The Ubaid Lizardmen | Iraq | Historical Artifacts | Unexplained Mysteries

• published: 03 Jan 2015
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The Ubaid period (ca. 6500 to 3800 BC)[1] is a prehistoric period of Mesopotamia. The name derives from Tell al-`Ubaid where the earliest large excavation of Ubaid period material was conducted initially by Henry Hall and later by Leonard Woolley.[2] In South Mesopotamia the period is the earliest known period on the alluvium although it is likely earlier periods exist obscured under the alluvium.[3] In the south it has a very long duration between about 6500 and 3800 BC when it is replaced by the Uruk period [4] In North Mesopotamia the period runs only between about 5300 and 4300 BC.[4] It is preceded by the Halaf period and the Halaf-Ubaid Transitional period and succeeded by the Late Chalcolithic period. Among the more famous artifacts on this list are the Ubaid statues of Iraq, mostly found in Tell Al’Ubaid but also in Ur and Eridu. They come from a pre-Sumerian people—the Ubaidians. These hand-sized statuettes usually depict lizard- or snakelike people in various informal poses, such as holding and suckling a baby. Others are portrayed wearing shoulder padding or armor and holding staffs or scepters. It is the elongated heads and almond-shaped eyes that lend the figurines their reptilian appearance, leading many to believe that they depict serpent-related gods. Stranger theories conjure up extraterrestrials or an unknown reptilian race that may or may not still exist, as we have already touched upon. However, most archaeologists believe that the figures served a more mundane purpose, and some even question whether they depict anything reptilian at all. The Ubaid society was known to practice skull modification—whereby the skull was manipulated from an early age to deform its shape—which would explain the heads. The almond-shaped eyes are a fairly common early stylistic rendering of Asiatic features, and less pronounced examples have earlier been found around the region. A lack of contextual information surrounding the sites where the figures were unearthed makes it hard to establish their purpose. Many of the figures were found buried with individuals yet also seemed to have held a purpose during the owner’s life. Because not everyone had a figurine, most archaeologists tend to believe that they marked some form of status. Additional clues include the similarity of their features and the general age-group of the figures’ owners (mostly young adults). The owners may have been teachers, shamans, or priests of some kind.