The Gaze of the Meliks. Tracing connections and patterns in a petroglyph scene in the Eastern Taurus

Abstract

In the Eastern Taurus Mountains of South-Eastern Turkey are found several petroglyph f ields. One of them is in the plain of Tirsin almost 3000 meters above sea-level. Expeditions led by Muvaffak Uyanik in the late sixties disclosed the petroglyphs and they were published a few years later. Since then, no extensive research has been done in the area. The petroglyphs are organised in scenes, and exhibits a variety of animals and anthropomorphic f igures. None of them has been successfully dated. One of the petroglyph scenes is analysed by using the approach of agential realism. This approach focuses on the totality of the petroglyph scene and makes productive use of minute details, that might otherwise be deemed insignificant. The analysis reveals a composition of three extraordinary animals gazing at what seems to be a human. Underneath, two ordinary goats are mirroring each other; one ascends and one descends, the latter appears to have killed the human. It is suggested that the scene is about powerful kings or gods confronting a human, who is transgressing the boundaries of a sacred territory. A number of sub-variants of the hypothesis are formulated and offered in order to be used for further research.