found. Inscriptions are also present on the edges of some seal impressions. These seals were used until the end of the Neo-Assyrian period. What is intended to be conveyed through the lion depictions on the seals are the characteristics of the king. Expressions found in the kings' inscriptions, such as "I raged like a lion" or "I roared like a lion," confirm the metaphorical relationship between the king and the lion. The lion is paradoxically both the king's equal and his antithesis. The lion is the most powerful animal in the animal kingdom that kings could substitute for their rivals. In the lion's paradoxical equality with the king, the emphasis is on qualities such as being as strong, fierce, angry, magnificent, heroic, and warlike as the lion. In a metaphorical context, in the royal seals where only the lion is depicted, the lion is a direct symbol of the king. The king's contest with the lion also has a religious dimension. In the Neo-Assyrian period, the king's lion hunt is a type of animal sacrifice. From the royal inscriptions and scenes in reliefs, it is clearly seen that the lion hunt was a religious ceremony. The performance of libations in the lion hunt scenes in palace reliefs stems from the hunt being a ceremonial act.