Cylinder Seal: Ancient Personal Identification (opens in new tab)

In ancient Mesopotamia, the cylinder seal was used for all correspondence and for business transactions requiring an official signature in order to be considered valid. Land deals, marriage contracts, sales of goods, royal decrees, and religious declarations all required the personal signature of the presiding official or participants involved. Regardless of what purpose it was put to, the seal was a prized possession, and its loss was taken as seriously as people today regard the loss of the...