Mysterious Giant Statues with Gnome-like Heads Litter Nemrut Dag

The summit of Nemrut Dag (also known as Nemrut Dagi) stands at 7000 feet above sea level (that’s about 2134 metres). This mountain was once part of Anatolia but is now part of Turkey. The top of the mountain is crowned with a mysterious collection of broken statues. These huge figures, many of which once stood at more than 30 feet (9 metres) tall, have all lost their heads which litter the ground all around.

Image via Wikipedia

The sculptures were dated as around the first century BC and had been made in an area called the Commagene that was ruled by King Antiochus I, who was of mixed Greek and Persian descent.

For many hundreds of years this site remained undiscovered until it was found by a German engineer named Karl Saster, in 1881. Sester found a tumulus, or burial chamber, made of loose stones on the top of the mountain. The burial mound measured 160 feet by 500 feet high (49 metres by 152 metres).

The entrance to this burial chamber was guarded by carved lions and eagles and by broken, seated statues of Heracles (Hercules), Tyche, Zeus, Apollo and King Antiochus.

Close by, in a place called Nymphaios, archaeologists found another similar site which was built by Antiochus’ father Mithridates I.

The strange thing about the statues, apart from the fact that all their heads had been knocked of, is the gnome like features and shapes of the faces. This style indicates a mixture of Persian and Greek sculpture. The Greek facial features and Persian hairstyling and headdresses give quite a puzzling appearance to the heads.

A large slab found on the western terrace is carved with a lion, and shows the arrangement of the stars and the planets Jupiter, Mercury and Mars on July 7th 62BC which is possibly the date that construction of this huge monument began.

Stone slabs that once formed a huge frieze are carved with scenes showing the King’s ancestors burning incense on altars.

The King is also shown in the carvings as on friendly terms with the gods. He is shaking hands with Apollo, Zeus and Heracles which indicates his power to the whole world.

This is thought to be the site of the burial of King Antiochus I, but his burial chamber has not yet been found. Archaeologists still think it is there somewhere and the search goes on. The area has been carefully preserved and the broken and displaced statues have not been replaced in their original positions.