Extended arm

Marilyn Kelly-Buccellati – August 2026

The stylistic trait

Moved here from below Many of the seal impressions excavated in Urkesh have long thin realistic extended arms, which is one of the "surrealistic" traits that is often found in Urkesh glyptic (sometimes legs are carved in this manner also). This feature is of a type that is also found in modern paintings.
This gesture seems to indicate, in the royal seals below, homage to the royal couple. Where deities are shown the extended arm could express homage to a more important deity, as the scene in A9c1 probably implies. In general, this trait suggests the communicative or symbolic importance of bodily articulation.

Royal seals

The extended arm is prominent in some Urkesh royal court scenes. In one of the Tupkish seals (~~TGL.kt2~~ AKk2) the crown prince pays homage to the king by touching his lap with a long extended arm. The prince is depicted with the same long thin arm and the same lap touching gesture in one of the Uqnitum seals (AKq2) ~~AKc5 (=A1.406)~~. While in the king's seal the prince is shown standing on a reclining lion in the queen's seal Uqnitum is observing this gesture as she is shown seated across from the king with a small child on her lap and an eight pointed star above her and the children. [This does not seem relevant here... I originally thought we had an image of the head of the king in A1.406 but this head has unfortunately has no connections with the Uqnitum AKc5 seal.

AKk2

AKq2

The long thin extended arm is prominent in AKq4 where there are two figures with this type of arm. One is probably the queen's daughter who has her hair long, braided and held by a braid ornament resembling the hair and hair ornament of the queen. She is paying homage to the queen with the same gesture of the crown prince in Akc5. A servant holding a small necked jar has extended her arm above the small figure. Behind the seated queen is another servant with folded arms and below the inscription are the usual singer and harp player.

AKq4

Another seal of Uqnitum (Akq6) has the same two figures (daughter and servant) but here a bird legged table is placed between them. Nothing is on top of this table and it is not clear why it is placed there .

AKq6

Cultic settings

A good example is A6c1, where a god with one extended arm gestures toward the back of another deity in front of him, both in front of a seated figure more than likely another deity.

A6c1

In A9c1, the god at the extreme right gestures with one extended arm toward the back of another deity in front of him, both in front of a seated figure more than likely another deity.

A9c1

The hands can be holding something (e. g., a cup) or performing some activity, as in A5.137, where the person behind the animal is holding a type of rope to secure the winged gate on the back of the bull; both of his arms are narrow and bent.

A5.137

Carved in the Pointed style is a container which appears to have bread and perhaps flames coming out of the top (A7.327). On one side is a standing human with the arm extended above; the other side has a seated figure with an extended bent arm over the container. It is not clear what activity they are involved in but it may be warming some bread.

A7.327

Animals legs

An interesting corollary to the extended arms and lap touching scene we found in A14.26 and A9.27. Both these seal impressions show an equid with the legs touching the lap of a seated figure holding a cup. It is possible that both these sealings come from the same seal but this is not certain because the A9 rolling has been made in a less careful manner than the A14 rolling.

A14.26

A9.27