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Turkey11,000-year-old relief of a man with a penis in his hand is a mystery
Menacing animals and two men, one holding his penis in his hand. Such scenes carved in stone have been unearthed by researchers in Turkey.
- von
- Fee Anabelle Riebeling
More than 3.5 meters long, the relief depicts two leopards, a bull and two men, one of whom – unfazed by the beasts – is holding his penis and the other in a crouching position holding a rattle or snake.
K. Akdemir, 2022. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of Antiquity Publications Ltd/CC BY 4.0
As the archaeologist Eylem Özdoğan writes in the journal Antiquity, there are probably two scenes that complement each other. This is probably the oldest trace of art from this region to date, in which figures are not isolated from one another, but interact with one another.
B. Köşker, 2022. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of Antiquity Publications Ltd/CC BY 4.0
That’s what it’s about
The relief of a man holding his penis is the oldest narrative carving in the world, according to archaeologists.
Also part of the work are two bulls and another man.
However, it is unclear what message the relief conveys.
The work is around 11,000 years old.
In southern Turkey near the Syrian border During excavations, researchers came across an approximately 11,000-year-old stone relief on which pictures of animals and people can be seen. The relief was discovered in a Neolithic building in the Urfa region. It is almost four meters long and shows two leopards, a bull and two men, one of which – unperturbed by the wild beasts – his penis and the other in a crouching position holding a rattle or snake. A penis can also be seen on one of the two leopards in the stone relief if you look closely.
Like the archaeologist Eylem Özdoğan from the University of Istanbul in the specialist journal “Antiquity” writes, it is probably about two scenes that complement each other. This is probably the oldest trace of art from this region to date, in which figures are not isolated from one another, but interact with one another – and thus tell a story. “This is a picture of the stories that shaped the ideology of the people of that time,” quoted Iflscience.com Özdoğan. It is unclear exactly what the depiction is intended to convey. Their meaning has been lost over time.
Evidence of upheaval?
Özdoğan points out that at the time the relief was created, a major upheaval took place: according to the current state of knowledge, the mobile hunters and gatherers in this region of the world settled down for the first time. They built settlements and began farming and raising livestock. According to the archaeologist, the “indifferent attitude” of the man with a penis in his hand could tell how humans learned to subdue wild animals. It is still unclear whether this interpretation is correct.
It is also unclear what purpose the residents of Sayburç at that time had in creating the work of art. The scenes are set in the building of a large community structure that probably served as a space for festivals and gatherings. Work on the excavation site about 56 kilometers east of the Euphrates and 32 kilometers north of the Syrian border has been ongoing since 2021. Özdoğan became aware of the site after residents of Sayburç found several objects that appeared to be from the Neolithic period came from.
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