Local Craft and Distant Ties: An Analytical Study of Chalcolithic Clay Figurines from İnönü Cave/Türkiye

This paper provides an analytical evaluation of six clay figurines unearthed from Level V of İnönü Cave on the northwestern coast of Türkiye. Radiocarbon study dates the figures to 4260–3976 Cal BC, revealing morphological and stylistic affinities with Balkan samples rather than those from central Anatolia. The observed similarity, in conjunction with additional cultural artifacts from the same setting, indicates that the cave inhabitants were linked to Southeastern European communities during the Late Chalcolithic Age. The site’s geographical position, together with its inclination towards coastal rather than inland interactions, reinforces the concept of maritime-based communication networks along the southern Black Sea coast. Despite these intercultural links, the figurines seem to have been manufactured locally. Their rough clay, irregular manufacture, and diverse clay compositions indicate unspecialized, small-scale manufacturing within the settlement. In contrast to numerous Balkan examples, the İnönü Cave figures are unadorned and simplistic, indicating a community that embraced the Balkan figurine tradition while expressing it through its own local stylistic norms. The discovered contexts indicate residential utilization rather than ritualistic or funeral purposes. Nevertheless, certain instances exhibit evidence of intentional breakage and subsequent combustion, indicating common symbolic behaviors analogous to the deliberate dismemberment practices observed in the Balkans. The study argues that these figurines were not commercially imported, but rather locally manufactured items integrated into a coastal cultural network maintained by maritime connections rather than migration. Similar to many prehistoric figurines, the meaning is ambiguous: symbolic, ritualistic, or ordinary. In conclusion, the İnönü Cave assemblage illustrates that Late Chalcolithic people in the southern Black Sea region were engaged in Balkan-Anatolian cultural interactions while also preserving unique local traditions in the creation and utilization of symbolic clay artifacts.