A silver pendant embellished with a picture and attributes of Assyrian goddess Ishtar has been found historic metropolis of Amos close to Turunç, southwestern Turkey. Embellished with repoussé figures and hammered dots, the spherical medallion has a dangling loop on the prime indicating it was worn on a necklace. It’s lacking part of the decrease left quadrant, however the lion’s fierce roaring face, physique, hind legs and tail are all preserved. A feminine determine carrying a tall headdress stands on the lion’s again. The star is behind her headdress.
Lions had been Ishtar’s sacred animal. They had been symbols of royalty, ferocity, and power. Reliefs of lions adorns the Ishtar Gate constructed by Nebuchadnezzar II, king of Babylon, they usually function prominently in depictions of Ishtar. She is usually proven standing on or driving a lion, emphasizing her dominion over nature and monarchs.
Amos was settled by colonists from Rhodes, probably from the town of Lindos, within the fifth century B.C. The worship of Ishtar far predates it, and the positioning being excavated is of Hellenistic date (ca. 2,200 years outdated), so the pendant is proof that the Mesopotamian deity had a large cultural attain.
Assoc. Prof. Mehmet Gurbuzer, head of the excavation and a school member at Mugla Sitki Kocman College’s Division of Archaeology, defined in remarks conveyed to the media that the necklace factors to Amos having had notable cultural, financial, and business power.
He famous that throughout the seventh century B.C., superior cultural components from the Close to East started to unfold into the Mediterranean via commerce and army contacts. Inside this context, Amos seems to have stood out as a port metropolis that was effectively plugged into the political and financial currents of its time.
