Türkcan emphasized the importance of analysis studies, noting that the university's laboratories' capability to conduct all analyses is a "significant advantage."
He also highlighted the significance of this capability being established for the first time in Turkish laboratories.
Salih Kavak, a lecturer at Gaziantep University, expressed excitement for his contribution to the analysis and evaluation of the "Çatalhöyük Space 66 Neolithic Period Bread Discovery," stating it's the most exciting study in archaeo-botany to date.
Kavak recounted being informed of the organic discovery while examining plant residues in the laboratory.
He expressed surprise upon receiving it, initially pondering whether such a form could indeed be "dough, bread, or an organic residue."
"Upon a visual morphological diagnosis and subsequent microscopic examination, the most exciting aspect was the presence of cereal residues," he stressed.
Adding that the discovery of ground or broken pieces belonging to plants like barley, wheat, and peas "immediately strengthened" the possibility of it being bread.
Kavak highlighted the need for chemical and physical analyses of the discovery to confirm their hypothesis.
He stressed that directed to BITAM for analysis by Oguz Dogan, a detailed examination, including SEM images, revealed air pockets and plant residues.
"Chemical analyses indicated signs of fermentation, suggesting the mixture had been prepared but not baked," he said.
Kavak concluded that this "unprecedented discovery" marks the oldest known bread-like specimen, sparking excitement in Türkiye and worldwide.
BITAM's Deputy Director, Yasin Ramazan Eker, told Anadolu that he emphasized the center's capability to analyze archaeological findings and noted that they "could determine the chemical and physical structures of samples and interpret their significance."
"With advanced technology, we could conduct these analyses at the BITAM central laboratory, leading to more accurate diagnoses," he said.
He added that the discovery of an 8,600-year-old bread residue at Çatalhöyük raised suspicions, which were confirmed through the analyses, indicating the sample's unbaked nature.
