We often hear "Sign here" when sending group holiday greetings or greetings from a trip. And when someone mentions signing, the first image that comes to mind is that of a handwritten name, with each of us having a very specific signature.
With a handwritten signature, we add a personal stamp to a message, formally agree to an arrangement, or confirm an event. Today, an electronic (or digital) signature supported by modern technologies has almost the same power - but how was this done long, long ago?
This is the story of humanity, creativity, and the progress of civilization's norms and technologies, from ancient pieces of mud to modern electronic documents.
In the beginning, man did not discuss much, but more often than not, he got his way by using the argument of power. Then, slowly, the monkey put down the club, the argument overcame power, and people started to get along.
To make mutual agreements in the first civilizations, the only way to confirm the identity of the parties agreeing was by being physically present and that others could confirm their presence.
The ancient Egyptians and Sumerians already included images in their "documents" to convey specific meanings. The Sumerians were in fact the first to use images (and words) to confirm identity, as evidenced by a clay tablet dating from 3100 BC. The tablet lists 41 occupations known at the time, and on the reverse side is inscribed the name
Gar Ama
, which is believed to be the first handwritten signature in the history of humanity.
The seal, imprinted on hot wax, confirmed in the Middle Ages that a wealthy man of importance was behind it. It represents a significant technological step forward. The owner, of course, guarded it jealously, as it was not only a sign of identity but also of honor.
During the Renaissance, handwritten signatures exploded, of course, among those in the upper classes who could actually write. They put great effort into creating a highly elaborate, unique handwritten signature, and they signed virtually all kinds of documents, from personal letters to official agreements.
In the 17th century, the handwritten signature also acquired legal implications. The act of signing constituted an agreement, an approval, or a promise. The unique appearance of a personal signature was proof of identity and intent.
The Industrial Revolution significantly boosted business and, therefore, communication by automating production processes. Stamps, typewriters, and printed forms made it possible to prepare and manage documents more quickly. However, the handwritten signature was still the most important for authentication - it was given its own standardized space on documents, usually marked with a line.
The digital revolution took off in the 1980s. With the development of computing and (a little later) the internet, documents started to move from paper to pixels, and this transition meant that the question of how to sign documents in a digital environment needed an answer.
Europe is not lagging behind. First, the Electronic Signatures Directive was adopted in 1999. In 2014, it was repealed by the
electronic IDentification, Authentication, and trust Services (eIDAS) Regulation
, which monitors the legal compliance of trust service providers, including electronic signatures. The Regulation is stronger than the Directive as it applies to all its Member States in the same way.
To date, a number of platforms have been developed by domestic and global high-tech companies to enable
legally compliant remote signatures
(anywhere, anytime) or handwritten signatures at the point of sale.
From here on, the only limit is the imagination. Fingerprint and face recognition offers new levels of security and personalization. Systems that analyze an individual's unique biological characteristics offer signatures whose authenticity is almost beyond doubt.
The personal signature, in whatever form it takes, from a clay tablet to an advanced, sophisticated technological solution, has had a single mission in human history: to recognize and acknowledge an individual's presence at a (business) event while considering and applying changing social and technological circumstances.
With electronic signatures, we have indeed achieved a higher level of convenience, and we use them practically everywhere, like when signing insurance policies, financial transaction orders, or various contracts. This is, therefore, also a story of human progress, creativity, and adaptation in a world of communication and documentation, the story of making the impossible possible.
