Book Specifications
242 pp.
Softcover
2024 ISSN: 0066-1554
You can purchase Anatolica 50 (2024) and download the articles through Peeters' website.
Ira SCHWARTZ, Khaled ABU JAYYAB, Sean DOYLE, Stephan BATIUK, Mindia JALABADZE
Sevinç GÜNEL, Johannes H. STERBA
Amir GILAN
Nicola LANERI, Bakhtiyar JALILOV, Stefano VALENTINI, Vittoria CARDINI, Lola HUSEYNOVA, Rachele Carmen MAMMANA, Alice MENDOLA
Melike ZEREN
C. Brian ROSE
Paolo MARANZANA
Bas BEAUJEAN, Frans DOPERÉ, Philip BAS, Bea DE CUPERE, Jeroen POBLOME
In spring 2023, a joint Georgian and Canadian team conducted excavations at a small site near the village of Azizk’endi in the Marneuli region of the Republic of Georgia. Based on ceramic forms and technology, lithics, architectural features, and comparisons with contemporary sites in the region, we suggest that this site, called Azizkendi Tepe, is a new 'Leilatepe' period settlement dating to the first half of the fourth millennium BCE. In this paper we present the findings from our first season of excavations at Azizkendi Tepe and situate them within their broader context as part of the regional phenomenon referred to as 'Leilatepe'. We frame the inhabitants of Azizkendi Tepe and other Leilatepe period sites as participants in the formation of novel practices and social realities during a time of increased interaction with Mesopotamia from the end of the fifth millennium through the middle of the fourth millennium.
Ira SCHWARTZ, Khaled ABU JAYYAB, Sean DOYLE, Stephan BATIUK, Mindia JALABADZE
The deep valley of the Büyük Menderes (Meander) in western Anatolia, and its tributaries to the south, are important natural routes connecting the Aegean world to Central Anatolia. Çine-Tepecik, located on the Çine Plain to the east of the Çine Çayı (Marsyas), sheds light on the early urbanization processes and socio-cultural life of this region, but also played a role in its cultural relations with the Aegean world. On the mound, Level II represents cultural remains dated to the 2nd millennium BCE, with evidence of a fortified settlement. The Bronze Age at Çine-Tepecik is significant in the cultural history of western Anatolia, with changes and innovations related to interregional cultural relationships. A layer of volcanic ash, discovered at the excavation at Çine-Tepecik in level II 2, was identified using Neutron Activation Analysis. The chemical fingerprint of the ash layer, after cleaning, corresponds well with the chemical composition of the BO pumice, a result of the Thera (Santorini) eruption. The archaeological context of the ash layer was undisturbed and is dated to the final phase of the Middle Bronze Age and the beginning of the Late Bronze Age at Çine-Tepecik.
Sevinç GÜNEL, Johannes H. STERBA
Emil Forrer’s Geschichtliche Texte aus dem alten und neuen Chatti-Reich (BoTU 2), published in 1926, is a pioneering milestone in the study of Hittite history and historiography. It contains a compilation of key historical texts, and many of Forrer’s readings and insights remain common wisdom to this day. One particularly 'persistent' suggestion of Forrer, often repeated in modern scholarship, concerns the Old Hittite prince Pimpira. Forrer ingeniously combined the evidence of various Hittite sources, among them the fragments attributed to Pimpira himself (CTH 24), the 'Palace Anecdotes' (CTH 8), the 'Political Testament of Ḫattušili I' (CTH 6) and the 'Offering Lists' (CTH 661) to suggest that prince Pimpira acted as a regent for the child king Muršili I. The present article will throw a fresh look at the Hittite sources pertaining to Pimpira and will argue that Forrer’s long-lasting hypothesis should finally be discarded. It will also shed new light on Pimpira’s role in Hittite history as well as on the instructional composition authored by him.
Amir GILAN
The GaRKAP (Ganja Region Kurgan Archaeological Project) international project in western Azerbaijan, which started in 2018, from 2021 aimed to investigate the Late Bronze Age/Early Iron Age settlement of Tava Tepe. This site is situated along the Kura River valley, within the present-day Aǧstafa district. During the initial three seasons, led by CAMNES (Center for Ancient Mediterranean and Near Eastern Studies), the University of Catania, and the Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences, two main phases of occupation (i.e., Phase I and II) were identified at the site. The purpose of this preliminary report is to describe the archaeological evidence from Tava Tepe which at this moment are dated respectively to Late Bronze Age (Phase I) and Iron Age I-II (Phase II). In particular, during the last season, new evidence from the southern side of Tava Tepe highlighted the presence of a circular ceremonial building with a pottery hoard that has preliminarily been dated to the Late Bronze Age period. The second level of occupation at the site (Phase II) is instead characterized by rectilinear architecture and a hut that includes areas dedicated to productive activities. At this stage, the small settlement of Tava Tepe presents for both phases intriguing data which appear consistent with the ritual ideology of the southern Caucasus between the end of the second millennium and the beginning of the first millennium BCE.
