Central Anatolia Region (Archaeology)

This thesis develops our understanding of changing patterns of woodland resource use during the Bronze and Iron Age of central Anatolia. The central Anatolian region is characterised by an anthropogenic landscape, a product of millennia of use by foragers and farmers, including intensive exploitation in recent millennia for agropastoralism. For all its societies, mobile or sedentary, wood was a key resource, used for fuel, construction, and craft materials. During the Bronze and Iron Ages, highly sophisticated and urbanised agropastoral societies developed across central Anatolia, including the regionally significant Hittite Empire. However, our understanding of woodland use, structure and management in the period is poorly developed. Here I investigate Bronze and Iron Age wood exploitation by examining how the inhabitants of Kaman-Kalehöyük (Kırşehir Province, Turkey) utilised the woodland around the site during over an approximately 1,700-year span of occupation from c 2,000-300 cal BC.
The expectation arising from this social milieu is that woodland must have competed for space with agricultural lands and that the increasing pressures urbanism and centralised control of grain supply would have resulted in deforestation of the local woodland surrounding agricultural production sites such as Kaman-Kalehöyük.  To interrogate this hypothesis, this study applies wood charcoal analysis (anthracology) to investigate woodland structure, use, and management, generating the first large scale, diachronic anthracological investigation from central Anatolia from this period. The investigation includes taxonomic identification and quantification of wood charcoal along with dendrological examination of the dominant taxon, deciduous oak (Quercus spp.) and ecological and behavioural approaches are used to interpret the results. The data are examined and compared to environmental proxies such as pollen data and other anthracological investigations along with climate records relating to the region. Further, the analysis is situated in the social, cultural, and economic landscape that existed during the Bronze and Iron Age periods. The analysis is presented as a thesis including several publications with additional text to provide a detailed account of the project rationale, background, and to draw the discussion together.
The taxonomic data show that the dominant taxon, oak, was in use for the entirety of the study period and peaked in use during the Late Bronze Age Hittite Empire occupation. The peak in oak use was immediately followed by a spike in pine (Pinus spp.) and an increase in the number of taxa exploited from the Early Iron Age onwards. Complementary dendrological results also indicate that the Late Bronze Age showed dominant use of large trees, including trunk and root wood. When behaviourally specific modelling was incorporated, the results show that the inhabitants of all occupation phases selected the wood most frequent in the landscape with little attention to other variables such as distance, fuel value, and construction value. However, when compared to the regional pollen data, the Kaman-Kalehöyük wood data differ, especially when related to pine, leading to the possibility that despite intensive use of oak woodland on the plain surrounding the site, pine forests were avoided until the demise of the Hittites. Consequently, we do not see the deforestation event expected within this period of rapidly changing social structure. Rather, we see specific occupation periods linked to unique signatures of woodland use. 
This study shows the value of combining taxonomic and dendrological analyses along with OFT modelling to gain a more comprehensive and detailed picture of past woodland resource use by demonstrating clear changes in woodland acquisition that are synchronous with changes in occupation at the site. Each of these changes, in turn, offer a unique insight into the decision-making practices of the inhabitants of Kaman-Kalehöyük filling a conspicuous void in our knowledge of the region for the study period.

This third volume of the Kültepe International Meetings (KIM) series draws together multidisciplinary approaches to the archaeology and history of complex urban sites using Kültepe-Kanesh as a case study, with particular emphasis on Bronze Age material.

The 3rd Kültepe International Meeting aimed at exploring multidisciplinary approaches to the archaeology and history of complex urban sites using Kültepe-Kanesh as a case study. As a result, the conference proceedings involve a wide variety of disciplines: archaeology, ceramics, paleobotany, paleoecology, palynology, archaeometallurgy, geo- and archaeo-magnetism, art history, philology, history, computer science, and last but not least, videogame design. Indeed, the aim of the Kültepe International Meetings (KIM) is to facilitate the dialogue between these different disciplines and to combine their data in order to build an accurate view of Kültepe and its environment. The 3rd KIM more than fulfilled this goal, demonstrating once again how Kültepe functions as an international experimental laboratory in which disciplines and sub-disciplines can be tested, improved, and developed. All the contributions presented here provide a good overview of the ongoing multidisciplinary studies being carried out at Kültepe and Central Anatolia.

