1st Edition

Protecting Çatalhöyük Memoir of an Archaeological Site Guard

By Sadrettin Dural Copyright 2007
    160 Pages
    by Routledge

    160 Pages
    by Routledge

    They are essential to every major archaeological excavation but rarely acknowledged by the visiting researchers once the artifacts have been shipped. As part of the innovative, multivocal output from the famous Turkish Neolithic site of Çatalhöyük, we hear from one of the site guards, Sadrettin Dural, who tells the story of the excavation from the point of view of the “Other.” He offers tales of the strange habits of archaeologists, describes the local in-fighting that scholars never see, and explains how scientists can be protected from the Yatirs, spirits of the dead who guard the mound. Ian Hodder, director of the Çatalhöyük project, provides explanatory notes for the reader and an interview with the author, exploring indigenous interpretations of ancient sites and the archaeologists who excavate them. For the archaeologist, this offers a revolutionary new viewpoint on their work. For the cultural anthropologist, Dural’s role as site guard is only a small part of his life as a Turkish villager. The author recounts the daily lived experience of one man in a contemporary Turkish village, including changing economic strategies for supporting his family, brushes with the law, trips to the beach and the city, and Turkish phone sex.

    Chapter 1 Beginning my new job at Çatalhöyük; Chapter 2 Excavations begin'“ The team settles in; Chapter 3 My routine as a guard; Chapter 4 Loneliness and friendship among the ancient mounds of the Konya plain; Chapter 5 I build the Çatalhöyük cafe; Chapter 6 Dealing with more visitors and foreigners; Chapter 7 Some less happy memories; Chapter 8 The past and the present; Chapter 9 Dealing with each other; Chapter 10 Doing the right thing; Chapter 11 More about Çatalhöyük; Chapter 12 Some erotic moments; Chapter 13 Financial dealings; Chapter 14 More visitors to Çatalhöyük and some difficult moments; Chapter 15 They stroke the soil with love; Chapter 16 Things start to go wrong; Chapter 17 The situation worsens; Chapter 18 Reaching the end;

    Biography

    Sadrettin Dural