11,000-Year-Old Sculpture of Human Riding a Leopard Unearthed at Karahan Tepe

The Turkish culture ministry has announced the discovery of an 11,000-year-old statue at Karahan Tepe in southeastern Turkey. This 70-centimetre tall sculpture features a human figure riding a leopard and was uncovered on a bench within a three-metre structure that has a stone floor. Mehmet Nuri Ersoy, the culture and tourism minister, shared the news on X, referring to it as a 'composite statue' showcasing a distinctive style. This find emerged during the 2026 Heritage for the Future project excavations. Elizabeth Carter from UCLA highlighted the rarity of a human figure on an animal, while Ergun Lafli from Dokuz Eylul University pointed out its importance in the context of ancient Near Eastern religion. The site is located in Taş Tepeler, near Urfa.