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Sphragistics
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Significance and historical characteristics of seals
The understanding and interpretation of two entries in the Vocabulaire International de la sigillographie that define the terms matrix and seal, objects that appeared at the dawn of civilisation around 7000 BC, is the best way to comprehend the nature and significance of such objects.
The former states that une matrice de sceau (lat. typarium) est un instrument portant, gravées en creux et à l’envers, les marques distinctives d’une autorité ou d’une personne physique ou morale et destiné à être imprimé sur un support, while the latter describes a seal as une empreinte obtenue sur un support par l’apposition d’une matrice […] en vue de témoigner de la volonté d’intervention du sigillant.
These two precise definitions convey the essence of the two artefacts in question. The former is usually made of metal, engraved, concave in shape and is used to make an impression, while the latter is convex in shape and is the impression made by a matrix on a ductile material. These features are clearly distinguishable and reveal the difference between the two conceptually inseparable artefacts that have different uses and require specific conservation. Nonetheless, the two terms are frequently mixed up.
Indeed, while the seal matrix remained an object itself after it served its purpose, the impression it produced found its raison d’etre on the supports it was applied to. Consequently, the pre-eminently archaeological nature of the matrix and the clear archival diplomatic relevance of the seal, or impression, are acknowledged.
Seals may be small, but they are important sources of written and figurative texts. They are particularly interesting historical documents, above all starting from the Middle Ages. Their main function was to authenticate the legal deeds they were attached to. Indeed, by applying a seal the person or administrative body issuing the document established the validity of the declarations contained therein.
The cultural importance of seals is often underestimated and is linked to their refined iconographic representations. Both the engravings on the matrices and the impressions they produce represent the owners of the seals in figures and legends. Thus, the owners who commissioned them and controlled their use, including kings, emperors, popes, cardinals, nobles, functionaries, dignitaries, institutions and ordinary citizens, paid great attention and care when overseeing the creation of their seals.
Sphragistic sources, in particular exemplars of the Renaissance, have handed down extraordinary examples of works of art, many of which are of major artistic importance. These objects provide relevant historical information on places, social customs, and the genealogical and heraldic functions of their related backgrounds.
Seals appeared in Mesopotamia, corresponding to modern-day Iraq and areas of Syria and Iran, around 7000 BC long before the advent of writing. Over the twelfth and thirteenth centuries the use of seals by ordinary citizens spread in the West and the trend gained momentum in the following centuries. In effect, many legal deeds carry one or more impressions in addition to the signatures of the persons present at the writing of the text.
Seals represent a vast heritage yet, at least in Italy, they are often considered merely as appendices to paper or parchment supports or are totally ignored, instead of being appreciated from a historical and conservational viewpoint.
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