A New Look at the Alacahöyük Royal Tombs Ruler, Religious Leader, Artisan?

Alacahöyük is one of the rare Early Bronze Age settlements in Anatolia that provides direct information on social hierarchy (Yalçın & Yalçın 2013). At the top of this hierarchy were the privileged elites who emphasized their special place in society by exhibiting a burial custom befitting a ruler. During the excavations carried out at Alacahöyük between 1935 and 1940, 14 graves containing rich grave goods were unearthed within the settlement. These graves are among the most important archaeological findings in Anatolia to this day.

111 pp, color figures, Turkish. Extended summary in English, German and French.

• Entrance


• Research History


• Alacahöyük King Tombs


• Dating the Graves


• Description of Graves


• Tomb H


• Tomb D


• S Tomb


• Tomb B


• R Grave


• Tomb T (late) and Tomb T ₁ (early)


• Tomb E


• Tomb A


• A ₁ Grave


• Tomb C


• Tomb K


• F Grave


• L Grave


• Evaluation of Grave Gifts


• Symbols of Sovereignty: Rulers and Prestige Items


• Religious Symbols: Items of Faith and Cult


• Artifacts Pointing to Craftsmen: Tools


• Conclusion and Evaluation


• Source


• New Insight on the Early Bronze Age Royal Tombs of Alacahöyük


• Neues über die frühbronzezeitlichen Fürstengräber von Alacahöyük


• Un nouveau regard sur les tombes princières du Bronze Ancien d'Alacahöyük