Harvard Art Museums > 1986.544: Stamp Seal: Man Attacking Lion Seals Collections Search Exit Deep Zoom Mode Zoom Out Zoom In Reset Zoom Full Screen Add to Collection Order Image Copy Link Copy Citation Citation"Stamp Seal: Man Attacking Lion , 1986.544,” Harvard Art Museums collections online, May 03, 2024, https://hvrd.art/o/289102. Reuse via IIIF Toggle Deep Zoom Mode Download This object does not yet have a description. Identification and Creation Object Number 1986.544 Title Stamp Seal: Man Attacking Lion Classification Seals Work Type seal Date 550-450 BCE Period Archaic period to Classical Culture Achaemenid Persistent Link https://hvrd.art/o/289102 Physical Descriptions Medium Sardonyx Technique Intaglio Dimensions 1.1 x 1 x 0.7 cm (7/16 x 3/8 x 1/4 in.) Acquisition and Rights Credit Line Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Gift of Jonathan H. Kagan Accession Year 1986 Object Number 1986.544 Division Asian and Mediterranean Art Contact am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu Permissions The Harvard Art Museums encourage the use of images found on this website for personal, noncommercial use, including educational and scholarly purposes. To request a higher resolution file of this image, please submit an online request. Descriptions Description This is a disc-shaped sardonyx stamp seal. The face is engraved with the image of a heroic encounter. The hero holds one arm outstretched towards the neck of the lion he is fighting; his other arm, held down behind him, holds a long sword which he points towards the lion’s belly. The man wears a tunic with two vertical elements that create a v-neck. He has a large, pointed nose, full cheeks, and cropped hair. The lion is rampant, with its forelegs extended towards the hero. It has a bristling mane, a curled tail, and an open mouth. This scene is paralleled on numerous seals and impressions from the Neo-Assyrian (c. 911-612 BCE) and Achaemenid (c. 550-330 BCE) periods. The closest match for the hero’s pose appears on a clay bulla found in the Persepolis Treasury, dating to the fifth century BCE (1). The hero’s garment is also paralleled on another bulla from the Treasury (2). Thus this seal likely dates to the fifth century BCE, but given the wide chronological distribution of this type of scene it could also be earlier. NOTES 1. E. F. Schmidt, Persepolis II: The Contents of the Treasury and Other Discoveries (Chicago, 1957) pl. 13 (seal no. 60). 2. Schmidt, Persepolis II, pl. 11 (seal no. 37). Verification Level This record was created from historic documentation and may not have been reviewed by a curator; it may be inaccurate or incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of Asian and Mediterranean Art at am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu
