 |
Inscription in Luvian hieroglyphics at Nişantaş
|
|
This is -in addition to Sarıkale and Yenicekale- still another rock outcropping in the Upper City of Hattusha. A grand edifice once stood on top of the cliffs here; rock cuttings and the occasional block still in place reveal the original outline of the walls. Blocks from a gate were recovered among the fallen debris at the base of the cliff face. It had been fitted out with the foreparts of two great Sphinxes, very much like those on the exterior of the Sphinx Gate at Yerkapı. On the remaining fragments of the sphinxes you can still make out the impressive hood-like manes or hairdos, locks of which fall onto the breast, and the high standard-like bough of 6 rosettes atop the headdress. The entrance of this gateway, also parabolic in form, originally stood at the top of an entrance ramp leading into the building complex that once stood on the cliffs here. Unfortunately -as is the case with the constructions on the other rock pinnacles as well-we are left with little idea as to the original function.
The Inscription. The name of the site is identified by a large inscription in Luvian hieroglyphics on the side of the cliff (Nişantaş = marked rock). The 8.5-m long inscription, eleven lines in length, was chiseled onto a smoothed surface on the cliff face. The hieroglyphic signs once resembled those in Chamber 2, but have become badly weathered through exposure to the elements; as a result much of the content of the text has never been deciphered. It is clear that it stems from the rule of Shupiluliuma II, the last of the well known Great Kings of Hattusha. We surmise that the Great King mentions the construction of a monument for his father ( = Chamber B of the rock-cut sanctuary of Yazılıkaya) here, as well as reporting other of his accomplishments, including a battle at sea followed by a landing on Cyprus. Known to the Hittites as Alashiya, the island of Cyprus -due to its rich sources of copper- was the object of much strife in antiquity.
In the area north of Nişantaş, which lay directly before the Royal Citadel of Büyükkale, stood several official buildings. Just west of the paved road you see the reconstructed foundations of the "North Complex"; behind it on the slope stood the "West Building," only a few basement walls of which survived. In these cellar rooms, however, more than three thousand clay nodules came to light; these were the bullae that carried the seal impressions of the Great Kings and their officials. A clay bulla served the function of a lead seal; it distinguished written correspondence and various goods as "official business." Objects were tied up with string or leather strips that were then sealed by pressing a bit of clay around them; upon this piece of clay, or bulla, an insignia from an official stone or metal seal would be impressed. An intense fire which broke out in this building then destroyed everything but the bullae, which were baked -like clay in a kiln- and preserved for posterity.
|
