Catal Huyuk: Sacred Architectu
The ancient city of Catal Huyuk is located on the Anatolian plateau near Konya in modern-day Turkey. The site is considered by some to be the location of the world’s first city. As one of the earliest settlements to make the transition from a hunter-gatherer to an agrarian society, development began here as early as 7000 B.C.E. Neolithic inhabitants domesticated sheep, goats and other animals as well as cultivating barley, wheat, peas and beans. Obsidian trade was a major commercial boon for the site. The widespread presence of trade goods and materials from the region in the ancient Near and Middle East provides evidence for extensive trade activity in the city. The interiors of residential and religious structures in the site were organized by gender and function differentiation. Clear distinctions between dwellings and shrines were found in the occurrence of vivid and elaborate decoration, including paintings and wall sculptures. Catal Huyuk was abandoned after a fire in about 5700 B.C.E. and the city was never re-established. Archaeological excavation began in the 1960s by James Mellaart and continues today by an international team of archaeologists each summer.As population size increased, the city developed and g
The decoration on shrines remained consistent for years on end. Scenes depicting death or burial customs and fertility were the most prevalent. Males were usually represented with darker red-brown skin and women were lighter in color. The female form was of primary importance in Neolithic art. The wall paintings featured both geometric designs and figural works depicting people hunting animals, death and excarnation scenes and images of volcanic eruptions that were common in nearby Hasan Dag. The painting found in a shrine of the volcano Hasan Dag erupting may be a record of a historical event but it also is important evidence of the town layout. The wall mural takes a bird’s eye view of the city, showing each structure as separate from each other and emphasizes the platforms inside the units by removing the roofs of each building. There is much to uncover about Catal Huyuk and the absence of a writing system makes interpretation much more difficult. Only one acre of the thirty-two acre site has been excavated. It is clear, however, that Catal Huyuk was a successful community for nearly 1500 years. The archaeological evidence found in Catal Huyuk has revealed that the city was a complex community, rich with highly crafted artifacts. The prevalence of religious structures might suggest that people came to the city not only to trade goods but also to consult with religious figures or worship at shrines. Shrines make up one fourth of the structures excavated at the site but ritual artifacts were also found in residential buildings. The prevalence of goddess figurines, bucranea along with death and birth scenes in wall paintings is evidence that religion played a major role in the daily life of this first city’s residents. Many religious articles were uncovered in the shrine buildings at Catal Huyuk. Votive statuettes, reliefs of the female goddess figure, bull’s heads and horns and the leopards that are closely associated with the female figures and reliefs are found in many shrines in the city. An emphasis on the female form may express a matriarchal society, a religious
Some topics in this essay:
Catal Huyuk,
James Mellaart,
Huyuk Votive,
Hasan Dag,
Middle East,
BCE Neolithic,
catal huyuk,
,
process excarnation,
excavated site,
found shrines,
female form,
sheep goats,
hasan dag,
wall paintings,
wall decoration,
surrounding walls,
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Approximate Word count = 1420
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)
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