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Gürün Inscriptions

The Hieroglyphic Luwian inscriptions are carved on the face of the great granite cliffs at the mouth of a gorge in the Şuğul valley to the west of the town of Gürün (ancient Tegarama), in Sivas province. It was first reported by Sir Charles Wilson in 1879. There are two separate inscriptions. The upper, larger inscription has six lines and the lower inscription has four lines. They are the duplicates of the same text. Although both are worn out quite a bit, the larger inscription is the better preserved of the two. It is a record of a settlement by Runtiya, King of Malatya (Malizi), who traces himself to a grandfather, Kuzi-Teššub, known as the "Hero of Karkamış". It is very similar to the Kötükale inscription. The dating based on Kuzi-Teššub places the monument to the 12th century BCE.

Click on the pictures for larger images.

Upper Inscription
B. Bilgin, 2011 B. Bilgin, 2011 B. Bilgin, 2011 B. Bilgin, 2011 B. Bilgin, 2011 Upper inscription - J. D. Hawkins, 2000 Upper inscription - J. D. Hawkins, 2000
Lower Inscription
B. Bilgin, 2011 B. Bilgin, 2011 Lower inscription - J. D. Hawkins, 2000 (photo: M. D. Roaf) Lower inscription - J. D. Hawkins, 2000


Literature:
Ehringhaus, H. Das Ende, das ein Anfang war: Felsreliefs und Felsinschriften der luwischen Staaten Kleinasiens vom 12. bis 8./7. Jahrh. v. Chr., Mainz, 2014: 82–87.
Hawkins, J. D. Corpus of Hieroglyphic Luwian Inscriptions, Vol 1, Berlin, 2000: 295–99 and plts. 135–38.

Image sources:
Bora Bilgin, 2011.
J. David Hawkins, 2000.