Indus Valley / Stamp seal and a modern impression: unicorn or bull and inscription / ca. 2600?1900 B.C.

Indus Valley
Stamp seal and a modern impression: unicorn or bull and inscription
ca. 2600?1900 B.C.
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Creator Nationality: Asian; Indian Sub-Continent; Indian; Indus
Creator Name-CRT: Indus Valley
Title: Stamp seal and a modern impression: unicorn or bull and inscription
View: Principal view
Creation Start Date: 0
Creation End Date: 2
Creation Date: ca. 2600?1900 B.C.
Creation Place: Indus Valley
Object Type: Decorative Arts and Utilitarian Objects
Materials and Techniques: Burnt steatite
Dimensions: 1 1/2 x 1 1/2 in. (3.8 x 3.8 cm)
Description: Stamp seals were used in antiquity as marks of ownership and badges of status. In the large urban centers of the Harappan civilization, hundreds of square-shaped stamp seals were found in excavations. They are engraved with images of wild or domestic animals, humans, fantastic creatures, and possibly divinities. The bull is the most popular animal motif on the Indus Valley glyptic art. In this example, the animal is rendered in the typical strict profile, standing before what might be an altar. Its shoulder is covered by a decorated quilt or harness in the shape of an upside-down heart pattern. Most of the square stamp seals have inscriptions along the top edge. The Indus script, invented around 2600 B.C., is yet to be fully deciphered.
AMICA Contributor: The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Owner Location: New York, New York
ID Number: 49.40.1
Credit Line: Dodge Fund, 1949
Copyright: Copyright ? 2002 The Metropolitan Museum of Art. All rights reserved.
Rights: http://www.metmuseum.org/education/er_photo_lib.asp
Style or Period: Mature Harappan period
AMICA ID: MMA_.49.40.1
AMICA Library Year: 2002
Media Metadata Rights: Copyright (c) 2002 The Metropolitan Museum of Art. All Rights Reserved

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