Çanak çömlek yapım geleneği içinde normal bir unsur gibi görülebilecek kabartma bezekler incelendiğinde, zaman ve mekân olarak geniş bir bölgeyi içine alan ortak düşünce/inanç dünyasının kapıları aralamaktadır. Bu çalışmada, Güvercinkayası yerleşmesinin Orta ve Son Kalkolitik Çağ maddi kalıntıları arasında sembolik yansımalara ilişkin en geniş bilgiyi edindiğimiz, kabartma betimli çanak çömlekler ele alınmaktadır. Güvercinkayası’nın insan, hayvan ve bitki betimleri özelinde ele alınan sembolik betimlerin, Orta Anadolu Bölgesi merkeze alınarak Anadolu’nun özellikle batısında, geniş bir coğrafyada geçirdiği değişim, Son Neolitik Çağ’dan itibaren Son Kalkolitik Çağ sonuna kadar değerlendirilmektedir.

MIGRATION AND SETTLEMENT IN THE KONYA PLAIN IN IRON AGE
ABSTRACT
A concentrated settlement began in the Konya Plain and surrounding areas in the 3rd millennium BC, and this continued until the end of the Ear- ly Bronze Age. During the final stage of the Early Bronze Age, a decline in settlement began in the re- gion that was to continue in the 2nd millennium BC. The Iron Age began in Anatolia with the collapse of the Hittite Empire in 12th century BC. Due to the absence of a centralized power in the region, dete- rioration in the economic, social and cultural fields was experienced in the Konya Plain. In the early stages of the Iron Age, it appears that the region was a place that was not preferred as a settlement area. However, when new political formations in central and southeastern Anatolia began to emerge around the middle of this period, the Konya Plain regained importance as a settlement location. In this period, a significant increase in settlement fi- gures is observed once again.
A majority of the local people living in the re- gion since the early ages consisted of Luwians. In the Iron Age, there were several migrations to the region both from the west and the east. The cultu- res of nomads or those who came with the migra- tions obviously had an influence on the region at some point. Nevertheless, this influence probably either existed side by side with the local culture, or was reshaped within the local culture.
Keywords: Konya Plain, Iron Age, Settle- ment, Migration, Ceramics.

The team of Florence University carried out an archaeological survey at Uşaklı Höyük, the largest site by area on the upper course of the Eğri Öz Dere, north of the Kerkenes Dağ, and its catchment area within a 5km range [1]. The aim of the research was to attempt to determine the date of occupation at the site and place it in a wider regional and chronological context, pinpointing the presence of further nearby sites and the development of settlement pattern over the course of time [2].
Combining extensive and intensive methods and varying sampling strategies, mounded sites, fields, grazing land, uplands and valley floors were explored over the course of five work seasons [2.1]. Along with collecting archaeological materials, focused scraping operations on the steep slope of the high mound were planned in order to obtain more information on the settlement sequence.
An intensive sampling strategy of all the artefacts relating to the main topographical or surveyed units had the initial aim of obtaining a detailed scatter of the different categories of finds. In each of the surveyed units we marked, mapped and picked up all of the artefacts found on the surface. This systematic collection yielded a sufficient amount of pottery to identify the ware and shape groups and, accordingly, to date the occupation of the site in terms of wide chronological periods [2.2]. Moreover, the dispersal of specific categories of materials provided an indication of areas where some of these periods may be better documented [2.3]. The surveying and collecting carried out in the field enabled us to sketch a rough history of settlement in the area, from the Late Chalcolithic to the Ottoman period [3]. According to our results, the site of Uşaklı shows an intensive phase of occupation dating to the 2nd millennium, and evidence for a significant settlement dating to the 1st  millennium [4].


Özetçe.

Arkeolojik araştırmalar: yöntem ve buluntular.

Floransa Üniversitesi’ne bağlı bir ekip tarafından gerçekleştirilen arkeolojik araştırmalar, Eğriöz deresinin yukarı çığırı boyunca ve Kerkenes Dağı’nın kuzeyinde yer alan ve bölgedeki en geniş yüzölçümüne sahip sit olma özelliğini taşıyan Uşaklı Höyük ile onu çevreleyen 5 km yarıçaplı havzası üzerinde odaklanmıştır [1].
Araştırmanın hedefi, sit yakınında sonraki dönemlerde başka yerleşmelerin de gözlendiğine ve yerleşim düzeninin zaman içerisindeki gelişimine dikkat çekerek, sit kapsamındaki yerleşmeyi tarihlenmek ve daha geniş bir bölgesel ve kronolojik bağlam içerisinde değerlenmektir [2].
Yaygın ve yoğun yöntemleri birleştirmek ve farklı örnekleme stratejilerinden yararlanmak suretiyle tümsekli araziler, tarlalar, otlaklar, yaylalar ve alçak vadiler beş çalışma sezonu boyunca dikkatle araştırılmıştır [2.1]. Arkeolojik buluntuların toplanmasına en olarak, yüksek höyüğün dik yamacı boyunca gerçekleştirilen odaklı yüzey kazıma operasyonları ile yerleşim sekansına dair daha fazla bilgi elde edilmesi planlanmıştır.
Başlıca topografik veya araştırmaya tâbi ünitelerle ilişkilendirilen tüm artefaktları kapsayan yoğun bir örnekleme stratejisi ile, öncelikle farklı buluntu kategorilerinin ayrıntılı bir saçılımını elde edebilmek hedeflenmiştir. Araştırılan her bir ünite için yüzeyden elde edilen tüm artefaktlar işaretlenmiş, haritalandırılmış ve toplanmıştır. Bu sistematik buluntu toplama işlemi sayesinde teşhis edilerek şekillere göre gruplandırılmak için yeterli sayıda çanak çömlek ele geçirilmiş olup, buradan hareketle alandaki yerleşmenin daha geniş bir kronolojik dönem içerisinde tarihlendirilmesi mümkün olmuştur [2.2].
Buna ek olarak, belirli kategorilerdeki buluntuların dağılım düzeni, tarihi dönemlerden bazılarının daha iyi tespit edilmesinin mümkün olacağı alanların varlığına işaret etmektedir [2.3]. Yürütülen araştırma ve toplama çalışmaları sayesinde, alanın yerleşim tarihinin genel hatlarıyla Geç Kalkolitik Çağı ile Osmanlı Dönemi arasında uzandığı belirlenmiştir [3].
Elde edilen sonuçlar doğrultusunda, Uşaklı sitinin M.Ö II. milenyuma uzanan yoğun bir yerleşim sürecinden geçtiğini ve M.Ö I. milenyuma tarihlendirilebilen önemli bir yerleşim düzeninin varlığına dair kanıtlar sunduğunu söylemek mümkündür [4].

