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MOTIF RECORD · 5 OBJECT RECORDS · CHECKED 2026-10-22

Snake carvings at Göbekli Tepe and Nevalı Çori

Snake forms appear as repeated reliefs at Enclosure A and in several object records. Some forms are described as snake-like rather than certain identifications.

Interpretive note: Descriptions retain the wording and uncertainty of the cited sources; a motif tag records a described depiction, not an agreed meaning. Sources: Of animals and a headless man: Göbekli Tepe, Pillar 43 2016Göbekli Tepe: The Imagery of the Pillars in the Monumental Buildings A–D, F and H 2025Tarihin Sıfır Noktasında İlk Boyalı Heykel Bulundu 2023Nevalı Çori retrieved 2026-10-22The passage of matter: Transformations of objects and ritual meanings in the Neolithic of the Near East 2013

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Göbekli Tepe · pillar · CHECKED 2026-10-22

Pillar 43 (Vulture Stone)

Enclosure D · PPNA, Layer III; Enclosure D belongs to the early monumental phase

Record sources: Of animals and a headless man: Göbekli Tepe, Pillar 43Göbekli Tepe: The Imagery of the Pillars in the Monumental Buildings A–D, F and HThe role of cult and feasting in the emergence of Neolithic communities

Broad stone face of Pillar 43 with animal reliefs and geometric carvings, surrounded by excavated masonry.
Pillar 43 (Vulture Stone): Pillar 43, with carved reliefs, in Enclosure D.Photo: Guérin Nicolas, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia CommonsPhoto credits & licences

Depiction in cited source: A snake is described beside the bird scene. Of animals and a headless man: Göbekli Tepe, Pillar 43 2016

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Göbekli Tepe · pillar · CHECKED 2026-10-22

Snake relief pillars of Enclosure A

Enclosure A · PPNA, Layer III

Record sources: Göbekli Tepe – The first 20 Years of ResearchGöbekli Tepe: The Imagery of the Pillars in the Monumental Buildings A–D, F and H

Snake relief pillars of Enclosure A
No licensed photograph of this object is in the image register.

Depiction in cited source: Several Enclosure A pillars carry rows of small snake-like reliefs. Göbekli Tepe: The Imagery of the Pillars in the Monumental Buildings A–D, F and H 2025

Identification note: Some individual worn forms are described as snake-like.

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Göbekli Tepe · statue · CHECKED 2026-10-22

Painted wild boar statue

Structure D (excavation context) · PPNB, c. 9th millennium BC (reported by excavators)

Record sources: First painted statue discovered at GöbeklitepePainted boar sculpture from Göbekli TepeŞanlıurfa Archaeology Museum (visitor and collection page)

Painted wild boar statue
No licensed photograph of this object is in the image register.

Depiction in cited source: Two snake reliefs are described on the associated bench. Tarihin Sıfır Noktasında İlk Boyalı Heykel Bulundu 2023

Identification note: The reliefs are on the bench associated with the statue, not on the boar figure.

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Nevalı Çori · object · CHECKED 2026-10-22

Nevalı Çori sculptures and carved heads

Şanlıurfa Archaeology Museum · PPNB, c. 8400–8100 BC

Record sources: Nevalı ÇoriGeometry and Architectural Planning at Göbekli Tepe, TurkeyŞanlıurfa Archaeology Museum (visitor and collection page)

Stone head sculpture with rounded features and a broken lower section, displayed in a museum.
Nevalı Çori sculptures and carved heads: A carved head from Nevalı Çori in the Şanlıurfa Archaeology Museum.Photo: Marco Restano, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia CommonsPhoto credits & licences

Depiction in cited source: TAY describes a Nevalı Çori human head with a snake-like feature. Nevalı Çori retrieved 2026-10-22

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Nevalı Çori · statue · CHECKED 2026-10-22

Oversized human head with snake-like feature

Cult Building III, niche in the east wall · Pre-Pottery Neolithic B; the exact carving date is not published.

