Türkiye unearths 11,000-year-old stone sculpture of human figure riding leopard
Archaeologists have discovered an 11,000-year-old stone sculpture of a human figure riding a leopard at Karahantepe, a prehistoric site in southeastern Türkiye, which is changing our understanding of early human settlements, Qazinform News Agency cites Anadolu Agency.
The 70-centimeter sculpture was found during this year's excavations near Sanliurfa, according to Culture and Tourism Minister Mehmet Nuri Ersoy.
On Turkish social media platform NSosyal, Ersoy referred to it as a “composite sculpture” in an unprecedented style for the site. It was located on a bench along a 3-meter (10-foot) diameter structure with a stone-paved floor.
This finding is part of Türkiye's "Heritage to the Future" project, aimed at enhancing archaeological research and preservation nationwide.
Karahantepe, located about 30 kilometers from Gobeklitepe, is one of over a dozen sites known as Tas Tepeler, or “Stone Hills.”
These sites date back to the Neolithic period, over 10,000 years ago, when communities shifted from hunter-gatherer lifestyles to settled living. Their monumental stone structures and sculptures reveal complex social and ritual practices before the rise of cities and written records.
Gobeklitepe, discovered in the 1960s and extensively excavated since the 1990s, is the most recognized site. Its massive T-shaped pillars and animal carvings have challenged previous notions about permanent settlements and organized societies.
Since excavations began in 2019, Karahantepe has also become significant, revealing monumental structures and representations from the same period as Gobeklitepe.
Ersoy stated that this discovery “opens the door to new questions about early human history” and will significantly impact the scientific community.
Earlier Qazinform released top archeological discoveries unearthed in Kazakhstan in 2026.