Volkanik Kapadokya’nın batı ucunda Aksaray İli, Gülağaç İlçesi, Çatalsu Köyü’nün 1 km batısında yer alan. Güvercinkayası, “Aksaray, Nevşehir ve Niğde İlleri Yüzey Araştırmaları” sonucunda 1994 yılında tespit edilmiştir1. Bugün Mamasun Barajı gölalanı içindeki yerleşme, güneyden ve kuzeyden yüksek kayalıklarla doğudan da bir sırtla sınırlanan dar bir vadide, vadiye hâkim bir kaya üstünde konumlanmıştır. Kayalığın ova tabanından yüksekliği yaklaşık 16 metreyi bulan oval zirve düzlüğü önünde kuzey yamaç ve doğuda geniş bir teras uzanır. 1996 yılı itibariyle Prof. Dr. Sevil Gülçur başkanlığında yürütülen kazının arazi çalışmaları, 2017 yılında sonlanmıştır. Yerleşmede, kazık dikme delikleriyle temsil edilen bir öncü evre ve üç ana tabaka tespit edilmiştir. MÖ 5200-4800 yılları arasına tarihlenen Orta Kalkolitik dönem I ve II. tabakaları; taştan hemen hemen standart ve önceden planlamayı, bir tasarımı yansıtan mimarisi, yerleşmeyi alt ve üst olarak ayıran iki kuleli sur yapısı ve ana mal grubu koyu renk açkılı çanak çömlekle tanımlanmaktadır (Resim: 1). Bugün baraj alanı içindeki bu yerleşmede en çok tahribata maruz kalan III. tabaka dolguları, Orta Kalkolitik gelenekten hemen tamamen ayrışan Geç/Post Obeyd etkisindeki yeni bir topluluğun varlığını gösteren maddi kalıntılarıyla ayırt edilir. Pişmemiş kerpiç tuğla mimari kalıntılar, turnet yapım örneklerinin de olduğu açık renk hamurlu çanak çömlek, özellikle baskın Coba tipi tarazlı mallar, damga mühür ve mühür baskıları, yerleşmenin III. tabakasında etkin olan yeni topluluğun ve yeni anlayışın da göstergesi karakteristik buluntulardır. Bunlara ek olarak Orta Kalkolitik geleneğin izlerini taşıyan yatay kulp, memecik gibi eklentiler ve iki renk özlü pişirme tekniğinde ürünler gibi hibrid çanak çömlek de tespit edilmiştir. Hibrid örnekler, III. tabaka insanlarının Güvercinkayası’nın yerel Orta Kalkolitik dönem topluluğuyla/geleneğiyle olası ilişkileri göstermesi bakımından da önem taşımaktadır.

This article presents results from the second season of the Taşeli-Karaman Archaeological Project (TKAP), which is a multi-disciplinary landscape archaeology project conducted in the Mersin and Karaman provinces of Turkey. TKAP forms a continuation of the Lower Göksu Archaeological Salvage Survey Project (LGASSP), which was initiated in 2013 in the Mersin Province of Southern Turkey as a response to the construction of a hydroelectric dam in the concerned valley and concluded in 2017. The very short 2018 season solely focused on the Karaman Plain in order to document the major archaeological sites and to better understand the natural and cultural landscapes surrounding them. Our team revisited the major sites in the region to conduct systematic surveys, continuing the work that was started in 2017. Hereby a summary of the season with brief discussions about the local material culture and settlement patterns is presented. The second season of TKAP, which is a Bitlis Eren University and the University of Leicester joint project, could be conducted with a grant awarded by the board of the Gerald Averay Wainwright Fund (Faculty of Oriental Studies, University of Oxford).

Titled as ”Güvercinkayası settlement in the context of the Ubaid cultural expansion: The Interaction of Güvercinkayası and the Ubaid”, the thesis focuses on situating and ascertaining the qualities of the material findings from the IIIrd layer of Güvercikayası that relatively dates to the end of the Middle Chalcolitic Period and the begining of the Late Chalcolitic Period pertaining to the Ubaid horizon. Within this framework, all the findings which belong to the IIIrd layer (architectural aspects, pottery, small findings and pot burials) were prioritized as they were investigated in regards of their types and defined accordingly. Questioning aspects of cultural interaction as well as cultural continuity, the study also brings forth the relationship of the area with aspects of the Middle Chalcolithic. With this methodological approach, it became possible to compare interregional as well as supra-regional morphological and chronological relations.

