Hittite seal delivered to museum

ÇORUM

The Hittite seal, which has been found by a farmer while working in his field in the Ortaköy district of the Central Anatolian province of Çorum and is considered to be about 3,500 years old, has been added to the Çorum Museum collection with the initiatives of Çorum Governor Mustafa Çiftçi and Ortaköy Mayor Taner İspir.

While working in his field, a farmer in Ortaköy, which is home to the ancient city of Sapinuva, one of the important cities that served as the capital of the Hittite state, found the seal that is considered to belong to the Hittite era.

İspir convinced the farmer to hand over the historical artifact to the Çorum Governor’s Office.

İspir visited Çiftçi with the farmer and delivered the seal to him.

Preliminary examination made by the experts of the Çorum Museum revealed that the seal, which is a “hammer-headed stamp seal,” may belong to the Old Hittite Age between the years 1650-1400 B.C.

Speaking to the state-run Anadolu Agency, İspir said that the seal could be a priceless historical artifact because the number of similar artifacts is low. “There are many artifacts belonging to the Hittites, one of the greatest civilizations in history,” he said.

Provincial Director of Culture and Tourism Sümeyra Şengül stated that the seal is still examined by the experts.

Stating that they considered the seal in the same group as Anatolian seals due to its various features, Şengül said: “It is a metallic seal with a height of 2.7 centimeters and a width of 2.2 centimeters, made of nickel alloy bronze with a hammer-head design and a ring relief decoration.”

“This unique Hittite seal was added to the Çorum Museum collection. The seal, which has a small number of similar examples in Turkish museums and other museums and collections abroad, is from the same group with the Anatolian seals, especially before the imperial era. Considering the form and style features of the Shapinuva region of Ortaköy district, this seal is dated to the Old Hittite Age, where it was found,” she added.