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  • MELLAART, James - Deities and Shrines of Neolithic Anatolia (Excavations at Çatal Hüyük, 1962)

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    MELLAART, James - Deities And Shrines Of Neolithic Anatolia (Excavations At Çatal Hüyük, 1962)

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    26 views10 pages

    MELLAART, James - Deities and Shrines of Neolithic Anatolia (Excavations at Çatal Hüyük, 1962)

    Uploaded by

    Dragan Taneski

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    © All Rights Reserved
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    Deities and Shrines of Neolithic Anatolia Excavations at Catal Huyuk, 1962 “THE EXCAVATIONS conducted in 1961 at the Neolithic site of Catal Hibyik in the plain of Konya (southern Turkey) produced sch spectacular fiads—the aston: ishing frescoes were shown in our Spring 1962 issue—that it seemed impossible to expect anything to equal them, But in 1962 James Mellaart found chat the site was scll full of susprises—and of an even earlier date, Excavating again in the eastern half of the mound, which has been found 0 comprise ten Early Neolithic building levels (Levels O-1X, from top to bottom), the expedition uncovered & series of shrines quite unlike any previously known, We fel highly privileged to present these amazing discoveries, By James Mellaart ‘GueAT 1s Duwwa_ OF THE EPHESIANS!" Althoogh thee words from The Acts of the Apostles ate ta mous Few people pause to think who this great pagan, sodas eily was. Artemis of Ephesus, asthe Grecks Called het, was quite diferent gure fom hee Hel lenized namesske, the chaste twin sister of Apollo In the hal-Lydian cty of Ephesus her colossal clt siatue showed her with many breasts, and Clsical inscriptions from Lydia invoke hee’ as "Mother. Koown to the Greeks since the Late Bronze Age, tis ‘zoids, whose cult was especially popular in western ‘Anatolia, favored the Trojans in their war against the Grecks. Homer calls her "Mistress of Animals.” ‘AS 4 goddess of the hunt, “rejoicing én boars and swift deer,” she is portrayed accompanied by hinds dnd he clothes are decorated with the figures of lions, stags, hinds and bulls. She is said to protect the Young, both human and animal; women invoke hee fn childbirth and she dispenses death with her gentle shafts At Ephesus 2 college of prcstesse called Meise ("bees") adminiscee her cal. (On the Anatolian plateau similar and a0 less pow ciful goddenes were worshiped: Cybele the "Magna Mater” of Phaygia, Ma of Cappadocis, Ansits in Pontus and farther cast, where Persian influence was strongest, and. Kupaps or Hepat in the old Lavisn tnd Hurtian territories. Cybele's holy ciy was Pes finws, ear the fantastic cocks of Sivrhise, and she tlso was 4 Great Mother, Mistess of Animals, Lions drow hee chariot: her cat lice that of Dion, was steongly.orgistic, pethaps a heritage of the’ bat burous Thracian homeland of the Phrygians, Among these Anatolian peoples male gods, like Apollo and Dionysus in the west, ply a subordinate sole as aso slats ofthe godess Literary s0ures of the seond millennium ac. a: low one to trace this clk of a Great Nature Goddess back to the third millennium, but only im some parts of Anatolia, The chief deity of the Hitite pantheon is Wunserna of Hat, transformed into the "Sun Goddess of Arinna” and her husband, the Weather- God of Hat, isan oll fertility god of streams and rivers. Theis saceed animals are lioas, leopards and ball, Elsewhere in Anatolia we find the kame pattern » Anatolia coxinsed Hepat and Tesup and their son Sarrama among the Harrians in the east: Although syncretism was at ‘work to reconcile the tsligious beliefs of an Indo Evropean ruling clss, with predominantly male gods, to the deities ofthe old population, it ean be sid that the old clement—the supremacy of a Grext Goddess —was litle curtailed and triumphed in. the end ‘Working back feom the texts, we may assume that before the arrival of Mitts, Lavians, ec. Cie. due ing the thied willennium) the cult of « Great Mothee Goss with a subordinate tale god a¢ son and or husband was the rule thoughout Anatolia. Archaeo. logical evidence would tend to support this, since the figurines which have been found are neatly all female, with exceedingly rare exceptions. ‘Apart from a few schematic figures dating feom the ith and foot millenia (Che sore Late CChalcolthic period), our evidence for the study of Anatolian religion hitherto began only in the third millennium with a fine sequence of shrines at Bey- ‘cesultan, the Royal Tombs of Alaca Hyik and Ho- toxtepe, the Cappadocian igutines and thoxe from scattered sites allover the country. Compared to what was known from other countries in the ates of the 4, Suitett of baked clay representing ons throne Bieth'She i set sn shulls From shrine in Level Uh [Near East or even from southeastern Europe, this was separ even nded Thea came the discovery of catiee cultures at Haalar;* and with it numerous realistic figucines in the pint pty calle of the Farly Gli period, naked of elothed but lacking in variety. Ie was ‘only when we reached the Neolithie period, with Haalar VI (ca. 3600-5400 8.¢., according to adio- carbon dates), that «richly varied and most natural istic seties was found, allowing one to form an idea of Neolithic man’s conception of the Supreme God- dess, the Mistress of Nature and its creatures, human, animal and vegetable. In an incompirable series we see her as maiden, matron and crone; we see hee with the young Boy-God, in fabor, with her child or a young pet animal, and enthroned onions or loop: ards as Mistress of Animals. The figure of the God- dess with the Boy-God was costed with grain im prim, and it ad evidently Been plein «rain in, perhaps to promote better harvests, a form of sympathetic magic widespread throughout the world, ‘These accomplished Hacilar figures of the Late ‘Excavations were condosted by Me, Melliart at this site ia southwcitern Avatola (oexe madern Bards) from 1957.to.196L- The finds have heen teported ia Hered Londo New, Febrary 11, 1961 and pal 8, 1961, ee Gonos giv fl by lions, her fect cestng lenght 16 ca Anatolia cosines Hepat and Tesup and their son Sarruma among the Horrians in the east. Although syncretism was at ‘work to reconcile the religious beliefs of am Indo European ruling class, with predominantly male gods, to the deities of the old population, it can be said that the old element—the supremacy of a Great Goddess —was litte curtailed. and triumphed in the end. ‘Working back from the teats, we may assume that before the arrival of Hittites, Luvians et. (ic, du ing the thitd millennium) the cult of a Great Mother Goxldess with a subordinate male god as son and/or hrusband was the mule throughout Anatolia. Archaco: logical evidence would tend to suppor th figurines which have been found are neaely all female, with exceedingly are exceptions. ‘Apart from a few schematic Rigutes dating from the fifth and fourth millennia (the socalled Late ‘Chalcolithic period), our evidence for the study of ‘Anatolian ccligion hitherto began oaly in the thied millennium with a fine sequence of shrines at Bey:

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