Traces of the Kaška People Unearthed at Oymaağaç Höyük: New Clues to the Hittite Sacred City of Nerik
In the Vezirköprü district of Samsun, northern Türkiye, Oymaağaç Höyük—identified over two decades of excavations as the Hittite sacred city of Nerik—has revealed new traces of the elusive Kaška people, one of Anatolia’s lesser-known indigenous groups. Recent finds, including architecture and pottery from the Middle Bronze Age and Iron Age, are offering unprecedented insights into
27 cuneiform tablets providing information about the sacred Hittite city of Nerik have been discovered at Oymaağaç Mound
27 cuneiform tablets providing information about Nerik, the sacred city dedicated to the Hittites’ chief god Tešup, have been discovered at Oymaağaç Mound. Oymaağaç Mound is located in the Vezirköprü district of Samsun today. Assoc. Prof. Dr. Mehmet Ali Yılmaz, a faculty member in the Department of Archaeology at Ondokuz Mayıs University and the Deputy
Surprising discovery in the ‘holy water’ of the Hittites
Ongoing archaeological excavations in the sacred Hittite city of Nerik (today’s Oymaağaç Mound) are revealing surprising discoveries. With a 3500-year history, Nerik, which is considered a sacred city by the Hittites, is located 7 kilometers northwest of Vezirköprü district of Samsun. Nerik was founded by the Hattis and after the fall of the Hittite empire,
The arrival of spring in the Hittites was celebrated with the Purilli Festival
Spring is a season of abundance, fertility, and the beginning of new lives for humans, and it is a season with many meanings. Therefore; the arrival of spring was welcomed with celebrations, feasts and sacrificial ceremonies. Celebrations differed according to the geography of the people. Each society celebrated the arrival of spring according to its
3000-year-old wooden were discovered underwater in the sacred city of Nerik, the Hittites’ holy city
In ongoing archaeological excavations at Oymaağaç Mound, formerly known as Nerik, an important religious and cultural center for the Hittite civilization, 3000-year-old wooden artifacts have been discovered submerged in water. Oymaağaç Mound is located in the Vezirköprü district of Samsun province in northern Turkey. The excavations at Oymaağaç Mound, which began in 2009 in a
The remnants of the Iron Age are being searched for in Nerik, the sacred city of the Hittites
In Nerik, an important religious city of the Hittite Empire, remains from the Iron Age are being searched for. Nerik is located at the Oymaağaç Mound, situated 7 kilometers northwest of the Vezirköprü district in Samsun province of present-day Turkey. Established by the Hattians, one of the oldest civilizations of Anatolia, around 3500 years ago,