IN HITTITE WRITTEN SOURCES AND VISUAL ARTS

Starting from the Neolithic period onwards in Anatolia, circular forms depicted in the visual arts are usually defined as cymbal, tambourine (membraphone) and bread, whereas sphere-shaped stone and clay objects recovered from excavations are defined as calculating stones, catapult stones and balls. It is documented that sphere-shaped objects, also encountered in the Hittite culture, are used in religious ceremonies. In this article, the definitions and functions of round-shaped objects and sphere-shaped finds from excavations have been examined within the frame of Old Hittite and Hittite Imperial periods, starting with the Assyrian Trade Colonies Period, in which Hittite style is started to evaluate. By examining the relations between some breads, mentioned in Hittite tablets and circular objects, either depicted on altars or held by hand from the Colony Period onwards, it is aimed to identify these forms in detail.