Location | Hatay Province, Turkey |
---|---|
Region | Levant |
Coordinates | 36°14′51″N36°22′35″E / 36.24750°N 36.37639°E |
Type | Settlement |
History | |
Periods | Early Bronze Age, Early Iron Age |
Cultures | Neo-Hittite, Aramean |
Site notes | |
Excavation dates | 1935-1938, 2003-present |
Archaeologists | Robert Braidwood, Timothy Harrison |
Condition | In ruins |
Tell Ta'yinat is a low-lying ancient tell on the east bank at the bend of the Orontes River where it flows through the Amuq valley, in the Hatay province of southeastern Turkey about 25 kilometers south east of Antakya (ancient Antioch), and lies near Tell Atchana, the site of the ancient city of Alalakh. Tell Ta'yinat has been proposed as the site of Alalaḫu, inhabited in late 3rd millennium BC, mentioned in Ebla's Palace G archive; [1] and in later times as Kinalua, the capital city of an Iron Age Neo-Hittite kingdom. [2] Among the findings are an Iron Age temple and several 1st millennium BC cuneiform tablets. [3]
Archaeologist Timothy Harrison, the dig director for many years starting in 2004, supports the identification of the site with Kinalua, the capital of a Neo-Hittite/Aramean Iron Age kingdom. [2] In the period of Neo-Assyrian control it was the center of the Unqi province. [4]
It is a possible site of the city of Calneh mentioned in the Hebrew Bible. [5]
Four seasons of archaeological excavations were conducted at the site by the University of Chicago's Oriental Institute from 1935 to 1938, led by Robert Braidwood. [6] [7] [8] From 1999 to 2002, the Oriental Institute returned to the site, as part of the Tayinat Archaeological Project, to conduct mapping and surveying and to examine the original excavations. [9] [10]
New excavations at the site were begun by a team from the University of Toronto in 2004, after a survey in 2003. [11] [12] Continued excavations in the summer of 2005 exposed more of the Iron Age temple as well as part of one of the early Iron Age II bit-hilanis . [13] A significant amount of earlier Iron Age I material was also uncovered as well as small amounts of Early Bronze Age material. [14] Excavations have continued now for a total of 13 seasons, through 2016. [15] [16] [17] [18] [19] [20] [21] [22] [23] [24] [25] [26] Findings have included a significant Iron Age temple, a number of 1st millennium BC cuneiform tablets, and initial structures from the earlier Bronze Age settlement. [3] The majority of the tablets were found in the inner sanctum of a temple (Building XVI) in the sacred precinct. Most of the tablets are Iqqur Ipuš (a menologium), but they include a copy of the succession treaty of Esarhaddon. [27] [28] A lecture by James Osborne, on "The Syro-Anatolian City States: A Neglected Iron Age Culture" addresses aspects of the site. [29]
The site consists of an upper mound of about 20 hectares and a lower mound (now under floodplain cover, extending to the north (around 200 meters), east (around 100 meters), and southeast (slight extent). About 550 square meters of the upper mound (north and east sides) have been removed by modern bulldozer activities. In the Early Bronze Age the site was somewhat larger than the current upper mound at around 25 hectares, based on coring and surface collection, with the remains measuring in at 3 to 6 meters in depth. [30]
Archaeological excavation at the tell has indicated, in conjunction with ancient written sources, that the site was a major urban centre in two separate phases, during the Early Bronze Age and Early Iron Age. [31]
Red-black burnished ware (Khirbet Kerak ware) was found in Phases H and I, corresponding to the Early Dynastic period in Mesopotamia. [7] This type of pottery diminishes through the end of the last phase of EBA. [32] This pottery is believed to be influenced by the Kura-Araxes culture, arriving into this area around 3000 BC. [33]
In the Amuq Plain, Tell Tayinat was the largest settlement in the EBIVB. [34] [35] The structural remains from Tell Tayinat have been from the Early Bronze IVB period (Phase J). Among the finds are 17 anthropomorphic and zoomorphic figurines in a style typical of the region at that time. Also found were two wheels, copper alloy metal fragments, spindle whorls and loom weights. Notable finds were a cylinder seal and two clay sealings. [30] [36]
