Sefalı

The double-bull statue base has been found in the small village of Sefalı (Aşağı Şeyek), which lies about 3 km to the north of Mehmedihan (now Dağyanı) village, midway between Urfa and Viranşehir. The heads of the bulls are broken. The rectangular hole on top is the mortise hole that once held the tenon of a statue. The basalt base is 1 meter long, 95 cm high, and 85 cm wide. Repeated front legs of the bulls for front and side view and presence of covers on them indicate Assyrian influence, and a date in the late 8th century BCE has been suggested. It is on display at the Şanlıurfa Museum.

A second double bull base was found in the same village, although its find spot is not known. It measures about 90 cm in length, 61 cm in width, and 59 cm in height. It looks unfinished but has same stylistic features as the first one.

Other sculptured fragments have been noted in the same village during a survey in 1998 by Fikri Kulakoğlu (last row). These include the top part of a limestone stele with a male figure in the adoration pose, a fragment from the lower section of a basalt statue with decorative bands, and a bull relief, perhaps in situ, carved on a block in a door structure.


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