A herder tending to his goats in the highlands of southwestern Turkey’s Muğla Province discovered a Roman funerary stele in the shape of an altar with figural reliefs. The front of stele features a relief of a man and woman under an arch, likely a married couple, with a Greek inscription underneath. Reliefs of two different types of wreaths are carved into each of the sides. The herder spotted the funerary grave marker in a forested area in the foothills of Akdağ mountain and reported it to the Fethiye Museum Directorate. Archaeologists were dispatched to examine it and they recognized it as an object of historical significance because of its imagery, inscription and completeness. They also recognized how heavy it is — an estimated 300 kilos (660 lbs) — and therefore how difficult it would be to remove it from the rugged hills and schlep it over rough terrain 45 minutes to the nearest road and thence to the museum. They buried it for its own protection and set up motion-detector cameras to keep it safe while they worked on the logistics. To recover the stele, a team or archaeologists and support workers hiked to the find site, wrapped the heavy stone and then carried it for seven hours down the rocky, forested, steep hillside to the road. Archaeologist Ahmet Meke, who took part in the recovery, said the piece likely dates to the first–third centuries C.E. and represents a type of altar-shaped grave stele commonly seen across Anatolia. He explained that what sets this example apart is its elaborate relief carving and inscription, elements that give it significant epigraphic value. According to Meke, the front of the stone depicts a man and a woman, suggesting a family portrait commemorating the deceased. The clothing and styling of the figures, he noted, offer a window onto everyday life and the social fabric of Roman-period communities in the region. He added that the accompanying inscription contains information about the individual buried there. The marker will now be cleaned and conserved. The find site is still being protected by the security cameras while authorities go through the steps of proposing it for protected status.