This month’s #ConnectingCollections theme is long-term loans. ⁠⁠ ⁠⁠ Did you know that museums lend their objects to supplement or complement the collections of other institutions? These arrangements are often reciprocal and allow for sustained intellectual exchange.⁠⁠ ⁠⁠ Through the generosity of britishmuseum, the Getty Villa is extremely fortunate to have on long-term loan a group of stone relief panels from the palaces of ancient Assyria (present-day northern Iraq). Dating from the 9th to the 7th centuries BC, these scenes present idealized images of Assyrian kings through vivid depictions of battles, hunting, mythological creatures, and court life. ⁠⁠ ⁠⁠ The reliefs are on view in a gallery dedicated to the theme of The Classical World in Context. This gallery explores the cultures that interacted with the classical world of ancient Greece and Rome. As they expanded their empire, the Assyrians came into contact with Greek colonies and traders in the eastern Mediterranean, and even ...