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In Türkiye, scientists are using 3D printers to rebuild the remains of animals that walked the Earth nearly 8 million years ago. The fossils, found near the Yamula Dam in Kayseri, belonged to some of the largest creatures of the prehistoric steppe, including elephants, rhinos, giraffes, three-toed horses, and saber-toothed cats.
Now, these ancient giants are coming back to life for the Kayseri Paleontology Museum, currently under construction and set to open in 2026. The new museum, designed by the Kayseri Metropolitan Municipality, will feature wide, open interiors while preserving the historic architecture of the existing building next door.
Rendering of the Kayseri Paleontology Museum. Image courtesy of Kayseri Metropolitan Municipality.
Most of the fossils were found in fragments, said anthropologist Ömer Dağ, like a single jaw, a skull, or a limb. For decades, archaeologists and restorers filled in the gaps by making molds and casts with liquid chemicals, but this is a slow process that sometimes hardened around the fossils and even damaged them.
Dağ explained that researchers often recover separate parts, such as skulls, legs, or arms, and then determine their species before moving on to 3D scanning.
Now, the team uses new 3D printers purchased by the Kayseri municipality to do the same work safely and more quickly. Once a fossil’s species is identified, they 3D scan the fragments, design the missing parts digitally, slice the models, and print lightweight, plastic-like replicas that fit right into the missing sections. As seen in state-run Anadolu Agency photos, the printers used are Creality machines, operated at the Kayseri Science Center.
And unlike the chemical molds once used, the 3D printed material is safe for both the fossils and the people handling them, helping preserve each specimen for the upcoming museum display.
What’s more, the work, supported by the Kayseri Metropolitan Municipality, is now done entirely locally, rather than outsourced overseas.
“A giraffe mounting used to cost between 2 and 3 million lira [that’s roughly between $47,500 and $71,400],” Dağ said. “We did it for about 15 thousand lira [$356].”
Those savings are super important to the research team, since each species on display is being recreated bone by bone. The mounts are designed so that museum visitors can finally see the full animals instead of just the scattered fragments.
Inside rendering of the Kayseri Paleontology Museum. Image courtesy of Kayseri Metropolitan Municipality.
So far, the scientists have completed full mounts of a giraffe, a rhino, and an elephant, as well as smaller antelope-like species. The saber-toothed cat is next. Every printed part is based on data, measurements from research papers, digital models, and mathematical reconstructions.
“We slice the models in 3D printer programs and send them to the printers,” said Berk Durmuş, another anthropologist on the project. The result: accurate, lightweight replicas that fill in the story of what once lived in the Anatolian plains.
Kayseri Science Center, where laboratory work on 7.5 million-year-old fossils found in the Yamula Dam is ongoing. Image courtesy of M. Rifat Hisarcıklıoğlu via Instagram.
The city has also been showcasing the project publicly. At this year’s Kayseri Science Festival, the excavation team brought one of their 3D printers to the event, giving visitors, including students and families, a close look at how the missing fossil parts are recreated. A short video posted by the Kayseri Metropolitan Municipality on Instagram shows the team demonstrating the printer’s process and explaining how digital tools are helping scientists rebuild the region’s ancient fauna.
3D printing has been helping paleontologists and archaeologists for more than a decade. It’s been used to replicate dinosaur bones in the U.S., ancient human fossils in South Africa, and even delicate artifacts that can’t be touched. In Kayseri, that same technology is being used to rebuild Türkiye’s own prehistory.
