8000-year-old female statuette found in Ulucak Höyük

An 8 thousand year old female statuette was found in Ulucak Höyük, which has been continuously inhabited since the Neolithic period.

Ulucak Höyük, considered one of the first farming villages in Türkiye, is located in Kemalpaşa district of Izmir.

During the excavations led by Prof. Dr. Özlem Çevik, a faculty member of the Department of Protohistory and Asia Minor Archaeology at Trakya University Faculty of Letters, a clay figurine of a woman with a mouth was found for the first time.

Prof. Dr. Özlem Çevik said, “The first settlement in Ulucak Höyük dates back to 8,850 years ago. For 1150 years, we see that the neolithic settlement continued at Ulucak Höyük for 45 five generations without interruption. This year’s excavations continue at the mound. One of the most important finds so far is a female figure. We usually find parts of figures such as arms, legs and heads in Ulucak. This statuette, which we found last this year, was the 6th figure found in its entirety so far.”

Prof. Dr. Çevik pointed out that the most important factor that distinguishes the female figurine from the others is that its mouth is indicated, “Because the figures usually have eyes and nose. In this figure, we see that both the mouth is indicated in the form of a hole and a hole has been made in the neck so that it can be a piece of jewelry.”

The figurine may represent the person who tells stories in the community.

Prof. Dr. Çevik said, “It may represent the person who lives here, who tells stories in the community. It is made of clay. It is 8-10 centimeters in size. It can fit in one hand. We find them buried inside houses, near ovens, in pits under doorsteps, or in association with grinding stones, or in association with flints in a container. They may have been ritual objects used to fulfill an intention, action or request.”