Ancient tablet found in Turkey has links to Assyria

MALATYA, TURKEY - OCTOBER 19: A 3,200-year-old ivory tablet found in Turkey's eastern Malatya province has given clues on a connection between the region and Assyria -- an ancient Mesopotamian kingdom -- according to the head of an excavation team. “The ivory tablet is a very important finding, as it was found for the first time here,” the head of an excavation team and professor at the Sapienza University of Rome, Marcelle Frangipane, told Anadolu Agency. Frangipane said scientific studies on the “unique artifact” -- found two years ago at the Archaeological Site of Arslantepe -- was completed. The tablet, thought to have belonged to 1,200 B.C., has a rectangular frame measuring 4.3 by 8.1 centimeters (1.6 by 3.1 inches). It is also 0.8-cm (0.3 inches) thick. “There are two goat figures and there is a plant, like a tree, between these figures. There are decorational motives around the tablet," she described, adding: “These motives were mostly used by Assyrians in Syria. The tablet may be coming from Assyria, or may have been made here." Stating the carvings were very similar in style to those found in Iraq and Syria, she said: “It might be a decoration of furniture. It is a beautiful work of art and it is important for the history of the mound." “It is the same with the motives in Syria, Iraq and Nemrut [in southeastern Adiyaman]; there may be a trade relation between them,” Frangipane said, adding that they did not know the exact connection yet. She said the finding was one of a kind, as it was the first piece found in the area that showed a link with the south (Assyria). “These kinds of artifacts are found in Syria and Mesopotamia, but it is a unique piece for here,” she noted. The four-hectare and 30-meter high archaeological mound, lying 5 kilometers away from the city center, was accepted into the UNESCO Tentative List of World Heritage on April 15, 2014. (Footage by s/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)