türkçe links to original Turkish article
(Milliyet Newspaper, 29 June 2021)
jounal article details click here for some details
about how to find the article referenced herein.
The secrets related to the more than 90 rock reliefs at the 3,200-year-old
Yazılkaya Open-Air Temple located at the ancient Hittites' capital
Hattuşaş, are gradually being revealed. Within the scope of an effort by
the Luvi Research Foundation and Basel University, the reliefs in two
rooms of the temple have been determined to symbolize the universe,
and the earth and sky symbols in the temple have been deciphered.
In a report published in the Journal of Skyscape Archeology, how the
limestone reliefs reflected the thousand-year Hittite Kingdom's
understanding of the cosmos is explained. Dr. Rita Gautschy of Basel
said that the temple is still a perfect 3000-year-old time machine,
adding that "They used the temple like an open-air calendar and watch
that showed astronomic dates accurately. And it works reliably today, too."
French archeologist and historian Charles Texier discovered the Hittites'
Open-Air Temple, located in today's Boğazkale district of Çorum
province, in 1834. It has taken nearly 200 years to decipher the mystery
of the reliefs. The temple, which is a UNESCO cultural heritage site,
is located two miles northeast of the Hittite capital Hattuşaş.
According to the research conducted by geoarchaeologist Dr. Eberhard
Zangger, the head of the Luvi Research Foundation, archeoastronomy
expert Dr. Rita Gautschy, an academician at Basıl University's
Egyptology department, and ancient history expert Serkan Demirel of
Karadeniz Technical University in Trabzon, the universe of the Hittite
people was made up of three worlds - the sky, the Earth and the
underworld.
The sacred area of the temple reflects the cosmos, as conceived by the
Hittites, and the arrangements of the Yazılkaya complex. When the
experts examined Room A of the rock temple, they found figures that
symbolized elements of the Earth and heavens, including the sun, moon,
five visible planets, some galaxies, stars and the north pole. In Room B
of the temple the experts found symbols reflecting the underworld - at
the room's entrance there are devil-headed lions and an 11-meter relief
depicting Nergal, the chief of the underworld, and 12 underworld gods
holding sickle-shaped swords.
In their excavations in Room B, the archeologists found the remains
of bird bones "that probably reflect certain sacrificial rituals of the
underworld." But even though this room depicts death at its entrance,
the archeologists explained that the room also reflects a view of the
entire cosmos, death and rebirth, day and night, sun and moon, and
the seasons - in other words, the circular processes of nature.
In the journal article, it is stated that "It is much more likely that the
temple, as part of the cosmologic entirety, was the place where
astronomic information was displayed in order to explain the cosmic
system. These two large rooms of the sacred temple were used as
ritual sites for important ceremonial activities for a certain audience.
The gods are depicted with a great deal of care. These places weren't
just for making calculations. They were used for displays, as well."
Hiç yorum yok:
Yorum Gönder