Overview

• The newly published study reports 138 Paleolithic lithic artifacts recovered during a two‑week surface survey in June 2022 across 10 coastal sites covering roughly 200 km².
• Artifact types include Levallois flakes, handaxes, and cleavers, linking the assemblage to Middle Paleolithic traditions associated with Neanderthals and early Homo sapiens.
• The authors argue that Pleistocene sea levels dropped by about 100 meters, exposing a continuous landmass that could have connected Anatolia and Europe through the Ayvalık region.
• All finds are unstratified surface materials, so the team calls for stratigraphic excavations, absolute dating, and paleoenvironmental work, with underwater searches considered to locate submerged contexts.
• The paper, in the Journal of Island and Coastal Archaeology, formally documents Ayvalık’s previously unreported Paleolithic presence and broadens inquiry beyond the commonly emphasized Levant and Balkan corridors.