Knobs of this sort - with a square bottom end and a cylindrical handle - were set into walls beside doorways. The item was part of a system for keeping doors shut. one end of a cord was tied to the knob anchored in the wall, while the other was attached to a handle made in the wooden door. To control access to a room that had been shut in this way, the two ends of the cord were covered with wet clay, on which a cylinder seal was rolled or a stamp seal was impressed. This system was commonly used in public buildings like palaces, where there were storage rooms for surplus production and goods acquired through trade.
Provenance: Tell Bi'a (ancient Tuttul).
Era: Early Bronze Age (circa 2500 BC).
Substance: terra cotta.
Dimensions: 24 x 6.4 cm and 27 x 6.2 cm.
Photo: Jacques Lessard.
Collection of the National Museum of Damascus.
Michel Fortin, Syria, Land of Civilization. Les Éditions de l'Homme, Musée de la Civilisation de Québec 1999
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