{"id":8840,"date":"2026-02-11T12:01:01","date_gmt":"2026-02-11T12:01:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ofero.news\/?p=8840"},"modified":"2026-02-11T12:01:01","modified_gmt":"2026-02-11T12:01:01","slug":"central-romania-7500-year-old-clay-female-figurine-discovered-near-sfantu-gheorghe","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ofero.news\/?p=8840","title":{"rendered":"Central Romania: 7,500-year-old clay female figurine discovered near Sf\u00e2ntu Gheorghe"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Archaeologists have uncovered a 7,500-year-old clay female figurine near Sf\u00e2ntu Gheorghe in central Romania, the National Museum of the Eastern Carpathians (MNCR) announced on social media, as reported by <a href=\"https:\/\/agerpres.ro\/cultura-media\/2026\/02\/10\/covasna-figurina-feminina-veche-de-peste-7-500-de-ani-descoperita-de-arheologi-in-apropierea-municip--1526835\" target=\"_blank\">Agerpres<\/a>. The discovery was made during preventive excavations at the Arcu\u0219-Platoul T\u00e2rgului (Vasarteto) site, carried out ahead of electricity network expansion works near Sepsi Arena.<\/p>\n<p>The statuette, dated between 5,800 and 5,500 BC and attributed to the Star\u010devo-Cri\u0219 culture, was found inside a Neolithic dwelling alongside pottery fragments, traces of burnt clay, and charcoal. The Star\u010devo-Cri\u0219 culture is among the earliest agricultural cultures in southeastern Europe.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Standing just 6 centimeters tall, the figurine was crafted from clay mixed with chaff and sand and fired at high temperature, the museum explained. It features incised V-shaped eyes, a small oval nose, and fine lines suggesting long hair, possibly tied in a bun &#8211; considered one of the earliest depictions of female hairstyle north of the Danube.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe arms, modeled laterally, appear raised, and at the front, two small protrusions indicating the breasts can be seen &#8211; a clear sign that we are dealing with a female figure. This position, with the arms open, was typical of Neolithic representations, symbolizing prayer, invocation, or communion with the divine,\u201d the museum also said.<\/p>\n<p>Archaeologists believe the artifact may have had a ritual function, possibly serving as an offering, amulet, or fertility symbol.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Specialists noted that such figurines are rare within the Star\u010devo-Cri\u0219 culture, making the Arcu\u0219 discovery particularly valuable for understanding early Neolithic communities in the region.<\/p>\n\n<p>irina.marica@romania-insider.com<\/p>\n<p>(Photo source: Facebook\/<em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/mncro?__tn__=-UC*F\">MNCR &#8211; Muzeul Na\u0163ional al Carpa\u0163ilor R\u0103s\u0103riteni<\/a>)<\/em><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Archaeologists have uncovered a 7,500-year-old clay female figurine near Sf\u00e2ntu Gheorghe in central Romania, the National Museum of the Eastern Carpathians (MNCR) announced on social media, as reported by Agerpres. The discovery was made during preventive excavations at the Arcu\u0219-Platoul T\u00e2rgului (Vasarteto) site, carried out ahead of electricity network expansion works near Sepsi Arena. The [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8840","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ofero.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8840","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ofero.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ofero.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ofero.news\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=8840"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/ofero.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8840\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ofero.news\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=8840"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ofero.news\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=8840"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ofero.news\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=8840"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}