MYSTERY SIGNETS.

Putaruru Press, Volume IV, Issue 143, 29 July 1926, Page 3

MYSTERY SIGNETS.

SEAL OF DANIEL’S DEN OF LIONS. Among the seals of Babylon upon 'which Mr Sidney Smith, assistant in the Assyrian Department at the British Museum, lectured recently is that -of Darius, who is said to' have /sealed ,u|p Daniel in the lions’ den. To a .London Daily Chronicle representative Mr iS'mith showed some of the seals about which a good deal of controversy has arisen. By the experts the Darius seal is considered to be extremely interesting. It ’shows the king in his chariot hunting.a lion among the palm trees, and if ‘Daniel was really placed in a den of lions this in all. probability the king who secured, it with his seal. The fact is, however, that Daniel’s adventure is regarded by scholars as a piece of political propaganda arranged at the time when Antiochus Epiphanes wanted the Jews to worship his divine statues. The story of J>ani'el and his survival was intended to implant faith in the Jews. Similarly scholars have q|3tabli,shed that] )th© wicked Nebuchadnezzar story was intended as a veiled attack on the Greek king of the second dynasty. 'Mr Smith has another seal which is mysterious in meaning. It Us the one which shows a. man and a woman, a tree, and a serpent, and it has been associated with the Adam and Eve •■creation story. “ We' have tried to kill this story,” said Mr Smith, “but people will come to see the seal under a false impression. It is believed to be a picture of a god and a goddess and a date palm. People still come to ask for the Seal of Abraham. There are about 1200 Babylonian seals in the British Museum, ranging in date from B.C. 3500 and B.C. 500. “Another seal is the Noah seal, which shows Tsit-Napishtim in his :ark. Professor Kink thought this illustrated the story of the deluge,” said Mr Smith. “ The king’s god came and announced! there would be a flood, and on tb 3 seal the king is depicted showing a Babylonian parallel to the Bible story.” Endeavours have been made by Mr Smith to forge tools similar to those used by the Babylonian artisans who mad,e the seals, and the claybrick documents upon which the seals were stamped. It has bee'in found very difficult, however, to reproduce .tools that successfully make the hieroglyphics. i ■ ■ i. mm === m "