Project members’ adventures in Ankara and the Anatolian Highlands
Jana Mokrisova and Catherine Scott
Recently, project members ventured to Central Anatolia as part of a trip organized by Koç University’s Research Center for Anatolian Civilizations. The first destination was Ankara, where we visited the Museum of Anatolian Civilizations and participated in a joint symposium with VEKAM (Vehbi Koç ve Ankara Araştırmaları Merkezi), the RCAC’s sister institution.
Jana Mokrisova gave a talk at the symposium that examined the appropriateness of some popular models that emphasize the presence of imports from Crete and Greece and locally produced imitations of them in western Anatolia during the Late Bronze Age as part of a conference organized by VEKAM.
Next, we traveled to Kerkenes Dağ, a large Iron Age (seventh century BCE) city constructed by the Phrygians. The history of this site is of particular interest to us working in Lydia, as Kerkenes was a multicultural city and its archaeology shows links with the Lydian kingdom. The city was inhabited for only about three generations, and it is thought by some to have been destroyed by the Lydian army; fortunately, this Lydian invasion was less damaging than the last!
Finally, we visited the Hittite capital at Hattuşa. This is yet another site of particular importance for our research, as the Hittites ruled at the same time as Kaymakçı was occupied, and the boundaries of their hegemony may have included Kaymakçı at certain times. We explored the fortifications, the reconstruction of the mudbrick wall, as well as the temple precincts.