9/12/2021

News: Ancient Hittite temple in Anatolia to be unearthed

 From the article:
"Archaeological excavations will be carried out to unearth one of the most important temples of the Hittites in Kayalipinar, a 3,800-year-old ancient city in Turkey’s central Sivas province.  Maner, who will also head the excavation team in the ancient city, said Kayalipinar is referred to as "Samuha" in ancient Assyrian and Hittite cuneiform texts, adding that Kayalipinar was once the capital of the Hittites after Hattusa... Maner said: 'The cult of the Goddess of night was brought to Samuha from the Cilicia region (southern Anatolia) during the reign of the Hittite King Tuthaliya II, and a temple was built for her.' Stressing the importance of the excavation works, Maner said: 'Cuneiform tablets are also likely to be unearthed. These will tell about the actual historical relations and correspondence at the time, including the literature, religion and political structure of the Hittite civilization ... as well as correspondence of the Hittites with other civilizations... The most beautiful (artifacts to be unearthed) would be the statue of the Goddess, cult objects, and cuneiform tablets describing rituals.'"



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