Cylinder Seal with Figures Flanking a Tree and Quadrupeds

Syrian seals have a diverse range of imagery drawn from Syria, Egypt, Anatolia, and Mesopotamia. This seal shows two kneeling figures facing one another, each holding a staff. They flank a stylized tree. The tree is topped with a crescent and disc, and has a bird at the base. An auxiliary scene with three registers includes a rabbit and a griffin flanking a staff, a twisted knot, and a winged sphinx.

Cylinder seals are cylindrical objects carved in reverse (intaglio) in order to leave raised impressions when rolled into clay. Seals were generally used to mark ownership, and they could act as official identifiers, like a signature, for individuals and institutions. A seal’s owner rolled impressions in wet clay to secure property such as baskets, letters, jars, and even rooms and buildings. This clay sealing prevented tampering because it had to be broken in order to access a safeguarded item. Cylinder seals were often made of durable material, usually stone, and most were drilled lengthwise so they could be strung and worn. A seal’s material and the images inscribed on the seal itself could be protective. The artistry and design might be appreciated and considered decorative as well. Cylinder seals were produced in the Near East beginning in the fourth millennium BCE and date to every period through the end of the first millennium BCE.

Provenance

Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object.

Henry Walters, Baltimore, 1913, [mode of acquisition unknown]; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.