Archaeologists excavating Tadım Castle and Mound in eastern Türkiye have uncovered a 5,000-year-old temple complex complete with ritual altars and sacred hearths, offering new evidence of religious practices during the Early Bronze Age.
The discovery was made during the third excavation season at the site near Elazığ, which forms part of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism’s Legacy for the Future Project. Excavations are being carried out under the direction of the Elazığ Museum Directorate with support from local authorities.
The newly uncovered structure dates to around 3000 BC and consists of a temple area containing two stone altars and three sacred hearths believed to have been used during religious ceremonies. Archaeologists say the latest discovery increases the number of temples identified at Tadım Castle to two, while the total number of sacred hearths uncovered at the site has now reached six.
The ritual complex adds another chapter to the long history of the mound, which preserves evidence of continuous occupation spanning thousands of years. Earlier excavations revealed an even older temple, thought to date back around 6,000 years, highlighting the site’s importance as a centre of ritual activity over successive periods.
Elazığ Governor Numan Hatipoğlu said excavations across the province have been intensified, with work also taking place at Harput Castle, Palu Castle and Salkaya.
“We have accelerated the excavations for 2026, and very important findings are emerging,” Hatipoğlu said. “The newly uncovered sacred area has a history of approximately 5,000 years. The discoveries at Tadım Castle are of great importance for understanding both regional history and the history of humanity.”
Hatipoğlu noted that the mound preserves archaeological layers from many different periods. While the upper levels contain Ottoman remains, deeper excavations have revealed traces of the Seljuk period, the Eastern Roman Empire, the Iron Age, the Chalcolithic, Bronze and Neolithic periods.
“In the area where we began excavating this year, we uncovered a temple dating to around 3000 BC, together with an altar and three sacred hearths,” he said. “We hope these discoveries will help us better understand the lives, beliefs and traditions of the people who lived here thousands of years ago.”
Excavation director and archaeologist Emre Çayır said the newly discovered cult area provides valuable insight into the religious beliefs of Bronze Age communities in eastern Anatolia.
“The worship area, together with its altars and sacred hearths, tells us a great deal about the belief system that existed here 5,000 years ago,” Çayır said. “These discoveries hold an important place in archaeological research because they help us understand how ritual practices developed during the Bronze Age.”
The site has, as Çayır says, a very special sequence of archaeological layers that records thousands of years of human occupation. The Bronze Age deposits are being excavated currently and the evidence of daily life, ritual and settlement are being provided, he says.
Archaeologists expect further excavations at Tadım Castle to reveal new structures and artefacts to add to a picture of one of the longest occupied archaeological sites in eastern Türkiye.
Sources : Republic of Türkiye Ministry of Culture and Tourism
