Hittite Archives at Hattusa
The lost empire that proved the Bible's 'Hittites' were real
Found 1906 — Hugo Winckler (German Oriental Society) with Theodore Makridi; site first described by Charles Texier (1834)
Where Boğazkale (Boğazköy), Çorum Province, Turkey (Turkey)
Dates from c. 1650–1180 BCE · Late Bronze Age (Hittite Empire) · Hittites in Genesis (Ephron, Esau's wives); Hittite kingdoms of Solomon's day
Now at Museum of Anatolian Civilizations, Ankara; Istanbul Archaeology Museums; Boğazköy Museum (site is a UNESCO World Heritage Site)
How Hittite Archives at Hattusa was found
Winckler's 1906–07 digs at Boğazköy recovered about 10,000 cuneiform tablets from the royal citadel, including a copy of the Egyptian–Hittite peace treaty, proving the site was Hattusa, capital of the Hittites. The Hittite language was deciphered by Bedřich Hrozný in 1915.
What it is
A fortified capital of about 180 hectares with temples, palaces, the Lion Gate, and rock sanctuary of Yazılıkaya. Its archives hold about 30,000 tablets and fragments in Hittite, Akkadian, and other languages: treaties, laws, annals, rituals, and letters.
Why it matters for the Bible
Before 1906 some critics claimed the Bible's Hittites were fiction, since no such people was known outside Scripture. Hattusa revealed a major empire. The Hittite treaties in particular share the structure of the covenant in Deuteronomy (preamble, history, stipulations, witnesses, blessings and curses). Note that the 'Hittites' of Genesis, like Ephron at Hebron, may be a local Canaanite group using the same name rather than Anatolian Hittites; scholars debate the relationship.
The Hebrew word: chit-TEE
חִתִּי
חִתִּי is pronounced chit-TEE and means Hittite (Strong's H2850).
People this discovery connects to
- Ephron the Hittite — עֶפְרוֹן (ef-RON) — fawn-like
- Heth — חֵת (CHET) — ancestor of the Hittites
Places
- Land of the Hittites — אֶרֶץ הַחִתִּים (EH-rets ha-chit-TEEM) — land of the Hittites
Events
Avraham buys Machpelah from Ephron the Hittite · Esav marries Hittite women · Covenant treaties in Torah form
Hittite Archives at Hattusa in Scripture
Genesis 10:15 First mention of Hittites in Scripture.
Genesis 23:10 Ephron the Hittite sells the cave of Machpelah; Hattusa proved a Hittite people existed.
Joshua 1:4 'All the land of the Hittites' as the northern limit of the promised territory.
Questions people ask
What is Hittite Archives at Hattusa?
A fortified capital of about 180 hectares with temples, palaces, the Lion Gate, and rock sanctuary of Yazılıkaya. Its archives hold about 30,000 tablets and fragments in Hittite, Akkadian, and other languages: treaties, laws, annals, rituals, and letters.
When was Hittite Archives at Hattusa discovered?
It was found in 1906 by Hugo Winckler (German Oriental Society) with Theodore Makridi; site first described by Charles Texier (1834), at Boğazkale (Boğazköy), Çorum Province, Turkey.
Where is Hittite Archives at Hattusa today?
Museum of Anatolian Civilizations, Ankara; Istanbul Archaeology Museums; Boğazköy Museum (site is a UNESCO World Heritage Site).
Which Bible verses does Hittite Archives at Hattusa relate to?
Genesis 10:15, Genesis 23:10, Joshua 1:4.
Related discoveries
- כָּרַת בְּרִיתSefire Treaty StelaeAramaic vassal treaties whose curses read like Deuteronomy 28
- מִזְבֵּחַMount Ebal Altar SiteZertal's Iron I stone structure identified by some as Joshua's altar
Sources
- Wikipedia: Hattusa
- Bryce, 'The Kingdom of the Hittites' (Oxford, 2005)