[4] The museum ground is located on a hill in a woodland landscape overlooking the Andırın Plain, and is a peninsula surrounded on three sides by the Aslantaş Dam reservoir.

[2] Karatepe is on the historic caravan trail, called Akyol, ("white road") which connects Cilicia with Central Anatolia over Andırın-Göksün.

They informed Ekrem Kuşçu, the village school teacher, who in turn notified Naci Kum, the director of Adana Museum.

The government commissioned Helmuth Theodor Bossert (1889–1961), German professor of archaeology at Istanbul University, to conduct excavations, which began in Spring 1946.

Upon Çambel's efforts, the archaeological site and its close surroundings were established as the Karatepe-Aslantaş National Park with effect of September 28, 1958.

The walls of the two chambers flanking the gate are covered with reliefs on basalt stone, which depict the faith and way of life of that time.

[4][6] At the northeastern gate, two stone statues of sphinx, a mythical creature with, the head of a human and the body of a lion, are placed.