On the threshold of the statehood. Image of the bird of prey in the bronze age art of the ancient Near East and the Caucasus and the myth on the tree of life

The paper is dedicated to the issues of the Near East art during the periodof formation of early states and civilization development. The paper analyzes images ona steatite vase from a temple in Khafadjeh (Mesopotamia, Sumer) and vases from the Jiroftcollection (Southern Iran) attributed to ca. 2600 BC. The study examines predominantlyimages of a bird of prey and, specifically, the image of a double-headed hawk that wassubsequently incorporated into national emblems of several countries. More importantly,the study builds on a large volume of new sources of Iranian art from the Early Dynasticperiod in Mesopotamia