Archaeologists excavating Gedikkaya Cave in today’s northwestern Turkey have uncovered about 25 stone figurines shaped like turtles, adding new evidence that hunter-gatherers used parts of the cave for activities beyond everyday survival. The objects come from Epipaleolithic layers dating to between about 14,500 and 11,200 B.C.
Prof. Dr. Deniz Sarı of Bilecik Şeyh Edebali University leads the excavations in Bilecik Province. A 14-member team carried out the 2026 campaign from May 18 to July 18 on behalf of Turkey’s Ministry of Culture and Tourism.
The discovery adds to a growing picture of complex symbolic behavior among prehistoric communities in Anatolia. Other sites in Turkey have produced evidence of ritual practices before or during the transition to farming, including Göbeklitepe, where monumental structures and animal imagery transformed ideas about early hunter-gatherer societies.
Figurines placed around stone features
The Gedikkaya figures are made mainly of limestone, and some appear to have been coated with clay. The largest measures about 30 centimeters (12 inches) long and 20 centimeters (8 inches) wide. Many were only partly finished.
Their placement is particularly unusual. Sarı said archaeologists found several inserted vertically into the soil around circular or curved stone arrangements. Researchers believe the deliberate positioning may point to ritual deposition rather than decoration.
Similar questions about deliberate deposition have emerged elsewhere in Anatolia. At Kanlıtaş mound, archaeologists recently identified 8,000-year-old headless figurines that researchers believe may have been left as offerings when buildings were closed.
Earlier finds strengthen ritual interpretation
Gedikkaya had already produced unusual Epipaleolithic evidence. About 20 meters (66 feet) inside the cave, natural niches contained grouped animal remains and stone tools, including vertebrae, horns, a raptor claw and tortoise shell fragments. Archaeologists also found a stylized stone animal sculpture.
Archaeologists in Türkiye have uncovered about 25 stone turtle figurines dating back more than 13,000 years.
Found inside Gedikkaya Cave, the unusual objects may offer new clues about ritual life and symbolic beliefs among prehistoric hunter-gatherers. pic.twitter.com/guuBEr2g1x— Tom Marvolo Riddle (@tom_riddle2025) August 19, 2026
Farther inside, two curved rows of selected stones surrounded a large natural stalagmite. Stone and bone objects, including a stylized human figurine, were placed nearby. Researchers have interpreted the feature as a possible offering or ritual pit.
The repeated turtle imagery strengthens Sarı’s suggestion that the animal held special meaning at Gedikkaya. The pattern fits a broader record of symbolic animal imagery in the prehistoric Near East. At Göbeklitepe, for example, a human statue discovered inside a wall was interpreted as a possible votive offering.
Meaning of turtle imagery remains uncertain
Tortoises also appear in unusual contexts at prehistoric sites outside Anatolia. Hilazon Tachtit Cave in present-day Israel contained numerous tortoise remains associated with Late Natufian burial and feasting practices. At Manot Cave, also in Israel, researchers identified an engraved boulder resembling a tortoise shell dating to roughly 37,000 to 35,000 years ago.
Sarı has proposed that Epipaleolithic inhabitants may even have viewed Gedikkaya Hill as turtle-shaped, raising the possibility that the figurines linked the animal, landscape and cave. The idea remains a hypothesis, and archaeologists caution against projecting later associations such as longevity or protection onto prehistoric communities.
Taken together, the finds suggest Gedikkaya served purposes beyond temporary shelter. The excavation team transferred the figurines to the Bilecik Museum and Bilecik Şeyh Edebali University for conservation and further study.
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