28 August 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

7,000-Year-Old Animal-Figured Seals Found in Arslantepe, Anatolia’s First City-State

Archaeologists working at the Arslantepe Mound (Turkish: Arslantepe Höyük), a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Türkiye’s eastern Malatya province and thought to be the first city-state in Anatolia, have found two 7,000-year-old animal-figured seals.

Arslantepe, a 30 m high mound located around 7 km east of Malatya, is home to remains found in layers dating from 5000 BC to the 11th century.

In particular, the discoveries made in the layers that date back to 3000 BC revealed the first indications of how humanity evolved into a sophisticated social structure and established a state before the invention of written documents. Arslantepe was an administrative and commercial hub, as evidenced by the palace structure and numerous seals discovered there that date to 3300–3000 BC.  Furthermore, Arslantepe, whose oldest settlement dates back to the Chalcolithic Era, is home to the world’s first known swords. The city was known then as Malitiya, according to Hittite sources. Arslantepe is thought to be the first city-state in Anatolia.

Inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2021.

Photo: AA

Italian Professor Francesca Balossi Restelli, the head of the excavation team, says the seals might date back an even earlier.

Restelli told Anadolu Agency that they compared the styles of the seals in other regions to determine the date from their motifs.

“When we look at the style, I think that the date of these seals will be older, 5,000 BC,” Restelli said.

Noting that animal figures were carved on the seals, she said they are the oldest seals found so far at Arslantepe.

Photo: AA

“There are definitely older ones because there are layers 10 meters (32 feet) below the hill. I am sure we will find older seals as we descend,” she added.

More than 2,000 stamp seals have been found in the mound so far. The site was occupied at least since the sixth millennium BCE, according to archaeological evidence, and continued until the late Roman era.

Related Articles

Turkey’s second ancient lighthouse found in the Bathonea

28 July 2023

28 July 2023

The excavations in the ancient Greek city of Bathonea, located in the Küçükçekmece Lake basin in the Avcılar district of...

1400-year-old artifacts discovered in the ancient city of Uzuncaburç (Diocaesarea)

26 January 2022

26 January 2022

During the excavations carried out in a tower in the ancient city of Uzuncaburç (Diocaesarea) in Mersin province in the...

Oldest US firearm unearthed in Arizona, a 500-year-old bronze cannon linked to Coronado expedition

27 November 2024

27 November 2024

Independent researchers in Arizona have unearthed a bronze cannon linked to the 16th-century expedition of Francisco Vázquez de Coronado, and...

Study Reveals Córdoba’s Advanced Sanitation System: A Medieval Model Unmatched in Europe for Centuries

25 April 2025

25 April 2025

Recent research has unveiled the impressive sanitation systems of medieval Córdoba, revealing that the city’s infrastructure was so advanced that...

Tomb of a Roman doctor buried with unique surgical tools unearthed in Hungary

28 April 2023

28 April 2023

Hungarian archaeologists discovered the tomb of a Roman doctor 1st-century man buried with high-quality surgical tools near the city of...

The ruins of a thousand-year-old Buddhist Temple will be opened to the public in Kyrgyzstan

13 September 2022

13 September 2022

The unearthed remains of an ancient Buddhist temple in Kyrgyzstan will open to the public in mid-September as part of...

21 Copperplate Inscriptions discovered at Ghanta Matham in India

14 June 2021

14 June 2021

During excavations at Ghanta Matham in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh,  important 21 copper plates for the Mallikarjuna Swami...

The discovery of a 380-million-year-old heart sheds new light on our bodies’ evolution

16 September 2022

16 September 2022

Researchers from Curtin University have discovered the world’s oldest heart in a ‘beautifully preserved’ ancient jawed fish fossil 380 million...

3700 years old Brain and skin remnants discovered at Bronze Age settlement in western Türkiye

5 September 2023

5 September 2023

Archaeologists discovered, well-preserved brain and skin remnants of two individuals dating to the Bronze Age during excavations at Tavşanlı Höyük...

Botanical Findings Analysis from Biblical area of Goliath sheds Unprecedented Light on Philistine Ritual Practices

27 February 2024

27 February 2024

Bar-Ilan University researchers shed “unprecedented light” on Philistine ritual practices, such as the use of psychoactive and medicinal plants, by...

Recent excavations at Girsu uncovered innovative civilization-saving technology of Ancient Sumerians

19 November 2023

19 November 2023

In ancient city Girsu, located near the modern city of Nasiriyah in southern Iraq, revealed through a recent excavation by...

A rare reliquary discovered during excavations in Poland

19 October 2023

19 October 2023

Archaeologists have unearthed a rare enkolpion -a medallion with an icon in the center worn around the neck by Eastern...

Battle of the Egadi Islands: Rome’s deadly weapons discovered off Sicily

3 September 2021

3 September 2021

Underwater archaeologists from the Soprintendenza del Mare Regione Siciliana, RPM Nautical Foundation, and the Society for the Documentation of Submerged...

Archaeologists Unearthed a 1000-year-old Medieval Game Collection in a Castle in Southern Germany

4 June 2024

4 June 2024

Archaeologists found a collection of medieval game pieces at a forgotten castle in southern Germany. Among the discoveries are a...

A unique gold brooch talisman with inscriptions in Latin and Hebrew was found in the UK

19 February 2022

19 February 2022

A Medieval gold annular brooch with prayerful inscriptions has been discovered in the parish of Manningford in Wiltshire, in the...