Greek and Roman Seals and Bullae
See also: Roman Gods & Goddesses
Sometime in the 3rd century AD, an important Greek and Roman library was burned to the ground in the Holy Land. Hundreds--if not thousands--of papyrus scrolls were torched by invading barbarians, rival Jewish sects, or invading armies from the East.
These scrolls had been tucked away in walls of scroll-nooks lining the walls of this precious library, each papyrus sealed with a blob of clay, marked with the seal of the owner's (or author's) signet ring.
The intense heat from the inferno actually fired the clay--which otherwise would have been moist and pliable, and never would have survived--and preserved them in the ashes of the library for 2,000 years.
Recent excavations unearthed this incredible find, and with it, images of Greek and Roman times. Gods and goddesses, emperors and animals, intricately carved faces, and simple plebian art.
And fingerprints of the last people to trouch these balls of clay thousands of years ago.
