Dusinberre examines seals and the impressions left by them that were used in antiquity and were excavated from the site of Gordion, now in Turkey but once the capital city of ancient Phrygia, the seat of King Midas, and place where Alexander cut the knot barring him from Asia. The seals range in time from about 1800 BCE to about 400 CE, and in size from less than a centimeter to almost 10 centimeters. The unusually careful excavations have allowed scholars to reconstruct the context and something of the use of each seal and to place the glyphic art within the larger aesthetic framework of its time. All but the first 29 pages are devoted to a catalogue and line drawings. Annotation ©2006 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
The original publication of the 114 seals and seal impressions excavated from Gordion in Turkey, this book is the first diachronic monograph on the ongoing excavations at Gordion and provides the first historical and archaeological overview of the entire site, with the most recent archaeological developments taken fully into account. The seals range in date from ca. 1800 BCE to 400 CE, from the Early Bronze Age through the Roman period, covering some of the most tumultuous and most interesting eras of Anatolian history.
Dusinberre offers insights into the individuals living at Gordion, as well as sweeping developments in societal constructs at the Phrygian capital. In addition to detailed information about the seals and 237 meticulous illustrations of all related artifacts, this study examines their excavated contexts and considers the seals in light of associated finds and architecture. Interested audiences include scholars of seal art, Anatolian archaeology, and Near Eastern archaeology, along with those interested in early Christian history, empire studies, the Roman provinces, and Greek archaeology.
