Arslantepe Gate Lion The gate lion is from the left side of the inner gate of the Lion Gate at Arslantepe. It is cut from a white limestone orthostat slab. The lion was first noticed in situ by the Curnell University Expedition in 1907 when the broken head of the lion was sent to Istanbul. During the French excavations in 1932, the lion was sent to Ankara and restored with the head. On the upper right corner of the slab, above the lion is a 6-sign, incised Hieroglyphic Luwian inscription which gives the name of King Halpasulupi, whose name is also attested on another orthostat in Arslantepe. Entire block is 1.24 m in height and 1.80 m in length. Dates to the 12th-11th centuries BCE. Currently in the Anatolian Civilizations Museum in Ankara. Literature: Hawkins, J. D. Corpus of Hieroglyphic Luwian Inscriptions, Vol 1, Berlin, 2000: 320-21 and plt. 155. (MALATYA 4) Orthmann, W. Untersuchungen zur späthethitischen Kunst, Bonn, 1971. (Malatya A/2) Image sources: Bora Bilgin, 2022.