Edward Berdoe, in the "Origin and Growth of the Healing Art," comments on the universality of amuletic symbols and talismans.    From Wordnik.com.  [Primitive Psycho-Therapy and Quackery] Reference

Created for about three thousand years in the region the ancient Greeks called Mesopotamia, or "the land between two rivers," the function of seals was both practical, as a means of identification, and amuletic, intended to protect or benefit the owner in some way.    From Wordnik.com.  [NYC.com's Exclusive New York City Event Calendar : Art] Reference

If we posit that Germanic "alu" is a metonym for amuletic magic, as does Mindy Macleod (Runic Amulets and Magical Objects) and also keep in mind Stephen Flowers theory (based on Duwel's) that runic "magical inscriptions" are physical forms of operant vocal formulations (from his article "How To Do Things With Runes: A Semiotic Approach To Operative Communication" as well as his many other works in the public and private domain), from a Raettic/Etruscan verb "(it) is set down".. then this opens up a completely different interpretation of the word and its useage in runic objects and iconography.    From Wordnik.com.  [Never judge a book by its nom de plume] Reference