between 2000 B.C. and 1800 B.C.
hematite ;
Morgan Seal 302
Description
1 cylinder seal : hematite ; 21 x 12 mm
Provenance
Acquired by Pierpont Morgan sometime between 1885 and 1908.
Notes
"Seals 296-305 depict worship of a figure rendered like the deified kings of the Third Dynasty of Ur, with the difference that the figure is now often seated on a temple throne, earlier reserved for gods of the pantheon. Consequently the figure may here represent not a deified king but a major deity... Among small objects in the field, the combination of vessel and ball staff appears most frequently. These two objects are usually placed in a juxtaposition suggesting some relation between them (299, 302, 304, 308-310)... A bowlegged dwarf, a common feature in the glyptic of the First Dynasty of Babylon, appears as a full-sized figure in 298, and as a small elenent in the field of 302."--Porada, CANES, p. 37-38
Summary
"Worshiper led by minor goddess toward enthroned deified king or god holding cup -- In field: vessel and ball staff; crescent and bowlegged dwarf (before seated figure) -- Terminal: inscription."--Porada, CANES, p. 38
Catalog link
Classification
Place
Southern Mesopotamia.
Department