The Ubaid Culture, which originated in Southern Mesopotamia first came up at the beginning of the 6th millennium B.C. reaching North Mesopotamia and inner regions of Anatolia from the beginning of the 5th millennium. The exit and the arrival point of the culture presents a wide range both geographically and temporally. Therefore, the material remains of the settlements were inspected in a stratified manner; focusing on both the earliest and the latest periods for a better understanding of the interactions that span wide areas. The settlements were reviewed in terms of their characteristics as local, hybrid or as typically Ubaid, maintaining an outlook that seeks their relations between each other, with the end goal of determining the place and the role of Güvercinkayası in this broad picture.

Systematic archaeological surface reconnaissance of the Göllü Dağ volcanic complex from 2007 to 2012 documented more than 230 findspots with Paleolithic artifacts, ranging from isolated finds to extensive and dense scatters of artifacts. Most of the activities represented relate to exploitation of the rich obsidian resources in the region. Paleolithic artifacts are attributed mainly to the Middle Paleolithic based on the presence of Levallois technology but there is a substantial Lower Paleolithic component represented by handaxes and other large bifacial tools. Upper and Epipaleolithic sites and artifacts are scarce or absent in the survey sample. The distributions of handaxes and Levallois elements differ substantially, reflecting differences in site preservation and exposure as well as organization of prehistoric activities. Multiple variants of Levallois are represented but centripetal preferential and unipolar flake production dominate. The frequent co-occurrence of different L...

In this paper four formerly unpublished inscriptions from Kulu in Galatia will be presented. The first one consists of 11 lines. It is a honorific and civic statue base, dated very probably to the 3rd century A.D. (after A.D. 212), because of the gens name “Aurelios” on line 2. The inscription may have been paid by Menandros, his son (lines 8-10). The second one consists of 9 lines and it is quite illegible. The third one is a funerary inscription. For this inscription “Eunoia” as classical moral virtue appears probably. The fourth inscription consists of 10 lines. It is a Christian funerary inscription, dated to the 5th or 6th cent. A.D. As far as we can guess, children (or a child on line1) and a wife made this stele for Menneas (line 4 and probably 8; for the same dative form as line 4, cf. MAMA 7, 145 from Hadrianopolis), and “her sweet husband/companion” (lines 7-8). A person called Philandros may appear on lines 6-7. This paper is in Turkish.

In 2014, a stele decorated with reliefs was found during an excavation undertaken by the villagers searching for water near the village of Akarca in the Avanos district which belongs to the province Nevsehir. The stele has a rounded top, four flat sides and belongs to the upper part of a larger (now missing) stele made from basalt. Figures were engraved in low relief technique on four sides of the stele and on the rounded top. The main theme the figures depict is religious; they reflect cultic/ritualistic and divine/ mythological scenes. A presentation scene is depicted on the observe of the stele (a), a winged deity and a worshipper on the right side (b), a banquet scene with an offering table involving three participants on the reverse (c), a storm god standing on top of the mountains and holding the halter of a bull as well as a goddess/priestess on the left side (d) and a mountain chain on the top (e). The style and iconographic features of the figures depicted on the Avanos-Aka...

Çanak çömlek yapım geleneği içinde normal bir unsur gibi görülebilecek kabartma bezekler incelendiğinde, zaman ve mekân olarak geniş bir bölgeyi içine alan ortak düşünce/inanç dünyasının kapıları aralamaktadır. Bu çalışmada, Güvercinkayası yerleşmesinin Orta ve Son Kalkolitik Çağ maddi kalıntıları arasında sembolik yansımalara ilişkin en geniş bilgiyi edindiğimiz, kabartma betimli çanak çömlekler ele alınmaktadır. Güvercinkayası’nın insan, hayvan ve bitki motifleri özelinde ele alınan sembolik betimler, Orta Anadolu Bölgesi merkeze alınarak Anadolu’nun özellikle batısında, geniş bir coğrafyada geçirdiği değişim, Son Neolitik Çağ’dan  Kalkolitik Çağ sonuna kadar incelenmektedir.