A LEAD SEAL FROM TSOUNGIZA, ANCIENT NEMEA, AND EARLY BRONZE-AGE AEGEAN SEALING SYSTEMS

A lead seal was discovered at the prehistoric site of Tsoungiza, Ancient Nemea, in association with Early Helladic II remains. Lead seals are rarely preserved, and this is the first known for mainland Greece in the Early Bronze Age. The seal's motif of an angle-filled cross is widespread throughout the eastern Mediterranean during the fourth and third millennia B.C., and is found on seals, sealings, and terracotta objects. Using the sealing evidence from Lerna, seals and their use on sealings can be connected with the control of redistribution in chiefdoms, the principal form of social organization in the EH II period. The Tsoungiza seal is evidence for the emerging social complexity of the Early Bronze Age.