Dr. Lee Clare

They weren't separating them by putting them to a separate burial ground away from the site, but they were keeping them close to them. So you get a lot of burials beneath the floors of the buildings, at the thresholds of the buildings, and close within that sort of activity zones of the domestic areas. And we have two such burials at Göbekli Tepe.

They weren't separating them by putting them to a separate burial ground away from the site, but they were keeping them close to them. So you get a lot of burials beneath the floors of the buildings, at the thresholds of the buildings, and close within that sort of activity zones of the domestic areas. And we have two such burials at Göbekli Tepe.

We have one which is, I think, a teenage or in her early 20s, a female individual in a hocker position, so sort of crouched and laying as if sleeping. And one in another domestic building where we have, I think, three or four individuals possibly, but not well preserved because actually in prehistory they'd gone in and disturbed the burial because that's something that they also did.

We have one which is, I think, a teenage or in her early 20s, a female individual in a hocker position, so sort of crouched and laying as if sleeping. And one in another domestic building where we have, I think, three or four individuals possibly, but not well preserved because actually in prehistory they'd gone in and disturbed the burial because that's something that they also did.

We have one which is, I think, a teenage or in her early 20s, a female individual in a hocker position, so sort of crouched and laying as if sleeping. And one in another domestic building where we have, I think, three or four individuals possibly, but not well preserved because actually in prehistory they'd gone in and disturbed the burial because that's something that they also did.

with particular individuals who don't know what the criteria were, but they went back to the burial after a little while and they exhumed the skull or parts of the body. We also have, with regard to the skull and the so-called skull cult at Gobekli Tepe, which is also quite well known from the East Mediterranean at this time, skulls were exhumed and plastered in the shape with the features.

with particular individuals who don't know what the criteria were, but they went back to the burial after a little while and they exhumed the skull or parts of the body. We also have, with regard to the skull and the so-called skull cult at Gobekli Tepe, which is also quite well known from the East Mediterranean at this time, skulls were exhumed and plastered in the shape with the features.

with particular individuals who don't know what the criteria were, but they went back to the burial after a little while and they exhumed the skull or parts of the body. We also have, with regard to the skull and the so-called skull cult at Gobekli Tepe, which is also quite well known from the East Mediterranean at this time, skulls were exhumed and plastered in the shape with the features.

We don't have any plastered skulls at Gobekli Tepe, but we do have fragments of skull with sort of carving and grooves and scratch marks. So actually they didn't wait too long for the skin and the hair to sort of decay. They went in quite quickly afterwards, got out the skull, scraped it clean, and then put some grooves in to hold like a cord

We don't have any plastered skulls at Gobekli Tepe, but we do have fragments of skull with sort of carving and grooves and scratch marks. So actually they didn't wait too long for the skin and the hair to sort of decay. They went in quite quickly afterwards, got out the skull, scraped it clean, and then put some grooves in to hold like a cord

We don't have any plastered skulls at Gobekli Tepe, but we do have fragments of skull with sort of carving and grooves and scratch marks. So actually they didn't wait too long for the skin and the hair to sort of decay. They went in quite quickly afterwards, got out the skull, scraped it clean, and then put some grooves in to hold like a cord

and decorated them and there are also sort of drill holes in them that they're perhaps using to suspend them and to hang them you know you see it sometimes in ethnographical examples you know that they have mummies of dead people they bring out at certain times of the year for certain festivals that could be similar here they could have like the skulls coming out of

and decorated them and there are also sort of drill holes in them that they're perhaps using to suspend them and to hang them you know you see it sometimes in ethnographical examples you know that they have mummies of dead people they bring out at certain times of the year for certain festivals that could be similar here they could have like the skulls coming out of

and decorated them and there are also sort of drill holes in them that they're perhaps using to suspend them and to hang them you know you see it sometimes in ethnographical examples you know that they have mummies of dead people they bring out at certain times of the year for certain festivals that could be similar here they could have like the skulls coming out of

certain times of the year being hung up in a special building. The ancestors were so important. They didn't have history books or books to hold onto that knowledge. They probably knew that the knowledge was in the brain, in the skull. That was the seat of the spirit. Of course, the ancestors were the all-knowing. They did that, I think, to celebrate the ancestors.

certain times of the year being hung up in a special building. The ancestors were so important. They didn't have history books or books to hold onto that knowledge. They probably knew that the knowledge was in the brain, in the skull. That was the seat of the spirit. Of course, the ancestors were the all-knowing. They did that, I think, to celebrate the ancestors.

certain times of the year being hung up in a special building. The ancestors were so important. They didn't have history books or books to hold onto that knowledge. They probably knew that the knowledge was in the brain, in the skull. That was the seat of the spirit. Of course, the ancestors were the all-knowing. They did that, I think, to celebrate the ancestors.

Ancestor veneration, animism was at the centre of the rituals and the belief systems at this time.

Ancestor veneration, animism was at the centre of the rituals and the belief systems at this time.

Ancestor veneration, animism was at the centre of the rituals and the belief systems at this time.