Old Syrian Palace Seals from Ebla: A Reassessment of the Evidence

This study re-examines some seal impressions on jars found in Middle Bronze Age archaeological contexts at Ebla: the recovery of the impressions of the same seals in Areas B, Q, G and FF provides evidence for the evaluation of the function of the public buildings (palaces and temples) that have been excavated in the Lower City of Ebla, at the west and south-west slopes of the Citadel. In particular, the existence of at least two palace seals (one of them is the large inscribed dynastic seal naming the son of Indilimma) allows for the analysis of the presence of sealed jars in buildings linked to the life of the Old Syrian Eblaic court and the religious practices of the cult of the royal ancestors.