Warka Vase

The Warka Vase is a carved stone vessel found in a temple complex in the ruins of the Sumerian city Uruk, located in southern Iraq. It is one of the earliest surviving works of narrative relief sculpture. It has been dated from 3,200 to 3,00 BCE. The vase has three tiers of carving. The bottom tier depicts the vegetation of the river delta. Above this is a procession of animals, with nude males carring bowls of sacrificial elements. The top register is a full scene of the temple area. The vase itself was one of the thousands of artifacts that were looted from the National Museum of Iraq during the American occupation of Iraq in 2003. The vase was later returned, in pieces, by three unidentified men.

The current condition of the vase is unknown.