The land of the Hittites : $b An account of recent explorations and discoveries in Asia Minor, with descriptions of the Hittite monumentsGarstang, John
History
The land of the Hittites : $b An account of recent explorations and discoveries in Asia Minor, with descriptions of the Hittite monuments
Garstang, John
Hittites; Turkey -- Antiquities
No. xxii. It is preceded by a splendid sculpture of the Hittite storm-god
Tessup, or by whatever name he should be called.[670] He wears the
characteristic short tunic and upturned shoes of the Hittite people. His
head-dress is the tall conical hat with expanding top. His beard is long,
square-cut, and depicted as usual in successive bands of short curls or
plaits. The nose is long and straight, and the eyes are large. A long
curling plait of hair, resembling a pigtail, falls behind his neck and
shoulder, and is seen below the right elbow, which is held up. A long
dagger with crescental hilt, and the midrib clearly shown, is slung from
the farther side of the belt, the handle backwards. In his left hand he
holds up an emblem, like a three-pronged trident, representing, it is
supposed, forked lightning, while in his right hand he wields aloft an
axe-hammer with short handle, to which it is bound by threads.
No. xxiii. The next sculpture fills one side of the corner-stone. It
is the representation of a woman, and though broken at the top several
new features may be discerned in it, while other details are more
plainly seen than in cases previously described. Her dress is a long
robe reaching to the ankles, bound at the waist with a rope-girdle of
six strands. This garment seems to be wrapped round the body, joining
down the right side, where it is fringed or bordered in some way. Behind
the figure there is the suggestion of a long veil or cloak, which, from
the numerous serrations in the drawing, may also have been fringed
or embroidered. The top of the hat is not clear, but the front peak
is turned upwards. A double plait and curl are seen as usual behind
the neck, and a necklace also is shown. In her right hand she seems to
grasp something like a feather, while with her left hand she holds up a
round mirror, with handle similar to those frequently found in Egyptian
tombs.[671] The drawing of the right hand, which is in front of the body,
exhibits the same fault as we indicated in a recent instance, where, with
thumb upwards, the palm of the hand is also turned outwards—an impossible
position.
We have now reached the return of the wall, on the inner side of the
pilaster to the outer gateway. This, like the corresponding wall on
the opposite side to the left, was left blank, probably because it did
not strike the eye of any one entering the gateway, and it was also in
comparative darkness to any one going out. We proceed then to describe
the remaining sculptures decorating the pilasters of the inner doorway,
and, in the first place, those which flank the position of the doorway on
either side: the corresponding walls of the outer doorway were decorated
with representations of lions facing outwards.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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