Sealstone of Mani

Mani's crystal seal
The crystal seal seen from the perspective of the round convex surface
Materialquartz
Sizediameter 2.9 cm, thickness 0.9 cm
WritingSyrian
Created3rd century AD
Present locationNational Library of France
Identificationinv.58.1384bis

The crystal seal of Mani (French: Sceau de Mani), also known as the crystal sealstone of Mani or the Manichean Rock-Crystal Seal, is a crystal stone seal with intaglio busts of three Manichean elect. There is a circle of Syriac writing around the intaglio, which could have been a personal seal used by Mani, the founder of Manichaeism.[1] It is the oldest surviving piece of Manichaean art, and the only piece from Sassanid Mesopotamia.[2] It is now in the collection of the National Library of France in Paris.

  1. ^ ""Sceau de Mani" (inv.58.1384bis)". medaillesetantiques.bnf.fr (in French). Retrieved 2018-12-19. Selon Zsuzsanna Gulácsi, le sceau daterait de l'époque même de Mani et pourrait être son sceau privé.
  2. ^ Gulácsi, Zsuzsanna (2008). "Manichean Art". Encyclopædia Iranica. Columbia University. Retrieved 2018-12-19.

© MMXXIII Rich X Search. We shall prevail. All rights reserved. Rich X Search