Lion's Head Spout Found In Ancient Turkish Wine Workshop

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.

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 He