Inschriften als Zeugnisse griechischer Siegelpraxis: Inventarlisten, Staatsverträge und Ehrendekrete

Moustakis, Nikola

Abstract

Frequently, fire disasters have preserved seals by unintentionally burn-ing them. In turn, the documents to which these seals belonged have – almost with-out exception – been destroyed, so that contents and processes of notarization, including sealing and archiving, can no longer be read in them. However, the Greeks had the habit of recording texts that were or should be constitutive for their com-munity on durable materials such as stone or bronze. The following article thus goes beyond archaeological and art historical investigations of seals. Instead, it approaches the phenomenon of sealing in ancient Greece by means of inscriptions. Based on eight case studies, the following questions are investigated: Who seals (private individuals or officials; one person or several people)? What is the function of sealing? What is the relevance of sealing and was sealing accompanied by other rituals? It will be traced how Greek sealing practices are embedded in communicative contexts that require acceptance and consensus, even when the sender is not present.