Thebustednews.com

News 2026-01-20 17:48:47

Sculpture of a Fist

Statues of gods featured prominently throughout the ancient world, but many of those that are best known from literary evidence have never been found.
(Museum of Fine Arts, Boston/Bridgeman Art Library)

These include the nearly 40-foot-tall ivory and gold statue of the Greek goddess Athena that once stood at the back of the Parthenon and a wooden statue of the Babylonian god Marduk that was covered in gold and silver and housed in Babylon’s main temple.


Archaeologist Jorrit Kelder of the University of Hamburg believes that artists in the Hittite Empire, which ruled over Anatolia (modern Turkey) from about 1600 to 1200 B.C. from its capital at Hattusha, also created statues of deities out of both wood and precious materials that have since disappeared. He suggests that this silver fist, which for decades archaeologists have identified as a rhyton, a type of ritual vessel used for libations, may actually have been part of a life-size statue of the Hittite weather god, Tarhuna. “I’m very interested in challenging certitudes in our field that have been repeated so often and have never really been questioned since they were first proposed, and have since become facts in the archaeological narrative,” says Kelder. “The identification of the fist as a vessel struck me this way.”

(Ken Feisel)

One piece of evidence Kelder has cited as support for his new interpretation is the frieze running around the top of the artifact. It depicts a procession including Tarhuna and the Hittite king Tudhaliya II (reigned ca. 1375–1355 B.C.) performing a libation ritual. “The vessel shown there is very clearly a pouring vessel,” says Kelder. “The fist isn’t—its peculiar shape would have been awkward and messy to drink from or even pour liquid out of.”

He also found that Hittite texts contain numerous mentions of wooden cult statues. Finally, Kelder notes, there is a torn section at the rim where a nail may have affixed the fist to a wooden arm that does not survive. “I propose,” says Kelder, “that the fist may be the first object of a lost world of Hittite divine imagery.”

News in the same category

Sardinian Bronze Figurines

Sardinian Bronze Figurines

When scholars study the great copper-producing powers of the Mediterranean Bronze Age, they often focus on Cyprus and the Levant.

News 30/01/2026 02:43
Crete's Inner Circles

Crete's Inner Circles

On the summit of Papoura Mountain in central Crete, archaeologists are investigating a highly unusual circular structure.

News 30/01/2026 02:38
A Feminine Touch

A Feminine Touch

he large Neolithic farming community of Çatalhöyük in southern Anatolia has long tantalized archaeologists as a possible example of a matriarchal society.

News 29/01/2026 02:58
Olive Oil Production Hub Excavated in Turkey

Olive Oil Production Hub Excavated in Turkey

Researchers say the findings indicate Syedra was not only a regional producer but one of the Mediterranean’s key suppliers in antiquity, challenging earlier assumptions about the city’s economic role.

News 24/01/2026 02:20
The Palace Times

The Palace Times

The Lydian palace was built on an artificial terrace in the capital city of Sardis.

News 23/01/2026 07:47

News Post

4 Beverages That May Impact Kidney Health

4 Beverages That May Impact Kidney Health

Kidneys play a vital role in keeping the body healthy. They filter waste from the blood, regulate fluid balance, control blood pressure, and support overall metabolic function.

Health 23/03/2026 09:00
[email protected]