Area 178
Main Information
| Area ID | 178 |
| Site |
Cayönü |
| Area type | settlement |
| Area NR | Second Stage |
| Period | Anatolia: Pre-Pottery Neolithic A Anatolia: Pre-Pottery Neolithic B |
| Dating method | radiocarbon dating |
| Radiocarbon dated | yes |
| Earliest date: Lab Number | GrN 6243 |
| Earliest date: 14C age (BP) | |
| Earliest date: Calibration | yes |
| Earliest date: 14C age calibrated (BC) | |
| Earliest date: Date of calibration | None |
| Earliest date: Standard deviation | 55 |
| Earliest date: Delta 13C | None |
| Earliest date: Dated by | |
| Latest date: Lab Number | GrN 16462 |
| Latest date: 14C age (BP) | |
| Latest date: Calibration | yes |
| Latest date: 14C age calibrated (BC) | |
| Latest date: Date of calibration | None |
| Latest date: Standard deviation | 65 |
| Latest date: Delta 13C | None |
| Latest date: Dated by | |
| Period Reference |
Bicakci, E., An Essay on the Chronology of the Pre-Pottery Neolithic Settlements of the Taurus Region (Turkey) with the Building Remains and C14 Dates., None, None Özdogan, A., Cayönü, None, None |
| Comment | The here described stage belongs to the "First Phase" of the site, and includes the Late "Grill Building Subphase" (9200-9100 BP) as well as the "Channeld Building Subphase" (9100-9000 BP). |
| Settlement type | tell |
| Settlement structure |
houses: free-standing |
| Settlement building type | |
| Settlement building shape |
rectangular |
| Settlement building technique |
mud brick stone lining wattle and daub |
| Settlement archaeological features |
clay floor fireplace paved area plastered floor post hole stone platform storage pit waste pit |
| Cave/rockshelters type | None |
| Cave/rockshelters: Evidence of graves/human remains | |
| Cave/rockshelters: Evidence of occupation | |
| Quarry exploitation type | None |
| Quarry raw material | |
| Cemetery/graves topography | |
| Cemetery/graves mortuary features | |
| Grave: number of graves | |
| Grave type |
pit grave |
| Grave: type of human remains |
inhumation secondary deposition |
| Grave: estimated number of individuals | |
| Grave: age groups |
part of specialist report |
| Grave: sexes |
part of specialist report |
| Grave: number of female sex | None |
| Grave: number of male sex | None |
| Grave: number of not specified sex | None |
| Grave: disturbance of graves | |
| Description | At the beginning of the Second Stage, not much change is observed in the general appearance of the village. The grills, which generally have 5-6 consecutive rebuildings in slightly different orientations, were still in use. Within time, not only did the ground plan evolve from open grills to meandered ones and then to closed ones but the arrangement and the construction techniques of the stone rows ("walls") were also improved. Further progress was represented by broader and closer parallel rows separated by narrower channels partly covered with capstones. Accordingly, floors came to resemble "platforms", with neatly placed stones and perpendicular corners in the "reversed or misoriented" grill buidlings which were transitional to the channeled buildings. This improvements reached their peak during the final phase of the Channeled Building Subphase when fully developed neatly made rectangular stone platforms supporting the stone and mudbrick walls of buildings appeared. Other developments are: the increasment of the number of the stone rows (grills), further development of earthern plastered floors overlying the "grills" - in one example (GBb) in the western sector of the site, the plastered floor was devided into small cells by double rows of small stones and the plaster turns up towards these rows. The traditional superstructure roofing continues until the early phase of the channeled buildings ("reversed or mis-oriented grill buildings"), while the supporting wooden posts were now almost integrated into the parallel "platforms" (building DP). In the last stage of the Grill Building Subphase almost all of the daily activities were carried out inside or ust in fromt of the buildings.The grill buildings were "buried" after five or six consecutive building levels with a layer of small pebbles ("burying abandoned buildings or special buildings by leaving some items (gifts?)", tradition ntil the second half of the Large Room Building Subphase). From the Channaled Building Subphase on, the settlement pattern changes completely. Apart from GBa, the "reverse or mis-oriented grill buildings" with broader grill-like foundations were orientd NW-SE. The widening of the spaces between the buildings shows, that open areas have again become important. Especially the western sector of the settlement had developed into an "industrial and residential area" with may workshops constructed of perishable materials, whereas the eastern sector acquired the character of being the communal area of the village. It is surrounded by large special buildins for different functions in the south and has 46 roasting pits of different sizes, and seems to be totally free from any residences in the Channeled Building Subphase. There are radical chages in the construction of the suprstructure in the last phase of the channeled buildings: the first stone socles (50cm in width and hight) with kerpic/adome walls were raised on wide neatly made rectangular platforms with very narrow channels totally closed by flat capstones. The walls on the socles were made of organic-tempered kerpic, not in the form of bricks but rather made by laying lumps of clay on top of each other and pressing them down. Both, the interior and the exterior faces of the socles were covered with kepric mud but there is no plastering. The interior separation walls were constructed in the same technique, leaving doorways for access. The stones and capstones of the platform were totally sealed under a thick floor of beaten earth. The stone "sidewalks" along the long side of the building are another novelty of this period. Highly probably the buildings had gable or flat roofs covered in the traditional style with materials like branches, brushwood, reeds, and rushes. The tradition of semi-subterranean dwellings (see settlement description "First Stage") continues with the "sepcial buildings". Of these the Flagstone Building (FA) with a floor paved with large flagstones, is rectangulary-planned with rounded corners. The Skull Building has an oval plan. It has three building phases and a mud plastered floor, under which there are two grave pits. Both buildings are semi-subterranean and their walls lie against the sides of the hollows, with their north walls buttressed by short pilasters. In the Flagstone Building, opposite each buttress, there are standing stones in the middle of the floor and a thrid one in frot of its east wall. |
| Comment | For a more detailed description of the mortuary practices, please see the respective entry ("Cayönü, graves/cemetry") of this Phase. |
Location of the Site
Bibliography
Finds in this Area
| Finds |
ID 454 animal remains ID 455 botany ID 474 lithics ID 480 small finds jewellery ID 489 small finds tool |
Interpretations related to this Area