J. H. Bernard. SIGNET. — In the e.arly days of civilization the art of writing w.is practically limited to a class of pro- fessional scribes. Every one outside that class, from the king downwards, needed a signet to authenticate the documents with which he was concerned. Hero- dotus, i. l'J.j, saj-s of the Babylonians, <r<ppriyT5a Si JrooTot fx". An immense number of these seals have come down to us, Egypt and Assyria being the two great sources from which, directly or by imitation, the leading types have been derivetl. One of the earliest and most persistent forms is that of the scarab, originating in Egypt, but imi- tated by the Phoenicians and others. These scarabs were often made of clay or steatite, and bore the owner's name on the flat side. Another verj' early variety is the Assj'rian and Babylonian cylinder of jasper, chalcedony, or other stone, J of an inch to li mches long and from h inch to 1 in. diani., pierced longitudinally, and worn on a linen or woollen cord round the neck. Ball {Light from the East, p. 24) figures some of these, which are said to range from B.C. 4500 downwards. The name of the owner and of the deity whom he specially worshipped were engraved on them ; sacred emblems and scenes are also common, such as a god slaying a lion, a tree guarded by genii, (/"onical signets, with the device on the broad end and the attachment at the top,
• At Ex 7* the IiXy tnuiBlatcs nc'io a wonder, by mfMin, show- iDK thai there was no very sharp distinction between rnfuin and rifmt ; c(. also Lk 238. Sn Trench, Miraclet, pp. 1-a, for the ■ubject ol this article. VOU IV.— 33
have also come down to us from very early ages. Amongst what are classilied as 'Hittite' gems there are several other shapes ; some almost hemi- spherical, with hole near the top; some nearly annular; a few stone rings ; tablets with a device on the lower side ; lenticular gems ; square or polygonal tablets, with a design on each side seals with handles. Some very ancient Greek signets are gold rings with large bezels, on which are designs that originated in Assjria or Egypt. In the ^gean Islands and elsewhere engraved bean-shaped pebbles of various materials have been found, to which the names ' island ' or ' lenticular ' gems were given. The signets found in Palestine are mainly oval in form. Such of them as bear a device, in addition to a name, are either of Phcen. workmanship or imitations thereof. And the Phoe- nicians themselves were under the influence of Babylonian or Egyptian craftsmen. Amongst the designs may be mentioned the Phoenician palm- leaf, a border of pomegranates, a bull, a worshipper whose attire reminds us of the Egj-ptian priests, a winged circle. The matter on wliich the signet was pressed was wax or prepared clay. Tliere is an allusion to the latter at Job 38'\ and excellent illustrations are to be found in the photographs of jar-se.alings given by Flinders Petrie in Emjid Tombs of the First Dynasty.
Judah's signet (cpn, n;nn Gn 38"- *) is worn by a cord C^'n;) round his neck, as the inhabitants of the Arabian towns wear their seal-rings still. He gives it as a pledge, because it was the one thing wliich could be proved to belong to him, and would serve to identify liim. Pharaoh (Gn 41''^) took oif his signet-ring (ni'jE) from his hand and put it on Josepli's ; it w.as the Egyptian custom to wear the signet on the finger (cf. Jer 22^). Josei)h was now enabled to sign decrees on behalf of the king. Jer 22^, Hag 2-a, Sir 17~ 49" indicate the v.iltie'of the rings in question. Sir 38-'' shows that in the 2nd cent, before Christ the seal engravers must have occupied a prominent place amongst the artisans of the day. 2 Ti 2'° refers either to the two in- scriptions which were sometimes engraved on two sides of a seal, or to the authentication of a docu- ment by each party allixing his signature. Such passages as 2 Es 2^, To 9^ imply tliat the signet was used as a mark of proprietorship. W hen Darius ( Dn 6") seals the den with his own signet (kb^V) and that of his lords, and when the Jewish authorities (Mt 27°") 'made the sepulchre sure, sealing the stone,' the idea was that if the impres- sion was broken the fact could not be hidden, for the culprits would not be able to reproduce the stamp. In this connexion it should be remembered that one of Solon's laws forbade gem engravers to keep an impression of any gem they had sold, lest another should be made exactly like it (Diog. Laert. i. 57, in Middleton, Engraved Gems, p. 22). Greek and Roman letter-writers were also so much afraid of their letters being tampered with, that at the close of the epistle they oUen described the seaL See also RiKO and Seal. J. Taylor.
SIHON (|n't) and i^n-p, cf. for the ending I^S3^; ; BA Sijiii", Luc. Xiuv ; Vulg. Sehon). — A king of the Amorites defeated by tlie Israelites at Jahaz after crossing the Arnon. This battle marks the commencement of the struggle for the possession of the land, and the end of the journeyings past friendly tribes with which Israel was forbidden to contend. The account of Sihon's defeat is given in Nu 21^-*, and is followed by a poetical extract from an older source commemorating a defeat of Moab. The account is repeated in Dt 2"-" [with the additional statement that the country was treated as oyy (see Curse)], and in Jg ll'»-»». References are made to Silion's defeat and tha