"The Display of Cylinder Seals" by Elizabeth Marriott
Museums often display objects that were integral to their original culture but are now functionally obsolete and thus unfamiliar to the public. Engraved cylinder seals are one such object. Averaging at only an inch in height, a seal was made of stone or faience whose curved sides were carved with a design ranging from figural to abstract. The seal was then rolled into clay to create a raised design that is the mirror image of the seal.