complex of which the temple-proper was the nucleus extended over
14,500 sq. m.
On a smaller scale, many of the other temples, both in Hattusa
and elsewhere in the Hittite world, had a similar range of functions
beyond the purely sacred and ritualistic. Tablet-finds in a number
of Hattusa’s temples indicate that these religious institutions often
owned food-producing land, which enabled them to contribute to
Hatti’s food supply and economic development; the institutions
themselves sometimes provided storage facilities for at least part of
their produce for redistribution purposes.
Overall, Hittite temples functioned very much like mediaeval
monasteries in the complexity and range of activities, both secular
and religious, in which they engaged.
ROCKS AND PONDS
Given the special sacred significance attached to rocks in the Hittite
world, several large rocky outcrops within the Upper City –
especially those now known as Sarikale (Turkish‘Yellow Castle’),
Figure 21.9 Yenicekale, Hattusa.
CITY OF TEMPLES AND BUREAUCRATS:THE ROYAL CAPITAL 213