This article proposes an interpretive framework of paradox and wonder as a new approach to understanding the affective properties and social consequences of miniature objects in the archaeological record. Building upon current scholarly theories of miniatures as inherently intimate, this approach accounts for how small-scale artworks were also designed and deliberately manufactured to elude user attempts at full sensory access and immersive escapism. This desire-provoking tension between intimacy and distance—which lures viewers into small-scale encounters only to insist upon the object's life-size existence—is wonder, and it is what gives miniature objects their social relevance and ability not only to reflect, but also to influence, the real world. The benefits and applicability of this approach to miniaturization are illustrated through analysis of case studies of miniature objects (figurines, coins, seals and seal impressions, and jewellery) from Hellenistic Babylonia (Seleucid and Parthian periods in southern Mesopotamia, modern Iraq, 323 bce–ce 224).

本文提出了一个悖论和奇迹的解释框架，作为理解考古记录中微型物体的情感属性和社会后果的新方法。基于当前微缩模型本质上是亲密的学术理论，这种方法解释了小尺寸艺术品是如何设计和故意制造的，以逃避用户完全感官访问和身临其境的逃避现实的尝试。这种亲密与距离之间激发欲望的张力——它吸引观众进行小规模的接触，只是为了坚持物体的真人大小的存在——是奇迹，它赋予微型物体社会相关性和能力，不仅能够反思，而且能够也影响现实世界。通过对来自希腊化巴比伦（美索不达米亚南部的塞琉古和帕提亚时期，现代伊拉克，公元前 323 年）的微型物体（雕像、硬币、印章和印章印记以及珠宝）的案例研究分析，说明了这种微型化方法的好处和适用性。行政长官224）。