The rapidity with which Assyria recovered from her period of weakness(810-746 BC) to re-emerge as the dominant power in the Near East was a direct consequence of his fundamental reforms in the structure of government and the military which determined the course of the empire during the last and greatest century of existence.

Fred Parhad is a self-taught sculptor with more than 35 years of professional dedication to his work. Instead of pursuing artistic studies at UC Berkeley, Parhad chose instead to pursue a life in the arts and sought a path of his own. He considers history his greatest teacher, having spent countless hours at the Metropolitan Museum of Art independently studying classical works. In 1978, Parhad began working on a considerable collection of classic Assyrian sculptures which are now found across the United States. One of his most famous works, the Ashurbanipal Monument, now stands tall outside the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco, California.