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
Now that we have completed this preliminary survey of the disposition
of such Hittite monuments as by their character or the circumstances
of their discovery may be accepted by us as evidence in our inquiry,
we realise more clearly the reason for the distinction we made in an
earlier chapter between the eastern and western portions of Asia Minor.
In the West we can speak of only nine monuments, of which four are not
of Hittite origin. Six of these seem to lie along the line of a single
road; and of the others, only one is inscribed with Hittite characters,
and even that is moveable and not found in its original position. If only
by contrast with this paucity, the comparative frequency of monuments
towards the East, and their definite character, naturally inclines us to
assign some tentative boundaries to the Hittite country. In the North
this is not difficult; the Halys River remained in the time of Crœsus a
division between peoples of different race,[182] and Sir William Ramsay
has pointed out[183] differences in important racial customs between the
peoples of the two banks in ancient times.
But to the south there is no such boundary; even the great plains, which
form so prominent a landmark in the map, seem to be more barren now than
in the days when Ardistama flourished.[184] This change is illustrated by
the western extension of the monuments along the foot of the Taurus and
in the desert. We must not forget, also, that whole tracts are eliminated
from our purview from absence of stone; nor should we allow ourselves
to be prepossessed with the idea of divisions on the tableland, which
is, after all, continuous and coterminous. If it is true that nearly
all the evidences of Hittite occupation in the west resolve themselves
into monuments erected along a single road, it is also true that if we
exclude from our view the group of remarkable monuments at Boghaz-Keui
and Eyuk, there remains little sign that the country within the circuit
of the Halys was indeed at any time Hittite territory, much less that
it enclosed their northern capital. In face of such considerations the
great sculptures and fortress of Giaour-Kalesi, the carvings of Doghanlu,
the inscription and tumulus of Bey-Keui, and most striking of all, the
sculptures of the west on Mount Sipylus and in the pass of Kara-Bel, as
well as those monuments in Phrygia and Western Lycaonia which at least
reflect the influence of Hittite art, become imbued with a relative
importance not to be overlooked in our inquiry. The land of the Hittites
is for us as broad as the extent of their works: it is for another phase
of our subject to inquire whether there is evidence to tell us how and
when their territory was acquired, and for how long it remained in their
power.
SECTION A.—MONUMENTS OF THE NORTH OF SYRIA.
HAMATH, RESTAN, ALEPPO; KURTS-OGHLU (ALEXANDRETTA), SINJERLI,
KARA-BURSHLU, SAKJE-GEUZI; AINTAB (KILLIZ), MARASH; JERABLUS, KELLEKLI,
TELL-AHMAR, SAMSAT, RUM KALI (GERGER).
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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