The Hittite Heartland Circuit
Lions, Sphinxes, and the 71 Gods of Yazılıkaya across the Bronze Age Superpower
📜 Expedition Overview
Venture into the sun-baked hills of central Anatolia, home to the Bronze Age superpower that rivalled Ramesses II at the Battle of Kadesh and signed the world’s first recorded international peace treaty. Drive through the cyclopean circuit walls of Hattusha, navigate the mysterious 70-meter underground Yerkapı postern tunnel, stand before the Lion and King’s Gates, venerate the procession of storm gods carved into the limestone crevices of Yazılıkaya, and discover the royal Hatti bronze standards at nearby Alacahöyük.
📅 Day-by-Day Field Itinerary
Day 1
Hattusha (Boğazkale)
View Dossier→The Lion Gate, Sphinx Gate atop the artificial Yerkapı rampart, 70m corbelled postern tunnel, and the Great Temple green nephrite cube
Yazılıkaya Open-Air Rock Sanctuary
View Dossier→Chambers A & B with 71 stone reliefs depicting the procession of Hittite storm gods, Hurrian deities, and King Tudhaliya IV
Day 2
Alacahöyük
View Dossier→The monumental Sphinx Gate with orthostats depicting royal sacrificial rituals and the Early Bronze Age Royal Tombs
🎒 Practical Field Advice
- ✓Hattusha is enormous (spreading over 1.8 square kilometers of steep hills); a paved internal driving loop allows you to drive your car directly from gate to gate.
- ✓Walk through the entire 70-meter Yerkapı corbelled tunnel beneath the high defensive rampart to experience authentic Hittite military engineering.
- ✓Visit Yazılıkaya in the early afternoon (12:00 to 14:00) when the angle of the sun casts dramatic shadow relief across Chamber A’s stone deities.
- ✓The Boğazkale Museum in town houses exquisite cuneiform tablets and Hittite ceremonial vessels; admission is included or nominal.
The Hittite Heartland Circuit
Lions, Sphinxes, and the 71 Gods of Yazılıkaya across the Bronze Age Superpower
Access interactive satellite imagery, turn-by-turn routing, audio narration, and offline GPX downloads directly on your smartphone:
📜 Expedition Overview
Venture into the sun-baked hills of central Anatolia, home to the Bronze Age superpower that rivalled Ramesses II at the Battle of Kadesh and signed the world’s first recorded international peace treaty. Drive through the cyclopean circuit walls of Hattusha, navigate the mysterious 70-meter underground Yerkapı postern tunnel, stand before the Lion and King’s Gates, venerate the procession of storm gods carved into the limestone crevices of Yazılıkaya, and discover the royal Hatti bronze standards at nearby Alacahöyük.
📅 Day-by-Day Field Itinerary
The Lion Gate, Sphinx Gate atop the artificial Yerkapı rampart, 70m corbelled postern tunnel, and the Great Temple green nephrite cube
Chambers A & B with 71 stone reliefs depicting the procession of Hittite storm gods, Hurrian deities, and King Tudhaliya IV
The monumental Sphinx Gate with orthostats depicting royal sacrificial rituals and the Early Bronze Age Royal Tombs
🎒 Practical Field Advice
- ✓Hattusha is enormous (spreading over 1.8 square kilometers of steep hills); a paved internal driving loop allows you to drive your car directly from gate to gate.
- ✓Walk through the entire 70-meter Yerkapı corbelled tunnel beneath the high defensive rampart to experience authentic Hittite military engineering.
- ✓Visit Yazılıkaya in the early afternoon (12:00 to 14:00) when the angle of the sun casts dramatic shadow relief across Chamber A’s stone deities.
- ✓The Boğazkale Museum in town houses exquisite cuneiform tablets and Hittite ceremonial vessels; admission is included or nominal.
Atlas Anatolia — A Living Geographic & Archaeological Atlas of Anatolia and the Ancient World.
Coordinates referenced to WGS84 standard. Always verify current museum hours, local ticketing, and weather warnings prior to departure.
Document generated from https://atlasanatolia.com/expeditions/hittite-heartland-circuit