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Primary sourceArtifact967 AH (1559-60 CE)

Seal of Akbar

Akbar · 967 AH (1559-60 CE)

Akbar's official seal, dated 1559-60, inscribed with his Timurid genealogy to assert his right to rule.

This is Akbar's own personal seal, used to authenticate his authority through his inscribed genealogy.

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Round paper seal with black background and cream Arabic-style calligraphy in ornate script, with a few dark numerals at the top. A thread runs diagonally across the seal. The background is white.
Official seal of Mughal emperor Akbar, 967 AH (1559-60 CE).

About this source

What it is

This is the official round seal of the Mughal emperor Akbar, dated 967 AH (1559-60 CE), with ornate Arabic-script calligraphy on a black background listing his genealogy.

Why it matters

Rulers used seals like this to authenticate official documents and commands. By listing his descent from the Timurid line, Akbar's seal publicly asserted his legitimacy as ruler early in his reign, when he was still consolidating power as a young emperor.

Look closer

  • Why would an emperor want his ancestry written directly onto his official seal?
  • What does the care put into the calligraphy suggest about how seriously such objects were treated?
  • How might a seal like this have been used in practice, on what kinds of documents?

This artifact is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Akbar the Great on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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