Traces of about 200 thousand years of life found in Çorum

Traces from the Middle Paleolithic Period were found in the researches carried out within the scope of the “Çorum Prehistoric Period Surface Research Project” in Çorum.

Traces from the Middle Paleolithic Period were found in the researches carried out within the scope of the “Çorum Prehistoric Period Surface Research Project” carried out by the Hittite University Department of Archaeology with the permission of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism in Çorum. With the financial support of Çorum Municipality and Hittite University, the team concentrated on their research in the central district region and found parts belonging to “cutting and drilling tools”, usually made of flint, at 237 locations, about 40 of which were previously known.

TRACES OF THE FIRST SETTLED LIFE IN ÇORUM FOUND

According to reports, Dr. Mehmet Ozan Ozbudak said that in addition to traces belonging to the hunter-gatherer period, they had also found traces of the first settled life in Corum, dating back about 8,500 years. Stating that Anatolia is an archaeologically rich region, he said, “Traces of the oldest human culture in Anatolia reach up to 1 million years. Especially we know these from settlements such as Kaletepe in Niğde and Dursunlu in Konya. In our research, we have found data reaching up to 200 thousand years for now.”

He said, during their work at the spot they had found cutting and drilling tool parts from this period defined as “the Middle Paleolithic period” and covering the years between 250 thousand-45 thousand years before BC and that they could belong to 100 thousand to 200 thousand ago.

He also said “Certain stone tools are defined by construction traditions and techniques. With what we have found in the field, we point to the Middle Paleolithic Period based on the techniques accepted all over the world. When we expand our research, we will reach even older ones.”