monuments, as Sayce and others had supposed, but the language,
written hieroglyphically, of one of their subject populations–the
speakers of Luwian. Already in the sixteenth century, this
hieroglyphic script had begun to appear on seals, which were
commonly stamped on documents for authentication purposes, or
attached to larger objects to indicate ownership.
Later, it was used on the seals of kings and other members of his
family for the same purpose. Indeed, one of the most impressive
discoveries at Hattusa in recent years is an archive of almost 3,500
royal sealings, or seal impressions–far exceeding the total of all
such pieces hitherto found. Typically, a king’s name appeared
in hieroglyphic form in the centre of the seal, and his name, and
often that of his father and sometimes other royal predecessors,
were written in cuneiform in concentric rings around the outer
edge of the seal. But most significantly, the Luwian language in
hieroglyphic form was the language used in inscriptions by the last
century of Hittite kings, both in the capital and elsewhere in their
empire, to proclaim their military achievements, their devotion to
their religious duties, or sometimes just their names. These
inscriptions were carved on stone blocks or natural rock surfaces,
often with accompanying sculptures, for all to see.
But why use the language and script of their subjects, not their
own language and script, for these public statements? The answer
that immediately springs to mind is that a hieroglyphic script, with
its picture-like signs, is much more appropriate for public display
than the bureaucratically oriented cuneiform script. But there are
other considerations as well. By the last century of the empire,
Luwian-speakers were widely spread throughout the empire and
were almost certainly the most populous of all its inhabitants.
To speak to one’s subjects, via public monuments, in their own
language, might well have been considered an important means of
bonding with these subjects, and reinforcing the spread of royal
propaganda by proclaiming Their Majesties’close links with and
devotion to the land’s ultimate protectors–the gods.
There is another pragmatic consideration. Even the most
illiterate of the king’s subjects could have identified the names and
titles of the inscriptions’ authors when presented in their
104 WARRIORS OF ANATOLIA