Record sources: The passage of matter: Transformations of objects and ritual meanings in the Neolithic of the Near EastA Queer Feminist Perspective on the Early Neolithic Urfa Region: The Ecstatic Agency of the Phallus

Oversized human head with snake-like feature
No licensed photograph of this object is in the image register.

Depiction in cited source: The head bears a snake-like feature; its intended meaning is not established. The passage of matter: Transformations of objects and ritual meanings in the Neolithic of the Near East 2013

Identification note: The carved feature is described as snake-like.

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Related glossary term

Snake motif — A common carved animal motif at Göbekli Tepe and Nevalı Çori. Snake forms can be described by position and shape; their symbolic meanings remain open to debate.

Sources: Göbekli Tepe: The Imagery of the Pillars in the Monumental Buildings A–D, F and HRelationality, Immanence, Hierarchy: The Nature and Culture of Being(s) at Göbekli TepeThe passage of matter: Transformations of objects and ritual meanings in the Neolithic of the Near East

Sites in these records

Related Field Log

Sources

Source wording is attached to individual records above. The register includes sources used for depiction evidence and attributed interpretations.

  1. Of animals and a headless man: Göbekli Tepe, Pillar 43Tepe Telegrams, DAI · 2016 · excavator · retrieved 2026-10-22
  2. Göbekli Tepe: The Imagery of the Pillars in the Monumental Buildings A–D, F and HGerman Archaeological Institute / Reichert Verlag · 2025 · scholarly-monograph · retrieved 2026-10-22
  3. First painted statue discovered at GöbeklitepeMinistry of Culture and Tourism · 2023 · official · retrieved 2026-10-22
  4. Nevalı ÇoriGerman Archaeological Institute · excavator · retrieved 2026-10-22
  5. The passage of matter: Transformations of objects and ritual meanings in the Neolithic of the Near EastMarc Verhoeven, in Ritual Failure: Archaeological Perspectives, Sidestone Press · 2013 · scholarly-book-chapter · retrieved 2026-10-22
  6. The role of cult and feasting in the emergence of Neolithic communitiesDietrich et al., Antiquity · 2012 · peer-reviewed · retrieved 2026-10-22
  7. More than a vulture: a response to Sweatman and TsikritsisNotroff et al., Mediterranean Archaeology and Archaeometry · 2017 · peer-reviewed · retrieved 2026-10-22
  8. Decoding Göbekli Tepe with archaeoastronomy: What does the fox say?Martin B. Sweatman and Dimitrios Tsikritsis, Mediterranean Archaeology and Archaeometry · 2017 · peer-reviewed · retrieved 2026-10-22
  9. Göbekli Tepe – The first 20 Years of ResearchGerman Archaeological Institute · 2016 · excavator · retrieved 2026-10-22
  10. Painted boar sculpture from Göbekli TepeTepe Telegrams, DAI · 2023 · excavator · retrieved 2026-10-22
  11. Şanlıurfa Archaeology Museum (visitor and collection page)Ministry of Culture and Tourism · official · retrieved 2026-10-22
  12. Geometry and Architectural Planning at Göbekli Tepe, TurkeyGil Haklay and Avi Gopher, Cambridge Archaeological Journal · 2020 · peer-reviewed · retrieved 2026-10-22
  13. A Queer Feminist Perspective on the Early Neolithic Urfa Region: The Ecstatic Agency of the PhallusEmre Deniz Yurttaş, Cambridge Archaeological Journal · 2025 · peer-reviewed · retrieved 2026-10-22
  14. Şanlıurfa Müzesi Arkeolojik Eser KataloğuNecmi Karul, Nihat Kozbe and Derya Yavuzkır; Şanlıurfa Metropolitan Municipality / ŞURKAV · 2021 · museum-catalogue · retrieved 2026-10-22
  15. Relationality, Immanence, Hierarchy: The Nature and Culture of Being(s) at Göbekli TepeE. D. Yurttaş, Cambridge Archaeological Journal · 2025 · peer-reviewed · retrieved 2026-10-22

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