Assyrian sacred tree

What does it mean?

In ten rooms of the palace of the Assyrian king Ashurnasirpal II at Nimrud (883–859 BC), stylised trees stand beneath the winged sun-disc, flanked by facing kings or winged guardian figures ^[2]. Norma Franklin identifies these trees as female date palms with their offshoots, that is, a stylised date-palm plantation, and reads them as a symbol of the king’s lineage and right to rule ^[1]. Carved at doorways and corners, the tree was believed to protect the space; it is linked to Ishtar and to plenty ^[2].

Same theme

Sources

1. Norma Franklin, “The Assyrian Stylized Tree: A Date Palm Plantation and Aššurnaṣirpal II’s Stemma”, Ash-sharq 5(2), 2021
2. Tuğçe Kocael, “Antik Dönem Hayat Ağacı”, DEÜ SBE Dergisi 28(1), 2026