Stap 22 van 23

A horse with no name?

Fig. 1 - The so-called lion gate at Hattusa - Bernard Gagnon - [wikicommons](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lion_Gate,_Hattusa_01.jpg) — Fig. 1 - The so-called lion gate at Hattusa - Bernard Gagnon - wikicommons

Let’s finish up the tour of this drawer with an object that is not actually there.

In the place of this question mark is supposed to be a beautifully crafted clay figurine of a horse, which was once part of the Böhl collection. It forms a pair with a little figurine of a bull made from bronze, as they were both excavated in 1911 on the site of ancient Hattusa (modern Boğazkale). While the bull is still in the collection (and currently September 2023 on display at the Allard Pierson Museum in Amsterdam) the horse has mysteriously disappeared. The last trace of it is in an exhibition guide from the 1960s, when it was on loan for an exhibition on animal figurines. But it seems to have never made its way back to the NINO.

NINO employees have been searching for the figurine for years, and the bronze bull misses its counterpart. If you happen to know anything about its whereabouts, do not hesitate to call the NINO!