25 TURTLES IN A TURKISH CAVE:

Gedikkaya Cave, Turkey.  Internet photograph, public domain.

Photograph sharpened with AI.

Although I have been unable to find any scientific papers about this discovery yet, it is interesting enough that I went to news sources for it and if this is real it is fascinating.

Excavating a stone turtle, Gedikkaya Cave, Turkey. Internet photograph, public domain.

“Archaeologists excavating Gedikkaya Cave in northwestern Türkiye have uncovered around 25 stone turtle figurines from Epipaleolithic contexts dating between approximately 14,500 and 11,200 BCE, adding striking new evidence that prehistoric hunter-gatherers used parts of the cave for ritual or symbolic activities.” (Altunas 2026) Think about what kind of rituals or ceremonies this might indicate. It is fascinating to imagine.

Stone turtle, Gedikkaya Cave, Turkey. Internet photograph, public domain.

“What makes this year’s discovery notable is where and how they were placed. The figurines weren’t scattered randomly. They were found surrounding a curved stone structure, deliberately inserted into the ground.” (Ait Lunas 2026) I have not been able to locate material on the stone structure so how high it is, how big it is, all these are unknown to me, however, it is the fascinating idea of 25 turtles that interests me.

“Some of the objects were covered with clay, while the largest measures about 30 centimeters and 20 centimeters in width. Researchers believe the figures were produced for ritual purposes before being placed inside the cave.” (Turkiyetoday 2026) Some carved from stone, some much more crude than others, some covered with clay modeled to be turtle-like, all this suggests that they were produced over a period of time, or by a group of people, each working to their own ideas and standards.

This cave is approximately 100 miles from the coast of the Black Sea, which may account for the fact that the shape of this turtle’s carapace looks more like a sea turtle than a fresh water turtle or a land tortoise. Internet photograph, public domain.

So, a few people working for a long time to the same plan, or a large group of people working together to that plan. This is fascinating either way. As I said in my opening, without actual scientific publications to refer to we cannot be sure that the details are all accurate, or that this story is real at all, but I certainly hope so. The idea of a circle of 25 turtle effigies is so compelling. What would the people have been thinking?

NOTE: Some images in this column were retrieved from the internet with a search for public domain photographs. If any of these images are not intended to be public domain, I apologize, and will happily provide the picture credits if the owner will contact me with them.

REFERENCES:

Ait Lounis, Melissa, 2026, Archaeologists Dug Up 25 Strange Stone Hidden in This Turkish Cave, and It’s Shaped Like a Turtle, MSN Daily Galaxy (online). Accessed online 14 September 2026. (This title is not a mistake, this is actually the way it was written)

Altunas, Leman, 2026, 25 Turtle Figurines Unearthed in a Turkish Cave, Some Dating Back 16,500 Years, 19 August 2026, Arkeonews/Anatolian Archaeology. Accessed online 13 September 2026.

Turkiyetoday, 2026, 25 ancient turtle figurines found in a cave in Turkiye’s Bilecik, 19 August 2026, https://www.turkiyetoday.com. Accessed online 7 October 2026.