18 September 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

A Rare Late Neolithic Period Seal found in Domuztepe Mound

A rare Late Neolithic Seal was discovered during the 2022 excavations of the Domuztepe Mound (Domuztepe Höyük), located on the Narlı Plain in the southern part of Kahramanmaraş province in Turkey’s Mediterranean Region.

Domuztepe, a Late Neolithic settlement (7000-5400 BC), is located in the Türkoğlu district of Kahramanmaraş.

The archaeological digs at the site have been ongoing under the direction of Hacettepe University’s Faculty of Letters and Archaeology Department associate professor Halil Tekin, in collaboration with the Ministry of Culture and Tourism.

Two animal heads with horns, made with their mouths facing each other with the “mirroring” (antithetic) method, draw attention on the printing surface of the thread-hole button seal made of serpentine in the fill soil of the 2 structure levels of Domuztepe Mound.

The presence of stylized bull head motifs as paint decorations on clay pottery at Domuztepe was detected in the past years. In the mound, which is the largest settlement of the lifestyle known as “Halaf” in traditional Mesopotamian terminology in the Eastern Mediterranean, the bullheads visualized on different materials are mostly accepted as the representative of the species known as domestic cattle (Bos Taurus) in the Near East. On the other hand, it is possible that the species in the samples shaped both as a paint decoration on pottery and by scraping on seal impressions is a water buffalo (bos bubalis). Since archaeozoological studies have not been completed yet, it is premature to say that water buffalo was domesticated in the Eastern Mediterranean, where Domuztepe is located, in the 7th-6th millennium BC.

Bull and water buffalo (?) heads are seen as paint decorations on pottery.

It is also possible that the type observed in the form of paint decorations on the seal stamping surface and on some pottery is not water buffalo but only bullheads were shaped in different styles. Undoubtedly, future analyzes will shed light on this issue. However, it should be noted that such a depiction method is rarely seen in Mesopotamian Late Neolithic seal impressions.

The excavations at Domuztepe between 1995 and 2011 resulted in the recovery of about 180 seals and related items. A total of 130 objects have been classified based on the relationship between the image and the image-bearing surface geometry. This number decreases when the broken or partially finished objects are subtracted from this count. In this context, it has been observed that a total of 15 naturalistically shaped objects carry zoomorphic and anthropomorphic themes, while the remaining 115 items are composed of a limited set of abstract image themes that are difficult make sense of, at a first glance.

Related Articles

4,500-Year-Old Dog Teeth-Adorned Bags Found in Germany May Have Been Elite Baby Carriers

11 July 2025

11 July 2025

Archaeological excavations near Krauschwitz reveal rare decorated leather bags buried with women and infants—shining new light on Neolithic burial customs...

Rare discovery: Ancient Egyptian burial reveals Ovarian Teeth in Oldest Example of Teratoma

13 November 2023

13 November 2023

Archaeologists have unearthed the oldest documented example of a teratoma discovered within the 3,000-year-old burial chamber of a young woman...

Pharaonic Hieroglyphic Inscription of Ramses III Found in Southern Jordan

20 April 2025

20 April 2025

In a remarkable archaeological breakthrough, a hieroglyphic inscription bearing the royal cartouche of Pharaoh Ramses III (1186–1155 BC) has been...

The museum’s “Oscar” Awards had Received this Year by the Troy Museum and the Odunpazarı Modern Museum

11 May 2021

11 May 2021

At the European Museum of the Year Awards (EMYA) online ceremony on May 6, Turkey’s renowned Troy Museum and Odunpazar...

4,000-Year-Old Lion Jaw Bone Unearthed in Kültepe

14 September 2021

14 September 2021

Excavations continue in Kültepe, the starting point of Anatolian written history. During the excavations, a 4,000-year-old lion jawbone was unearthed....

Jiroft: The Mysterious Rival of Mesopotamia and the Dawn of an Ancient Civilization

24 March 2025

24 March 2025

Recent archaeological discoveries in southeast Iran are reshaping our understanding of early civilizations, particularly the Jiroft Civilization, which thrived around...

In northern Iran, a hand-dug passageway was discovered used for military purposes during the Qajar era

1 August 2021

1 August 2021

A hand-dug underground passage dating from the Qajar era (1794-1925), once believed to have served military purposes, has been discovered...

Archaeologists Discovered Over 500 Ancient Coins and A Gold Template for Making jewelry in Bulgaria

17 August 2024

17 August 2024

In Plovdiv, in southern Bulgaria, archaeologists have discovered over 500 ancient coins and a gold template for making jewelry from...

5,500-year-old Menhir discovered in Portugal

28 August 2023

28 August 2023

A 5,500-year-old (that is around 3500 BC) menhir has been discovered in the town of São Brás de Alportel in...

A carved Hand Imprint unearthed in a 1,000-year-old Jerusalem defensive moat

26 January 2023

26 January 2023

The Israel Antiquities Authority announced on Wednesday that archaeologists discovered the remains of a moat and a mysterious hand imprint...

A prehistoric monument consisting of three round enclosures, one of which resembles a horseshoe, was discovered in France

7 April 2024

7 April 2024

Archaeologists from the French National Institute for Preventive Archaeological Research (INRAP) unearthed an unusual, prehistoric monument in the shape of...

Archaeologists Unearth 78,000-Year Oldest Human Burial

5 May 2021

5 May 2021

A 78,000-year-old group of bones discovered at the mouth of a Kenyan coastal cave constitutes the oldest recorded formal human...

Scientists recreate Stone Age cave lighting

17 June 2021

17 June 2021

For early hunter-gatherer societies that were lucky enough to live near caves, these natural underground homes provided ideal protection from...

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,...

Hidden Archaeological Treasures from Cologne Cathedral

25 January 2024

25 January 2024

An area of around 4,000 square meters (43,055 square feet) is being discovered beneath the Cologne Cathedral, the largest Gothic...