Nevali Cori

Nevali Cori is an early Neolithic settlement in the upper Euphrates valley, eastern Turkey, around 490 m high. It is located near the steeply cut Kantara Cay, a tributary of the Euphrates.

The settlement is dated back to around 8000 BC. In this period ( PPN B) pottery was still unknown, but in Nevali Cori several hundred small figurines (about 5 cm high) of burnt clay have been found that are interpreted as votive offerings. They have been burned at temperatures between 500-600° C.

The rectangular buildings and houses of the settlement have dry-stone walls and terrazzo-floors made of burnt lime. The largest building measures 16m x 7m. Rectangular stone pillars were set into the walls, two freestanding pillars, 3 m high, were placed in the middle of the room. The stelae show reliefs of human hands. The construction shows close parallels with the older round buildings in Göbekli Tepe.

A deposit of human skulls was found beneath the floor of one of the houses.

The free-standing anthropomorphic figures of limestone excavated at Nevali Cori belong to the earliest known life-size sculptures. One shows a male with bare head, a snake wiggling down from the crown of the head to the neck. There is a statue of a bird as well. Comparable statutes have been found in Göbekli Tepe.

From 1993 onwards, the German archaeological Institute , Istanbul excavated the site of the settlement in advance of the construction of the Atatürk-dam, the waters of which have now inundated the Neolithic village as well as numerous other archaeological sites in the vicinity.