A CARNELIAN INTAGLIO SEAL FROM GUDAR NEAR JAMRUD: NUMISMATIC PARALLELS AND THE ICONOGRAPHY OF MANAOBAGO IN KUSHAN ART

Abstract

Glyptic artifacts are an important yet understudied component of northwestern South Asian material culture. This study examines a newly reported carnelian intaglio seal discovered in 2022 at Gudar near Jamrud, District Khyber, Pakistan. The seal, recovered from a non-stratified context, depicts a centrally enthroned male figure whose iconography is closely comparable with Kushan divine imagery known from coinage. Comparison with the Manaobago type on Kanishka I’s gold coinage reveals close correspondences in posture, enthronement, attributes, and symbolic vocabulary, while its distinction from later Huvishka-related investiture imagery suggests an earlier or more iconic stage of this visual tradition. The seal is therefore best interpreted as a glyptic object whose closest parallels point to the Kanishkan phase of Kushan visual culture, probably in the early to mid-second century CE. Beyond its chronological attribution, the find illustrates the extension of imperial iconography from coinage into portable glyptic media, where such imagery may have functioned as a marker of authority, identity, or elite affiliation. This study highlights how numismatic comparison can inform the interpretation of undocumented artifacts while emphasizing methodological caution for objects lacking stratified provenance.