Stamp seal (BM 119999)
| Stamp seal (BM 119999) | |
|---|---|
.jpg) The stamp seal with two facing busts and Sogdian inscription. Room 52, British Museum. | |
| Material | Carnelian |
| Size | Length: 3.30 centimetres Width: 2.60 centimetres |
| Created | 4th-6th century CE |
| Present location | Room 52, British Museum, London |
| Registration | 1870, 1210.3 |
  Location of the region of Sogdia, to which the stamp seal belongs. | |
Stamp seal (BM 119999), is a historical stamp seal from the
Description
The seal is made of carnelian, a precious stone, and rather hard to engrave.[1] It is considered as "a Sogdian double portrait".[2] It shows two facing busts. One is a bearded male, wearing a forward-projecting cap bordered with pearls, as well as a diadem, ear-rings and a necklace.[1] The other wears a radiate crown with royal ribbons.[1] Above is an inscription in two lines, in the Sogdian language.
Other examples
The design with two facing busts is also visible in some of the coinage of the period, although the small space of the coins seems to have forced to two busts to come closer together.[3] It has been suggested that this design was influenced by some Byzantine coins,[4] but this may not be necessarily so.[3]
Kushano-Sasanian period (c.230 – c.365 CE)
The stamp seal is dated by the British Museum to 300-350 CE, during the
_Radiate_crown.jpg)
(1) 'yt mydrh cwn ’yn/ztmyc
(2) (p) ’nbsn z ’ ’ntyh (or zc ’ntyh, n ’cztyh)
This seal is from (of) Indamic
Queen of Zacanta— Seal inscription, according to Livshits (1969).[3]
Hephthalite period (c.440 – c.560 CE)
Livshits (2000) has since reappraised the datation of the stamp seal as well as the translation of the Sogdian legend. In his latest analysis, he thought that the seal should be dated to the 5th-6th century CE, and should read:[2]
| Line | Original (Sogdian alphabet) | Transliteration | English translation |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 𐼀𐼊𐼛 𐼍𐼊𐼘𐼘𐼆 𐼕𐼇𐼏 𐼀𐼊𐼎𐼚𐼇𐼍𐼊𐼖 | ʾyt myδrh cwn ʾyntwmyc | This gem is from the Indian |
| 2 | 𐼔𐼀𐼎𐼂𐼙𐼏 𐼎𐼀𐼎𐼚𐼊𐼆 | pʾnβšn nʾntyh | Lady, Nandi |
Kurbanov (2010) considers that the seal is characteristic of
Related artifacts
-
![Hephthalite coin of the Principality of Chaghaniyan, with the two busts of a crowned King and Queen, in Byzantine fashion, circa 550-650 CE.[6][3]](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6e/ChaghaniyanSogdiancoin.jpg/200px-ChaghaniyanSogdiancoin.jpg)
Hephthalite coin of the Principality of Chaghaniyan, with the two busts of a crowned King and Queen, in Byzantine fashion, circa 550-650 CE.[6][3] -
Ruler with radiate crown from Dilberjin Tepe -
Other similar seals in the British Museum (Room 52) -
Sasanian official with broadly similar crown, Northern Syria, 5th century CE -
![Hephthalite coin of the Principality of Chaghaniyan, with the two busts of a crowned King and Queen, in Byzantine fashion, circa 550-650 CE.[6][3]](/File:ChaghaniyanSogdiancoin.jpg)
.jpg)
,_excavated_in_Northern_Syria,_5th_century_CE_British_Museum_135071.jpg)
References
- ^ a b c d e "Stamp-seal; bezel British Museum". The British Museum.
- ^ ISSN 0890-4464.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Naymark, Aleksandr (2001). SOGDIANA, ITS CHRISTIANS AND BYZANTIUM: A STUDY OF ARTISTIC AND CULTURAL CONNECTIONS IN LATE ANTIQUITY AND EARLY MIDDLE AGES (PDF). pp. 167–169.
- ^ Kurbanov, Aydogdy (2013). "THE HEPHTHALITE NUMISMATICS" (PDF). Tyragetia. VII: 370.
- ^ "There are also a number of other seals, which seem to be closely linked with this class... 1)" in KURBANOV, AYDOGDY (2010). THE HEPHTHALITES: ARCHAEOLOGICAL AND HISTORICAL ANALYSIS (PDF). Berlin: Berlin Freie Universität. pp. 69, 1).
- ^ Kurbanov, Aydogdy (2013). "THE HEPHTHALITE NUMISMATICS" (PDF). Tyragetia. VII: 370.
