Chinese archaeologists unearth Neolithic life in southeastern Türkiye

Chinese archaeologist Gan Caichao of the National Cultural Heritage Administration has launched excavations at the Yogunburc site in Türkiye’s southeastern Şanlıurfa province, working alongside local experts under the Ministry of Culture and Tourism’s Stone Hills Project to probe settlements dating to the same Neolithic era as Göbeklitepe.

Excavation launched at Yogunburc

The dig covers approximately 22,000 square meters in the Karaköprü district and began last month under a cooperative protocol between Beijing’s Archaeological Research Center and the Şanlıurfa Archaeology Museum. A 22-member team — including seven Chinese specialists — is now working to delineate the ancient settlement’s boundaries and occupational layers, according to Anadolu.

Gan told Anadolu that the group was delighted to participate in the internationally recognized initiative, noting that the region preserves abundant traces of prehistoric human activity. "The Sanliurfa region is one of the most important areas for Neolithic-era remains. We hope to uncover many valuable artifacts during this excavation," he said, underscoring the site’s potential to reshape understanding of early Anatolian civilizations.

Artifacts reveal prehistoric craftsmanship

Researchers have established a grid of east-west and north-south trenches to determine the site’s spatial limits and identify zones of higher artifact density. Gan explained that the team also designated a central square-shaped area for intensive investigation, targeting stratified deposits that could illuminate daily routines from roughly 12,000 years ago.

Initial layers have already produced beads, flint tools, and wild boar teeth alongside worked stones that suggest sophisticated tool-making traditions. "During the excavations, we found stones used by people during the Neolithic period for work, as well as beads worn for decoration. These findings show that the people of that time were very intelligent and clever," Gan said. He added that these discoveries provide crucial data for reconstructing how early communities organized their subsistence and social lives.

Stone Hills Project scope

The Yogunburc dig forms part of a broader ministerial initiative encompassing a dozen Neolithic sites across Şanlıurfa, including Göbeklitepe, Karahantepe, Sefertepe, Sayburç, Harbetsuvan, Gürcütepe, Çakmaktepe, Yeni Mahalle, Ayanlar, Mendiktepe, and Söğüt Tarlası. These settlements collectively document the transition from mobile hunter-gatherer bands to permanently inhabited villages, preserving some of the world’s earliest evidence of organized religion and communal architecture.

Dating to approximately 10,000 BCE, the layers under investigation at Yogunburc promise to complement findings from neighboring Göbeklitepe, where megalithic temples have reshaped understandings of prehistoric societal complexity. Excavations are expected to continue through the current field season as teams pursue further evidence of the technological innovations that marked the dawn of settled life in Upper Mesopotamia.