Who were the Hittites? The history of the Hittite Empire explained in 10 minutes

In the annals of ancient history, the Hittites emerge as one of the most influential and enigmatic civilizations. Operating from the heartland of Anatolia (modern-day Turkey), the Hittite Empire not only wielded considerable power but also left an indelible mark on the cultural, political, and military dynamics of the ancient Near East. This article delves deep into the world of the Hittites, shedding light on their origins, their zenith, and their eventual decline.

Origins of the Hittites

Early Beginnings: The origins of the Hittites can be traced back to the early 2nd millennium BCE, with their initial settlements in central Anatolia. Over time, they absorbed and integrated various indigenous cultures and groups, resulting in a unique blend of traditions.

Old Hittite Kingdom: Around 1650 BCE, under the leadership of King Hattusili I, the Hittites began expanding, marking the beginning of what historians often term the 'Old Hittite Kingdom'.

Hittite Highs

Great Kingdom: By the 14th century BCE, under the rule of Suppilulium I, the Hittite Empire reached its zenith, with territories stretching from western Anatolia to northern Syria.

Battles and Diplomacy: The Hittites were renowned warriors, often clashing with neighboring empires like the Egyptians. One of the most famous events is the Battle of Kadesh (circa 1274 BCE) against Pharaoh Ramses II. After the battle, both empires, realizing the futility of prolonged conflict, signed one of the earliest known peace treaties in history.

Religion and Culture: The Hittite pantheon was vast, comprising many deities. Storm gods were particularly revered. Alongside, they adopted and integrated gods from other cultures, showcasing their syncretic religious practices. Their written records, inscribed on clay tablets using cuneiform script, provide valuable insights into their society, laws, and diplomacy.

Decline and Aftermath

Mysterious End: By the late 13th century BCE, the mighty Hittite Empire began to wane. Reasons for their decline are still a matter of debate, with theories ranging from internal strife, economic factors, and invasions by the enigmatic 'Sea Peoples'.

Neo-Hittites: Following the collapse of the Hittite Empire, smaller Neo-Hittite or Syro-Hittite city-states emerged in parts of Anatolia and northern Syria. These states carried forward the legacy of the Hittite culture until they were eventually absorbed by the rising Neo-Assyrian Empire by the end of the 8th century BCE.

Legacy of the Hittites

Linguistic Contribution: The Hittite language, part of the Indo-European language family, has provided scholars with crucial insights into the early evolution of this linguistic group.

Archaeological Treasures: The Hittite capital, Hattusa (near modern-day Boğazkale, Turkey), is a UNESCO World Heritage site. Its ruins, including grand temples, fortifications, and libraries, offer a tangible connection to this ancient civilization.

The Hittites, often overshadowed by their contemporaneous civilizations like the Egyptians or the Mesopotamians, played a pivotal role in the geopolitical dynamics of the ancient Near East. Their history, encapsulating grand conquests, sophisticated diplomacy, rich culture, and abrupt decline, stands as a testament to the intricate tapestry of ancient civilizations and the transient nature of empires. As modern archaeology continues to unearth their secrets, the legacy of the Hittites is set to shine brighter in the annals of history.

The Age of Reptiles in Three Acts

Reptiles emerged from the Paleozoic as humble creatures, but in time, they grew to become some of the largest forms of life ever to stomp, swim, and soar across the planet. This Age of Reptiles was a spectacular prehistoric epic, and it all took place in a single era: the Mesozoic.

What Was The Indus Valley/Harappan Civilisation?

In British India in the 1920's odd stone seals kept popping up at ruins near Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro along the Indus river valley. They baffled everyone, with their inscriptions in a never before seen written language. Archaeologists, intrigued by this, started excavating these previously ignored sites.

They soon uncovered a 4,500-year-old civilisation. A civilisation completely absent in the historical record. One of the earliest urban civilizations in human history. It flourished alongside Ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia, and China around 3300-1900BC but was bigger than all of them. A civilisation that built wonders not to gods or kings but to sanitation. A civilisation without war. Made up of massive planned cities built in brick. Masters of bronze and sculpture. They created their own writing system, traded across the vast sea, and possibly invented the world’s first indoor toilets and then vanished for reasons still not understood.

So what was this civilisation in the Indus Valley, what did they achieve, and what does it have to do with rubber duckies? Well let’s find out.

