Some Remarks on Marble Idols of an Unusual Type

Some Remarks on Marble Idols of an Unusual Type

Two idols of white marble displayed at the Afyon Archaeological Museum attrack attention of not only archeaologists, but also visitors by their heads rendered in different shapes from the known ones in Anatolia. Both of these objects are chance fin.ds: the first is from Susuz Höyük (Pl. I. Fig. ı ), which is situated 16 kms. north of Afyon, and the second was found at Kusura (Pl. I. Fig. 2) long after the closure of the scientific excavations and was bought by the museum. Although these idols do not show any differences either in their sizes or manufactures from the Early Bronze Age examples, they display a tapering projection on on.e sides of heir heads that gives them a distinct apparance. The meaning of these projections is unknown and is difficult to determine. They may be taken as a highly stylized hairdress or a head gear, or they are meant to represent a religious symbol.