Mesopotamian cylinder seals and impressions

This display presents a series of Mesopotamian cylinder seals and their impressions, each bearing intricate designs of gods, priests, and celestial symbols. The sealscarved in fine stonewere rolled over wet clay to leave a continuous impression, serving both as signatures and as expressions of divine authority. Scenes on these seals often show deities interacting with humans, cosmic symbols such as the sun disk, crescent moon, and stars, and ritual offerings. The motifs represent Mesopotamian beliefs linking divine power with astronomical observation and the regulation of time. Cylinder seals were personal and administrative objects, used to mark ownership, authenticate documents, or protect against evil through sacred imagery.