Leopards and other felines at Taş Tepeler

Göbekli Tepe · pillar · CHECKED 2026-10-22

Pillar 27

Enclosure C · PPNA, Layer III

Record sources: Göbekli Tepe – The first 20 Years of Research Göbekli Tepe: The Imagery of the Pillars in the Monumental Buildings A–D, F and H

Close view of a crouching feline carved in projecting relief on the stone face of Pillar 27. — Pillar 27: A feline predator relief on Pillar 27 at Göbekli Tepe.Photo: Dosseman, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia CommonsPhoto credits & licences

Depiction in cited source: The predator is identified in descriptions as a lion or leopard. Göbekli Tepe: The Imagery of the Pillars in the Monumental Buildings A–D, F and H 2025

Identification note: Exact species identification is uncertain.

Interpretations recorded for this object

Scholarly debate

The relief shows a large feline predator; exact species identification is uncertain.

By Published image descriptions and excavation literature · Göbekli Tepe: The Imagery of the Pillars in the Monumental Buildings A–D, F and H Göbekli Tepe – The first 20 Years of Research

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Karahan Tepe · statue · CHECKED 2026-10-22

Human figure seated on a leopard

Reported from Karahan Tepe; current display/storage location not confirmed · PPNA, reported as about 11,000 years old

Record sources: 11,000-year-old sculpture of human figure riding leopard found in Türkiye Karahantepe (site report)

Human figure seated on a leopard

No licensed photograph of this object is in the image register.

Depiction in cited source: The composite sculpture is described as a human figure seated on a leopard. 11,000-year-old sculpture of human figure riding leopard found in Türkiye 2026

Interpretations recorded for this object

Speculation

The image may relate to other human-and-leopard depictions in the region, but meaning is not established.

By Jens Notroff, commenting in contemporary reporting · 11,000-year-old sculpture of human figure riding leopard found in Türkiye Karahantepe (site report)

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Sayburç · relief · CHECKED 2026-10-22

Sayburç relief panel

Communal building, wall bench · PPNA, 9th millennium BC

Record sources: Sayburç: a new Neolithic site in southeastern Turkey Sayburç relief published as earliest known narrative scene

Rectangular trenches, low stone walls and upright stone blocks at the Sayburç excavation. — Sayburç relief panel: Excavated area at the Neolithic site of Sayburç.Photo: Frantisek Trampota, Public domain, via Wikimedia CommonsPhoto credits & licences

Depiction in cited source: Two leopards flank the standing human figure. Sayburç relief published as earliest known narrative scene 2022

Interpretations recorded for this object

Scholarly debate

The panel is interpreted as a narrative scene, while its story and the relation among figures remain open to interpretation.

By Özdöl Kutlu et al. · Sayburç: a new Neolithic site in southeastern Turkey Sayburç relief published as earliest known narrative scene

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Karahan Tepe · statue · CHECKED 2026-10-22

Human figure carrying a leopard

Three-dimensional sculpture from Karahan Tepe; the museum catalogue and reporting identify the human figure as carrying a leopard on its back. · Pre-Pottery Neolithic; no object-specific calibrated date is supplied.

Record sources: Şanlıurfa Müzesi Arkeolojik Eser Kataloğu Human depictions, 3D sculptures of Karahantepe site to shed light on history

A weathered stone figure of a person bent forward beneath a leopard, shown in close-up. — Human figure carrying a leopard: The Karahantepe sculpture labelled “Human Carrying a Leopard on Back” at the Şanlıurfa Archaeology Museum.Photo: Dosseman, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia CommonsPhoto credits & licences

Depiction in cited source: A leopard is described on the back of the human figure. Şanlıurfa Müzesi Arkeolojik Eser Kataloğu 2021

Interpretations recorded for this object

Scholarly debate

The imagery is documented, but its intended meaning is not established in the cited sources.

By Necmi Karul and colleagues; interpretation left open in site literature · Şanlıurfa Müzesi Arkeolojik Eser Kataloğu Human depictions, 3D sculptures of Karahantepe site to shed light on history

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Related glossary term

Leopard motif — Leopards appear as reliefs and three-dimensional figures at several Taş Tepeler sites. Composite human–leopard sculptures show different arrangements; their meanings are not settled.

Sources: Relationality, Immanence, Hierarchy: The Nature and Culture of Being(s) at Göbekli Tepe Şanlıurfa Müzesi Arkeolojik Eser Kataloğu Neolithic Turkish site of Karahantepe named among top 10 archaeological discoveries of 2025

Sites in these records

Related Field Log

Sources

Source wording is attached to individual records above. The register includes sources used for depiction evidence and attributed interpretations.

Göbekli Tepe: The Imagery of the Pillars in the Monumental Buildings A–D, F and HGerman Archaeological Institute / Reichert Verlag · 2025 · reference · retrieved 2026-10-22
11,000-year-old sculpture of human figure riding leopard found in TürkiyeAnadolu Agency · 2026 · news · retrieved 2026-10-22
Sayburç relief published as earliest known narrative sceneTepe Telegrams, DAI · 2022 · excavator · retrieved 2026-10-22
Şanlıurfa Müzesi Arkeolojik Eser KataloğuNecmi Karul, Nihat Kozbe and Derya Yavuzkır; Şanlıurfa Metropolitan Municipality / ŞURKAV · 2021 · museum-catalogue · retrieved 2026-10-22
Göbekli Tepe – The first 20 Years of ResearchGerman Archaeological Institute · 2016 · excavator · retrieved 2026-10-22
Karahantepe (site report)Taş Tepeler, Ministry of Culture and Tourism · 2026 · official · retrieved 2026-10-22
Sayburç: a new Neolithic site in southeastern TurkeyÖzdöl Kutlu et al., Antiquity · 2023 · peer-reviewed · retrieved 2026-10-22
Human depictions, 3D sculptures of Karahantepe site to shed light on historyAnadolu Agency · 2021 · field-reporting · retrieved 2026-10-22
The Sayburç reliefs: a narrative scene from the NeolithicEylem Özdoğan, Antiquity 96(390), 2022 · 2022 · peer-reviewed · retrieved 2026-10-22
Karahantepe’de 11 Bin Yıllık Benzersiz HeykelT.C. Ministry of Culture and Tourism press office · 2026 · official-press-release · retrieved 2026-10-22
Relationality, Immanence, Hierarchy: The Nature and Culture of Being(s) at Göbekli TepeE. D. Yurttaş, Cambridge Archaeological Journal · 2025 · peer-reviewed · retrieved 2026-10-22
Neolithic Turkish site of Karahantepe named among top 10 archaeological discoveries of 2025Anadolu Agency · 2025 · field-reporting · retrieved 2026-10-22

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