A Couple of Interesting Links

     I just found a couple of links that I will pass along:

     The first is a link to a site that reports on the ongoing excavations of Catal Hoyuk in Turkey (http://www.catalhoyuk.com). Catal Hoyuk is a Neolithic / Chalcolithic site in south-central Turkey that    
consists of numerous mud brick houses jammed in together. Some of the buildings have wall murals and others (religious shrines???) have several bull skulls mounted within them. Burials are sometimes found beneath the floor of the houses (an early example of a practice that is common in ancient middle eastern sites throughout ancient history).

     This site was originally excavated in the late 1950s by James Mellaart, who was later banned from excavating in Turkey on suspicion that he was involved in antiquities trafficking.

     The second link provides some information on the excavations at Hattusha (http://www.hattuscha.de/English/english1.htm) being conducted by the German Archaeological Institute. This site is also located in Turkey.

     Hattusha was the capital of the Hittite Empire that vied for power with the Assyrians and Egyptians. The excavators have reconstructed about 65 meters of the original mud brick city walls and there is some information on the reconstruction, along with some good photos, on the website.

     There is also a page on this site devoted to the nearby religious center of Yazilikaya. Included is a good description of Yazilikaya and some photos of the site's relief carvings.

     Both of these sites are well worth checking out.