Balawat Gates of King Shalmaneser III
- Audio guide stop: 212
- Gallery: Room 6
- Audio guide: one commentary for a group of objects shown together
- Museum: The British Museum
- Image © The Trustees of the British Museum, shared under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 licence.
Listen to the free audio guide
About these objects
This display brings together sections of an ancient Assyrian triumph—portions of the grand palace gates from a king known for his conquests: King Shalmaneser III. These bronze bands, once fixed to massive wooden doors, once adorned the entrance of his palace in Balawat, now in modern-day Iraq. Each panel tells a story of military campaigns and royal achievements, embossed with intricate scenes of battles, lion hunts, and the capture of distant cities. King Shalmaneser III, active during the 9th century BCE, used these gates not only as fortifications but also as visual records of his power.
One of the standout pieces here shows the king receiving tribute from a distant land, while another vividly depicts him hunting lions. These panels were more than just art; they were tools of propaganda, reinforcing the king’s authority across vast lands. The craftsmanship is remarkable: scenes are engraved onto bronze in fine detail, framed by ornate borders of rosettes and palmettes. Each panel can be found in this room, among others from both kings—Ashurnasirpal II and Shalmaneser III—showing a rich narrative of Assyrian military might and cultural pride.
See it in person
Balawat Gates of King Shalmaneser III is on display in Room 6 at the British Museum on Great Russell Street, Bloomsbury, London — free to enter. Choose British Museum on audioguide.london and type its audio guide stop number, 212, from the gallery label, or take a photo of it, to hear this free audio guide in six languages — no app download needed.
New, in beta. British Museum support has just launched and is still improving: over 1,000 objects so far, with more added all the time.