Apocalypto and the Warning Signs of Societal Collapse (Film Analysis)

Apocalypto is one of the most unique actions films ever made. In its simplest form, Apocalypto is just another "hero's journey," but Mel Gibson also explores a variety of ideas that make it much more. Apocalypto is about civilization and why it collapses. It shows the audience warning signs to look out for in their own nations, and in this video, we point out what those warning signs are.

Top 20 Most Unexplored Places on Earth

Feeling claustrophobic? Why not move to one of these remote locations! For this list, we’ll be looking at remote locations around Earth that have seen very few or no human visitors. Our countdown includes Cape Melville, Northeast Greenland National Park, Surtsey Island, Amazon Rainforest, Devon Island, and more!

Muslim Schism: How Islam Split into the Sunni and Shia Branches

In today’s video we will discuss the events that led to the schism within the Muslim community, as Islam split into two branches - Sunni and Shia Islam. This happened in the latter stages of the Early Muslim Expansion, as the Rashidun caliphs - Umar, Uthman and Ali were assassinated, which led to the war of succession, killing of Ali's son Husayn in Karbala, and the creation of the Umayyad dynasty under Muawiyah I.

The Real Reason Why the Sphinx of Giza was Built!

Located on the Giza plateau, on the western bank of Egypt’s Nile River, the Great Sphinx stands guard. Carved out of a large block of limestone, the impressive monumental sculpture is often regarded as one of the largest and oldest monuments in the world and is perhaps as impressive as the pyramids of Egypt. Despite being older than old, and although experts have studied and surveyed it for more than 200 years, we have still not solved the riddle of the Sphinx. The monolithic monument refuses to give up its secrets. We’ve still not been able to firmly conclude when the statue was carved, who it was commissioned by, and its original purpose.

Historian Reacts to Evidence for Ancient High Technology in Egypt

Many ancient cultures are known for their fabulous megalithic structures and impressive artifacts. Some have wondered whether some of these magnificent structures were made by a lost civilization from the far distant past, one with technology more advanced than perhaps even our own.

How was England conquered? Battles of William the Conqueror

William's story is truly a remarkable one. He endured a childhood in which others battled to seize his title and lands and had fought wars against his neighbours in France. But William the Conqueror is best known for his invasion of England in 1066. In the years that followed he conquered England, made agreements in Wales and turned the Scottish King into a vassal.

400-year-old shark is still going strong

Greenland sharks are now the longest-living vertebrates known on Earth, scientists say.

Researchers used radiocarbon dating to determine the ages of 28 of the animals, and estimated that one female was about 400 years old.

The team found that the sharks grow at just 1cm a year, and reach sexual maturity at about the age of 150.

The research is published in the journal Science.

Lead author Julius Nielsen, a marine biologist from the University of Copenhagen, said: "We had our expectations that we were dealing with an unusual animal, but I think everyone doing this research was very surprised to learn the sharks were as old as they were."

The former vertebrate record-holder was a bowhead whale estimated to be 211 years old.

But if invertebrates are brought into the longevity competition, a 507-year-old clam called Ming holds the title of most aged animal.

Slow swimmers

Greenland sharks are huge beasts, that can grow up to 5m in length.

They can be found, swimming slowly, throughout the cold, deep waters of the North Atlantic.

With this leisurely pace of life and sluggish growth rate, the sharks were thought to live for a long time. But until now, determining any ages was difficult.

For some fish, scientists are able to examine ear bones called otoliths, which when sectioned, show a pattern of concentric rings that scientists can count as they would the rings in a tree.

Sharks are harder, but some species, such as the Great White, have calcified tissue that grows in layers on their back bones, that can also be used to age the animals.

"But the Greenland shark is a very, very soft shark - it has no hard body parts where growth layers are deposited. So it was believed that the age could not be investigated," Mr Nielsen told the BBC.

However the team found a clever way of working out the age.

"The Greenland shark's eye lens is composed of a specialised material - and it contains proteins that are metabolically inert," explained Mr Neilson.

"Which means after the proteins have been synthesised in the body, they are not renewed any more. So we can isolate the tissue that formed when the shark was a pup, and do radiocarbon dating."

The team looked at 28 sharks, most of which had died after being caught in fishing nets as by-catch.

Using this technique, they established that the largest shark - a 5m-long female - was extremely ancient.

