29 October 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

5,000 years old Mother Goddess statuette unearthed in Yeşilova Mound

A Mother Goddess statuette, determined to be 5 thousand years old, was found during the excavations carried out in the Yeşilova Mound (Yeşilova Höyük) in the Bornova district, which contains the ruins of the oldest settlement in Izmir.

The mound dates back to 8,500 years. The mound that is being excavated, has already revealed some critical traces of The Neolithic Age and much about the early settlers in the Izmir area off the Aegean coast, their surroundings, and their culture.

The Yesilova mound excavation has been in progress since 2005.  The discovery was made during the excavations at the mound under the leadership of Associate Professor Dr. Zafer Derin from the Department of Archaeology at Ege University.

It was announced that the height of the 5 thousand-year-old female goddess figurine made of terracotta material was 10 centimeters.

Photo: DHA

In his profound statement, he stated that a similar statuette of a naked woman with her hair pulled back was found in the Thermi region of Lesbos.



📣 Our WhatsApp channel is now LIVE! Stay up-to-date with the latest news and updates, just click here to follow us on WhatsApp and never miss a thing!!



Associate Professor Dr. Zafer Derin explained, “Similar pieces can be found in the Thermi region on Lesbos in the Aegean Islands. However, the piece we discovered dates back 500 years earlier than those on Lesbos. This discovery suggests a cultural exchange that extended towards the Northern Aegean islands and even into the Balkans,”.

The Great Mother Goddess was a representation of the nurturing aspect of the divine feminine, which was connected to ideas of creation and fertility in many ancient societies. Long before patriarchal religions gained dominance, the Goddess religion was practiced in many parts of the ancient world.

Photo: DHA

The Mother Goddess, often known as Mother Earth, is a matriarchal archetype represented frequently in ancient art and found in various mythologies around the world.

One of the oldest representations of female forms was discovered in the village of Willendorf in Austria. It is known as Venus of Willendorf and it is estimated to have been made in Paleolithic times, between 25,000-20,000 BCE.

Cover Photo: DHA

Related Articles

Frozen but Not Forgotten: 2,500-Year-Old Tattoos of Siberian Ice Mummy Digitally Reconstructed

31 July 2025

31 July 2025

Siberian Ice Mummy: Unveiling Ancient Tattoo Traditions of Iron Age Siberia In a groundbreaking fusion of archaeology and modern imaging,...

Ming-era two shipwrecks found in South China Sea

23 May 2023

23 May 2023

In the South China Sea, two ancient shipwrecks that date back to the middle of the Ming Dynasty (1368–1644) were...

Extremely well-preserved 2000-year-old child’s leather Shoe Discovered During Archaeological Mine Excavations

1 September 2023

1 September 2023

An “extremely well-preserved” Iron Age child’s shoe was discovered in Austria during excavations at Dürrnberg, near the historic town of...

World’s Only Ancient Wooden Twin-Hulled Boats Unearthed in Vietnam

20 May 2025

20 May 2025

A groundbreaking archaeological discovery in Bac Ninh province, northern Vietnam, has brought to light two remarkably well-preserved ancient wooden boats,...

Found Home of the Legendary Viking Woman Who Crossed the Atlantic 500 Years Before Columbus

11 March 2021

11 March 2021

Archaeologists in Iceland recently excavated a farm believed to belong to the legendary Viking woman Gudrid Torbjörnsdottir. She is believed...

A Rare Design in Roman Military Architecture: Triangular Stone Tower Discovered Near Sofia

22 July 2025

22 July 2025

Bulgarian archaeologists have uncovered a triangular stone tower — a rare architectural form in Roman military design — at the...

An extraordinary votive treasure was unearthed in the ancient Roman bath sanctuary of San Casciano Dei Bagni in Italy

7 August 2022

7 August 2022

In San Casciano Dei Bagni, a Tuscan hill town famous for its hot springs, 40 miles southeast of Siena, unique...

Archaeologists Discovered “Temple of the Emperors” in the Agora of the Ancient City of Nikopolis, Greece

30 May 2024

30 May 2024

The Greek Ministry of Culture declared that fresh discoveries had been made during archaeological excavations at the ancient Nikopolis Agora...

Exciting discoveries at Accana Mound: 3,250-year-old seal belonging to Hittite prince and Akkadian cuneiform texts discovered

19 November 2021

19 November 2021

A 3250-year-old seal of the Hittite prince and a 3400-year-old cuneiform tablet was found in Accana Höyük (Mound) in the...

Archaeologists unearth the Torah Ark of the Great Synagogue of Vilna, destroyed in Lithuania

30 August 2021

30 August 2021

In Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania, in excavation exposed the Torah ark and bimah (raised prayer platform) of the Great...

KIŠIB: A Digital Archive From 80,000 Mesopotamian Seals is Being Created

19 December 2024

19 December 2024

Over the next 16 years, a research team from the Institute for Near Eastern Archaeology at the Free University of...

Medieval subterranean corridors found by accident in northeast Iran

1 October 2022

1 October 2022

The workers working on a routine road construction project near Shahr-e Belqeys (City of Belqeys) in northeast Iran made an...

New research determines portable toilets of the ancient Roman world

11 February 2022

11 February 2022

New research published today reveals how archeologists can determine when a pot was used by Romans as a portable toilet,...

Excavations show the Temple of Poseidon at Samikon is more Monumental than Previously Assumed -New Discoveries

3 November 2024

3 November 2024

New excavations by archaeologists from the Austrian Academy of Sciences and the Greek Ministry of Culture in Kleidi-Samikon in the...

The altar of Zeus Temple discovered in western Turkey

1 September 2023

1 September 2023

Archaeological excavations in the ancient city of Magnesia, located in the western province of Aydın’s Germencik district, have uncovered the...