Old Babylonian Hematite Cylinder Seal with Enthroned Deity and Offering Bearers

Culture: Mesopotamia/Old Babylonian

Period: Isin-Larsa Period, 2000-1800 B.C.

Material: Hematite

Dimensions: 3.2 cm high

Price: 4 800 Euro

Ref: 6690

Provenance: From an old French collection, mid-20th century. Mentioned in an inventory list from 1999.

Condition: Intact

Description: Exceptionally finely engraved, heavy hematite cylinder seal from the Old Babylonian period. The scene depicts a divine audience with three offering bearers. The bearded deity, with long hair falling down the neck, is seated on a throne with cross-bracing. The god wears a long, tiered garment (kaunakes) and a horned crown. The left hand is extended in greeting toward the approaching offering bearers. The three adorants all wear ankle-length woollen robes and turban-like headdresses. The first carries a large sacrificial animal, probably a goatling, in his arms. The figure behind him holds a woven offering in the right hand. This could be a ziggurat cake, a tall stack of sacrificial cakes. The third gift-bearer offers the god a branch of a date palm. The nature of the offerings – an animal as a meat sacrifice together with further agricultural products – suggests that the owner of the seal wished to provide for the god in a “complete” manner. He was likely employed in temple administration or agriculture.