Karahan Tepe, located close to its better known relative Göbekli Tepe in southeast Turkey, was first acknowledged in 1997 but remained unexcavated until 2019. Both sites, including several others, are today identified as Taş Tepeler (meaning “stone hills”) archaeological sites. These Taş Tepeler sites typically border the Harran Plain on semi-mountainous escarpments and reflect early Neolithic phases of building.
Understanding Karahan Tepe in the Context of Taş Tepeler
Unlike the majority of known Taş Tepelers, Karahan Tepe has yielded a large building which compares in size to the larger monumental enclosures of Göbekli Tepe . This circular space, named Str. AD, is understood to reflect late Pre-Pottery Neolithic PPN A to early PPN B construction, c.9000 to 8800 BC.
Compared to Göbekli Tepe , the megalithic features of Str. AD, along with the rest of the site, have not preserved as well. Nevertheless, the enclosure formed a major hub of ritual activity at the site. It also led to a remarkable space located at the northwest which has been named Str. AB. Str. AB is a rounded hollow built entirely out of the bedrock and at present is a singular feature of Taş Tepeler sites.
Top; Str. AD at Karahan Tepe from the southeast (author), Bottom; solstice rising and settings relative to Str. AD. (adapted from Karul 2021)
The apparent entrance to its interior was via a small descending stairwell of piled slabs located at the northwest of Str. AD. Inside Str. AB’s chamber which, together…
