İmamkullu relief

The Hittite İmamkullu relief (previously also İmamkulu) is a rock relief near the town of İmamkullu in Tomarza district in Kayseri Province, Turkey. In Turkish it is known as Yazılı Kaya ("inscribed cliff") and Şimşekkaya ("lightning cliff").

The trachyte block with the relief is located on the flank of the 3045 m high Bey Dağı to the south of İmamkullu. This spot marks the start of the Gezbel pass, where two routes met and crossed the Taurus Mountains in ancient times. One of them came from the Hittite heartland through Kayseri and Tomarza, following the Zamantı Irmağı river; the other came from Cappadocia via Develi,passing the Fıraktın and Taşçı reliefs on the way. The Hanyeri relief stands at the other end of the Gezbel pass, to the southeast.

The relief is about 3.25 x 2 metres and was engraved on the northwest side of a large boulder, on a slightly convex, but conveniently flat surface. It is now very worn. It consists of three sections. The left section features a human figure, moving to the right, perhaps the creator of the monument, holding a spear in his left hand and a bow in his left (the string is only roughly indicated). On his belt there are knobs and some traces of a sword. He wears a round cap and there are traces also of a horn and pointed shoes. Luwian hieroglyphs were engraved in front of his head, which name him as a son of the king. His name is given as Kuwalanamuwa. A prince of this name is also known from the Hanyeri and Manisa reliefs. Whether they are all the same person is not certain, though certainly possible.

The central portion is the largest. In the upper part, the weather god is depicted in a chariot, driving to the right. He wears pointy shoes, a short soldier's kilt and a pointed hat with horns, which identifies him as a god. Traces of a sword can also be seen on his belt. He has a mace in his right hand and holds the reins of the galloping bulls which pull his chariot with his left hand. Above his outstretched hand there are three hieroglyphs which name him as the weather god of heaven; a fourth hieroglyph below the others is no longer legible. The god and his chariot stand on the bent necks of three mountain gods, in a manner similar to the main scene at Yazılıkaya. The wear the long robes and peaked hats which are usual for mountain gods, and are armed with swords. They themselves stand on top of three chimaeric creatures with cat's heads and raised human arms.

...
Wikipedia