20 May 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

A stone bathtub, which is considered to be the first example of ‘water birth’, was found in Ani Ruins

A stone tub was found in the large bath, whose birth was mentioned in a work by the Turkish scholar and poet Anili Kadı Burhaneddin-i Anevi, during the excavation at the Ani Archaeological Site in Kars province in eastern Turkey. In one of his works, Kadı Burhaneddin-i Anevi from Ani mentioned the bath as his birthplace.

Scientists from 20 universities, art historians, and students are working on the excavations in Ani, which was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2016. Muhammet Arslan, a faculty member at Kafkas University, is leading the team.

This year, during ongoing research in Ani, a stone tub was discovered in the Seljuk-era bath, which Turkish scientist and poet Burhaneddin-i Anevi refers to in his work as his birthplace.

In his statement to the AA correspondent, Head of Excavation Arslan said that they continued their work in the 4th term of the 2022 season and that the excavation works were carried out at 5 different points.

An aerial view from the bathtub found in Ani, Kars, eastern Türkiye. Photo: Cüneyt Çelik / AA

Excavation head Muhammet Arslan said, “Excavations in the bath, which we started to unearth for the first time in the working season of 2020 while it was mostly buried underground, are now nearing the completion stage. Kadı Burhaneddin-i Anevi describes his life in the preface of his work ‘Enisü’l-Kulub,’ the only copy of which is in the Süleymaniye Library today, and states that he was born in 1143 in the great bath in Ani. According to the author, his father, Mesud, had five daughters, respectively, and then his mother became pregnant with Kadı Burhaneddin. The birth process of his mother was very painful and he was born in 1143-44 in the great bath in Ani with the advice of a physician.’ Key phrases such as ‘physician advice’ and ‘hammam’ in the birth process of Kadi Burhaneddin show us that water birth was practiced here.”

Photo: Cüneyt Çelik / AA

“One of the first examples of water birth in the world is in Anatolia”

Arslan stated that they have been looking for the existence of such a stone tub during the excavations in this bath since 2019, and that they finally found one this year.

Talking about the examples of water birth described in history, Arslan informed: “Although it is stated that there are scenes related to water birth in Egyptian hieroglyphs, the scenes in question include normal birth scenes, not water birth. The claims that Egyptian pharaohs were born by water birth method cannot go beyond legends. It is known that the first water birth in the world took place in France in 1803. However, both the information about the birth of Kadı Burhaneddin and the stone bathtub we uncovered during our excavations reveal that one of the first examples of water birth in the world was practiced in Anatolia in the 12th century. At the same time, this practice is very important in terms of showing the level that Turkish culture and civilization and Turkish medicine reached in the 12th century.”

Stating that the stone tub in question is in the northwest corner of the warm room covered with a dome in the southeast corner of the bath, Arslan said, “It has a rectangular plan with a length of 1.93 meters (6.3 feet), a width of 1.40 meters and a depth of 50 centimeters (1.6 feet). Water flow is provided to the tub from the cold area in the west with pipes. The water drain of the tub is in the east and the inside is completely plastered,”  he said.

Photo: Cüneyt Çelik / AA

Ani Ruins

Ani is a medieval Armenian city in Kars Province, Turkey’s far easternmost province. Until its capture by Byzantium, it served as the capital of Eastern Armenia and the Bagratid Kingdom. Ani has been the victim of so many natural disasters and invasions—Mongols, Tamerland, earthquakes—that it now appears to be a town surrounded by the ruins of imposing stone walls.

Ani is situated on a plateau in northeast Turkey, overlooking the ravine that forms the country’s natural border with Armenia. The residential, religious, and military structures all worked together to create an urban scene that had been built up over centuries by Christian and then Muslim dynasties. The city flourished when it became the capital of the Armenian Kingdom of Bagratids in the 10th and 11th centuries CE. After being conquered by the Byzantines, Seljuks, and Georgians in succession; it maintained its status as a crossroads for caravans. A very devastating earthquake took place in 1319 that started the beginning of a decline.

Related Articles

4,900-year-old Copper Age Fortress with a Violent Past and Odd Roman Burial Found in Spain

13 February 2025

13 February 2025

A remarkable 4,900-year-old Copper Age fortress, featuring a pentagon shape, three concentric walls, 25 bastions, and three ditches, has been...

Unexpected finds under the Tel Aviv Suburban

21 August 2021

21 August 2021

In preparation for a planned residential building project in suburban Tel Aviv, archaeologists from the Israel Antiquities Authority have begun...

A unique bone Scythian scepter from the 5th century BC was discovered in Northeast Bulgaria

1 October 2023

1 October 2023

A unique bone scepter belonging to a Scythian warlord from the 5th century BC was discovered during excavations in the...

A Circular Structure Linked to the Cult of Kukulcán Discovered in Mexico

2 November 2023

2 November 2023

A team of researchers with the Mexican National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) has unearthed the remains of a...

16 New Ancient Rock Art Sites Discovered In Jalapão, Brazil

13 March 2024

13 March 2024

Archaeologists at Brazil’s National Institute of Historical and Artistic Heritage (Iphan) discovered 16 new archaeological sites while surveying a large...

An ancient melon genome from Libya reveals interesting insights regarding watermelon relatives

2 August 2022

2 August 2022

The earliest known seeds from a watermelon related were discovered during an archaeological dig in Libya, going back 6,000 years...

Evidence of Rare Romano-Celtic Temple Near Lancaster Castle -may be only the second of its type –

10 March 2023

10 March 2023

A study exercise for students from Lancaster University has uncovered a Romano-Celtic temple, only the second of its type in...

Olmec reliefs show Ancient Olmec Leaders In Trance-Like State Roaring Like Jaguars

14 August 2022

14 August 2022

Archaeologists in Mexico have discovered two carved reliefs from the late Olmec period (900-400 B.C.) in Villahermosa, Tabasco, southeastern Mexico...

Ancient stone grenades discovered at Badaling Great Wall in Beijing

16 October 2023

16 October 2023

Chinese archaeologists have unearthed 59 ancient stone grenades from the ruins of a building in the western section of the...

Archaeologists have discovered 85 ancient tombs, a watchtower, and a temple site in Egypt’s Gabal al-Haridi region

5 May 2022

5 May 2022

The Egyptian archaeological mission discovered 85 tombs, a watchtower, and a temple site in the Gabal al-Haridi area of Sohag,...

Researchers excavating the burial site along Caleta Vítor Bay in northern Chile found an Inka Tunic or unku

15 February 2023

15 February 2023

A recently published study, co-authored by a research professor at George Washington University, looks at the Inka Empire’s (also known...

A large hall from the time of Viking Harald Bluetooth discovered

26 December 2022

26 December 2022

A large hall from the reign of King Harald Bluetooth of Denmark and Norway was unearthed during housing construction work...

Using 3D scanners, archaeologists have identified the person who carved Jelling Stone Runes

29 September 2023

29 September 2023

Researchers at the National Museum of Denmark using 3D scans have identified who carved the Jelling Stone Runes, located in...

Rare 2,800-year-old Assyrian Scarab Seal-Amulet Found in Tabor Nature Reserve

12 February 2024

12 February 2024

A hiker in northern Israel found a rare scarab seal-amulet from the First Temple period on the ground in the...

Roman mosaic found under the pavement in the narrow streets of Hvar

13 February 2022

13 February 2022

In the Old Town on the Adriatic island of Hvar, Croatia, a Roman mosaic was unearthed beneath a narrow street....