Because radiocarbon dating does not produce exact dates, they believe that she could have been as "young" as 272 or as old as 512. But she was most likely somewhere in the middle, so about 400 years old.

It means she was born between the years of 1501 and 1744, but her most likely date of birth was in the 17th century.

"Even with the lowest part of this uncertainty, 272 years, even if that is the maximum age, it should still be considered the longest-living vertebrate," said Mr Nielsen.

Conversely, if her age is at the upper end of the scale, she will have out-lived Ming the clam - although her age has a greater probability of lying in the middle.

Conservation lessons

The team believes the animals only reach sexual maturity when they are 4m-long. And with this new, very lengthy age-range, it suggests this does not occur until the animals are about 150 years old.

The researchers say this has consequences for future conservation of the animals.

Because of their extreme longevity, Greenland sharks may still be recovering from being over-fished before WW2.

The sharks' livers were once used for machine oil, and they were killed in great numbers before a synthetic alternative was found and the demand fell.

"When you evaluate the size distribution all over the North Atlantic, it is quite rare that you see sexually mature females, and quite rare that you find newborn pups or juveniles," Mr Nielsen explained.

"It seems most are sub-adults. That makes sense: if you have had this very high fishing pressure, all the old animals - they are not there any more. And there are not that many to give birth to new ones.

"There is, though, still a very large amount of 'teenagers', but it will take another 100 years for them to become sexually active."

Another author of the study, Prof Christopher Ramsey, director of Oxford Radiocarbon Accelerator Unit at the University of Oxford, said that radiocarbon dating could be used to determine the ages of other animals, but was not likely to be chosen as the primary method.

"For many animals we have other methods to determine age," he said.

"Also, the radiocarbon method is not very precise, and so is only really relevant for very long-lived species."

He added that the statistical method used to determine the sharks' ages was Bayesian statistics.

"Bayesian statistics were first worked out by the Rev Bayes in the 18th Century. This means he will have been working on this when some of these oldest sharks were young."

Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environme...

Decoding the Cat: Mythology, Legend and Folklore

Cats have captured the imaginations of people for thousands of years, and have established themselves as a very important animal in human culture. But why are they not as well known in mythology as they are in folklore? In this video, we will delve into the rise of the cat in mythology and explore some of the myths and tales surrounding these mysterious creatures. From Viking Scandinavia to ancient Egypt, and into modern day Japan, cats have a rich history in folklore. But to understand the full story, we must first understand how cats became domesticated, especially considering that humans have spent a majority of the last 100,000 years avoiding them as natural predators. Join us as we uncover the fascinating history of cats, from their domestication around 15,000 years ago, to their current role in human culture.

Units of History - The Praetorian Guard (Documentary)

In this history documentary we explore the legendary Praetorian Guard of the Roman Army. We begin with their origins which had its start in a tradition of bodyguard troops dating back to the Roman monarchy.

In these early years, chieftains would have their elite retinue by their side both in peace and in war. During the early Republic, it became practice for allied latin units to be selected as a part of the Extraordinarii which were to camp besides a Roman general in camp and be at his direct disposal. In later years, powerful Roman generals would begin forming their own bodyguard troops such as Caesar's Germanic cavalry which accompanied him throughout the Gallic Wars. At the end of the Republic, so called Cohors Praetoriae would be used by both Augustus and Mark Antony in their civil war.

In the aftermath Augustus would merge these units and institutionalize them as an important part of his new regime. From then on, the Praetorian Guard would play a key part in the history of the Roman Empire, especially when they became involved with politics in Rome and in the transitions of power therein.

A Mysterious Grove of 400 Oddly Bent Pine Trees in Poland

This stand of bent pine trees known as the Crooked Forest is easily one of the strangest places in Central Europe. Located outside of Nowe Czarnowo, West Pomerania, Poland, the nearly 400 trees are widely agreed to have been shaped by human hands sometime in the 1930s, but for what purposes is still up for debate.

Each tree is bent near the base at 90 degrees, a form that could possibly be helpful in boat or furniture making. Strangely enough, every tree is bent in exactly the same direction: due North. A quick search online reveals a host of conspiracy theories ranging from witchcraft to energy fields.

Whatever the reason, we’re glad photographer Kilian Schönberger (previously) stopped by to capture these photos. You can see more from the series on Behance.

