A (New) Reconstruction of the Sphinx Gate at Alacahöyük

Abstract

Located in Central Anatolia within the bend of the Kızılırmak river in present-day Türkiye, Alacahöyük has a long occupation history from the Chalcolithic period to the early 20 ^th century AD, with its most prominent monument being the Sphinx Gate from the Late Bronze Age. Since its initial documentation and excavation in the mid-19 ^th century, the gate and its reliefs have been the subject of much interest. The reconstruction proposed by Mellink in the 1970s remains the most widely accepted. Integrating 3D models of the reliefs and reinterpreting several sculpted blocks found near the gate, which were not previously incorporated, this paper presents a new reconstruction of the space in front of the Sphinx Gate as an area designed for ceremonial gatherings of large cultic communities.