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Source: http://www.haaretz.com/archaeology/1.810495
Dozens of Seals from First Temple Period Found in Jerusalem
(Ha'aretz) Ruth Schuster - Several dozen seals and seal impressions from the First Temple period, many with biblical-type names in ancient Hebrew text, have been found in this year's excavations at the City of David, lending credence to the theory that Jerusalem was a major administrative capital of the Judean kingdom, say archaeologists exploring the site. When the Middle Eastern ancients wanted to secure a letter or notarized document with a seal, they used moist clay that would be imprinted with the seal. "Somewhere in the late 8th century BCE, until 586 BCE, seals started bearing names of the officials sealing the letters," explained Joe Uziel. "Jerusalem was the capital of the Judean monarchy."