A remarkable 1,500-year-old knife set and a traditional sharpening stone have been unearthed in the ancient city of Hadrianopolis, located in the Eskipazar district of Karabük, northern Turkey. This rare archaeological discovery offers a fascinating glimpse into the daily life and enduring animal husbandry practices of the Late Roman and Early Byzantine periods.
The discovery was made during ongoing excavation and restoration work in a structure known as the "Hammam Building Complex," which served as a settlement area through various historical epochs. The excavation is being led by Professor Ersin Çelikbaş from the Department of Archaeology at Karabük University.
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A Rare Culinary Find
Archaeologists uncovered the ancient tools in what appears to have been the kitchen section of the complex. The find consists of four iron knives of similar type but varying sizes, alongside a sharpening stone locally known as a kösüre taşı.
"When the knives were first uncovered, they were in many fragments, around 250 pieces," Professor Çelikbaş told journalists. "We reconstructed these pieces in our laboratory and restored the knives to their original forms," quotes Daily Sabbah.
The significance of this discovery lies not just in the artifacts themselves, but in their context. Finding these tools together as a complete set is highly unusual and provides clear evidence of their intended use.
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The four iron knives after laboratory restoration at Hadrianopolis. (İHA / CC BY-NC-SA)
Deep Roots of Animal Husbandry
According to Professor Çelikbaş, the presence of these specific tools in a single location strongly suggests that the inhabitants of the Hammam Building Complex were actively engaged in animal husbandry.
"The fact that the knives were found in the same place indicates that the people living in the Hammam Building Complex were engaged in animal husbandry," Çelikbaş stated. "Archaeological data had already shown that livestock activities were intensive in Hadrianopolis during antiquity, especially in the Late Roman and Early Byzantine periods. The discovery of these knives confirms that families involved in animal husbandry lived in the Hadrianopolis region in ancient times."
This interpretation aligns with previous evidence from the site, painting a picture of a thriving local economy heavily reliant on livestock production.
Analysis of one of the knives. (İHA / CC BY-NC-SA)
A Timeless Tradition
The sharpening stone found alongside the knives adds another layer of historical depth. The kösüre taşı is a type of stone famously used in the region during the much later Ottoman period for sharpening cutting tools. Its discovery alongside the 1,500-year-old knives proves that this local resource was utilized much earlier than previously documented.
Stratigraphic analysis dates the knife set to the 5th or 6th centuries AD. This places the artifacts firmly within the Early Byzantine era, a time when Hadrianopolis was a flourishing center.
"Therefore, this also shows that animal husbandry activities in the Hadrianopolis region – and in present-day Eskipazar – have continued uninterrupted for approximately 1,500 years," Çelikbaş concluded, recorded Hurriyet Daily News.
Aerial view of the theater and surrounds at Hadrianopolis, Turkey. (Robmor01/CC BY-SA 4.0)
The ancient city of Hadrianopolis, often referred to as the "Zeugma of the Black Sea" due to its stunning mosaics, continues to reveal the secrets of Anatolia's rich past. This latest discovery not only highlights the practicalities of ancient food preparation but also demonstrates the remarkable continuity of agricultural practices across millennia.
Top image: The 1,500-year-old knife set and sharpening stone discovered at Hadrianopolis, Karabuk, Turkey, April 17, 2026. Source: İHA / CC BY-NC-SA
By Gary Manners
References
Altuntaş, L. 2026. Rare 1,500-Year-Old Knife Set Found Together in Hadrianopolis Reveals Deep Roots of Animal Husbandry. Anatolian Archaeology. Available at: https://www.anatolianarchaeology.net/rare-1500-year-old-knife-set-found-together-in-hadrianopolis-reveals-deep-roots-of-animal-husbandry/
Daily Sabah with AA. 2026. 1,500-year-old knives found in Türkiye's Hadrianopolis. Daily Sabah. Available at: https://www.dailysabah.com/arts/1500-year-old-knives-found-in-turkiyes-hadrianopolis/news
Hurriyet Daily News. 2026. 1,500-year-old knife set unearthed at ancient city of Hadrianopolis. Hurriyet Daily News. Available at: https://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/1-500-year-old-knife-set-unearthed-at-ancient-city-of-hadrianopolis-221186
