DHA Photo
Anthropologists in Türkiye’s central province of Kayseri are creating 3D miniatures of 10 animals whose fossils date back 7.5 to 7.7 million years, giving visitors a glimpse of the region’s prehistoric fauna.
The figures, made from polymer clay and based on fossils found near Yamula Dam, include four elephant models, two rhinoceroses, a giraffe, a three-toed horse, a bovid similar to a modern antelope and a saber-toothed tiger. The miniatures will be displayed at Kayseri Science Center.
“We created this display to satisfy visitors’ curiosity and show what 10 different creatures from that period looked like, both morphologically and physically,” Expert Anthropologist Ömer Dağ said.
The team sculpted the figures in clay, scanned them in 3D and reproduced them with resin printers.
Kayseri Metropolitan Municipality supplied a resin printer and the models will be painted before being placed in a miniature habitat exhibit.
Rising water levels at the dam delayed fieldwork in 2026, so the team split in two, with one group continuing excavations and the other working in the laboratory. The display will show two of the elephant models in a forest setting and two in open terrain, allowing visitors to compare their physical differences.
Shepherd Murat Adıyaman found a bone fragment near the dam in the Taşhan area of Kocasinan district in 2017. Initial tests dated the fragments to between 6 million and 7.5 million years ago. The Culture and Tourism Ministry’s General Directorate of Cultural Heritage and Museums authorized excavations in 2018.
