Extraordinary Neo-Hittite Statue Discovered in Turkey
Tuesday, July 31, 2012 | 
Author An international team of archaeologists has unearthed a beautiful and colossal human sculpture at the Tayinat Archaeological Project excavation site in southeastern Turkey.
Suppiluliuma statue found at the Tayinat Archaeological Project excavation site in southeastern Turkey (Jennifer Jackson)
A large semi-circular column base, ornately decorated on one side, was also discovered. Both pieces are from a monumental gate complex that provided access to the upper citadel of Kunulua, capital of the Neo-Hittite Kingdom of Patina (1000-738 BC).
“These newly discovered Tayinat sculptures are the product of a vibrant local Neo-Hittite sculptural tradition,” said Prof Tim Harrison, the Tayinat Project director and professor of Near Eastern Archaeology in the University of Toronto’s Department of Near and Middle Eastern Civilizations.
“They provide a vivid glimpse into the innovative character and sophistication of the Iron Age cultures that emerged in the eastern Mediterranean following the collapse of the great imperial powers of the Bronze Age at the end of the second millennium BC,” he said.
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