ŞANLIURFA
The world’s oldest known temple complex, Göbeklitepe in Türkiye’s southern province of Şanlıurfa, is set to welcome visitors with a new look by late September, following an extensive restoration and reconstruction effort aimed at preserving and enhancing the site.
Speaking at the International Archaeology Symposium and the “Golden Age of Archaeology” exhibition — opened at the Presidential Library in the capital Ankara — Necmi Karul, head of excavations and coordinator of the Taş Tepeler Project, revealed that the work is well underway.
“We have begun a significant restoration in Göbeklitepe, including the completion of several unfinished pillars,” Karul said. “By the end of September, you will see Göbeklitepe with a renewed face.”
The exhibition, which brought 485 artifacts into public view for the first time, includes remarkable finds from Karahantepe and Göbeklitepe dating back to the Neolithic era.
Among them is an extraordinary stone vessel from Karahantepe — containing smaller vessels and animal figurines arranged within stone rings — which Karul described as “the oldest known three-dimensional storytelling” in human history, dating back at least 10,000 years.
He called it a discovery of the century for Neolithic archaeology and said efforts are underway to nominate it for UNESCO’s Memory of the World Register.
The Taş Tepeler Project has expanded the understanding of the Neolithic landscape in Şanlıurfa, with excavations ongoing at 10 sites contemporaneous with Göbeklitepe.
Karahantepe, where monumental structures have also been unearthed, will soon be sheltered under a specifically designed protective roof, mirroring conservation measures at Göbeklitepe.
Karul emphasized that the Neolithic Age marks a pivotal chapter in humanity’s shared past — when settled life emerged, agriculture began and animals were domesticated — making the findings significant for the entire world, not just Türkiye.
He stressed that the team’s commitment to sharing discoveries promptly with both the public and the global community, through exhibitions in major cultural capitals such as Rome, Berlin and cities in East Asia.
“Every year we discover new sites across an area roughly 150 kilometers in diameter,” Karul said. “These settlements, dating back over a span of 1,500 years, allow us to piece together a far more complete picture of our earliest civilization.”
Karul stated that after six years of excavation at Karahantepe, nothing the team encounters at the site would be a surprise.
“To say ‘we expect this’ would be to underestimate the people who lived here 12,000 years ago. They have already shown us time and again that they produced and achieved things we never imagined.”