Researchers from the Kuwait-Polish Archaeological Mission (KPAM) working at the Bahra 1 site in the Al-Subiyah desert of northern Kuwait have discovered a mysterious 7,500-year-old figurine of a head with reptilian features, including an elongated skull, slanting eyes, and a flat nose.
After studying the artifact, Professor Piotr Bielinski from the Polish Centre of Mediterranean Archaeology, University of Warsaw (PCMA UW) said that the discovery of the figurine, the first of its kind found in the region, “raises intriguing questions about its purpose and the symbolic, or possibly ritualistic, value it held for the people of this ancient community.”
The research team, which includes scientists from PCMA UW and Kuwait’s National Council of Culture, Arts, and Letters (NCCAL), notes that the newly discovered figurine is somewhat similar in design to statues and figurines with bird, snake, or reptilian features made by the Ubaid culture, which flourished during that time and region. However, most archaeologists still don’t know the Ubaid people’s motivations for constructing reptilian-headed figures.
Along with the mysterious figurine, evidence of locally made pottery and a pottery foundry used to create Coarse Red Ware (CRW) was also found at the site. The discovery of a CRW foundry resolves a long-standing debate about the origin of this type of pottery, which the researchers say is “known from sites in the Arabian Peninsula.”
Who (or What) Do Figures with Reptilian Features Represent?
Depictions of humans with snake heads, lizard heads, or other classically reptilian features have appeared in several worldwide cultures throughout history. However, most have been tied to specific gods or religious practices. Ancient Egyptians worshipped a god named Sobek, often depicted with an alligator head on a human body. Pre-Columbian and Meso-American cultures worshipped Quetzalcoatl (Aztec) and K’uk’ulkan (Maya), respectively, both of whom are depicted with snake or serpent heads.
The Sumerians, considered the earliest known civilization, worshiped a snake god named Ningishzida, who was shown to represent vegetation, the underworld, and sometimes war. Although the Ubaid period predates the Sumerians by thousands of years, both flourished in Mesopotamia, meaning the Sumerians may have inherited their worship of iconography with reptilian features from their Ubaid ancestors.
Still, archaeologists don’t know the significance of the original Ubaid period people’s motivations for making statues that look distinctively non-human or how those statues may have been included in religious, spiritual, or ceremonial practices.
A listing on the Penn Museum’s website describing a display that includes Ubaid culture figurines with reptilian features says, “It has been variously proposed to see in them representations of a primitive Semitic Japhetite, Subaraean or simply pre-Sumerian population.” However, the museum notes that a more comprehensive survey of the geological conditions in southern Mesopotamia at the time of the statues’ manufacture “may throw some light on the obscure subject.”
On-Site Manufacture of Coarse Red Ware Resolves Longstanding Mystery
Aside from the figurine, two types of pottery were discovered at the Bahra 1 site. The first is considered a typical example of Ubaid ware, which was known to have been imported from Mesopotamia to the general Gulf region. The second was CRW.
According to the researchers, CRW has often been described as made locally in the Gulf region, “but actual places of its production have hitherto remained unknown.” But now, they add, their discovery of a foundry and unfired CRW clay vessel “confirm Bahra 1 as the oldest known pottery production site in the Gulf.”
The team also brought in Dr. Roman Hovsepyan and Prof. Aldona Mueller-Bieniek, archaeobotany specialists, to study selected pottery fragments. If successful, the KPAM researchers hoped the archaeobotanists could extract any traces of plant matter “that might help identify local flora from the mid-6th millennium BCE.”
According to Dr. Hovsepyan, early tests run on the pottery fragments “have revealed traces of wild plants, particularly reed, within the locally produced pottery.” This finding supports the idea that the CRW was made locally.
Conversely, Dr. Hovsepyan says the team found early traces of cultivated plant remains, including cereals, “such as barley and wheat,” embedded within the imported Ubaid ware. This finding supports the idea that Ubaid ware was imported.
One Mystery Solved, One Mystery Remains
Given the location of the Bahra 1 site and the prevalence of the Ubaid people 7,500 years ago, the researchers feel confident that their discovery is from those people or was directly influenced by their iconography. They also believe their discovery has solved the mystery behind the local production of CRW.
And, while more excavations are planned for the Bahra 1 site, meaning even more figures with reptilian features may be revealed, researchers still don’t know why they were made or what they represent. Some ideas may come from the Sumerians or other ancient cultures, but until more is known about the people of the Ubaid period, their motivations for creating these types of figurines with reptilian features will remain a mystery.
Christopher Plain is a Science Fiction and Fantasy novelist and Head Science Writer at The Debrief. Follow and connect with him on X, learn about his books at plainfiction.com, or email him directly at christopher@thedebrief.org.