A Goddess Figurine from Catalhoyuk

The latest discovery from the amazing archaeological site of Çatalhöyük in Turkey is this small stone statue, about 8,000 years old. It is 7 inches (17 cm) tall.

A whole bunch of goddess and other figurines have come from Çatalhöyük over the years. Most have been made of clay and rather rough. They have also been found in trash dumps rather than any sort of ritual setting, which has led some people to question whether they had any religious meaning at all. But this one is stone, much better made than the others, and it was found buried in a clay platform in a house, the sort of place where Catalhoyuk folk liked to hide sacred objects.