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Source Description
Delicately carved from exotic semiprecious stone, this tiny seal in the shape of a lion's head (rendered in profile) would have functioned not only as the legal signature of its ancient owner but also a protective amulet, magically conferring to its wearer the lion's natural virtues of courage, leadership, and strength.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
161676
label
Seal Amulet in the form of a Lion's Head
core
obj
dtoType
object
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
161676
contentType
object
title
Seal Amulet in the form of a Lion's Head
description
Delicately carved from exotic semiprecious stone, this tiny seal in the shape of a lion's head (rendered in profile) would have functioned not only as the legal signature of its ancient owner but also a protective amulet, magically conferring to its wearer the lion's natural virtues of courage, leadership, and strength.
date
3800–3500 BCE
citation
rights
CC0
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
wikidata
Q60758985
genreSpecific
Amulets
imageCount
1
source
import
dimensionsRaw
Diameter: 2.8 x 2.7 x 0.9 cm (1 1/8 x 1 1/16 x 3/8 in.)
cul
Mesopotamia, Iraq
accession
2000.42
Source extras
tec
agate
tombstone
Seal Amulet in the form of a Lion's Head, 3800–3500 BCE. Mesopotamia, Iraq. Agate; diameter: 2.8 x 2.7 x 0.9 cm (1 1/8 x 1 1/16 x 3/8 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Gift of Mabel Porozynski in honor and remembrance of Eugene Porozynski, 2000.42
collection
Near Eastern Art
didYouKnow
These amulets were commonly found in tombs of women and children.
citations
citation
Del Bufalo, Dario. Precious portraits: small precious stone sculptures of Imperial Rome. 2020.
page_number
Reproduced: p. 154, no. 500
creditline
Gift of Mabel Porozynski in honor and remembrance of Eugene Porozynski
updatedAt
2026-05-29 08:24:11.110000
sourceId
161676
dept
Egyptian and Ancient Near Eastern Art
coll
Near Eastern Art
med
agate
thumbnail_url
image_url
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
photo
mediaId
5f2a5e6564663ec5