A Christian amulet from the 4th or 5th century A.D. has been discovered at the Turkmen Karahoyuk archaeological site in Konya, central Turkey. The small copper cylinder contained a sheet of gold just 0.1 millimeter thick rolled up. It has not been opened yet, but archaeologists believe a passage from the Bible was engraved on the gold.
Known as philacteria, amulets of this type were worn as a protective talismans in Late Antiquity. They are rare, especially in gold, and the closest comparable example was found in Germany. The size of the copper container indicates this one was probably worn by a child.
Karahoyuk was a settlement on a mound that today is 115 feet high. When it was founded, it was on the shore of a lake. It was first identified in a surface survey in 2017, and subsequent surveys examined the mound and surrounding area, finding ceramics and hieroglyphic Luwian language inscriptions that revealed its occupation dated back to the Bronze Age and continued to Late Antiquity.
Türkmen Karahöyük has actually been one of the most noteworthy sites in Anatolian archaeology for several years. The mound gained international attention in 2019 when the same research team discovered a stele inscribed in Luwian hieroglyphs. This stele, dedicated to King Hartapu, suggested that the mound may have been the capital of a great kingdom during the Iron Age, indicating that the region was the center of an unknown political power.
Excavations began in 2024 and having continued yearly. We are now in the third season of field excavations, and in addition to the amulet, archaeologists also found a stone seal with an inscription in Luwian hieroglyphics, two copper seals, and a clay seal impression. The stone seal dates back 3,500 years and the inscription includes a personal name and title of an official.
The stone seal bears the name “Kurunti-ziti.” According to [excavation co-director Assoc. Prof. Dr.] Massa, this name is linked to the god Kurunta, who held an important place in the Hittite world. Kurunta (Runtiya) was a protective deity associated with deer in Luwian and Hittite beliefs; his name frequently appears in both personal names and within royal circles. The clay seal impression, however, bears a different name. Massa states that these were seals used by administrative personnel in the region to seal documents, thus reflecting traces of an organized state bureaucracy at the mound.
King Hartapu ruled in the early 8th century B.C. The discovery of the seal reveals that the Karahoyuk settlement was already a regionally important administrative center far earlier than that, around 1500/1400 B.C.
Facts Only
* A Christian amulet from the 4th or 5th century A.D. was found at the Turkmen Karahoyuk site in Konya, Turkey.
* The amulet consists of a copper cylinder containing a rolled sheet of gold, 0.1 millimeter thick.
* Archaeologists believe a passage from the Bible was engraved on the gold.
* Amulets of this type were known as philacteria and served as protective talismans in Late Antiquity.
* The Karahoyuk mound was identified via surface survey in 2017, revealing Bronze Age occupation through ceramics and Luwian inscriptions.
* In 2019, a stele inscribed in Luwian hieroglyphs dedicated to King Hartapu was discovered at the site.
* Excavations began in 2024, uncovering a stone seal dated 3,500 years ago bearing the name “Kurunti-ziti.”
* The name "Kurunti-ziti" is linked to the Hittite deity Kurunta, associated with Luwian and Hittite beliefs.
* Clay seal impressions suggest administrative personnel used seals in the region.
* King Hartapu ruled in the early 8th century B.C.
* The settlement was likely an administrative center around 1500/1400 B.C.
Executive Summary
A Christian amulet, believed to be from the 4th or 5th century A.D., was discovered at the Turkmen Karahoyuk archaeological site in central Turkey. The object is a small copper cylinder containing a sheet of gold, approximately 0.1 millimeter thick, rolled up; archaeologists speculate that a Bible passage was engraved on the gold. Such amulets, known as philacteria, functioned as protective talismans in Late Antiquity and are rare, especially in gold.
The Karahoyuk mound is a settlement identified through surface surveys in 2017, which subsequently revealed ceramics and Luwian hieroglyphic inscriptions dating occupation from the Bronze Age to Late Antiquity. In 2019, a research team found a stele inscribed in Luwian hieroglyphs dedicated to King Hartapu, suggesting the mound may have been an Iron Age capital. Excavations began in 2024 and are ongoing, yielding additional artifacts including a stone seal dated to 3,500 years ago with an inscription referencing the name “Kurunti-ziti,” linked to the Hittite deity Kurunta, and clay seal impressions reflecting administrative use. The evidence suggests the settlement was an organized administrative center much earlier than previously known, potentially around 1500/1400 B.C., predating King Hartapu’s reign in the early 8th century B.C.
Full Take
The narrative moves from a specific, highly symbolic artifact—the amulet—to a broader archaeological context that reveals complex political and administrative structures in Anatolia. The juxtaposition of the Late Antiquity religious object with seals dating back 3,500 years introduces temporal layering, forcing an evaluation of how different cultural layers coexist within the same landscape. The connection between the name "Kurunti-ziti" and the Hittite deity Kurunta suggests a persistence of shared religious or political iconography across millennia, challenging narratives of singular cultural evolution by pointing toward enduring regional belief systems.
The trajectory from a nomadic Bronze Age administrative presence (indicated by the seals) to an Iron Age kingdom (Hartapu) and finally to Late Antiquity spiritual practices is not merely a timeline of discovery; it is an argument for continuity in power structures, even as surface evidence shifts focus. The significance lies in recognizing that official bureaucracy, evidenced by the clay seals, existed long before or alongside the emergence of recognized kingship, suggesting that political organization was localized and perhaps evolving incrementally rather than appearing suddenly. The persistence of Luwian inscriptions across such vast timeframes underscores the deep, layered cultural memory embedded in the physical geography, raising questions about which forms of authority—religious, royal, or administrative—held sway over this region throughout these epochs.
Bridge Questions: How does the presence of Hittite religious figures within a Luwian context inform our understanding of the political integration or divergence between Anatolian groups during the Iron and Late Bronze Ages? What mechanisms link the ephemeral symbolism of amulets to the concrete evidence of state bureaucracy, and what can be learned about the longevity of cultural memory in archaeological sites? What alternatives exist for interpreting stratified layers of authority when direct textual correlation is absent?