Hattuşa’s city walls come to light

ÇORUM - Anadolu Agency

The Hittites had built the 4.5-kilometer city walls to protect their capital Hattuşa. AA photo

Archaeologists have unearthed part of the 3,700-year-old city wall of Hattuşa, capital city of the ancient Hittites, in the northern province of Çorum.

The Hittites had built the 4.5-kilometer city walls to protect their capital Hattuşa. “The city walls were first unearthed during the first year of excavations between 1906 and 1907. Some 700 meters of the 4.5-kilometer-long city walls have been unearthed. We worked for the restoration of 400-meter parts of the walls over the last three years. These walls were the first big project of the Hittites. The wall surrounds the whole city,” said Dr. Andreas Schachner, who is caryring out the excavations for the German Archaeological Institute, noting that their most recent archaeological work had focused on restoring the walls.

Schachner said they had also discovered 10 underground tunnels in some parts of the wall. “These tunnels were made for soldiers to leave the city in secret during an attack or occupation and fight. There is a tower in every 20-25 kilometer of the walls. The Hittites built the walls on an artificial hill to show the city’s power and magnificence,” he said.

He said the city walls were 10 meters high when they were built but later fell to five-six meters.