Isin-Larsa and Old Babylonian Periods
Isin-Larsa Period (2000-1800)
While the preceding Ur III period was characterized by a high level of centralization, the Isin-Larsa period is characterized by fragmentation.
After the Ur III collapse, there was a small-scale hegemony of first Isin, then Larsa.
The Isin kings ruled Ur, Eridu, and Uruk, and their dynasty was formed from the remnants of the Ur III state by Ishbi-Erra, who was originally one of Ibbi-Sin’s generals.
After Ur was captured by Larsa, Isin permanently lost its prominence.
Old Babylonian Period (1800-1600)
The period began when Hammurabi, an Amorite, defeated Rim-Sin of Larsa.
Archaeological Evidence
Archaeologically, these periods are not particularly well represented, and with a few exceptions, architectural remains are scarce. The material culture of these periods is generally quite similar to that of Ur III but everything is smaller and of lower quality. This is true for domestic and monumental architecture as well as cylinder seals. Residential quarters from this period have been extensively exposed at Ur and Nippur.
Nippur
Nippur was a historically important city to Mesopotamians. Despite never having had its own king (as far as we know), Nippur was considered the legitimizer of kingship.
Nippur was located on the border of Sumer and Akkad, and was the religious center of both.
The site features Enlil’s temple, the Ekur, and small chapels seem to have been planned into the layout of the houses.
Nippur was the first major site in Mesopotamia excavated by Americans, specifically by Hermann Hilprecht and John Peters of the University of Pennsylvania. The project was initiated in 1888, and the site itself is over 100ha.
Scholar Elizabeth Stone attempted to match house-sale documents with their find spots at Nippur. This allowed her to study the effect of house sales on domestic architecture. After the death of their father, brothers commonly divided the house amongst themselves. She also observed that extended families do not live as neighbors, but rather in the same house. Urban neighborhoods seem to have been divided by kinship, not by class, and urban environments were very crowded.
Mashkan-Shapir
Stone did further work on early 2nd millennium urban landscapes at the site of Mashkan-Shapir, an essentially single-period Isin-Larsa/Old Babylonian site that was studied using aerial photography, surface scraping, survey, horizontal exposure and selective excavation. The site was built by Sin-iddinam of Larsa on behalf of Nergal (dark lord of the underworld). The team found that the city was divided by five canals, two quays, and walls, which divided the city into various areas, including a religious precinct, a cemetery, and administrative district, an industrial area, and residential quarters.
Like at Nippur, both rich and poor lived in the same neighborhoods. While there were areas for large-scale craft production, each neighborhood probably had its own craftsmen for utilitarian items, like potters and metal workers.
Glyptic Evidence (Cylinder Seals)
During this period there is a tendency to depict minor gods, as opposed to the major deities.
Ur III presentation scenes continue to be popular.
In contest scenes, a new character, the lion-griffin, is now seen.
In the Old Babylonian Period, the cutting wheel and drill, was introduced.
Art-Historical Evidence
Stele of Hammurabi
Easily the most famous piece of Old Babylonian art, the Stele was not found in Babylon but discovered along with lots of other Elamite booty in Susa (modern-day Iran).
The black basalt stele stands more than 2 meters tall, features a scene depicting the god Shamash and the king Hammurabi, and is inscribed with 282 laws. In addition, there is a prologue and epilog to the laws which forwards ideological-propagandistic statements about Hammurabi as a king.
A trend worth noting is that Hammurabi, on his stele, depicts himself as a just king, a depiction of kingship that stands in contrast to the king as "smiter of enemies" as seen in earlier works (e.g. the Stele of the Vultures or the Victory Stele of Naram-Sin) or the "pious builder" kings of the Ur III period.
It is on this stele that the Codex Hammurabi was inscribed. Therefore, the context of the "laws" is their appearance in a piece of royal art that proposes a state-sanctioned ideology, and imagines a new ruler, Hammurabi, as the sort of "just king" who deserves to be followed with loyalty.
Terra Cotta Plaques
One of the most diagnostic Old Babylonian artifact types are molded terra cotta plaques. The earliest plaques are from Ur III, but the majority are Old Babylonian.
The plaques are mold made and mass produced.
Mostly found In southern Mesopotamia and the Diyala, when present, they are ubiquitous, found in houses, streets, temples, small shrines, etc. but, intriguingly the plaques are not found in graves.
The iconography is of standardized, pan-Mesopotamian motifs. The designs often belong to the same corpus as cylinder seals. Common themes include: fertility, daily life, war and the underworld.
Model Chariots
The designs on model chariots are site specific, which is is in contrast to the plaques, whose iconography is generally pan-Mesopotamian. The decorations are found on the inside rather than the outside of the chariot.
Model chariots are most ubiquitous at Mashkan-Shapir and Kish, but are also found elsewhere in southern Mesopotamia. At Mashkan-Shapir they are almost always found in the parts of the site which housed the central institutions, thus, there is a possible link between model chariots and centralizing institutions.
Model chariots feature images of god such as Shamash (justice/wisdom) and Nergal (underworld/war)