The Serpent-Fighting Imagery of Anatolia in the 2nd Millennium BC and Malatya Serpentine Monster in the Light of Newly Published Old Assyrian Seal Impression from Kültepe

Yıl 2023, Cilt: 87 Sayı: 308, 1 - 22, 04.04.2023

Vladimir Shelestın Alexandre Nemırovsky Anastasia Iasenovskaıa

https://doi.org/10.37879/belleten.2023.001

Öz

The present work deals with serpent-fighting motifs from Anatolia of the second millennium BC reconsidered in the light of recently discovered composition with a serpent-fighting scene on an Old Assyrian seal impression from Kültepe kept at the Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts in Moscow (I 2 б 1591). Besides this sealing, the famous representation at the Malatya Relief H (the orthostat AMM 12250) and myths of Illuyanka and Hedammu are compared to each other according to various criteria of depicting the hero, the monster and the fighting scene itself. The scholars often regarded Malatya Relief H as representing the plot of Illuyanka myth, but the discovery of dragon-slaying scene on the Pushkin Museum’s sealing gives grounds for its re-analyzing. It is revealed that the pictorial monuments from Anatolia in contrast to the textual ones depict the hero acting alone; most of Anatolian dragons have front paws. The ultimate fighting is shown in iconography as a close combat struggle while in the narratives the close combat seems to give more advantage to the serpent. The composition similarity of Malatya Relief and the Pushkin Museum’s sealing is demonstrated in general as well as in concrete details. This fact allows to trace the development of the Neo-Hittite dragon-slaying imagery and plots to pre-Hittite times (the dragon-slaying motif as depicted in the orthostat AMM 12250 roots back at least to the 18th century BC when similar features were reflected at the Old Assyrian sealing from the Pushkin Museum I 2 б 1591) and to solve some problems of interpretation for the Malatya Relief H (number of monster’s heads, identification of monster’s parts stretched up to the hero’s figure, possible role of the dagger, etc.).

Anahtar Kelimeler

Neo-Hittite reliefs, Malatya-Arslantepe, Kültepe, serpent-fighting, Storm-God

MÖ 2. Bin Anadolu’sunda Yılan Dövüşü Tasviri ve Yeni Yayımlanmış Kültepe’den Bir Eski Assur Dönemi Baskı Mührü Işığında Malatya Yılanlı Canavarı

Öz

Bu çalışma, MÖ 2. binyıl Anadolu’suna ait yılan dövüşü motiflerini Moskova’daki Puşkin Devlet Güzel Sanatlar Müzesi’nde yer alan Kültepe’den bir Eski Asur baskı mührü (I 2 б 1591) üzerindeki yılan dövüşü sahnesi ile yakın zamanda keşfedilen benzer bir kompozisyonun ışığında yeniden değerlendirmeyi amaçlamaktadır. Kültepe Mührü yanı sıra Malatya Kabartması H’deki (Ortostat AMM 12250) ünlü betim ile İlluyanka ve Hedammu mitolojisi, kahramanı, canavarı ve dövüş sahnesini betimleme açısından çeşitli kriterlere göre birbirleriyle karşılaştırılmıştır. Araştırmacılar her ne kadar Malatya Kabartması H’yi İlluyanka mitinin olay örgüsünü temsil ediyor olarak görüyor olsa da Puşkin Müzesi mühründeki ejderha öldürme sahnesinin keşfi, yeniden analiz edilmesi için zemin sağlamaktadır. Anadolu kaynaklı betimli anıtlarda kahraman, yazılı olanlardan farklı olarak tek başına hareket ederken betimlenir ve yine ejderhaların çoğunun ön pençeleri vardır.
Mücadele ikonografide bir yakın dövüş sahnesi olarak gösterilirken, anlatılarda yakın dövüşün yılana daha fazla avantaj sağladığı görülüyor. Malatya Kabartması ile Puşkin Müzesi mührünün kompozisyon benzerliği genel olarak ortaya konulduğu gibi detaylarda da somut olarak gösterilmiştir. Bu durum, Geç Hitit ejderha öldürme imgesinin ve olay örgüsünün gelişimini Eski Hitit Dönemi’ne kadar izlememize (Puşkin Müzesi I 2 б 1591’deki Eski Asur mührüne benzer özelliklerin yansıtıldığı ortostat AMM 12250’de tasvir edildiği şekliyle ejderha öldürme motifinin kökleri, en azından MÖ 18. yüzyıla kadar uzanır) ve Malatya Kabartma H için bazı yorumlama problemlerini çözmemize imkân tanır. (Canavar başlarının sayısı, kahraman figürüne kadar uzanan canavar gövde parçalarının tanımlanması, hançerin olası rolü, vb.)

Anahtar Kelimeler

Geç Hitit kabartmaları, Malatya-Arslantepe, Kültepe, yılan dövüşü, Fırtına Tanrısı

Kaynakça

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