A FIRST LOOK AT EQUID 'IDOLS' FROM TEPECIK-CIFTLIK, SOUTHERN CAPPADOCIA, TURKEY

Abstract

Excavation at the Pre-Pottery Neolithic, Pottery Neolithic, and Early Chalcolithic site of Tepecik-Çiftlik in the Niğde region of Southern Cappadocia, Turkey have been conducted since 2000 under the direction of Professor Erhan Biçakçi of Istanbul University. The excavations have yielded a rich assemblage of worked bone objects dating to the Neolithic and Chalcolithic Periods. One of the striking features of the assemblage is the presence of approximately 250 bone “idols”. These objects were made by flattening the dorsal and plantar/volar surfaces of equid first phalanges. Some also show more elaborate decoration. Measurements taken on these bones indicate that wild horse (Equus ferus) and hydruntine (Equus hemionus hydruntinus) proximal phalanges were used to produce these bone objects. This paper will illustrate how these how these bone objects were manufactured and how they were distributed chronologically within the site.