Cappadocia In The Historic Periods

Cappadocia In The Historic Periods 

Pro Hittite and Assyrian Trade Colonies ( 3000BC-1750BC)

Mining reached its peak in Anatolia during the Early Bronze Age. Major developments were observed in Northern Anatolia towards the end of this period. Between 2000BC and 1750BC, Assyrian Merchants from northern Mesopotamia introduced commercialism, establishing trade colonies in Anatolia. The center of these colonies was at Kanesh Kharum near Kultepe in Kayseri province. Another important commercial market site referred to in documents is the Kharum Hattush at Bogazkoy. Anatolia was rich in gold, silver, and  copper, but lacked tin, which was essential for the manufacturing of bronze as an alloy. For this reason, tin was the major materials obtained by trading as well as textile goods and perfumes. The merchants had no political dominance , but were protected by regional rulers. It was through these Assyrian merchants that writing was introduced in Anatolia.
From the ‘Cappadocia tablets’, cuneiform clay tablets on which ancient Assyrian was written , it was learned that merchants paid a 10 percent road tax to the ruler, received a 30 percent interest from their debtors and paid a 5 percent tax to the Anatolian kings for goods they sold. The same tablets tell us that these merchants sometimes married Anatolian women  and the marriage agreements contained clauses to protect the wife’s rights. Assyrian merchants also introduced cylinder seals, metallurgy , their religious beliefs, gods , and temples to Anatolia. Native Anatolian art flourished under the influence of Assyrian Mesopotamian artists, eventually developing its own idenity,and later forming the fundamentals of Hittite art.