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Cylinder seal

A reference page linking a name, group, or concept to the materials that discuss it.

Engraved cylinder rolled over clay to produce a continuous design; used for documentation, identification and authority, without necessarily encoding language.

Cylinder seal and modern impression, Met 1983.314.1, Late Uruk, ca. 3500–3100 BCE. The museum interprets a procession before a temple facade; no deity’s name is identified
Cylinder seal and modern impression, Met 1983.314.1, Late Uruk, ca. 3500–3100 BCE. The museum interprets a procession before a temple facade; no deity’s name is identifiedThe Metropolitan Museum of Art · CC0 · Public domainLicense · Object record

Text

Technique and image

The technology spread during the fourth millennium BCE. Seals marked containers, doors, envelopes and tablets, identifying individuals, institutions or activities rather than always personal signatures. The impression alongside the museum object is modern, made to show its design.[1]

References and notes

  1. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Cylinder seal and modern impression: ritual scene before a temple facade. Object 1983.314.1. Description and metadata: Late Uruk, ca. 3500–3100 BCE. Impression is modern to display the design; temple interpretation is the museum’s and identifies no deity. Public-domain image. Return to the text ↑

Research history

Substantive changes are retained here. Minor copy edits remain in the internal operational log.

  1. Edition 2 · 10 October 2026 · editor:aladmin

    Substantive record update

    Read this revision in its original language (Arabic)

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IL Archive, «Cylinder seal», Edition 2, https://ilarchive.com/en/entities/cylinder-seal