27 September 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

9,500-Year-Old Public Building with Red Floor Unearthed at Çayönü Tepesi, Türkiye

Archaeologists have unearthed a 9,500-year-old public building with a striking red-painted floor at Çayönü Tepesi, one of the world’s most important Neolithic settlements located in Ergani, Diyarbakır, southeastern Turkey. The discovery sheds light on the social and cultural life of some of the earliest farming communities during humanity’s transition from nomadic to settled life.

A Landmark Discovery in Neolithic Archaeology

Excavations at Çayönü, first launched in 1964, have revealed many “firsts” in human history, including the beginnings of agriculture, animal domestication, and early metallurgy. This season, under the direction of Assoc. Prof. Savaş Sarıaltun from Çanakkale Onsekiz Mart University, archaeologists focused their work on a 900-square-meter area on the eastern side of the mound. There, they uncovered the so-called “Red-Floored Public Building,” dating to around 7600–7500 BCE.

Unlike domestic houses, the building appears to have served as a communal gathering place. Sarıaltun explained that it may have hosted meetings, rituals, or collective events: “This structure is different from private dwellings. It represents a space shared by the entire community, which makes it one of the most valuable discoveries at Çayönü.”

Credit: AA

A Structure in Use for Generations

Evidence suggests that the building remained in use for 150–200 years. Archaeologists found that its floor had been repainted at least four times, highlighting the building’s continued importance to the settlement. The pigments used to create the vivid red tones were likely obtained from natural ochre or iron-rich clay found in the nearby mountains.

This advanced use of pigment not only demonstrates early aesthetic preferences but also reflects the symbolic and ritualistic value attached to communal spaces in Neolithic society. The building’s proximity to the famous Terrazzo Building—another monumental structure with a mosaic floor—further underscores its significance in the settlement’s social and ceremonial life.



📣 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!!



Archaeologists uncovered a 9,500-year-old public building with a vivid red-painted floor at Çayönü Tepesi. Credit: AA
Archaeologists uncovered a 9,500-year-old public building with a vivid red-painted floor at Çayönü Tepesi. Credit: AA

Çayönü Tepesi: A Cradle of Civilization

Çayönü Tepesi, dating back more than 12,000 years, stands as one of the most critical sites of the Neolithic Revolution—the global shift from hunting and gathering to farming and permanent settlement. Located in Upper Mesopotamia, the site rivals other groundbreaking archaeological sites such as Göbeklitepe and Nevali Çori.

Excavations have revealed not only early houses and communal structures but also evidence of animal domestication, the first cultivation of cereals, and even early copper working. These discoveries make Çayönü a cornerstone in understanding how human societies evolved toward urban life.

Recognized as a candidate for UNESCO World Heritage status, Çayönü provides invaluable insights into the origins of agriculture, technology, and social organization. The latest discovery of the Red-Floored Building adds yet another dimension, offering a rare glimpse into how early farming communities built and maintained shared public spaces.

Credit: AA

Why the Red-Floored Building Matters

The uniqueness of this structure lies not only in its age but also in its painted floor—the first of its kind discovered at Çayönü. Sarıaltun emphasized that the use of red pigment across multiple layers shows deliberate effort to preserve the building’s special character. This indicates that communal identity, symbolic practices, and shared rituals were already deeply rooted in early Neolithic societies.

By studying this building, archaeologists aim to reconstruct the daily lives, spiritual practices, and social organization of people who lived nearly 10,000 years ago. In this way, Çayönü continues to reshape our understanding of humanity’s earliest experiments with permanent settlements and shared cultural life.

Cover Image Credit: Public Domain

Related Articles

3,000-year-old Treasure on the Iberian Peninsula made with material from a meteorite

7 February 2024

7 February 2024

Scientists have recently discovered that some of the pieces in the amazing Bronze Age collection known as the Villena Treasure,...

Magnificent Discovery: A Major Tomb Filled with Gold and Ceramic Artifacts was Discovered in Panama

3 March 2024

3 March 2024

In an archaeological find in the El Caño Archaeological Park, located in the district of Natá, province of Coclé, in...

Precious Roman Gem Engraved with Mythological Figure Discovered in Italian Lagoon

8 August 2023

8 August 2023

During excavations at Lio Piccolo (Cavallino-Treporti), conducted by Ca’ Foscari University, a precious agate stone carved with a mythological figure...

In Lowbury Hill Mystery of Anglo-Saxons buried 1,400 years ago may soon be solved

8 March 2023

8 March 2023

The mystery surrounding the remains of two Anglo-Saxons buried 1,400 years ago in south Oxfordshire, identified as a man and...

From Bronze Age to Buddhism: Xinjiang’s Archaeological Journey Through Time and Recent Discoveries

4 March 2025

4 March 2025

Recent archaeological investigations in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region have significantly enhanced our understanding of the area’s historical context and...

Bronze Age family systems deciphered: Paleogeneticists analyze 3,800-year-old extended family

31 August 2023

31 August 2023

A Bronze Age family living 3,800 years ago in the Southern Urals may have taken a flexible approach to marriage,...

2000-Year-Old Roman Origins Confirmed for Elche’s Monumental L’Assut de l’Argamassa Dam

17 May 2025

17 May 2025

An archaeological research project has unveiled that the imposing L’Assut de l’Argamassa dam in Elche, Spain, long suspected to be...

Spanish Stonehenge re-emerges from the ‘Valdecañas reservoir’

19 August 2022

19 August 2022

Submerged by the Valdecañas reservoir for decades, the Guadalperal dolmen has been fully exposed as it was two summers ago....

18,000 years ago, late Pleistocene humans may have hatched and raised the “World’s Most Dangerous Bird.”

2 October 2021

2 October 2021

Researchers say the eggshell is an understudied archaeological material that has the potential to clarify past interactions between humans and...

Oldest Direct Evidence for Honey Collecting in Africa

18 April 2021

18 April 2021

Honey is an important food source that has been considered a very important healing source in the history of civilizations....

Thousands of ignored ‘Nummi Minimi’ Coins Found in the Ancient City of Marea in Egypt

11 December 2023

11 December 2023

Numismatists from the Faculty of Archaeology at the University of Warsaw have examined thousands of previously ignored small coins (Nummi...

2500-year-old ship graffiti sheds light on the history of Izmir in western Turkey

9 March 2022

9 March 2022

In the Smyrna Agora, which is one of the largest ancient agora in the city center of the world and...

3,500-year-old perfectly preserved ancient frozen bear found in Siberian

28 February 2023

28 February 2023

As the permafrost on Bolshoy Lyakhovsky Island in eastern Siberia melted, a mummified brown bear that lived more than three...

Archaeologists Uncover Oldest Greek Marble Altar in Western Mediterranean at Tartessian Site in Spain

7 July 2025

7 July 2025

The discovery of the Oldest Greek Marble Altar in the Western Mediterranean offers unprecedented insight into Tartessian culture and its...

A woman who had brain surgery 9500 years ago will be brought revived

12 September 2021

12 September 2021

A “revival” effort is underway on a woman’s skull unearthed in 1989 during archaeological digs at the Aşıklı Mound in...