Seals and archives in Persepolis : an introduction

These lessons present one of the most remarkable resources for the study of an ancient culture, in particular for the study of its iconography. This resource consists of an important set of administrative tablets from Persepolis, known today as the "Persepolis Fortifications Archive". This archive is certainly the most important resource we have for the study of Achaemenid Persian culture. I would even go so far as to say that, thanks to the survival of thousands of different seals, preserved by their impressions on the tablets, this archive represents an almost unique resource for the typological and historical study of images and representations.
The first lesson provided a general introduction to the Persepolis archives and glyptics, the fortifications and treasure archives, with particular emphasis on the fortifications archive. In particular, this lesson looked at the sealing protocols in these two archives, as well as the iconography and styles of glyptics.