During the Iron Age II, this is thought likely to be the site of ancient Kinalua, the capital of one of the Neo-Hittite/Aramean city-kingdoms of Walistin (Aramaic) or Palistin (neo-Hittite), of which a follow-up kingdom is the one known as Pattin or Patina, the shortened form of Palistin (together c. 1000-738 BC). [38] [39] [40] Among the culturally diverse Syro-Hittite states in the north Syrian river-plain the rulers of Kinalua continued to bear royal Hittite names in the 8th century BC. With the rise of the Neo-Assyrians in the 9th century BC, rulers of Patina (thought to be the same as Kinalua) began to pay tribute to them. Ashurnasirpal II reports receiving silver and gold, 100 talents of tin, essential for making bronze, and 100 talents of iron, 1000 oxen and 10,000 sheep, linen robes and decorated couches and beds of boxwood, as well as "10 female singers, the king's brother's daughter with a rich dowry, a large female monkey and ducks" from the ruler Labarna. [41] At a later campaign the Assyrians forced its king Tutammu to submit according to an inscription of king Tiglath-pileser III (745–727 BC). Other documents indicate Assyrian control lasted until the reign of Ashurbanipal (669–631 BC). [42]
A worn stone with cuneiform writing from the top of the mound was turned into the local museum by a farmer who had used it as a paving stone. Combined with 4 fragments found during the 1930 excavation it turned out to be part of a stele of Sargon II (722–705 BC). [43]
The city had a citadel placed at a higher elevation, connected to the lower city by a monumental gate complex [39] (see Site layout).
One of the key finds of the Oriental Institute (1935–38) made at the site was a temple reminiscent in plan to Solomon's Temple in Jerusalem as described in the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament of Christianity). [9] [45]
The Oriental Institute campaigns (1935–38) brought to light several large palaces in the style known as bit-hilani . [9] A wood sample from a bit-hilani burned in c. 675 BC was carbon-dated to 2625 +/- 50 years BP. [46] The 2005 excavations exposed part of one of the early Iron Age II bit-hilanis. [14]
In August 2012, a team from the University of Toronto announced they had uncovered the head and torso of a human figure, intact to just above its waist. The remains of the figure stand approximately 1.5 meters in height, suggesting a total height of 3.5 to 4 meters. The figure is bearded with eyes made of black and white stone. The figure's hair has been styled in an elaborate series of curls arranged in rows. The arms of the figure extend forward from the elbow. Each arm has two arm bracelets adorned with lion heads. The figure's left hand holds a shaft of wheat and its right hand holds a spear. The figure's chest is adorned with a crescent-shaped pectoral. A lengthy carved, raised relief inscription in Hieroglyphic Luwian runs across the figure's back. The inscription records the accomplishments and campaigns of King Suppiluliuma. He is likely the same king who as part of a Syrian-Hittite coalition in 858 BC fought against the Neo-Assyrian invasion of Shalmaneser III.
In August 2017, it was reported that a majestic female statue was discovered at the site, within the monumental gate complex leading to the upper citadel. [39] This may be an image of Kubaba, divine mother of the gods of ancient Anatolia. Or it may be Kupapiyas, who was the wife – or possibly mother – of Taita, the dynastic founder of ancient Tayinat. But it's also possible that the statue represents the wife of King Suppiluliuma. Archaeologist Timothy Harrison raised the possibility that women played quite a prominent role in the political and religious lives of these early Iron Age communities. [39]
Kültepe, also known as Kanesh or Nesha, is an archaeological site in Kayseri Province, Turkey, inhabited from the beginning of the 3rd millennium BC, in the Early Bronze Age. The nearest modern city to Kültepe is Kayseri, about 20km southwest. It consisted of an Upper city, and a lower city, where an Assyrian kārum, trading colony, was found. Its ancient names are recorded in Assyrian and Hittite sources. In cuneiform inscriptions from the 20th and the 19th century BC, the city was mentioned as Kaneš (Kanesh); in later Hittite inscriptions, the city was mentioned as Neša, or occasionally as Aniša (Anisha). In 2014, the archaeological site was inscribed in the Tentative list of World Heritage Sites in Turkey. It is the place where the earliest record of a definitively Indo-European language has been found, Hittite, dated to the 20th century BC.
