The Yesemek Quarry and Sculpture Workshop

The Yesemek Quarry and Sculpture Workshop

Located in the village of Yesemek, on the west side of Aslanlıtepe (Karatepe), the Yesemek Quarry and Sculpture Workshop spans an area of approximately 400x20 meters. It starts from a watercourse that rises up to 90 meters from the Yesemek brook.

Yesemek National Park is located about 110 kilometers from Gaziantep and is part of UNESCO's World Heritage Site tentative list for Turkey since 2012. This Turkish national park is a place where visitors can find fantastic statues alongside ancient reliefs that represent centuries of history.

The Yesemek Quarry and Sculpture Workshop

The Yesemek Sculpture Workshop dates back to the Late Hittite States period, around 900-800 B.C., according to excavation findings. It is believed that the production of sculptures continued for some time after this period, possibly during the Samal Kingdom period. However, after the Kingdom collapsed due to an invasion from Assyria, the workers left the site and the workshop was abandoned, becoming a tourist attraction in modern times.

The difficulty of transporting the blocks of stone from the quarry was a key indicator of the technology and art of that period. Moreover, the region is an important example of the exchange of values among different cultures.

The Yesemek Sculpture Workshop is the largest sculpture workshop of the ancient age in Anatolia and one of the most significant centers for cultural heritage inventory. Many sculptures, god reliefs, and over 300 fragments have been transferred as rough copies to modern times without much damage. These sculptures not only represent the artistic skills of their creators, but also reflect the religious beliefs of their era.