Three Aramaic seals of the Achaemenid period

This seal, of unknown provenance, has an Aramaic inscription which is engraved on a scaraboid hematite pierced lengthwise. It measures 17×13 mm, with 9 mm of thickness. The oval surface, which is slightly damaged at one point, is divided by a double line into two registers. Six letters are engraved in the upper, and five in the lower register, giving the following reading: The letters are fairly large and fill the whole space. All the letters in the upper register stand at the same height on the double line. Normally, however, lamed is higher than the ceiling line of the other letters, while nun and taw are usually drawn with a stroke which goes below the bottom line formed by the other letters. In the lower register the taw and the two nuns seem to go farther down than the alef and the dalet.