The formation of collective, political and cultural memory in the Middle Bronze Age: foundation and termination rituals at Toprakhisar Höyük
- 17 February 2020
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Cambridge University Press (CUP) in Anatolian Studies
- Vol. 70, 77-103
- https://doi.org/10.1017/s0066154619000139
Abstract
Constructing and deconstructing public spaces in second-millennium BC Anatolia, the Near East and the Levant was not only a collaborative physical act but also involved deeply embodied ritual symbolism. This symbolism is materialised in the practice of conducting public foundation and termination rituals that unified individual memories in space and time, transforming the physical act into a collective memory: a process that contributed to the formation of political and cultural memory. The recent rescue excavations conducted by the Hatay Archaeological Museum at the hinterland site of Toprakhisar Höyük in Altinözü (in the foothills above the Amuq valley) add to the understanding of the practice of foundation and termination rituals during the Middle Bronze Age and how these moments may have contributed to the political and cultural memory of a rural community living away from the centre. The practice of foundation/termination rituals is archaeologically documented by caches of artefacts from votive contexts stratigraphically linked to the construction and termination of a Middle Bronze Age administrative structure. ÖzetMÖ 2. binyil Anadolu ve Yakindoğu bağlamlarinda kamusal yapilarin inşaat ve yikim süreçleri sadece ortak fiziksel bir eylem olarak kalmamakta ayni zamanda derin ritüel bir sembolizm içermektedir. Temel atma ve yikim törenleri ile birlikte bu sembolizmin nesnelleştiği ve bu süreçte bireysel hafizanin toplumsal hafizaya, akabinde ise politik ve kültürel hafizanin olusumuna katkida bulunduğu vurgulanmiştir. Hatay Arkeoloji Müzesi tarafindan Amik Ovasi'ni çevreleyen dağlik coğrafyada, bir kirsal yerlesim olarak tanimladiğimiz Altinözü, Toprakhisar Höyük'te yürütülen kazilarda Orta Tunç Çaği temel atma ve yikim törenlerini daha iyi anlamaya yönelik sonuçlara ulasilmis ve bu törenlerin küçük ölçekli bir yerleşimde politik ve kültürel hafizanin oluşumuna katkisi irdelenmiştir. Bu süreç, arkeolojik bağlami içerisinde bir Orta Tunç Çaği idari yapisinin inşasi ve yikimi sürecinin stratigrafik tabakalaşma içinde tanimlanabilen adak çukurlari ve içlerinde bulunan nesnelere bağli kalarak değerlendirilmiştir.Keywords
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