The Acropolis Museum and the NEON organization present the second part of the trilogy Michael Rakowitz & Ancient Cultures, Michael Rakowitz’s work Lamassu of Nineveh (2018), curated by the General Director of the Acropolis Museum, Professor Nikolaos Chr. Stambolidis, and the Director of NEON, Elina Kountouri. It is a sculptural installation in the outdoor area of the Acropolis Museum.

The Lamassu, proud guardians of the entrances to Nineveh, victims of antiquities trafficking and colonialism, are now housed in the world’s largest museums. The installation at the Acropolis Museum is a commentary on the demand for the sculptures to be returned to their place of origin. The head of the Lamassu is human to symbolize wisdom, the body is that of a lion to symbolize strength, and the wings on its back symbolize freedom.

Michael Rakowitz, Elina Kountour, Director ΝΕΟΝ, Prof. Nikolaos Chr.
Stambolidis, Director General The Acropolis Museum

Rakowitz uses metal cans from empty date syrup preserves from Iraq for his Lamassu. These cans represent the once-famous Iraqi industry that has been decimated, as well as the human, economic, and ecological disasters caused by the wars in Iraq and their aftermath. Through these objects, Rakowitz pays tribute to the people who live with them and their stories. The Lamassu “reappears” and continues to play its protective role as guardian of the past, present, and future.

The work is part of Rakowitz’s ongoing series The Invisible Enemy Should not Exist, which he began in 2006. It includes “reappearances” of objects looted from the National Museum of Iraq in Baghdad after the US invasion in 2003, as well as those destroyed from other archaeological sites after the war.

Second Part:  NEON and The Acropolis Museum

Lamassu of Nineveh (2018) | Michael Rakowitz & Ancient Cultures

Curators: Professor Nikolaos Chr. Stambolidis, General Director The Acropolis Museum and Elina Kountouri, Director ΝΕΟΝ 

Acropolis Museum, Sculpture Installation | Exterior area of the Acropolis Museum, west side

6 October 2025 – 31 October 2026

Admission Free