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Flora Lamson Hewlett Library

Flora Lamson Hewlett Library

Berkeley, California

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Amethyst Seal, Image 1.
Amethyst Seal, Image 2.
Amethyst Seal, Image 3.
Amethyst Seal, Image 4.
Amethyst Seal, Image 5.
Amethyst Seal, Image 6.
Amethyst Seal, Image 7.
Amethyst Seal, Image 8.
  • Amethyst Seal
  • Amethyst
  • 0.875 x 0.375 x 0.375 in (2.22 x 0.95 x 0.95 cm)
  • Inv: 2014.67
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This is a purple glass amethyst colored seal from bronze age Mesopotamia/Sumeria. It is oblong in shape with a hole in the middle, to be hung on a string as a bead.

A cylinder seal is a cylinder engraved with a "picture story," used in to roll an impression onto a two-dimensional surface, generally wet clay. Scholars believe that cylinder seals date from circa 3500 BCE in the Near East; the earliest known seals come from the contemporary site of Susa in south-western Iran and at the early site of Uruk in southern Mesopotamia. They are linked to the invention of cuneiform writing on clay cylinders.

  • Subject Matter: Mesopotamian Cylinder Seal
  • Collections: Sacred World Art Collection
See all artwork from Flora Lamson Hewlett Library