Stamp Seal with Marduk and Nabu Worship Scene

Artist Unidentified

Period Neo-Babylonian Empire (Babylonian, 612-539 BCE)

Period Neo-Assyrian Empire (Assyrian, 911-612 BCE)

Place of OriginLikely Iraq

Dateabout 800-539 BCE

Dimensions1 1/8 in. (2.9 cm)

MediumCarnelian

ClassificationJewelry

Credit LineMuseum purchase

Object number

1912.1273

Not on View

DescriptionThis carnelian stamp seal is carved in intaglio. It depicts a bearded man standing before a group of divine symbols: a spear (associated with Marduk), a stylus (associated with Nabu), and possibly a base or stand. Above the group hovers a single crescent. Pierced through for suspension.

Label TextA bearded figure confronts divine emblems in this stamp seal carved from vivid carnelian, dating to the Neo-Assyrian or Neo-Babylonian period. Before him rise a spear and stylus—symbolizing the gods Marduk and Nabu—while a crescent moon oversees the scene. Such items were not merely functional but expressed authority, piety, and legal agency. Used to impress official documents, this seal invoked divine powers to legitimize and protect agreements.Comparative Referencescf. Von Der Osten, H.H., Ancient Oriental Seals in the Collection of Mr. Edward T. Newell, (OIP XXII), University of Chicago Press, Chicago, 1934, pl. XXXVI.