Strata: How Many?

How many Hebrew personal seals from Biblical times have been published?

Answer: More than 500

Despite the fact that most ancient Hebrew seals turn up on the antiquities market or in private collections, a remarkable number (more than 500) have been fully published and translated.¹ The small, ovoid limestone seals usually lack ornamentation and typically include only the owner’s name in an upper register and his (or her) father’s name in a lower register. Almost all date to the eighth and seventh centuries B.C.E., when the kingdom of Judah reached its political and demographic zenith, having absorbed a great deal of the population of the northern kingdom of Israel that was not carried off into exile by the Assyrians in 722 B.C.E.