Some 51 historical artifacts believed to belong to the Mesopotamian era were seized by Turkish customs officials before they could be smuggled over the Syrian border on Wednesday.

A vehicle attempting to pass through the Cilvegözü customs gate and cross Türkiye's border with Syria attracted the attention of customs teams during inspections. During the inspection, the area between the steering wheel and windshield that was covered with fabric drew the attention of the officers, and it was soon determined that there were various human and animal figurines hidden under the cover.

The figures in question were sent to the Hatay Museum Directorate to be examined by the teams of the Cilvegözü Customs Enforcement Smuggling and Intelligence Directorate on the suspicion that they might be historical artifacts.

Expert analysis revealed that the figurines were not of Anatolian origin but instead from Mesopotamian sites, most likely from sites in Iraq. Dating back thousands of years, the artifacts were made of ivory and animal bones, and were originally cultural assets produced to adorn furniture or similar items.

It was stated that the bone figures, which are estimated to date 2750-2250 B.C., are similar to the figures found in the Ur king tombs and exhibited in museums such as the British Museum, Baghdad Museum, Louvre Museum, Chicago University Museum and Syria's Deir el-Zour Museum. The confiscated artifacts will remain under official protection, and an investigation headed by Reyhanlı Chief Public Prosecutor's Office is ongoing.