Sefer Tepe

Sefertepe

Being excavatedNot open to visitors

A small cult centre at the eastern edge of the Taş Tepeler world, with mostly rectangular PPNB buildings. Its 2025 carved faces are in a style distinct from Göbekli, Karahan and Sayburç.

Visiting

Not open to visitors

Excavation site; no visitor facilities announced.

Source: tastepeler.org / no Ministry visitor page found · checked 19 Oct 2026

Dating

PPNB; carved faces about 8500 BC (press)

Phase: PPNB

Source: tastepeler.org; AA Nov 2025

Discovery

Surface pillars seen in 2000–2003 surveys (Kürkçüoğlu, Çelik, Oral); registered as a site in 2013

Source: tastepeler.org

Excavation

Being excavatedRecorded as: ongoing excavation

Şanlıurfa Museum with Istanbul University (project text by Emre Güldoğan)

Key finds

  1. 16 in-situ T-pillars visible at the surface before excavation

    Çelik (TTK)

  2. Platform with two carved human faces in high and low relief, plus a two-faced serpentine bead (2025)

    AA; Şanlıurfa Valiliği 2025-11-27

  3. Limestone object with 13 circles carved on each face

    tastepeler.org

Where

Viranşehir (Şanlıurfa)

District level only. We don’t publish coordinates or directions to excavation and survey sites.

Field Log · 3 entries

  1. DiscoveryTaş Tepeler 5th anniversary: 30 new finds shown, including a ‘stitched-mouth’ statue
  2. PolicyTaş Tepeler (Şanlıurfa Neolithic Research Project) launched
  3. PolicySefer Tepe registered as an archaeological site after a student’s tip

Open these in the Field Log

Sources · 4

  1. Sefertepe (site page, text by E. Güldoğan)Taş Tepeler project site, T.C. Ministry of Culture and Tourism
  2. Sefertepe’deki sanatsal farklılık, yaklaşık 10 bin yıllık insan yüzü kabartmalarıyla ortaya çıktıAnadolu Agency · Nov 2025
  3. Bakan Ersoy Yeni Keşifleri TanıttıŞanlıurfa Valiliği (Governorship) · 27 Nov 2025
  4. Şanlıurfa İli Neolitik Dönem Yüzey Araştırması Sonucunda Ortaya Çıkan Yeni Bilgi ve Bulgular (B. Çelik)Türk Tarih Kurumu (PDF) · c. 2020-2022