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Göbekli Tepe and the Neolithic sites around Urfa, which were identified by surveys, provide rich data for the transition of human beings from hunter-gatherer groups to settled and semi- settled agricultural societies. It is possible to trace most of the institutional foundations of today's societies to this transition period. Social theory, which was heavily influenced by the "Neolithic revolution" paradigm, ignored this transitional period. Sociological thought categorizes societies as hunter-gatherer and agricultural societies starting from the back and moves from the axiom that hunter-gatherer societies are egalitarian and agricultural societies are hierarchical. On the other hand, archaeological studies, while addressing the hierarchical "nature" of Neolithic societies, do not

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(An Alternative Perspective on Anthropomorphic Themes) The humans of the Göbekli Tepe Neolithic culture of the Upper Euphrates Basin left behind long-term settlements with surprising monumental structures and a rich set of symbolism. This study puts the various symbolic themes of this culture at its center, and attempts to offer a reasonable interpretation of how the people of this culture and period constructed a “reality” about themselves. When the themes of the human head and phallus are positioned at the center of the interpretations of this period’s symbolism, it is possible to claim that the Neolithic people conceptualized/explained themselves through a complex mythological narrative. This paper also hopes

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Göbekli Tepe—Turkish for “Hill of the navel” is the world's most ancient piece of architecture. Located in the Germus Mountains of southeastern Turkey and erected fif teen kilometers high at the peak of this elongated mountain ridge (Haughton, 2011), the structure is known to be the oldest human made temple on Earth (Briticana, 2020). The discovery of this 12 000 year old temple—the earliest surviving religious site in the world—in 1974 left archaeologists and scientists shocked. Some researchers even went as far to claim that this site was the biblical garden of Eden (Betz, 2020). The property is made up of layers of carved megaliths which are huge

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At the beginning of the Early Holocene Period, the hunter-gatherer groups in the Upper Mesopotamia region left behind complex structures, monumental stone pillars, and various sculptures and Neolithic cultural zone that stand out with rich symbolism accompanying thereto in unprecedented permanent settlements. Excavations were initiated at new Neolithic sites within the scope of the “Taş Tepeler” project in Göbekli Tepe cultural zone, rather known for Göbekli Tepe Neolithic Period site. By whom, how and why this early Neolithic civilization that reverses some basic assumptions on the history of the mankind remains the most important area under discussion. The excavations currently in progress, and the surveys carried out, at

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Cultural Region in the Light of New Data (Göbekli Tepe, Sayburç) One of the most surprising and distinguishing characteristics of the symbolism in the Göbekli Tepe Neolithic Culture is the widespread use of animals. The interpretations of this symbolism up to this date were more often on the wildness of these animals and the roles that they have played in the spiritual world of the humans of the period. The perspective in question led to the conclusion that at this period the physical interaction between humans and animals was limited. This study is based on the new archaeofaunal data and approaches regarding Southwest Asia and the hunting ground economy

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Research on abandonment processes as part of Neolithic ways of life in Göbekli Tepe While most archaeological research is focused on the reasons for starting cultural activities (such as building a house, setting up a settlement, starting to produce a groundstone), my PhD project “Neolithic ways of life” is concerned with the end of settlements. Within the framework of the study fields Landscape Archaeology and Archaeology of Abandonment, I analyse the processes of abandonment at the PPN A+B hill site Göbekli Tepe in southeastern Anatolia. With the slow advent of agriculture and animal husbandry during the Neolithization, the site was abandoned at the end of the 9th millennium BCE.

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Abstract: Based on the facts on the ground  and on ancient texts, I argue Göbekli Tepe is the site of The Hanging Gardens of Babylon. One of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World . Further, I explain why the current dates of 10,000BC forGöbekli Tepe are wrong. Rather, this construction probably dates to 600BC. At a time when Babylonian and Assyrian Civilizations are known to have had the capabilities and organization to have build such wonders.

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Today people wear masks to hide their identity but also to impersonate another real or imaginary being. All Neolithic cultures in the Near East made masks. Why? What were the rituals and ideas behind the masks? In the corpus of Neolithic stone masks, those from the Judean Hills and Desert are among the most well-known. Weighing up to 2 kilograms, these masks strike the modern observer with their almost expressionistic facial features – each is individual, as if depicting specific human beings. Some have holes around the rim, probably to allow them to be attached to something, or to even be worn.

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Long before the extensive use of clay in households for the production of vessels and other items of daily use, clay was, in sundried or burned form, an important material to produce figurines. Anthropomorphic and zoomorphic clay figurines are a common occurrence in Pre-Pottery Neolithic (PPN) sites of the Near East (Morsch 2002, 2017; Hansen 2007: 57-94, 2014; Meskell 2007; Kuijt 2017). The find of an anthropomorphic figurine from Hayonim could hint at an even much longer tradition, reaching back into the Epipalaeolithic (Valla 2000: 25, Fig. 11). The quantity of figurine finds in PPN sites differs however, and this may not always be explainable by the size

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