The K.W. and E.K. Rosenthal Lecture Series presents a seminar series with Dr. Fikri Kulakoğlu (Ankara University)
Kültepe at seventy-five: Ancient History & New Horizons
Location: Yale Peabody Museum, room 112
Few archaeological sites have produced more transformative results than Kültepe near Kayseri in modern-day Turkey. After seventy-five seasons, the current director of excavations, Prof. Fikri Kulakoğlu of Ankara University, takes stock for the 2025 Rosenthal Lecture. Over the course of three themed sessions, he introduces current projects and recent results as a preamble to an interactive discussion.
10 am-12 Noon – Text and Context at Kültepe.
How can the history of Kültepe as a site be written through a dialogue between archaeology and written sources? What is the established history of the site and how have recent publications and discoveries in text and archaeology pushed the narrative? What are future problems to address and how can one approach them though the synthesis of archaeology and text?
1 pm-3 pm – Archaeological Science at Kültepe. What has the revolution in archaeological science meant for the understanding of Kültepe as a site though history? How have recent results in aDNA, strontium and tin isotopes, paleobotany, and faunal studies challenged or substantiated established histories? How have they opened up entirely new types of questions?
3:30 pm-5:00 pm – The EBA to MBA transition at Kültepe. What results have recent excavations brought to the debate on chronology and the third/second millennium BC transition at Kültepe? Is there a gap or a disruption visible on the mound? Can it be related to climate change and institutional development? Are there changes visible in pottery type and distribution, architecture, and stratigraphy on the mound?