Читать книгу A Companion to the Achaemenid Persian Empire, 2 Volume Set - Группа авторов - Страница 155

The land in the northwest consists of fertile plains cut by the rivers Rhyndakos, Enbeilos, Aisepos, and Granikos and two sizable lakes, Daskylitis and Apolloniatis. The rugged and wooded terrain of Mysian Olympos is to the east. This is an area predominantly settled by Greeks, Phrygians, Mysians, and Lydians. From the nineteenth century onward the region attracted the attention of researchers attempting to locate Daskyleion, the legendary satrapal capital mentioned in classical sources. Discovery of several relief blocks and relief stelai in the area, and surveys focusing on a settlement mound, Hisartepe, near Ergili, gradually led to its excavation as the most likely site of the satrapal center. The stream, Karadere, an outlet of the lake and a tributary of the Rhyndakos, flows by the western slope. To the north is the wetland and the shore of Lake Manyas, a registered wildlife reserve (Figure 21.2). Standing on the mound one catches an impressive glimpse of the lake and the farming land with several tumuli visible in the horizon. This is the view of the fertile plains where small villages and estates of the landowners and the local nobility of the Achaemenid period lay. The port city of Kyzikos, an old Milesian colony, is located about 30 km to the north. This is certainly a good location for communication and trade routes connecting to the Troad and Kyzikos and inland Anatolia.

Figure 21.2 View of Lake Manyas from Daskyleion (Deniz Kaptan).

Ergili/Daskyleion has been excavated since the mid‐1950s to the present, with a break from 1959 to 1988 (Akurgal 1961: pp. 170–171; Bakır 2001: pp. 169–180; İren 2010). With levels yielding rich finds from the earlier periods that include “orientalizing” east Greek and Corinthian, Attic, Lydian, and monochrome gray ware, and already surrounded by fortification walls before the Achaemenid period, the settlement mound stands out as a significant source for Iron Age studies. Continuity of spatial use throughout its history resulted in the recycling of building materials, a matter of fact in settlement archeology not isolated to this site only. The excavation team reports destruction debris from the third quarter of the sixth century BCE possibly associated with the capture of the town by the Persians.

The Achaemenid period settlement had a series of terrace walls built in varying quality and material, the portions of which rise along the southeastern side, one segment reaching a length of 120 m. The northern end of this massive wall, preserved up to 3.75 m high, was built of mudbrick set on a stone foundation of well‐worked rectangular limestone blocks. This wall also served as fortification and the upper terrace walls went through repairs and alterations over a stretch of time. The first excavation seasons in the 1950s in the southern sector of the mound revealed some direct evidence for the Achaemenid occupation: the discovery of several hundred bullae with seal impressions in a rectangular structure. It was re‐excavated in 2004 (Erdoan 2007: p. 181). In this area there are several rock‐cut pits, foundations of other buildings including a three‐unit structure, and a large paved courtyard with drainage (İren and Yıldızhan 2013: p. 213). The excavation team suggests that the satrapal residence/palace with attached units lay in this location. Overall the architecture of this sector is complicated, partly due to alterations and reuse, and partly to the ambiguities in our knowledge about the material evidence for civic and religious practices (Kaptan 2016: pp. 350–354). The architectural fragments of Proconnesian marble and andesite found in spolia clearly indicate that there were exquisite structures and tombs in and around the settlement, the earliest from the late sixth and second quarter of the fifth centuries BCE. They comprise volutes, lintel, and frieze fragments decorated with lotus, palmette, and rosette patterns rendered in the styles of Classical Greek Asia Minor, some attributed to Milesian workshops (Ateşlier 2001: pp. 152–160). Architectural elements also include Lydian painted terracotta tile and revetment fragments similar to those in Sardis. It is possible that such terracotta revetments were used on mudbrick structures with stone foundations, traditionally known in the region. On the northern side of the mound, an area of about 300 m² has been associated with the cult of Cybele.

The finds reveal a prosperous and cosmopolitan center. The pottery sequence, in particular, shows a rich record: Attic pottery was imported in high quantity and regional imitations were also available. Local gray ware, some bearing graffiti, continued to be produced. Adaptations of lobed and plain Achaemenid bowls constitute a significant category in pottery. Fragments of polished stone plates, some similar to those from the Persepolis Treasury and the western Anatolian burials, are among the luxury tableware. There are fragments of ivory utensils carved in animal style, horse‐harness strap‐dividers in the shape of boars' tusks, and tripartite socketed arrowheads commonly associated with Iranian tribes, and slingshot bullets.

The bullae, largely used on written documents (Figure 21.3), testify to the presence of administrative and economic activity (Kaptan 2002). Similar to the practice known from the Persepolis Fortification and Treasury tablets and the papyri of Arshama from Egypt, the perished documents of Daskyleion most likely recorded economic and administrative operations in and around the satrapal territory, such as records of goods, incoming and outgoing, e.g. grain, livestock, timber, related to the local warehouse/treasury and their management, the ratios and organization of the workforce, and other related issues in the area within the imperial organization. On the satrapal level, the Arshama dossier from Egypt offers an illustrious model for the perished documents of Daskyleion (Kaptan 2020). The seal impressions on the bullae provide a wealth of information about sealing practices and artistic styles. They represent scenes that have direct links to the styles and subjects known from the center of the empire, their regional adaptations, and images in Greek styles and subjects (Figures 21.3–21.6). This is a good cross section of the artistic complexity in the empire, representing images that could be recognized stylistically as Neo‐Babylonian, Achaemenid, and Classical Greek, displaying an array of artists' hands at work (Kaptan 2013). The impressions of three discrete cylinders, making up more than half of the entire assemblage of bullae, carry royal names, Xerxes and Artaxerxes inscribed in Old Persian (Figure 21.6), and one bilingually in Old Persian and Babylonian (Schmitt 2002). The users of royal name seals in this regional center most probably followed a parallel practice documented by the royal archives in Iran, and carried out operations in office. There are also Aramaic inscriptions on the impressions of cylinders and stamps (Röllig 2002, Pl. 4). Overall, the inscriptions provide names of Anatolian, Greek, Babylonian, and Iranian origin, showing the seal owners/users who were involved in the transactions of the satrapal center and could belong to any ethnic background present in the empire. The variety of artistic styles on the inscribed seals also indicates that the selection of imagery and ethnicity were independent of one another.

