27. Belshazzar from Book of Daniel

This clay cylinder was inscribed in Akkadian cuneiform in the 6th century BC by the Neo-Babylonian King Nabonidus. It refers to his son Belshazzar, who is also referred to in the Bible in Daniel 5 and 8. The cylinder was discovered in the 19th century in Ur and is now in the British Museum. It measures about four inches in length and is one of four such cylinders.

PHOTO USED WITH PERMISSION: © Marie-Lan Nguyen / Wikimedia Commons