Karain Cave, Antalya, Turkey
The Karain cave is situated about 30 km northwest of Antalya. It is a natural cave, facing the mediterranean. Scooped out of the steep, calcareous slopes of the Cadir peak of the Sam (Cam) mountain, Mount Sam lies within the boundary of the village of Yagca, 506 km from the old Antalya Burdur road. The cave itself is at a height of 150 meters above the layer of travertine covering the Antalya plain and 650 meters above sea level.
This is the largest cave to have been inhabited in Turkey. The surroundings offer a plentiful water supply, thick vegetation and good hunting, which is why it was continuously inhabited by the first humans to settle in Anatolia.
The first archaeological excavations of Karain were started in 1946 by Doctor I. Kilic Kokten. Yet even after 26 digging seasons, only a portion of the artifacts thought to be in the cave could be excavated.
The cave is composed of three large adjoining caverns. the first of these, which lets in sunlight, is divided into sections A, B, and C. the natural shelter adjoining karain on the east is known as "Dolin." the middle cavern is entered by a natural passage. The cavern which is the widest and largest and contains the thickest deposits is the first one mentioned above. The third, and deepest cavern is accessed by a fairly long, narrow, sloping path surrounded by stalactites and stalagmites. Throughout history this cavern was from time to time used as a place of refuge, and also as a cemetery.
During the course of excavations, artifacts from the Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic, Chalcolithic, Bronze, and later ages have been found. it is apparent that the cave was used as a temple in a later period of history. Among the artifacts found were tools used by the first humans, such as hand axes, scrapers made of flint, stone awls, burins, and points, as well as a large number of bone awls, daggers made from antlers, and spearheads.
Another important find was the teeth and parts of the scull of an Neanderthal child. Other finds consist of the skulls and skeletons of Homo Sapiens from the Upper Paleolithic period. Teeth and parts of skeletons of all types of animals which lived during the Stone Age and which are now mostly extinct, as well as fossilized plants such as figs and wheat have also been found here.
Art objects from the Karain cave have established Turkey's place and importance in pre-history. These works of art recovered from the upper paleaeolithic cave deposits put the "finishing touches" to the picture drawn with other evidence about mankind during this period.
If you're visiting Antalya and are interested in pre-history, make a point to visit the Karain cave. Some of the artifacts discovered so far are displayed in a small museum near the cave.
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