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How were cylinder seals used on wet clay in ancient Mesopotamia?
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Mesopotamian art and architecture
Ziggurat at Ur (modern Tall al-Muqayyar, Iraq), constructed c. 2100 bce.
In ancient Mesopotamia, cylinder seals were small stone cylinders engraved in intaglio (a technique where the design is carved into the surface). To use them, the seal was rolled across a surface of wet clay, which caused the engraved design to be transferred onto the clay as a raised impression in relief.12
These seals served as a significant artistic and functional tool, used to mark personal property and to make documents legally binding. The designs carved into the cylinders varied from geometric and animal patterns to complex scenes from mythology and religious ritual, often incorporating the owner's name. Because they were rolled, they allowed for the creation of continuous, repeating designs or narrative scenes on the clay surface.12