Cylinder Seal with Battle of the Gods
Lapis Lazuli
Tell Asmar
1.6 cm x 0.9 cm diam.
A11366
Oriental Institute Museum
Cylinder Seal with Battle of the Gods
This cylinder seal was made from a piece of lapis lazuli. It would have been rolled onto clay to produce a unique impression, or "signature," that was used either to indicate ownership or to safeguard personal possessions. This seal depicts three groups of fighting gods. In two of these groups, the winner stands while the loser kneels. In the third, both figures stand and neither wears a crown.
Collected by
Iraq Expediton
Excavated by The Oriental Institute 1932-1933
Multimedia
Cylinder Seals
What are cylinder seals and how were they used by the ancient Mesopotamians?
Suggested Readings
Black, Jeremy and Anthony Green. Gods, Demons, and Symbols of Ancient Mesopotamia: An Illustrated Dictionary. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1992.
Collon, Dominique. Interpreting the Past: Near Eastern Seals. University of California Press. 1990.
Roaf, Michael. Cultural Atlas of Mesopotamia and the Ancient Near East. New York: Facts on File, 1990.