Ishtar in Shida Kartli? About a Recently Discovered Fragment of Stone Plaque

A fragment of incised stone plaque discovered in a Late Bronze Age level during the recent Georgian-Italian excavations at Aradetis Orgora in the Shida Kartli region of Georgia is presented and its implications for the connections of the ancient populations of this area of the Southern Caucasus with the contemporary civilisations of the Near East are discussed. Special attention is paid to the presence on the plaque of an astral symbol, which is remniscent of the eight-pointed star of the Mesopotamian goddess Inanna/Ishtar.