Nicola LANERI, Bakhtiyar JALILOV, Stefano VALENTINI, Vittoria CARDINI, Lola HUSEYNOVA, Rachele Carmen MAMMANA, Alice MENDOLA
This study aims to interpret a pottery group from Old Smyrna consisting of vessels of large scale and coarse fabric which were carefully embellished. The situlae vessels are containers that can serve many purposes as their two horizontal small handles and large, capacious bodies suggest. These vessels are less well known among the sub-Geometric and Archaic Ionian pottery and are described as 'straight-bodied situlae' due to their morphological features. Aside from Old Smyrna, they also represented in Clazomenae, Phocaea, and Ephesus. Their rare presence in sites other than the ones mentioned above suggests that they were primarily designed for regional use and were not importing goods. The study hopes to contribute to our understanding of pottery culture in the region based on this group of meticulously decorated vases, which to date are known from a few sites in Ionia. The vases’ decorative styles offer promising potential for the subject of vase painting just before and in the Archaic period. The current study examines the situlae typologically and chronologically based on their morphological features, style of decoration, find places, and their possible functions.
Melike ZEREN
Gordion’s citadel was inhabited for nearly 2,700 years, from the Early Bronze Age, ca. 2300 BCE, through the Medieval period, ca. twelfth–fourteenth century CE. Unlike many other sites in Asia Minor, however, the best-preserved remains are those dated to the Iron Age, especially the ninth century (Early Phrygian) and the eighth century BCE (early Middle Phrygian). This article reviews the evidence for the first phase of monumental architecture on the citadel, ca. 875-850, concentrating on the earliest Iron Age fortifications and the buildings that adjoined them. The discussion focuses primarily on the eastern side of the Citadel Mound, where excavations have been conducted by Rodney Young (1950-1973), Mary Voigt (a Deep Sounding in 1988-1989), and me (the Phrygian citadel’s South Gate from 2013-2023). The structures considered include the Early Phrygian Building (ca. 875-850 BCE), the contemporary Post and Poros Building, and the citadel’s East and South Gates (ca. 850 BCE). The article concludes witha review of the ninth century building program and its potential sponsors.
C. Brian ROSE
This paper addresses the economic impact of urbanization in the northern part of Galatia during the Roman period, focusing in particular on the Upper Sakarya River valley. Archaeological and historical studies in the area have shown that the creation of cities and the presence of a Roman auxiliary garrison in Gordion led to significant changes in the local economy, including vegetation, animal populations, and rural settlements. Another indicator of economic development is the emergence of the local industry of pottery manufacture — especially fine tableware (terra sigillata). Fine tableware gained popularity throughout Roman Galatia; however, initial inquiries into pottery distribution in the area indicated that only major centers, such as Pessinus and Ankara, had consistent access to long-distance imports, while other cities were almost only supplied by local workshops. This may point to the adoption of different strategies that local communities employed in order to respond to the stimuli brought by the newly established Roman rule.
Paolo MARANZANA
Between 2005 and 2008, the Sagalassos Archaeological Research Project excavated the eastern half of a semielliptic theatre-like building long identified as Sagalassos’ odeion. This paper first discusses the activities preceding the construction of this public building, before setting out the argumentation for dating the 175-225 CE construction of the Odeion. Based on the excavations, we describe the original arrangement of the eastern entrance hall, stage/orchestra, cavea, and the scaenae frons, as well as use the limited evidence to reconstruct the roofing system. Furthermore, we discuss subsequent developments, substantiating that the Odeion retained its intended functions into Late Antiquity. Finally, archaeozoological results are presented to deepen our understanding of the abandoned Odeion as a dump site, and the associated butchery activities. All of these results will be contextualized within wider Roman Imperial, Late Roman, and Early Byzantine dynamics at Sagalassos.
Bas BEAUJEAN, Frans DOPERÉ, Philip BAS, Bea DE CUPERE, Jeroen POBLOME