242 dominik bonatz
“soul,” as well as by the visual representation of food.169 the inscription
on the stele of sin-zera-ibni, the second funerary monument to a priest
from neirab (pl. XIX), also invokes the protection of the deceased man’s
image and last resting place—in this case a sarcophagus (KaI 225). But
the deceased priest is shown, not seated at a repast, but standing with his
hand upraised in greeting or blessing.170 the stele can thus be placed in
the category of funerary monuments that depict the dead standing alone,
often with the attributes of their profession.171
sin-zera-ibni and siʾgabbar refer to themselves as priests of the god Śahr,
who was identical with the moon-god sin of harran. Like the stele of Kut-
tamuwa in samʾal, their stelae and inscriptions provide clear testimony of
the preservation of their names. Furthermore, from an art historical and
iconographic perspective, there is no reason to view these monuments as
different from the other funerary monuments dating to the Iron age in
syria. rather, they are a vivid expression of the cultural symbiosis in the
aramaean and Luwian city-states.172 In both areas the funerary monu-
ments served to endorse a life that was secured by family, progeny, and
religion. the efforts undertaken to enable the dead a continued existence
in the afterlife are only one of the many important aspects of the shared
process of collectivization and identity formation in the world of the
aramaean and Luwian states.
4. Seals and Minor Arts
4.1 Sealsattempts to define aramaean glyptic art are problematic for several rea-
sons. First of all, very few seals and seal impressions have been found in
an archaeological context. the few surviving cylinder seals were clearly
fashioned in a neo-assyrian style,173 as can be seen by the finds from tell
halaf. the stamp seals that are typical of the Iron age in syria must be
categorized as local products, but like the cylinder seals, they rarely come
169 Bonatz 2000a: 150 and most recently niehr 2010b.
170 Bonatz 2000a: 34 c11, see also niehr 2010b: 51f.
171 Bonatz 2000a: 32–34, Stelenbildtyp 1, c1–c11; in this context niehr sees sin-zera-ibni’s
upraised hand as a gesture with which the priest blesses those who guard his grave (niehr
2010b: 51f ).
172 see also Bonatz 2000a: 172.
173 von Oppenheim 1962: pls. 23.9–10, 24.11–22, 25.23–42, 26.37–53; see also the neo-
assyrian cylindrical seal from Zincirli (von Luschan 1943: pl. 39m–n).