shrines of Greek deities, were bathed in light by windows which
reached almost to thefloor. No doubt window-screens were installed
to give privacy to the deities when this was deemed appropriate.
Beyond their most sacred spaces, their shrines, porticoes and
courtyards, Hittite temple-complexes incorporated many subsidi-
ary areas as well. Like other Near Eastern temples, those of the
Hittite world were often rambling, multifunctional structures, in
contrast to the simple, single-functioned, symmetrical temples
which were a hallmark of Western architectural tradition,
beginning with the Classical Greeks. Both Near Eastern and
Classical temples had an inner sanctum which housed the statues of
their patron deities, and where sacred rites were performed. But the
largest of the Hittite and other Near Eastern temples also contained
within their boundaries storerooms for housing the clothes and
equipment used in sacred ceremonies, kitchen areas where bread,
meat and other foodstuffs were prepared for the gods and priests,
and rooms for scribal staff and tablet archives.
The Temple of the Storm God, covering 2,730 sq. m, provides
the archetypal example of all these features. The single-storeyed
temple proper was surrounded by at least 82 storerooms, and
probably as many as 200 if the storage areas were two or three
storeys high. Many of these were no doubt used to house the robes,
the ritual vessels, musical instruments and other equipment used in
ceremonies and festivals associated with the temple when they were
not in use. Some of the rooms were used for storing, on wooden
shelves, the temple’s clay tablet archives, which contained many of
the most important documents to survive from the Hittite world.
These included copies of international and vassal treaties. Working
space had also to be provided for the temple’s scribal staff, as well as
for numerous other personnel associated with the temple,
including deportees assigned to various temple duties. Other
storage areas contained huge pottery vessels sunk into the ground.
Hundreds of these were found, each with a capacity of up to 2,000
litres, their contents consisting of foodstuffs like cereal grains,
beans, oil and wine. Butcheries and bakeries must also havefigured
in the temple complex, providing food for the gods as sacrificial
offerings, as well as sustenance for the temple personnel. The total
212 WARRIORS OF ANATOLIA