Early Bronze Age Seal-Impressed Vessels from Hirbet Ez-Zeraqon

Sealing practices were widespread across the Mediterranean and Southwest Asia from prehistoric to historic times. The practice of impressing ceramic vessels with seals before firing is relatively unusual, but appears to have been a flexible custom that emerged, disappeared and reemerged over time. Judging by the sheer number of instances, it was particularly important to the Early Bronze Age populations of the Levant. This study is based on the author’s analysis of the large assemblage of impressed ceramics from the site of Ḫirbet ez-Zeraqōn in northern Jordan. A full revision of the excavation records allows for the exploration of the role of these artifacts in relation to the broader dynamics of ceramic consumption through the lifetime of the settlement. The picture is then enlarged to include the evidence from the entire Levant and northeastern Syria. This work builds on recent research that has redefined the complex chronological sequences of the regions to provide a detailed and updated overview of the practice of impressing ceramic vessels with seals in the fourth and third millennia BCE from its first appearance through to its demise. The evaluation of manufacture, distribution, and use of seal-impressed vessels fills gaps in our understanding of the emergence and development of the pot-sealing phenomenon, while providing evidence for assessing the long-standing questions about the function(s) and meaning(s) of these artifacts.