Glyphic art finds its root in Ancient Mesopotamia, as early as the 7th millennium BC, however carved cylinder seals appeared for the first time around the 4th millennium BC. Cylinder seals would have been rolled on soft clay to leave impressions and personal signatures. Such seals appear much more elaborately decorated than previous examples, with most of the images closely related to traditional Near Eastern religious scenes. Iconographies featuring only decorative patterns, as seen on this fine example, are much rarer.