60. HITTITE HORSE AND RIDER
Northern Syria, 9th century BC
Terracotta animal figures were found at Carchemish in large numbers, and the evidence
showed that they had been popular with the inhabitants over a very long period. One
late-Hittite house excavated in 1911 contained nine model horses.
The archaeologists concluded that these animals were much too numerous to be religious
objects. They may have been used as toys or simply for decoration. Examples were found at
other nearby sites, and Lawrence sent several to the Ashmolean. He kept this one in his
rooms at All Souls after the War, and later gave it to Lionel Curtis.
The Warden and Fellows of All Souls College, Oxford.
Previous
