The spout was seemingly once used to funnel wine or olive byproduct into a fermentation pool at a workshop in the ancient port city of Bathonea.
Kocaeli UniversityArchaeologists work to excavate the lion’s head spout that was once used in the production of wine or olive oil.
During this season’s excavations in the ancient Turkish port city of Bathonea, archaeologists with Kocaeli University and the Ministry of Culture and Tourism uncovered a stunning artifact. Inside an ancient wine and olive oil workshop, they found a spout encased in a stone lion’s head that once drained into a fermentation pool.
Alongside this incredible spout, archaeologists also discovered amphora fragments, drinking glasses, a pressing platform, and other artifacts that reveal how the workshop ran. What’s more, they found animal bones inside one of the pools — suggesting that the site may have also been used for ritual purposes.
The Lion’s Head Spout At An Ancient Wine Workshop
This remarkable discovery was made at Bathonea, an ancient port city on Lake Küçükçekmece in Istanbul. During last year’s excavations, archaeologists found a wine and olive oil workshop dating back to Late Antiquity, between the third and eighth centuries C.E.
“The workshops we discovered are the first site discovered in the Thracian region of Turkey,” said Dr. Şengül Aydıngün, a faculty member at Kocaeli University and one of the lead archaeologists on the project, in a statement. “A system capable of producing both olive oil and wine was established here.”
When excavations began anew this season, the archaeologists continued to investigate the workshop. That’s when they uncovered the lion’s head spout, which likely funneled either wine or olive byproduct into a fermentation pool.
Kocaeli UniversityThe fully excavated spout and fermentation pool.
“We’ve been encountering interesting finds for the past two years,” Aydıngün told Turkish media. “We came across a large olive oil and wine production complex… This year, right next to it, we came across a smaller, much more elegant space adorned with a lion’s head, with liquids flowing from its mouth.”
“This has us very excited,” Aydıngün continued. “It shows artistic craftsmanship on one hand and an expanding production facility on the other.”
The lion’s head isn’t the only extraordinary find the archaeologists made at the site, however.
Evidence Of Ritual Ceremonies At Bathonea
Alongside the spout and fermentation pool, archaeologists found a pressing platform, several other pools, and fragments of amphora seemingly inscribed with harvest years. They also uncovered drinking glasses, which suggest that the wine and olive oil were consumed onsite, either to taste test the product or as part of a ceremony.
What’s more, animal bones were found in one of the pools, adding to the evidence that rituals were performed at the workshop. “We’re possibly looking at a place where production, storage, and ritual consumption intersected,” said Aydıngün.
Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism/Kocaeli UniversityPrevious excavations at Bathonea, where the spout was uncovered this year.
As excavations continue, experts hope to find out more about Bathonea’s role in the immediate region and beyond in terms of agricultural production and trade.
“One of this season’s biggest surprises,” said Aydıngün, “is that the Bathonea workshop — whether for olive oil or wine — keeps expanding with every new layer we uncover.”
After reading about the lion’s head spout uncovered in Turkey, learn about Vin Mariani, the cocaine-laced wine enjoyed by popes and Thomas Edison. Then, go inside the eruption of Mount Vesuvius and the destruction of Pompeii, where a similar lion’s head spout was once uncovered.
