Blogposts

This page provides an overview of all blog posts published on the KIŠIB website. From project updates and research insights to event announcements and reflections, the blog offers a window into the ongoing work and discussions of the KIŠIB team. Browse the archive to follow the project’s development over time.

The foyer of the Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities in the Residence of Munich showing the poster of the conference on a screen.

The foyer of the Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities in the Residence of Munich. KIŠIB Project (S. Sajedi), CC BY 4.0

Events

A retrospective on the First KIŠIB Conference (22–24 July 2026, Munich)

Our first conference has just come to an end, and we could not be happier with how it went. We were overwhelmed by the tremendous interest in the topic. Over three days ...

by Albert Dietz | 25 August 2026

A plaza in front of a big building with flags showing the letters BAdW, which stand for Bavarian Academy of Sciences.

News/Announcements

KIŠIB Conference 2026 – Save the date!

We are delighted to announce the first KIŠIB Conference, to be held from 22–24 July 2026 at the Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities in Munich. Under the theme “Why sealing? From sealed clay...

by Albert Dietz | 14 March 2026

Ancient West Asian clay sealing with cuneiform on printed programming code – representing the KIŠIB digital corpus project.

Sealed tag from Ur (excavations by LMU Munich). Find no. Ur-102-0332, Area 5, A. Credit: A. Otto, adapted by V. Kaçmaz, CC BY 4.0.

News/Announcements

Welcome to the new KIŠIB website!

We are pleased to welcome you to the official website of the KIŠIB – Digital Corpus of Ancient West Asian Seals and Sealings project!

by Sebastian Hageneuer | 13 March 2026

A close-up of a sealed envelope with visible cuneiform script and two figures. The right one is leading the left one to the right.

Sealed envelope of a cuneiform tablet from the Museum für Kunst & Gewerbe in Hamburg, Credit: KIŠIB Project (A. Dietz), CC BY 4.0.

⭐ Highlight Article

What we do in the storerooms

We are pleased to welcome you to the official website of the KIŠIB – Digital Corpus of Ancient West Asian Seals and Sealings project!

by Albert Dietz | 16 February 2026

The entrance in front of a mountainous background.

The entrance to the museum. Credit: K. Martinez Garcia, CC BY 4.0.

News/Announcements

Tracing Seal Provenance in a Mountain Monastery: A Research Stay at Montserrat

This blog post is about a small collection that of the Monastery of Montserrat in Catalonia, Spain. Only a small portion of the seals in this collection has been published,...

by K. Martinez Garcia | 17 December 2025

A bunch of flyers on a grey background. The flyer shows a sealing and a brush on coded paper. The title reads "Bilder, die verbinden" meaning "Images that connect".

Program flyers from the kick-off event. Credit: KIŠIB Project (S. Hageneuer), CC BY 4.0.

Events

KIŠIB Kick-off at the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities

November 17, 2025 marked a special milestone for our project: the official kick-off event of KIŠIB – Digital Corpus of Ancient West Asian Seals and Sealings took place at the Berlin-Brandenburg...

by Sebastian Hageneuer | 18 November 2025

A very grand monastery with a monumental way upwards, right and left to the main entrance of the building.

The former monastery of Banz, location of the KIŠIB retreat 2025. Credit: KIŠIB Project (S. Hageneuer), CC0.

Events

KIŠIB team retreat 2025

For the last three days, the KIŠIB team left behind our desks, screens, and city routines to gather at Kloster Banz near Bamberg. It was our very first team retreat, and for many of us the first...

by Sebastian Hageneuer | 01 October 2025

Creating rollouts from the Oppenländer Collection, Freie Universität Berlin. KIŠIB Project (E. Roßberger), CC BY 4.0.

Events

From seal to impression: Unrolling a pictorial treasure

On August 13, the KIŠIB team joined colleagues at the Free University of Berlin to explore ancient Mesopotamian cylinder seals in a very hands-on way: by rolling them out on modeling clay and...

by Albert Dietz | 15 August 2025

A minumental entrance to the State Library Berlin with a fountain in front.

Entrance to the Berlin State Library. Credit: KIŠIB Project (S. Hageneuer), CC BY 4.0.

News/Announcements

Save the date!

Join Us for the KIŠIB Project Kick-off Event in Berlin! We are excited to announce the official launch of the new project “KIŠIB – Digital Corpus of Ancient West Asian Seals and Sealings”. To mark...

by Sebastian Hageneuer | 30 June 2025

Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities
KIŠIB - Digital Corpus of Ancient West Asian Seals and Sealings

The long-term academy project "KIŠIB — Digital Corpus of Ancient West Asian Seals and Sealings" is part of the Academies’ Programme, a research funding programme co-financed by the German federal government and individual federal states. Coordinated by the Union of the German Academies of Sciences and Humanities, the Programme aims to retrieve and explore our cultural heritage, make it accessible, highlight its relevance to the present, and preserve it for the future.