Excavations in Türkiye's Izmir unearth figurines dating back to 5700 BC

In Türkiye's Aegean province of Izmir, figurines dating back to around 5700 BC believed to represent a male-female pair and child have recently been unearthed, said the scientists responsible for the find.

Ozlem Cevik, an archaeologist at Trakya University in northwestern Türkiye who heads the dig team, told Anadolu Agency that they have been continuing excavations at the Ulucak Mound in Izmir’s Kemalpasa district, which has a history dating back some 8,500 years.

Saying that they came across significant findings in this year's excavations, she explained that "the figurines were found in a space we thought was a storage area and are dated to around 5700 BC. They appear to be a female and male pair, with the female holding a baby in her lap."

She added: "Their hat-like headgear is quite different from the figurines found in Ulucak so far and has no known equivalents in Anatolia."

Cevik said the figurines were made of baked clay and clay materials.