The Shahdad Standard consists of a square metal plate (made of arsenical copper) attached to a metal pole. At the top of the pole, above a conical stone base, sits a small metal bird of prey with its wings spread open. The plate bears a crowded scene of human, animal, plant, and geometric figures, first raised in relief through metal casting and then beautifully outlined and detailed with engraving. All the people in this gathering hold their hands in a similar way, conveying a sense of mutual respect.

In the scene, a majestic man sits on a royal throne. His right hand is clenched at his waist, and his left hand is raised in front of him. Facing him, a lady with elegant hair and beautiful clothing is shown kneeling on her toes, accompanied by two maidservants. All three have their right hands raised. At the lady’s feet stands an engraved jug. Behind the main male figure, a narrow, waisted, broad, chested man – probably bare from the waist up – stands with his right hand raised.
At the top of the composition, the sun appears prominently, with a small bull to its left. In the middle are a palm tree, two tamarisk trees, something like a game board or agricultural plots, and above them a stepped platform. At the bottom, two lions move toward a humped bull that stands between them, bellowing. Along the edges, intertwined ropes or serpents can be seen, together with a canopy above the head of the main figure.
The scene seems to show a relationship between the male and female protagonists and their attendants, expressed through the exchange of objects and ideas.

Discovered in Shahdad Cemetery of Kerman, southern Iran, the object dates from the Second half of the 3rd millennium BCE (Bronze Age). It measures 23.4 × 23.4 cm (flag plate); pole length approx. 120 cm and is being kept at the national Museum of Iran.
The Shahdad Standard is one of the most remarkable examples of the “intercultural style” from the Trans-Elamite cultural horizon on the Iranian Plateau. Based on its iconography, it was made shortly before the rise of the Akkadian dynasty in Mesopotamia. The object was discovered, along with a rich variety of funerary gifts, during Ali Hakemi’s 1969 excavations (Iranian calendar year 1348) in the western part of the Shahdad Cemetery, which is more than 4,000 years old. Recently, the National Museum of Iran documented this object using photogrammetry and produced a three?dimensional model of it.

AM