MURAT HOYUK EARLY BRONZE AGE METAL FIGURINE

Abstract

This study presents a detailed examination of a metal figurine found during the 2019 excavations at Murat Hoyuk, located on the bank of the Murat River in the Solhan district of the Province Bingol in Eastern Anatolia. Because the mound was to be inundated by the Asagi Kalekoy hydroelectric dam, extensive salvage excavations were conducted at the site in 2019 under the directorship of the Elazig Museum. Four main settlement phases (Medieval, Middle Iron, Early Iron, Early Bronze) were documented at the site with the earliest habitation dating to the Early Bronze Age III (2500-2200 BC). While figurines shaped out of clay, stone, and marble are more common in the archaeological record of Early Bronze Age (EBA) Anatolia, and metal figurines are relatively rare, a metal figurine ('statuette') was discovered in the EBA settlement level of Murat Hoyuk. In terms of typological and stylistic details, the metal figurine of Murat Hoyuk appears unique in the 3rd millennium records of Mesopotamia, the Aegean, and the Balkans. The figurine depicts a standing nude with stylized hands and feet. Eye-sockets are marked as shallow pits, while the mouth is not indicated. Arms are stretched out on both sides; head is slightly inclined to the left; breasts are fashioned as applique protrusions; and pubic triangle is indicated with incised lines. The fact that stone mold and crucible fragments were found in the same level of the site suggests that the object was most probably produced locally by casting. Casting defects (flash lines) are observable on the surface. In this study, based on a comparative iconographic examination, we propose that a goddess is depicted here. With its unique characteristics, the Murat Hoyuk goddess figurine is a significant contribution to the repertoire of metal 'figurines' in Anatolia, Syria, and Mesopotamia with broader implications about EBA metallurgy, art, and belief systems.