ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses political and artistic interactions between Elam and Mesopotamia during the reign of the Shimashki (LÚ.SUki) (ca. 2050–1880 bc). After Puzur-Inshusinak’s reign, the Susiana lowlands were annexed to the Mesopotamian political orbit, with Sumerian kings, especially Shulgi (2094–2047 bc), actively engaged in the restorations and erection of temples on the Acropolis at Susa. In 2004 bc, however, the Shimashki power that had been consolidating in the east put an end to the Ur III Dynasty. This moment was a turning point for both Mesopotamia and Elam. For the former it marked the last chapter of the Sumerian renaissance; for the latter the beginning of a long-lasting union between lowlands and highlands. During this period, the glyptic corpus of Susa is almost indistinguishable from the Mesopotamian one, with a presentation to a king or deity being by far the most popular theme. The preserved statuary is small in scale, but incredibly rich in detail. This is especially true of terracotta female figurines, which underwent a significant change with the introduction of single-face molds. In the highlands, Anshan (Tall-e Malyan) had been resettled around 2200 bc and expanded from ca. 39 ha. to 130 ha.
