1927
Series / Volume
Oriental Institute Communications 2
Special Exhibition
Hartapu: The Forgotten King of Anatolia
September 17, 2026–March 14, 2027
Seven years ago, Hartapu was little more than a name. Then, in 2019, an inscribed stone pulled from an irrigation canal in central Türkiye introduced the world to a king who claimed to have conquered Phrygia—one of the most powerful kingdoms of the ancient world. Suddenly, a ruler and a kingdom largely unknown to history demanded a place on the map of Iron Age Anatolia. The stone was found at Türkmen-Karahöyük, a massive tell rising 35 meters above the Konya Plain, that must have been Hartapu’s capital. Though the site had gone largely unnoticed by archaeologists, it is one of the largest Iron Age sites in Anatolia—and excavations launched in 2024 by ISAC and Bilkent University (Ankara, Türkiye) are only beginning to reveal the city’s historical development.
Hartapu ruled in the eighth century BCE, during a period of intense rivalry between great powers—Phrygia to the west, the Neo-Assyrian Empire to the east—and his kingdom sat squarely between them. The exhibition tells his story through ancient inscriptions, archaeological finds, and new technologies, including 3D printing and advanced imaging, that are transforming how scholars study the past. Contemporary works by artist SaraNoa Mark offer a counterpoint, reflecting on landscape, memory, and the labor and care of preserving the past.
Exhibition Materials
Children’s Booklet
Hartapu: The Forgotten King of Anatolia
Coming soon
SaraNoa Mark
Three new works by contemporary artist SaraNoa Mark are on exhibition in connection with Hartapu: The Forgotten King of Anatolia. Displayed in the Syro-Anatolian and Special Exhibit Galleries and curated by Kiersten Neumann, these works reflect on landscape, memory, and the labor and care of preserving the past. Mark developed the works in conversation with archaeologist Akiva Sanders.
The exhibition has been curated by James Osborne and organized by the ISAC Museum: Susan Allison, Rob Bain, Denise Browning, Laura D’Alessandro, Kea Johnston, Marc Maillot, Helen McDonald, Kiersten Neumann, Josh Tulisiak, Alison Whyte, and Elisheva Yardeni, with contributions from Çağlayan Bal.
With sincere thanks to artist SaraNoa Mark for the generous loan of their work, and to Stratasys and the University of Chicago Materials Research Science and Engineering Center (supported by the National Science Foundation under award number DMR-2011854) for producing the 3D print of the Hartapu inscription. We also thank the General Directorate of Cultural Heritage and Museums, Ministry of Culture and Tourism, Türkiye, for permission to print the Hartapu inscription and to conduct the Türkmen-Karahöyük Archaeological Project (TKAP).
TKAP co-directors Michele Rüzgar Massa and James Osborne, and TKAP Assistant Director Hüseyin Erpehlivan, thank the entire TKAP team and the local communities of Türkmenkarahüyük and Çumra who make the project possible. TKAP eş başkanları Michele Rüzgar Massa ve James Osborne ile TKAP başkan yardımcısı Hüseyin Erpehlivan, projeyi mümkün kılan tüm TKAP ekibine ve Türkmenkarahüyük ile Çumra halkına teşekkür eder.
We gratefully acknowledge the support of ISAC members and ISAC Museum visitors, whose contributions made this exhibition possible.
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Series / Volume
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Series / Volume
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