Blue-grey aragonite cylinder seal, Euphrates valley, Third Dynasty, Mesopotamia ca 2600-2334

Cylinder seal in bluish-grey aragonite.
Mesopotamia, Euphrates Valley.
Early Third Dynasty (circa 2600-2334 B.C.).
Engraved aragonite - Height: 4 cm.
This small cylinder, cut from a fine stone with a bluish-gray sheen, was used to mark fresh clay by rolling. It acted as a personal or official signature in Mesopotamian societies.
The surface of the seal is finely engraved with a mythological scene showing a fight between animals: a feline, a bull and two caprids (probably goats). This type of representation often symbolized the struggles of opposing forces in nature, and may have had religious or cosmic significance.
Cylinder seals were both everyday objects and symbols of power, used by elites to seal documents, jars or doors.
Today, they provide us with a precious insight into the beliefs, art and administrative life of ancient Mesopotamia.
Mesopotamian period, Euphrates Valley, 3rd dynasty circa 2600-2334 BC.
Length 4 cm - Diameter: 2.1 cm.
Conservation: Intact and very beautiful.
Provenance: Collection Mariaud de Serres, France, acquired before 1990.
An invoice and certificate of authenticity will accompany this object.