Recreation of a section of wall, Hattusa
The bastions of Hattusa (a section of which is recreated on site) completed a double-walled circuit of 6km/nearly 5 miles around the citadel, interspersed by multiple square guard towers. In some places the walls were over 25 feet thick. The Hittites also incorporated massive stones and boulders in their architecture, like the cyclopean building techniques found at the contemporary citadel of Mycenae in Greece.
There were at least five gates to the fortified city—each guarded by stone sentinels in the likeness of lions or sphinx-like creatures. The Assyrians, who eventually conquered Hittite territories, crafted similar protective guardians, placing them at the entrances to their own cities: lions or bulls with the heads of men called
lamassu.
In the upper part of the citadel is a human-made rampart with a tunnel passing through it. The exact purpose of this tunnel is not known for certain, although it was thought to have been used as a sally port. It is more likely that the tunnel (and others like it in the citadel) served as a ceremonial passageway.
Yazilikaya Shrine, Hattusa
Situated within walking distance from the citadel is the Yazilikaya Open Air Shrine. This sacred spot, located at the end of a processional path wending its way northeast from the Lower City, contains several reliefs carved into the rocks—images of gods and kings.
Luwian hieroglyphs, Hattusa
The Hittites used cuneiform script for writing on clay and metal tablets, but for monumental inscriptions they carved pictographs called Luwian hieroglyphs like the ones displayed on this sacred chamber in the citadel.