cylinder seal

noun

: a cylinder (as of stone) engraved in intaglio and used especially in ancient Mesopotamia to roll an impression on wet clay

Examples of cylinder seal in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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And unlike the cylinder seals, the hundreds of iconographic signs attributed to proto-cuneiform have only ever been found on tablets in southern Iraq. Ashley Strickland, CNN, 5 Nov. 2024 Those matches essentially establish a direct link between the cylinder seal system and the invention of writing. Paul Smaglik, Discover Magazine, 6 Nov. 2024 The ancient metropolis is where cylinder seals were invented and used for administrative purposes. Ashley Strickland, CNN, 5 Nov. 2024 The New York Times reported that cylinder seals, clay tablets, and more arrived in wooden crates in Iraq this week. Alex Greenberger For Artnews, Robb Report, 4 Aug. 2021 However, the museum's collection includes items like Mesopotamian cylinder seals from 3000-1000 BCE and a moveable type machine from Korea. Brittanie Shey, Chron, 28 Mar. 2023 The Sisters necklace is based on a motif from an ancient cylinder seal. Lynn Yaeger, Vogue, 31 Jan. 2023 In turn, Wengrow was impressed to meet an anthropologist who knew what a cylinder seal is. Virginia Heffernan, Wired, 11 July 2022 This is evident in her Sisters collection, which features ancient femme sisters that the designer reimagined from an over 4,000-year-old Akkadian cylinder seal. Charlotte Diamond, Vogue, 24 June 2021

Word History

First Known Use

1887, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of cylinder seal was in 1887

Dictionary Entries Near cylinder seal

Cite this Entry

“Cylinder seal.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cylinder%20seal. Accessed 26 Dec. 2024.

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