SANLIURFA, TURKEY—Anatolian Archaeology reports that Turkish officials announced the discovery of a decorated rock-cut tomb that was hidden in the courtyard of a house in the Sanlıurfa’s Eyyübiye neighborhood. The single-chamber structure is adorned with various relief sculptures, including a reclining male figure leaning on his left arm and a pair of winged women. In the past, excavations in Sanlıurfa have uncovered more than 100 tombs that were carved into rock outcroppings at various times from the late Hittite period, from the ninth to seventh century b.c., through the Roman era of the first to fourth century a.d. Archaeologists have not yet determined the date of the latest discovery. The burial chamber’s entrance way was painted with an inscription in red ocher that may provide clues in the future about when it was created, but it is damaged and badly preserved and has not been deciphered. To read about excavations at sites in Sanlıurfa Province dating to more than 10,000 years ago, go to "Discovering a New Neolithic World."
