Catalogue of the Western Asiatic Seals in the British Museum

The cylinder seals of the second half of the 1st millennium BC fall into the period dominated by the Achaemenid empire. They are of particular significance in glyptic art and practices, as they bring to a close the 3,000-year history of the Near Eastern cylinder seal. The British Museum's collection of seals of this period totals 92 pieces and is one of the largest outside Iran. The earliest seal was acquired in 1772 from Sir William Hamilton's collection and more than half of the others are attested before 1900. Some, such as the famous seal of Darius, are icons of the period. This volume contains chapters on the history and development of the collection, the historical background, an analytical introduction, a detailed catalogue raisonne, a copiously illustrated analytical index and a contribution by Margaret Sax on the seal materials.