Carchemish, also spelled Karkemish, was an important ancient capital in the northern part of the region of Syria. At times during its history the city was independent, but it was also part of the Mitanni, Hittite and Neo-Assyrian Empires. Today it is on the frontier between Turkey and Syria.
Alalakh is an ancient archaeological site approximately 20 kilometres (12 mi) northeast of Antakya in what is now Turkey's Hatay Province. It flourished, as an urban settlement, in the Middle and Late Bronze Age, c. 2000-1200 BC. The city contained palaces, temples, private houses and fortifications. The remains of Alalakh have formed an extensive mound covering around 22 hectares. In Late Bronze Age, Alalakh was the capital of the local kingdom of Mukiš.
Tushhan was a Neo-Assyrian provincial capital in the upper Tigris region. It was rebuilt by the ruler Ashurnasirpal II and survived until the end of the Neo-Assyrian period around 611 BC.
Sam'al, is an archaeological site located in the Anti-Taurus Mountains of modern Turkey's Gaziantep Province. During its time under the control of the Neo-Assyrian Empire it was called, by them, Sam'al. It was founded at least as far back as the Early Bronze Age and thrived between 3000 and 2000 BC, and on the highest part of the upper mound was found a walled citadel of the Middle Bronze Age. New excavations revealed a monumental complex in the Middle Bronze Age II, and another structure that was destroyed in the mid to late 17th century BC, maybe by Hititte king Hattusili I. This event was recently radiocarbon-dated to sometime between 1632 and 1610 BC, during the late Middle Bronze Age II. The site was thought to have been abandoned during the Hittite and Mitanni periods, but excavations in 2021 season showed evidence of occupation during the Late Bronze Age in Hittite times. It flourished again in the Iron Age, initially under Luwian-speaking Neo-Hittites, and by 920 B.C. had become a kingdom. In the 9th and 8th century BC it came under control of the Neo-Assyrian Empire and by the 7th century BC had become a directly ruled Assyrian province.
Tell Fekheriye is an ancient site in the Khabur river basin in al-Hasakah Governorate of northern Syria. It is securely identified as the site of Sikkan, attested since c. 2000 BC. While under an Assyrian governor c. 1000 BC it was called Sikani. Sikkan was part of the Syro-Hittite state of Bit Bahiani in the early 1st millennium BC. In the area, several mounds, called tells, can be found in close proximity: Tell Fekheriye, Ras al-Ayn, and 2.5 kilometers east of Tell Halaf, site of the Aramean and Neo-Assyrian city of Guzana. During the excavation, the Tell Fekheriye bilingual inscription was discovered at the site, which provides the source of information about Hadad-yith'i.
The states called Neo-Hittite, Syro-Hittite, or Luwian-Aramean were Luwian and Aramean regional polities of the Iron Age, situated in southeastern parts of modern Turkey and northwestern parts of modern Syria, known in ancient times as lands of Hatti and Aram. They arose following the collapse of the Hittite New Kingdom in the 12th century BCE, and lasted until they were subdued by the Assyrian Empire in the 8th century BCE. They are grouped together by scholars, on the basis of several cultural criteria, that are recognized as similar and mutually shared between both societies, northern (Luwian) and southern (Aramaean). Cultural exchange between those societies is seen as a specific regional phenomenon, particularly in light of significant linguistic distinctions between the two main regional languages, with Luwian belonging to the Anatolian group of Indo-European languages and Aramaic belonging to the Northwest Semitic group of Semitic languages. Several questions related to the regional grouping of Luwian and Aramaean states are viewed differently among scholars, including some views that are critical towards such grouping in general.