Source: https://www.thisiscolossal.com/2015/11/cro...

People Can’t Get Enough Of The Armadillo Lizard As It Looks Like A Tiny Dragon

If you are a big fan of reptiles, especially lizards, we are sure that you have heard about armadillo lizards. This is a unique heavily-armored reptile native to South Africa. With its thorny exterior and unique defenses, the armadillo lizard might be both adorable and terrifying at the same time. Because of their sharp armors along their bodies, they look like a medieval fairytale dragon.

Armadillo lizards have a variety of coloring, which varies from light to dark brown with a yellow underbelly with a black pattern. Their backside is completely covered in spikey armor, so when they feel threatened, they curl up and bite their tails to protect the soft belly. They can stay in a curled position for up to an hour. This defense mechanism keeps them safe from predators like snakes, big birds, and mongoose. It also allows them to spend most of their time sunbathing in the warmth of the sun.

These species live on a carnivorous diet, and insects are one of their foods. They tend to live in large family groups and hide under rock crevices in South Africa’s desert to shield themselves against the harsh environment and predators.

They can live up to a little over a decade and are one of the few reptile species that do not reproduce by laying eggs. These dragon-like creatures are usually three to four inches long, but some may grow as long as eight.

The eye-catching looks of the armadillo lizard attracts a lot of poachers. They are somewhat easy to catch, so the creature faces a threat to its population. So please share this post with your friends to raise awareness of protecting animals.

Source: https://aubtu.biz/33450/?utm_source=VO93&u...

Enigmatic Ancient Wheel: The 300-Million-Year-Old Wheel and Anomalous Ancient Tracks Across the World

In 2008, an intriguing discovery was made in a coal mine in Donetsk, Ukraine. Due to the fragile nature of the sandstone surrounding it, a mysterious object resembling an ancient wheel could not be safely removed and remains in place within the mine. This account is taken from J.P. Robinson's The Myth of Man.

While drilling the J3 'Sukhodolsky' coal coking stratum at a depth of 900 meters (about 2953 feet), workers were astonished to find what seemed to be a wheel-like imprint in the sandstone ceiling of the tunnel they had just excavated.

Deputy Chief V.V. Kruzhilin captured photos of the strange imprint and shared them with mine foreman S. Kasatkin, who helped bring the discovery to public attention. Although the site could not be closely examined, the photos and the testimony of the Ukrainian miners serve as the only evidence of this enigmatic find, which included more than one imprint.

Discovering the Wheel

Without the ability to precisely date the layer of rock where the fossilized wheel imprint was found, it has been observed that the Rostov region around Donetsk sits on Carboniferous rock, estimated to be between 360 and 300 million years old. The widely distributed coking coals in the area originated from the middle to late Carboniferous period, implying the imprint could be around 300 million years old. This suggests that a wheel may have become embedded millions of years ago and eventually dissolved through a process called diagenesis, where sediments harden into sedimentary rock, much like fossil remains typically do.

The following is an excerpt from a letter by S. Kasatkin (translated from Ukrainian), providing his account as a witness to the unusual wheel imprint discovered by his mining team in 2008:

‘This finding is not a PR action. In due time (2008), we as a team of engineers and workers asked the mine director to invite scientists for detailed examination of the object, but the director, following the instructions of the then owner of the mine, prohibited such talks and instead only ordered to accelerate work on passing through this section of lava and on fast ‘charging’ of the section with mining equipment.

Owing to that, this artifact and the smaller one found during further work came to be in a tunnel blockage and could not be taken out and studied. It is good that there were people, who in spite of the director’s prohibition, photographed this artifact.

I have connections with the people who first discovered these imprints and also with those who photographed them. We have more than a dozen witnesses. As you understand, the admission in the mine is strictly limited (it is dangerous on sudden emissions) and to obtain such permit is rather difficult.

The ‘wheel’ was printed on sandstone of the roof. Guys (drifters) tried to ‘cut away’ the find with pick hammers and to take it out to the surface, but sandstone was so strong (firm) that, having been afraid to damage a print, they have left it in place. At present the mine is closed (officially since 2009) and access to the ‘object’ is impossible - the equipment is dismantled and the given layers are already flooded.’

