Ancient CyprusAncient Cyprus

Article · 2021

The ways of an empire: continuity and change of route landscapes across the Taurus during the Hittite Period (ca. 1650-1200 BCE)

A. Matessi

Journal of Anthropological Archaeology 62

An article on routes across the Taurus between Central Anatolia, Cilicia and Syria in the Hittite period, combining GIS corridor modelling with settlement and ceramic evidence, monuments and texts.

Matessi examines the routes between Central Anatolia, Cilicia and Syria during the Hittite kingdom and empire, which he dates ca. 1650–1200 BCE following the middle chronology. A GIS analysis models least-cost corridors from slope friction and key sites on both sides of the Taurus, and the corridors are then tested against settlement sequences, imported and locally imitated ceramics, Hittite landscape monuments and textual references to places and itineraries. The Taurus itself is poorly explored, with Late Bronze Age evidence there largely limited to Porsuk, Kilise Tepe and surveys in the Göksu valley.

Matessi argues that the route system did not stay fixed. The Maraş-Elbistan corridor remained the main overland connection between Hatti and Syria, while access towards Cilicia shifted: the Cilician Gates declined after the destruction and abandonment of Porsuk around the late 15th century BCE, as Kilise Tepe and the Göksu valley gained importance. He proposes that insecurity in the transition from the 15th to the 14th century BCE helped redirect traffic towards the Antitaurus routes and the Göksu valley, and that Antitaurus routes also linked Samuha with Kizzuwatna, with monuments and signs of religious and cultural interaction along the way (pp. 11–16).

What it records

  • Matessi reports that Late Cypriot communities appear to be among the largest consumers of Red Lustrous Wheel-made ware, with a rich repertoire of shapes whose closest match is at Kilise Tepe.p. 14
  • Matessi follows the middle chronology, which dates the sack of Babylon by Mursili I to 1595 BCE.p. 2
  • Matessi models route corridors using friction costs determined chiefly by topography and slope.p. 5
  • Dendrochronological determinations place the earliest construction of Porsuk's western fortifications no later than the last quarter of the 17th century BCE.p. 12
  • Matessi dates the foundation of the main phase of Level III at Kilise Tepe to around the mid to late 15th century BCE.p. 12
  • Matessi proposes that the Göksu valley took over a primary role as a Hittite gateway to eastern Mediterranean trading networks, as the route to the Cilician Gates was abandoned.p. 15

Where to read

  • GIS method and corridor modellingpp. 5–7
  • Porsuk and the Cilician Gatespp. 11–12
  • Göksu valley, Kilise Tepe and Urapp. 12–14

Contents

  • 1. Introduction1
  • 2. Setting the scene: The Hittites and the Taurus region2
  • 3. Methods of inquiry: Integrating multiple datasets3
  • 4. Connectivity across the Taurus: Computational approach5
  • 5. The Maraş-Elbistan corridor7
  • 6. The Antitaurus routes to eastern Cilicia8
  • 7. The Cilician Gates10
  • 8. Rough Cilicia: The Göksu valley and the “fast track” to Mersin12
  • 9. Historical interpretation14
  • 10. Concluding remarks and further perspectives16

People, places and institutions

People

  • Arnuwanda Iking who made an agreement with Uraean elders

Places

  • Taurusregion crossed by the studied routes
  • Cilician Gatesroute corridor assessed across periods
  • Göksu valleyroute corridor and settlement area
  • Kilise Tepeexcavated settlement on Göksu valley route
  • Porsuksettlement at northern Cilician Gates access
  • Maraş-Elbistan corridormain overland route to Syria
  • Firaktınmonument and settlement on route corridor
  • SamuhaHittite centre linked to Kizzuwatna
  • UraAnatolian port in Hittite trade
  • Ugaritport and Hittite client state
  • HattusaHittite capital and GIS reference site
  • KarkemišHittite centre and route destination

Also named: Sirkeli, Tarsus, Hattusili III, Puduhepa.

Extent 13 figures; bibliography pp. 17–20

Late Bronze AgeMiddle Bronze AgeTradeSettlementsLandscape and ClimateChronology and DatingForeign Contacts

Cited on Ancient Cyprus

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