The nature of the bed

What is the function of such a model bed? At first, you might think of a toy. Indeed, it would certainly be fitting for an antique dollhouse which a child could decorate with all kinds of furniture. There are actually known examples of small chairs and tables. This book from the NINO-library shows many examples.Nadja Cholidis, Möbel in Ton (Münster: Ugarit Verlag, 1992)

The object itself presents few opportunities to interpret its function. That is why scholars research multiple similar objects together and draw conclusions based on appearance, but also from other sources such as archaeological contexts and iconography. A hundred or so beds known from a period of roughly four hundred years have been found in Mesopotamian cities near the Persian Gulf.Nadja Cholidis, personal communication (i. e. Fig. 1)

There are two settings in which model beds are usually found, insofar as the place where they were found is known. Firstly, they are found in houses, usually in a specific corner of a room or even in a house chapel. Moreover, they are found in temple complexes, where they were used as a votive offering to a god or goddess. These temples are almost always temples of Ishtar, god of love and war. This theory seems to be confirmed by the fact that some beds are decorated in an interesting fashion. Two people depicted in an intimate embrace is a relatively common occurrence (Fig. 2). Such erotic scenes were common for objects devoted to Ishtar.Nadja Cholidis, Möbel in Ton (Münster: Ugarit Verlag, 1992), 192-193

This all points to a likely role in the fertility cultus. The longread adds an exciting context. Clearly no child’s play.