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Animal-shaped pottery vessels mounted on oversized wheels had a long history in the ancient Middle East. This early example has the head of a ram with curving horns. Liquid poured into the hole on top flowed out of the opening in the animal’s snout. A loop on the front allowed the attachment of a cord so that the vessel could be pulled. Such vessels have been excavated in both temples and houses. They were probably used in religious or funerary rituals.

• Medium: Terracotta
• Possible Place Made: Mesopotamia (modern day Iraq, Turkey, & Syria)
• Dates: second half of the third millenium B.C.E.
• Period: Early Dynastic III Period, or later
• Dimen
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  sions: 9 x 4 x 9 in. (22.9 x 10.2 x 22.9 cm)
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