Medical News
A 3200-year-old sanctuary once described as the Sistine Chapel of Hittite religious art could have acted as a calendar that was centuries ahead of its time
Humans
19 June 2019
Some call Yazılıkaya in Turkey the Sistine Chapel of Hittite religious artGetty
By Colin BarrasFOR 3200 years they have guarded their secret. The deities carved in limestone near the ancient city of Hattusa are as enigmatic as they are beautiful.
Perhaps no longer. A controversial theory suggests the ancient carvings may have functioned as a calendar, with a level of sophistication way ahead of its time. “It’s not only a striking idea, it’s reasonable and possible,” says Juan Antonio Belmonte at the Institute of Astrophysics of the Canary Islands, Spain, who wasn’t part of the work. …
Article amended on
20 June 2019
We have corrected the main image on the story. It originally showed a different Yazılıkaya.
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