With only the written testimony of S. Kasatkin and his fellow witnesses, the photographs serve as the sole evidence of this unusual imprint. Despite challenges in verifying the details beyond what has been presented, the anomaly warrants attention. If the photographic evidence is authentic, it raises the question of how a man-made wheel could become embedded in ancient strata—long before humans, according to conventional scientific understanding, had even evolved.

Ancient Tracks

Evidence of wheeled vehicles in antiquity has surfaced elsewhere in the world. Petrified ancient tracks have been found in France, Spain, Italy, Malta, Kazakhstan, Ukraine, and even North America. One such prehistoric site is Misrah Ghar il-Kbir—meaning "Great Cave" in Maltese—commonly referred to as Clapham Junction. Located near the Dingli Cliffs in Siggiewi, Malta, this site is renowned for its mysterious "cart ruts" carved into the limestone, which have puzzled all who visit.

Similarly, strange tracks in stone can be seen in Sicily at the Great Theater of Syracuse, a Greek amphitheater. Many archaeologists believe the Maltese tracks were likely made by Sicilian settlers around 2000 BC, during the early Bronze Age.

Additional tracks are found in Turkey, including Sofca, where they cover an area approximately 45 by 10 miles (72 by 16 km), and Cappadocia, home to several clusters of tracks. The discovery of these ruts around the world has sparked debate regarding their purpose, age, and origins. In Malta, especially due to the proximity of the tracks to megalithic structures and the fact that some are now submerged beneath the sea, many researchers suggest these fossilized lines indicate significant antiquity.

Interestingly, in light of the anomalous wheel imprint found in Ukraine, the medieval city-fortress of Chufut-Kale, located in the Crimean Mountains, also contains stone cart ruts similar to those found at the nearby site of Eski-Kermen. Despite the ruins of Chufut-Kale, these mysterious tracks remain visible, drawing attention for their resemblance to other ancient ruts across the world.

Dr. Alexander Koltypin, a geologist and the director of the Natural Science Research Center at Moscow’s International Independent University of Ecology and Politology, has devoted significant time to studying these sites. He has examined and compared them, seeking similarities and patterns that might help explain the origins and purpose of these unusual formations.

“I first saw tracks in stone - fossilized car or terrain vehicle traces (usually called cart ruts) on Neogen plantation surface (peneplene in Phrygian) plain in May 2014 (Central Anatolia Turkey). They were situated in the field of development of Middle and Late Miocene tuffs and tuffites and according to age analysis of nearby volcanic rocks, had middle Miocene age of 12-14 million years,” wrote Koltypin.

The region that Dr. Koltypin has studied is relatively obscure, with guidebooks offering little to no information about it. While mainstream researchers argue that the tracks are merely petrified remnants of old cart ruts left by wheeled vehicles pulled by donkeys or camels, Koltypin holds a different perspective. Rejecting these conventional explanations, he stated firmly, “I will never accept it. I will always remember... many other inhabitants of our planet wiped from our history.” His research suggests a deeper, perhaps forgotten, history of Earth and its past civilizations.

After measuring the width and length of the tracks at the Phrygian Valley site, Dr. Koltypin concluded that they were made by vehicles comparable in length to modern cars, but with tires around 9 inches (22.86 cm) wide. The depth of the impressions in stone, far greater than what one would expect from small carts, led him to believe that the vehicles responsible were much heavier.

Koltypin theorizes that the civilization responsible for driving these heavy vehicles likely built the numerous identical roads, ruts, and underground complexes scattered across the Mediterranean region more than 12 million years ago. He acknowledges that petrification can occur relatively quickly, but points to the heavy mineral deposits on the tracks and signs of erosion as evidence of a much older timeline. He also connects these tracks to surrounding underground cities, irrigation systems, and wells, which he believes are millions of years old.

On his website, Koltypin wrote, "We are dealing with extremely tough lithified (petrified) sediments, covered with a thick layer of weathering, that takes millions of years to develop, full of multiple cracks with newly developed minerals in them, which could only emerge in periods of high tectonic activity."

Clearly, further research is needed to determine the true age and origins of these tracks, which have been discovered at various locations around the world. While it may be easy to attribute them to old carts, Koltypin's findings suggest that the explanation may be far more complex—possibly pointing to a lost ancient civilization with advanced technology.

The presence of the fossilized wheel in Ukraine strengthens the possibility that ancient peoples may have had access to technology and knowledge far beyond what is currently accepted.

Source: https://www.ancient-origins.net/unexplaine...