At Karahan Tepe in Turkey, Göbekli Tepe's Neolithic sister site, a 65 cm sculpture was unearthed this season depicting a human on a leopard inside a stone-paved structure 3m wide. Three earlier finds there showed the opposite — humans carrying leopards!
11,000-year-old seated figure on a leopard found at Karahan Tepe
Türkiyeunverified
Key facts
- Karahan Tepe is a sister site of Göbekli Tepe, 35 km away, dating to the pre-pottery Neolithic
- The site has yielded over 250 T-shaped pillars, communal structures, and carved sculptures
- During the 2026 excavation season, a 65 cm sculpture depicting a human figure seated on a leopard was found on a bench along a wall of a structure about 3 m in diameter
- The building had a floor paved with flat stones
- Three previous sculptures at the site showed the opposite configuration: a human carrying a leopard
- Leopards are the most popular animal motif at Karahan Tepe, depicted in reliefs and sized images on pillars
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