Til Barsip or Til Barsib is an ancient site situated in Aleppo Governorate, Syria by the Euphrates river about 20 kilometers south of ancient Carchemish.
Tell Billa is an archaeological site near Bashiqa in Nineveh Province (Iraq) 20 kilometers northeast of Mosul. Beginning in Middle Assyrian times the ancient city, not far from Assur, was named Šib/manibe in the Middle Assyrian period and Šibaniba in the Neo-Assyrian period. Its earlier name is not known. In 2022 it was proposed that Tell Billa was the site of the Ur III period city Šimānum.
A Bit-hilani is an ancient architectural type of palace. It seems to have become popular at the end of the tenth and during the ninth century BCE during the early Iron Age in northern Syria although it may have originated as early as the Bronze Age. Contemporary records call it a Hittite-style palace, probably after the Neo-Hittite kingdoms of northern Syria. This building type has also spread to the Southern Levant, where it has been widely used.
The ancient Near East was the home of early civilizations within a region roughly corresponding to the modern Middle East: Mesopotamia, ancient Egypt, ancient Persia, Anatolia and the Armenian highlands, the Levant and the Arabian Peninsula. The ancient Near East is studied in the fields of ancient Near East studies, Near Eastern archaeology, and ancient history.
Tell Afis is an archaeological site in the Idlib Governorate of northern Syria, lying about fifty kilometers southeast of Aleppo and 11 kilometers north of the ancient site of Ebla. The site is thought to be that of ancient Hazrek capital of the Kingdom of Hamath and Luhuti. The Stele of Zakkur, dated c, 785 BC, which contains a dedication in Aramaic to the gods Iluwer and Baalshamin, was discovered at the top of the acropolis in 1903 by the French Consul Henri Pognon. It is now in the Louvre Museum.
Kaman-Kalehöyük is a multi-period archaeological site in Kırşehir Province, Turkey, around 100 km south east of Ankara, 6 km east of the town center of Kaman. It is a tell or mound site that was occupied during the Bronze Age, Iron Age and Ottoman periods. Excavations in the mound have been carried out since 1986 under the direction of Sachihiro Omura, on behalf of the Middle Eastern Culture Center in Japan and the Japanese Anatolian Archeology Institute. The distance to Hattusa, the Hittite capital, is about 100 km.
Pattin, was an ancient Luwian Syro-Hittite state at the beginning of the 1st millennium BC. It was known to the Assyrians as Unqi and Aramaeans as Unqu.
Palistin, was an early Syro-Hittite kingdom located in what is now northwestern Syria and the southeastern Turkish province of Hatay. Its existence was confirmed by the discovery of several inscriptions mentioning Taita, king of Palistin.
Tell Judaidah is an archaeological site in south-eastern Turkey, in the Hatay province. It is one of the largest excavated ancient sites in the Amuq valley, in the plain of Antioch. Settlement at this site ranges from the Neolithic through the Byzantine Period.
Bakr Awa is a tell, or archaeological settlement mound, in Iraq. It is located near Halabja in the Shahrizor Plain in Iraqi Kurdistan. The site is 40 metres (130 ft) high and consists of a central settlement mound surrounded by a lower city measuring 800 by 600 metres.
The Euphrates Syrian Pillar Figurines (EU_SPF's) are anthropomorphic clay figurines dating from the late Iron Age period and produced in the Middle Euphrates region. These figurines are part of a greater coroplastic production mainly composed of handmade horse-rider figurines, i.e. the Euphrates Handmade Syrian Horses and Riders (EU_HSHR's).
The Euphrates Handmade Syrian Horses and Riders are zoomorphic clay figurines representing horses and horses with riders. They date from the late Iron Age period and were produced in the Middle Euphrates region, alongside anthropomorphic figures known as Euphrates Syrian Pillar Figurines (EU_SPFs).
Suppiluliuma, possibly Suppiluliuma II or III, was the king of the Neo-Hittite state of Pattin in the mid-ninth century BC.