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The Random Pegasus: Loss of Meaning in Middle Assyrian Seals

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  22 December 2008

Donald Matthews
Donald Matthews
Affiliation:
Oriental InstitutePusey Lane Oxford
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Extract

This article explores the relationship between design structure and meaning in Middle Assyrian seals. In a discussion of style and meaning in art a structural distinction is proposed between designs which convey a message and designs which affirm reality. The development of the seals of the thirteenth century BC is described, and a change in the composition of the scenes is interpreted through a linguistic analogy. At first, the seals bore a specific message about the victory of predators over prey; later, the same design elements were used in random combinations to produce a reduced range of meanings.

Type
Articles
Information
Cambridge Archaeological Journal , Volume 2 , Issue 2 , October 1992 , pp. 191 - 210
Copyright
Copyright © The McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research 1992

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