Figure 21.3 Bulla and seal impression from Daskyleion. DS 72 on Erg. 278. Obverse and reverse (Deniz Kaptan).

Figure 21.4 Bulla and seal impression from Daskyleion. DS 112 on Erg. 260 (Deniz Kaptan).

Figure 21.5 Bulla and seal impression from Daskyleion. DS 172 on Erg. 367 (Deniz Kaptan).

Figure 21.6 Bulla and seal impression from Daskyleion. DS 3 on Erg. 5. cylinder seal impression and composite drawing (after Kaptan 2002: Pls. 9–10).

The fragments of relief slabs and stelai found around Daskyleion represent convoys, banquets, hunting, and rituals showing priests in long capes and women in courtly settings, some of which bear inscriptions in Aramaic and Phrygian (Borchhardt 1968: pp. 173–179, 192–208; Nollé 1992; Maffre 2007: pp. 230–240; Polat 2007; Draycott 2010: pp. 7–10). They had been removed from their original locations long ago and were reused for many purposes, such as grinding stones and troughs, and blocks in masonry. Their possible connection with the tumuli in the estates of local and Persian nobility has long been suggested.

Recent research in the area has systematically focused on settlement patterns, land use, and spatial organization, and mapped out the locations of burials and possible locations of the estates/farms/çiftliks. The survey team of the Granikos River Valley Project documented a number of sites in the area between the Kocabaş Çayı/Granikos River and Gönen Çayı/Aisepos River (Rose et al. 2007). The surface pottery shows a gap between the end of the Classical/the Achaemenid period and the Roman period, suggesting a significant change in the occupation pattern and land use by the end of Achaemenid rule. As the economy was not controlled by satrapal centers and protection was no longer available in the countryside, the estates appear to have disintegrated and people moved to the newly established Hellenistic cities.

The tumuli, which are often located near water sources and on natural ridges, blending well with the landscape, are emblematic of the prestige and social status of the elite. They also functioned as the markers of estates. At the top, stone balls, phalloi set into bases, were placed to mark the monument. Despite the plunder of many of the tumuli, the retrieved contents are sufficient to display the level of prosperity and the owners' affiliation with the empire. Among the numerous tumuli dating from the sixth to the end of the fourth centuries BCE, three burial sites – Kızöldün/Gümüşçay, Dedetepe, and Çan, also those near Daskyleion (e.g. Tepecik, Koru, and Kocaresul) – revealed extraordinary finds. Kızöldün, yielded two marble sarcophagi, one small and one adult size (Sevinç et al. 2001; Rose 2007). Because of its unique relief decoration the large one in Late Archaic style and dated to the end of the sixth century BCE carries significant art historical value. Known as the Polyxena Sarcophagus, it is the oldest decorated stone sarcophagus excavated in Asia Minor. The leftovers of the vandalized sarcophagus include the bones of an adult male, whereas, ironically, the relief decoration of the sarcophagus represents female‐dominated scenes. The remains of a wheeled cart were also retrieved. As observed in some other tumuli in western Anatolia, the inclusion of wheels in burials appears to be a part of the funerary tradition. The brightly colored klinai in the chamber of the nearby Dedetepe burial parallel those at Aktepe and Laletepe in the south (Baughan 2008). The retrieved contents of both burials span from heirloom jewelry to wooden furniture that resemble the types in Iran, as well as musical instrument fragments that may have played a significant role in the region at funeral services. The third burial at Çan, also looted, yielded a marble sarcophagus with representations of hunt and battle on horseback. Like the tomb furnishings and spolia at the Daskyleion excavations, these sarcophagi were of Proconnesian marble, the quarries of which seem to have been easily accessible to those around Daskyleion. Recent work at Daskyleion has also shown the inclusion of rock‐cut tombs in burial practices (İren and Kasar 2015).

A small regional center was located at Seyitömer Höyük, about 25 km to the north of Kütahya. This is a strongly fortified settlement mound dating back to the early Bronze Age. The Achaemenid period levels yielded import Attic pottery, local adaptations of Achaemenid bowls in pottery, and a small group of bullae (Kaptan 2010; Coşkun 2015; Grave et al. 2016). The archeological contexts of some of the bullae associate them with a relatively large structure on the mound where subterranean silos for storage were also excavated. The settlement was conveniently located close to the intersection of an ancient route that was clearly in use in the Achaemenid communication network. There are two gaps in its occupation history, one between the end of the Middle Bronze Age and the early fifth century BCE, and the second toward the end of the fourth century BCE and the early Hellenistic period, indicating an evident resettlement during the Achaemenid period, most probably for its convenient location for the collection and distribution of revenues. Overall, the architecture and the bullae suggest the presence of a regional warehouse, located on a key point in the road system that connected northwestern Asia Minor to the inland and coastal areas.