Ancient Mesopotamian Cylinder Seals in the Museum of Historical Treasures of Ukraine

Abstract

The Museum of Historical Treasures of Ukraine, branch of the National Museum of the History of Ukraine holds five cylinder seals allegedly made of chalcedony that were confiscated at customs between late 1990s and early 2000s. Cylinder seals are important objects of the ancient Mesopotamian culture as they were rolled over clay tablets for ratification. At the same time, depictions with motifs from religion and daily life were carved onto them. The seals in Ukraine provide an interesting overview of almost three