A Study on the Pictures of the Gods, Deities and Greek Goddesses on Seleucid and Parthian Seals and Seal Impressions

With the fall of the Achaemenid Empire and the arrival of the Greeks in Asia, vast changes occurred in all aspects of life in the countries conquered by Alexander and his successors. These changes can be seen in different shapes in all social, political, cultural, art architecture aspects and even in religious beliefs. Seleucid and Parthian seals and seal expressions clearly show such changes. The mythological and religious pictures include Hellenistic themes such as images of Deities, Gods and Greek Goddesses. The most famous of these designs are Athena, Aphrodite, Zeus, Apollo, Tikkeh (Tikheh), Hermes, Eros, Nike (god of victory) and the god of justice. The samples were taken from centers such as Seleucia on the Tigris , Tel Kedesh, Uruk, Nisa and Saleh Davoude Khuzestan. The presence of these elements on the seals is not identical due to different demographics and the influence of Greek culture. In this paper, the effect of the Greek ideology on belief evolution in conquered territories were comparatively studied by evaluation of seals and seal Impressions. The seals and seal Impressions are historical materials whose pictures can clearly reflect the levels and trends of the changes.