178 herbert niehr
lies in defining what typical temple architecture is. one can generally
expect that a certain part of the palace served cultic purposes, without it
being visible in the architecture today.
With regard to the acropolis, the assumption was made that perhaps a
temple had once been situated on the eastern corner (area 2).252 this was
due to of the discovery of a lion figure marking an entrance. the eastern
corner of the acropolis is also its highest part.
the excavations in the residential area of the northern lower city (area 5)
demonstrate the most interesting and often overlooked instance of a city
sanctuary. the discovery of the stele of Kuttamuwa in July 2008 led to an
ongoing investigation of the building in whose annex (a/ii) the stele was
erected. Meanwhile, however, it should already be clear that Kuttamuwa
had created a mortuary chapel for the veneration of his memory. the rea-
son for this chapel was the existence of an adjacent neighborhood temple
(a/iii). comparable neighborhood temples exist, for example, in the form
of the sanctuaire aux rythons in Ugarit, two chapels in carchemish, the
stelae temple of hazor, the shrine of tell Qasile, and the two chapels and
so-called cult room from tell halaf, which are contemporary to the shrine
of samʾal.253
Meanwhile there is also evidence for the existence of an extra-urban
shrine (area 7). a row of stelae was located about 100 m outside of the
southern city gate as was a rectangular structure, which has been inter-
preted as having been a shrine. a more detailed interpretation must await
the results of further excavations.254
there are two temples in close proximity to each other in the upper
town of tell tayinat (Kunulua). temple i (building ii), excavated between
1935 and 1937, is located south of one of the hilani buildings (building i).
the approximately 2.05-m-thick mud brick walls of the temple were rein-
forced with wooden beams. the temple was open to the east, and was
about 11.75 m wide and 25.35 m long. it is divided into three parts, a ves-
tibule, cella, and adyton. the vestibule is 5.92 × 7.62 m with two antae and
two columns on double lion bases. it is followed by a 9.60 × 7.62 m large
cella, which adjoins a 3.25 × 7.62 m adyton. there was a pedestal to place
offerings near the right-hand pillar in front of the adyton. of the inte-
rior fittings of the adyton only the remains of a 3.55 × 2.60 m mud brick
252 cf. schloen – Fink 2009c: 6 with figs. 12 and 13.
253 cf. struble – herrmann 2009: 36–42 and herrmann forthcoming.
254 cf. schloen – Fink 2009b: 210f; iid. 2009c: 6, 8, 11 with figs. 29 and 30.