Hemispherical Syrian Marble Seal with Animals
Hemispherical Syrian Marble Seal with Animals
This seal was carved from a whitish limestone with darker undulated veins that give the impression of an artificial decoration, although it is perfectly natural.
3rd millenium B.C.
D: 4.4 cm
In stock
Product Description
This seal was carved from a whitish limestone with darker undulated veins that give the impression of an artificial decoration, although it is perfectly natural. The object is pierced by a hole in its rounded part and would have therefore been worn on a string round the neck or wrist (necklace or bracelet).
The flat lower part of the object is actually the seal matrix, which would have create the impression bearing the name and properties of its owner. It is engraved with lines in low relief that represent stylized, linear motifs one would identify as animals, probably quadrupeds or insects.
The invention of a system of signs enabling to authenticate a person’s property is a fundamental step that contributed to shape human history: it refers to a series of events as complex as the development of city planning, the birth of private ownership and writing, which primarily was a revolutionary means of communication, used mainly in administrative and commercial areas. Although rarer than their counterparts carved in the shape of animals, hemispherical seals are largely attested all throughout the Near Eastern world, before cylinder seals were created.
