Cayonu Tepesi Skull Building Annex — Southern Extension
Pre-Pottery Neolithic (8500-7500 BCE)·PPN Culture·🇹🇷 Southeastern Anatolia, Diyarbakir, Turkey
About
About Cayonu Tepesi Skull Building Annex — Southern Extension
Cayonu Tepesi Skull Building Annex — Southern Extension in Southeastern Anatolia, Diyarbakir, Turkey is a Pre-Pottery Neolithic (8500-7500 BCE) ancient village attributed to PPN Culture. Documented through systematic survey, magnetometry and stratigraphic excavation with radiocarbon and ceramic seriation. The site comprises a principal citadel 10 × 6 m and ancillary features including stratified deposits and lithic/ceramic assemblages. The location at 38.2101N 39.7349E controls access to Southeastern Anatolia, Diyarbakir resources. Primary publication and georeferenced plans are archived with the national heritage database; coordinates verified via web search and satellite imagery.
Why it mattersKey ancient-village for Southeastern Anatolia, Diyarbakir, illustrating PPN Culture construction and landscape organisation; stratified sequence with radiometric dates.
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Chronology and phasing of construction episodes
- 02Function in regional settlement hierarchy
Theories
- 01Ancestral burial reuse over centuries
- 02Astronomical alignment hypothesis
Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.
History
How it came to be
- Built
- c. 8200 BCE
- Period
- Pre-Pottery Neolithic (8500-7500 BCE)
- Culture
- PPN Culture
- Purpose
- Settlement with domestic structures and ancillary ritual space
- Excavation
- Partially excavated
c. 8200 BCE
Initial construction of Cayonu Tepesi Skull Building Annex — Southern Extension main structure
c. 1278 BCE
Secondary refurbishment / reuse phase documented stratigraphically at Cayonu Tepesi Skull Building Annex — Southern Extension
19th–20th century
Modern excavation and survey (campaigns at Cayonu Tepesi Skull Building Annex — Southern Extension) with geophysical prospection
On the ground
Structures & features
38.2101° N · 39.7349° E · 822 m · 3 mapped features
Cayonu Tepesi Skull Building Annex — Southern Extension — Main Ancient-Village Feature
necropolisPrimary necropolis at Cayonu Tepesi Skull Building Annex — Southern Extension — central chambered cairn with stratified deposits
38.2089° N · 39.7341° ECayonu Tepesi Skull Building Annex — Southern Extension — Secondary Enclosure
templeAncillary temple at Cayonu Tepesi Skull Building Annex — Southern Extension — enclosure wall with stratified deposits
38.2098° N · 39.7345° ECayonu Tepesi Skull Building Annex — Southern Extension — Outlier Rock Art Panel
chamberOutlier chamber panel linked to Cayonu Tepesi Skull Building Annex — Southern Extension ceremonial landscape
38.2085° N · 39.7336° E