Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
Olba, cilt.27, ss.331-344, 2019 (SCI-Expanded)
© 2019 Mersin University. All rights reserved.The rod-formed glass pendant discovered in 2017 during the excavations of the acropolis of Olba in Rough Cilicia (Mersin Silifke Örenköy, Turkey) is a member of a well-defined group of artifacts in glass studies. These pendants are usually considered typical products of Phoenicia - Carthage having a large distribution in the ancient world. They were found in many findspots in the Eastern Mediterranean, such as Phoenicia, Cyprus, North Africa, Rhodes, Greece, Southern Italy, Sicily, Spain, France, Switzerland and the Adriatic coast as well as the Black Sea. Finds from Ephesus - Artemision, Caunus - Sanctuary of Demeter, Halicarnassus - Maussolleion, Gaziantep Diilük Baba Tepesi - Sanctuary of Iuppiter Dolichenus, Adana Ceyhan Sirkeli Höyük, Mersin Tarsus Gözlükule, Amasya Oluz Höyük as well as the recent find from the acropolis of Olba reveal that the rod-formed pendants were considerably frequent in Anatolia. The production of rod-formed glass pendants starts as early as the seventh century BC. and the latest examples belong to the third century BC or even later to the first century BC. The rod-formed (shaped on a metal rod) glass pendant from Olba has a height of 2.2 cm and a maximum width of 1.5 cm. The head and tooled or moulded features of the face (except for the eyes) were made of brick-coloured glass while very dark blue-black glass was used for the applied eyes. Two colours of glass (dark blue and yellow) were used for the head-band (turban). As the female head-shaped pendant from Olba acropolis came from the earth-fill, it is not possible to suggest a date according to its context but it can be evaluated due to its stylistic and technical features. Similar examples recorded in dated contexts at various ancient sites all around the Mediterranean suggest that the head-pendant from Olba should be dated to the third century BC. The pendant is also important as it provides data for the settlement history and relations of Olba in the Hellenistic Period as a site embracing the common culture of the time.