21 June 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

Evidence of the Birth of Archaic Monotheism in Anatolia found at Oluz Höyük, “Havangah prayer at Oluz Höyük”

Oluz Höyük, located 25 kilometres west of Amasya, is an ancient city which has rich findings of religious structuring.

During the excavations that have been going on for 15 years, 10 settlement layers were encountered, each of them had a religious structure.

Prof. Dr. Dönmez In the article he wrote in Arkeotarih magazine, “In this belief system, whose basic practice is the Cult of Fire, there are fire houses (Ateşgede), places of worship, areas where sacred ashes are stored, bothros and sacrificial pits where sacred objects are buried; It shows the existence of “Archaic Monotheism” in which we catch the signs of monotheism, which has been observed to be institutionalized since 500 BC in Oluz Höyük.

Built in 450 BC, the oldest fire house (Ateşgede) of Anatolia consists of a fire pit with a diameter of 1.60 meters placed on the ground and a small cella surrounding it. The remains of smoke residues in the row of stones forming the sacred fire pit and the ash and carbon in and around the pit prove that the burned fire here is defined as “eternal fire”, he said.

Aerial view of Oluz Höyük. Photo: Courtesy of Prof. Dr. Şevket Dönmez

Dönmez stated that the findings of the Oluz Höyük excavations allowed us to understand that the temple and the place of worship were different structures.

Signs that the Havangah Prayer has been performed

Dönmez gave these information about temples and places of worship.

Fire house (Ateşgede) is a small building where the sacred fire is burned, and it is thought that it was not top covered so that the burning fire could be seen outside. Also, it was important that the top was uncovered so that the voice of the Magus (Mog), who prayed for hours every day next to the sacred fire, could be heard.

Oluz Höyük fire pit
Oluz Höyük Fire Pit. Photo: Courtesy of Prof. Dr. Şevket Dönmez

Except for the south of the place of worship, it is understood that it was covered with a large roof supported by 6 columns. Although the excavation has not been completed yet, a total of 6 stone column bases, 3 of which are spaced in two rows in the north-south direction, were unearthed for the place of worship, whose current size is over 100 m2.

Stone bases are made of sandstone and have an average of 50 cm.

Members of the Zoroastrian religion pray five times a day, as in Islam. These times are called Havangah from sunrise to midday, Rabitvengah from midday to 3:00 PM, Uzeyrengah from 3:00 PM to sunset, Eyuhseritengah from sunset to midnight, and Ushehingah from midnight to sunrise.

The fact that the sacred fire and the sunrise could be watched from the place of worship at Oluz Höyük most likely indicate that the Havangah prayer was performed and, more importantly, the presence of prayer in the early Zoroastrian religion in the 5th century BC.

Cover Photo: ©Prof. Dr. Şevket Dönmez

Related Articles

A new study reveals the Achaemenid Kingdom paid its workers silver

21 September 2021

21 September 2021

A new study on inscribed clay tablets that were used in the treasury archives of the Achaemenid Empire revealed that...

A First in Türkiye: ‘Pilgrim Dimitrakis’ Inscribed Skull Found in Sinop

1 August 2024

1 August 2024

A male skull with the Greek inscription “Pilgrim Dimitrakis” was found during archaeological excavations at Balatlar Church in Sinop, on...

Venice of the Pacific: The mysterious Micronesian ruins of Nan Madol

12 July 2022

12 July 2022

Sometimes art and architecture challenge our perceptions of what was formerly thought to be feasible and what our forefathers were...

1,600-year-old Roman-era wine shop unearthed in Greece

29 January 2024

29 January 2024

A team led by Scott Gallimore of Wilfrid Laurier University and Martin Wells of Austin College discovered a 1,600-year-old Roman-era...

3,200-Year-Old Temple Mural of Spider God in Peru

25 March 2021

25 March 2021

Archaeologists in northern Peru have discovered a 3200-year-old mural. The mural was painted on the side of an ancient adobe...

Sensational Discovery in Kazakhstan: Rare Turko-Sughd Early Medieval Coin Discovered in Almaty Region

24 June 2024

24 June 2024

A sensational discovery was made in the Kogaly Valley, two hours from Almaty, Kazakhstan. For the first time in Kazakhstan,...

Unique Rock Tomb Discovered in Southeastern Türkiye’s Şanlıurfa

3 March 2025

3 March 2025

Hasan Şıldak, the governor of the city of Şanlıurfa in south-eastern Türkiye, announced on his social media account that a...

‘World’s oldest dated rune stone’ found in Norway

18 January 2023

18 January 2023

The oldest known Rune stone in Norway has been discovered by Norwegian archaeologists working at the Museum of Cultural History...

Four 1,900-year-old Roman swords found in Judean Desert

6 September 2023

6 September 2023

The Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) announced the discovery of four extremely well-preserved Roman swords hidden in a cave in the...

Archaeologists unearth 600,000-year-old evidence of Britain’s early inhabitants

22 June 2022

22 June 2022

New finds have indicated that some of Britain’s earliest people lived in the Canterbury suburbs. According to the research, led...

8,200-year-old lacquerware found in China

9 July 2021

9 July 2021

Archaeologists in eastern China’s Zhejiang Province have identified two items of lacquerware at the Jingtoushan ruins, the oldest ever found...

Bom Jesus: The Oldest and Most Valuable Shipwreck Found in the Namibian Desert

20 March 2025

20 March 2025

In a remarkable archaeological discovery, the Bom Jesus (The Good Jesus), a Portuguese ship that sank over 500 years ago,...

In southern Turkey, an ancient quake-damaged structure was discovered

9 November 2021

9 November 2021

In the ancient city of Perre in southeastern Turkey, a building damaged in an earthquake believed to have happened in...

Unique ancient Egyptian amulet seal discovered during archeological excavations in northern Turkey

11 November 2022

11 November 2022

During archaeological excavations in the ancient city of Amastris in the Amasra district of northern Turkey’s Bartın, an enchanted amulet...

Human Activity on Curaçao Began Centuries Earlier Than Previously Believed

28 March 2024

28 March 2024

New research co-led by Simon Fraser University and the National Archaeological Anthropological Memory Management (NAAM Foundation) in Curaçao extends the...