26 October 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

New Discovery at Karahan Tepe: The Figure of a Running Wild Donkey Carved on Stone

The figure of a running wild donkey carved on a stone was discovered during excavations at Karahan Tepe, a Pre-Pottery Neolithic site located in Şanlıurfa, southeast Türkiye.

Karahan Tepe is one of the Pre Pottery Neolithic Sites emerging in what is known as the Taş Tepeler Region of Southeast Turkey in the province of Şanlıurfa. Located just 23 miles (37 km) southeast of Göbekli Tepe, Karahantepe is part of the Taş Tepeler (Stone Hills) project.

Taş Tepeler simply means stone hills and is an apt description of a region producing numerous sites characterized by T-shaped anthropomorphic pillars of the type that first came to prominence at Göbekli Tepe.

2024 excavations continue in Karahan Tepe, where more than 250 obelisks in the ‘T’ shape were found. In this context, a depiction of a running wild donkey figure was uncovered on one of the stones paved on the floor.

Karahan Tepe Excavation Head Prof. Dr. Necmi Karul told AA correspondent that excavation works are continuing at 10 points including Karahan Tepe within the scope of the Taş Tepeler (Stone Hills) Project.



📣 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!!



Stating that they have been working on other public buildings and huts around the central public building in Karahan Tepe this year and that they started to open one of them a few weeks ago, Karul said:

‘The building is sunken into the ground and has a wattle and daub roof system over a short stone wall. We understand that the floor was paved with large flat stones. Some of these stone pavements were used as grinding stones and on one of them we came across a wild donkey motif. There are animals that are decisive in the iconography of this period. We divide them into 2 categories. The first one is the animals whose eeriness is emphasised, and we see these especially on the obelisks. Another group consists of birds and the most consumed animals, among which the gazelle is the most popular. Wild donkeys are also among the other consumed animals. We can say that these animals were the animals that people were around, consumed and lived with during this period, compared to the scary ones. Similarly, this wild donkey is a figure placed in a base with grinding stones and carved in motion. In this respect, we have encountered some figures on building bases in Göbeklitepe before, but this is the first time we have encountered such a moving wild donkey motif. This is a find that will contribute a little more to our understanding of the animal iconography and the relationship between man and his environment.’

Photo: Minister of Culture and Tourism

Stating that the structures they are currently working on are places dating back to 11 thousand years ago, Karul pointed out that the presence of grinding stones in them indicates that daily life activities were also carried out here.

Stating that the presence of such animal depictions or obelisks in these places also proves that there are symbolic aspects, Karul said:

‘The donkey figure found is a figure of about 20 centimeters in length placed right next to the grinding stone, but the fact that it is mobile rather than its dimensions and that it is depicted in proportion to the stone on which it is carved, is again an indicator of the skill of the artists of this period. This is the first example we have encountered as a figure on the floors of buildings in Karahan Tepe. This, of course, shows that there may be similar ones. We have not yet reached the floor levels of many of the huts mentioned here. We are deepening them in different structures. There are other places where we will reach those levels.’

Mehmet Nuri Ersoy, Minister of Culture and Tourism, shared on his social media account that Karahan Tepe sheds light on the depths of history as one of the most important settlements of the Neolithic Age and that the Stone Hills project continues to shed light on world history.

Cover Image: Minister of Culture and Tourism

Related Articles

A 2,500-year-old celestial map carved on the surface of a circular stone found in Italy

25 December 2023

25 December 2023

Two circular stones measuring 50 centimeters in diameter have been discovered in Castelliere di Rupinpiccolo, an ancient hilltop fortress in...

Morocco team announces 1.3 million years major Stone Age find

29 July 2021

29 July 2021

A multinational team of archaeologists announced the discovery of North Africa’s oldest Stone Age hand-ax manufacturing site, going back 1.3...

Ancient Christian Settlement Discovered in Egypt

14 March 2021

14 March 2021

The Egyptian Ministry of Antiquities said on Saturday that a French-Norwegian archaeological team had discovered a new ancient Christian settlement...

The excavation, which started in a cave in Turkey’s Mardin, turned into a huge underground city

19 April 2022

19 April 2022

In an underground city known used as a settlement in the early Christian era, in the Midyat district of Mardin,...

3 Bronze Shields and Helmet of 2700 Years Old Belonging to Urartians Found in Ayanis Castle

8 September 2024

8 September 2024

Three bronze shields and a bronze helmet dedicated to Haldi, the chief god of the Urartians, were discovered during excavations...

A center on the Anatolian Mesopotamian trade route; Tavsanli Mound

24 October 2021

24 October 2021

Excavations at Tavşanlı mound, which is known to be the first settlement in Western Anatolia during the Bronze Age, continue....

Beehives of Saudi Arabia’s Thought to be Over 1,000 Years Old

20 July 2024

20 July 2024

Located in the majestic Sarawat Mountain range in western Saudi Arabia, the ancient beehives in the Maysan Governorate constitute a...

The 20-million-year-old fossil of a sea creature in the ancient city of Tyana may have been used as a means of payment

22 October 2021

22 October 2021

During the ongoing excavations in the ancient city of Tyana in the Kemerhisar district of Niğde, a 20-million-year-old fossil thought...

The 4,500-year-old Wisconsin canoe was built around the same time that Stonehenge was being constructed

31 May 2024

31 May 2024

Historians from Wisconsin have reported the amazing finding of at least eleven prehistoric canoes in Lake Mendota, which is close...

A unique find in the Middle Don: Scythian gods on a silver plate

19 November 2021

19 November 2021

Archaeologists of the Archaeological Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences, during their excavations at the Devitsa V cemetery in...

Where We Saw Sin, There Was Care: A Baby Buried in a Medieval Belgian Brothel

23 May 2025

23 May 2025

A medieval brothel in Belgium yields a discovery that forces historians to confront forgotten tenderness in places long seen only...

Roman soldier’s 1,900-year-old payslip uncovered in Masada

16 February 2023

16 February 2023

During excavations at Masada, archaeologists from the Israel Antiquities (IAA) uncovered a papyrus payslip dated to 72 BC belonging to...

Madagascar’s Enigmatic Rock-Cut Architecture may have been of Zoroastrian origin

13 September 2024

13 September 2024

An international team of researchers found an enigmatic rock-cut architecture at Teniky, a site in the remote Isalo Massif in...

1,500-Year-Old Sasanian Ossuary Inscription Discovered at Naqsh-e Rostam, Iran

13 August 2025

13 August 2025

Archaeologists have recently discovered a significant funerary inscription associated with an ossuary dating back to the late Sasanian period at...

Rare Ancient Mosaics Seized in Türkiye: Crowned Sea Goddess and Mythical Creatures Uncovered in Smuggling Plot

2 September 2025

2 September 2025

In a decisive cultural heritage protection operation, gendarmerie officers in the Nurdağı district of Gaziantep province in southeastern Türkiye seized...