Karatepe - 19 July 2020

    Karatepe is a neo - Hittite fortress located in the district of Kadirli in Osmaniye Province. The place was shown to archaelogists Helmut Bossert and Halet Çambel in 1946. The 8th century BC stronghold was the seat of a local ruler, Azatiwata, who named the site after himself - Azatiwataya. Karatepe is famous for its bilingual inscription in Hieroglyphic Luwian and Phoenician that was crucial in decipherment of the former script. The text, being mostly the list of glorious deeds of the above mentioned ruler, was inscribed on the gates of the fortress as well as on the statue of the Storm God within its premises. Unfortunately, boasting Azatiwata (or his successor) failed to push back the Assyrians who looted and burnt the fortress either around 720 or 680 BC.

Karatepe - neo-Hittite lion *

Landform (Google Earth) * 

Fortress' model (October 2017) *

Site plan (2021) *

Ascent to South Gate (A) *

General information *

Thanks to Halet Çambel this site
exists *

South Gate (B) seen from north (2021) *

Storm God (Tarhunz) (C) *

C (2021) *

God of many names (C) (2021) *

South Gate (B) from afar *

Prof. Bossert & H. Çambel's quarters (D) *

Palace (E) stood here *

Orthostats at North Gate (F) *

Protected by lion (F)*

One of two sphinxes flanking
North Gate (F) on inside (2021)*

The other, western, sphinx (F) *

Info *

Orthostat with demon... (F) *

... and its descrition *

Eastern flank of North Gate (F) *

Inscription in Phoenician (F) *

Poor English... (2021) *

Inscription in hieroglyphic Luwian and
characteristic silhouette of Bes (F) *

Who is Bes? *

North Gate from northeast (F)

One of two lions flanking North Gate (F)
on outside (2021) *

    Karatepe is liked by my wife who generally is not a fan of 'ruins' whether they are old or new. Therefore, I take the opportunity and come here every year. In the recent years (2020, 2021, 2022) I was also accompanied by my daughter, who, to my delight, demonstrated some signs of interest in scenes shown in orthostats. For  reasons unknown to me, her favourite character is Bes, the god of war. As much as she loves Bes, we all admire the surroundings of the fortress, which is situated in the forest, on the shores of an artificial lake belonging to the Karatepe-Aslantaş National Park. 

 

2020

2022