Archaeologists working at the ancient harbor city of Bathonea, located on the shores of Lake Küçükçekmece in Istanbul’s Avcılar district, have uncovered an olive oil and wine production complex dating to the Late Antiquity.
The discovery was made within the framework of the “Heritage for the Future Project” (Geleceğe Miras Projesi), jointly carried out by the Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism and Kocaeli University.
The olive oil and wine workshop uncovered at the ancient harbor city of Bathonea, featuring a circular fermentation pool, pressing platforms, and amphora fragments.
According to excavation director Prof. Dr. Şengül Aydıngün of Kocaeli University, the site has yielded “a large olive oil and wine processing complex,” including pressing platforms, collection basins, and storage facilities. This year’s most striking find was a stone spout decorated with a lion head, channeling liquid into a fermentation pool—a sophisticated design that reflects both craftsmanship and functional engineering.
“We encountered a smaller yet elegantly built structure adorned with a lion-headed spout, through which the liquid flowed into a fermentation pool,” Aydıngün said. “It shows artistic craftsmanship on one hand and an expanding production facility on the other.”
Archaeologists uncover a stone spout decorated with a lion’s head and an adjoining fermentation pool at the ancient harbor city of Bathonea. Surrounding structures reveal pressing platforms and production areas.
A growing production center on the ancient shore
Archaeologists note that the area fulfills the main criteria of an ancient production facility: a pressing platform, collection and fermentation pools, storage units, and distribution vessels.
Numerous amphora fragments were recovered nearby—some potentially bearing inscriptions referring to production sites or harvest years. The presence of glass drinking cups suggests that the products were also consumed or tested on-site.
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