Phrygian Potteries of the Midas Fortress in the Light of New Researches
Özet
The Yazilikaya/Midas Fortress is located in the Yazilikaya/Midas Valley, just west of the village of Yazihkaya, within the borders of the Han District of the Eskisehir Province. the fortress sits on the top of a flat, rocky, tufa plateau and was continuously inhabited from the Phrygian Period to the Late Byzantine Period. the configuration of this settlement is seen in its basic structures as mortises carved into the bedrock, cisterns, water reservoirs, and tunnels dated to the Phrygian Period, as well as cultic monuments consisting of many facades, altars, and niches dedicated to the Mother Goddess Matar. in addition to Phrygian Period artifacts, Hellenistic, Roman, and Byzantine Period rock-cut tombs are also found in the settlement area and its surroundings. Located in the southeast of the valley, the Midas Fortress was studied and recorded in detail during surveys carried out in the Yazilikaya/Midas Valley between the years of 2017 and 2018. Potteries dated to the Phrygian, Hellenistic, Roman, and Byzantine Periods were also found on the surface of the Midas Fortress during these researches. the most common group of ceramics are the monochrome ceramics dating to the Phrygian Period. All hand-thrown on a pottery wheel, the clay and slip of these ceramics are shades of gray and butt the ceramic pieces are craters, dinoi, pithos, amphora, pots, bowls, jug, and mugs. the clay characteristics of these ceramics show that they have local properties. Ceramics found in the area and archaeometric studies of the clay collected from nearby streams support this possibility. During the surveys, 345 pieces of pottery dating to the Phrygian Period were found. in this study, 39 ceramics belonging to different forms arc evaluated and by studying the repertoire of the vessels found at the fortress a chronology of Phrygan ceramics is introduced.
