“Korea is impressively precise”···Turkey excavation team ‘marvels’ at the discovery of a ‘Hellenistic mosaic’ for the first time in 78 years - 경향신문

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Bulent Gonultas, Deputy Director General at the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of Turkey; Fikri Kulakoglu, a professor at Ankara University; and Choi Ji-yeon, a researcher at the Kultepe site (from left), explain the research results at a Korea-Turkey joint research briefing held at the Koreana Hotel in Seoul on the 27th.

Fikri Kulakoglu of Ankara University, who leads the Kultepe excavation in Turkey and is conducting joint research with Korea, offered this assessment of the Korean team at a press briefing at the Koreana Hotel in Seoul on the 27th. The National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage under the Korea Heritage Service, working with the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of Turkey and Ankara University, achieved the discovery of Hellenistic-period (323~30 BCE) mosaic remains at the Kultepe site. It is the first such find in the 78 years since full-scale excavations began in 1948.

Kultepe is an ancient urban site near Kayseri in Central Anatolia, Turkey. It was the capital of the Kingdom of Kanesh (Nesha) prior to the Hittite Empire and a trade hub for Assyrian merchants. Some 23,500 cuneiform clay tablets recording the transactions and daily lives of merchants about 4,000 years ago have been unearthed, and the archive was inscribed on UNESCO's Memory of the World Register in 2015.

In April 2024, the two countries agreed to expand cooperation in the conservation and restoration of cultural heritage and to conduct a joint excavation at the Kultepe site. The institute carried out on-site excavations for about 45 days each last year and this year. While investigating east of the Warshama Palace in the upper city, traces of Hellenistic-period architecture emerged.

Remains of a mosaic, presumed to be part of a building, revealed during the excavation at the Kultepe site. The corners of the remains have been identified, and the exposed portion measures about 163㎝ east-west and 165㎝ north-south. The original extent is thought to have been wider than the area that survives today. Provided by the Korea Heritage Service

This extends understanding of life in the Hellenistic period at Kultepe, where excavations had previously focused on the Bronze Age. The building with the mosaic is estimated to have been constructed around 300 BCE. Its floor was prepared with a foundation of stone and earth and finished with small river pebbles. Finds of mosaics are rare in Central Anatolia. Because they required the hand of specialized artisans, the location was likely an important place.

Traces of at least three buildings also emerged in the investigation area. Four superimposed occupation layers preserve evidence of daily life, allowing researchers to trace how people rebuilt structures and repurposed spaces. Professor Kulakoglu said, “It may have been a sacred place where rituals were performed,” adding that “it indicates there was indeed a large city.”

Researchers from five countries Korea, the United States, Italy, Japan, and Australia are participating in the Kultepe excavation. Although each team has a different research focus, the Korean team, which joined last year, produced these results after only two field seasons. The Korean researchers record sites and artifacts with 3D surveying and produce precise drawings. Specialists in palaeoenvironment and conservation have been involved from the early stages of the excavation to analyze mosaic materials and animal bones. Professor Kulakoglu cited systematic preparation from preliminary surveys and the ability of experts from different fields to analyze together as reasons for achieving results in a short time. Digitally recording the tens of thousands of pottery sherds that emerge each season can reduce both errors and processing time.

Overseas excavations by the National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage, which gathered momentum in 2000, have investigated Balhae sites in Russia and burial mounds and Buddhist temples in Mongolia and Central Asia to study the origins of the Korean people and the formation and transmission of ancient Korean culture. Park Yoon-jeong, head of archaeology at the National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage, described the current joint research as “a turning point that expanded overseas investigations of sites related to ancient Korean history into joint investigations of ancient world civilizations.” Bulent Gonultas, Deputy Director General at the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of Turkey, said, “We hope to combine Korea's technological and digital restoration capabilities with Turkey's achievements in site research to enhance cooperation between the two countries.”

The Turkish side is preparing to submit a nomination next year for Kultepe, which was placed on the World Heritage Tentative List in 2014. The two countries will continue with a third excavation season from May to July next year. To mark the 70th anniversary of diplomatic relations, a special exhibition introducing ancient Anatolian culture, including the results of this joint project, will be held at the National Palace Museum from August to October next year.

View of the Kultepe site. Provided by the Korea Heritage Service

Scene from the second Korea-Turkey excavation at the Kultepe site. Provided by the Korea Heritage Service