The great enclosures

A shared plan

The monuments at Göbekli Tepe follow a recognisable scheme. Each enclosure is a roughly round or oval structure whose perimeter is formed of walls and stone benches studded with T-shaped limestone pillars. At the heart of each circle stand two larger central pillars, taller than those in the ring and often the most elaborately carved — frequently bearing arms, hands and a belt that mark them as stylised human, or human-like, figures. Diameters of the excavated enclosures range from about 10 to 30 metres.

At least four main enclosures — labelled A, B, C and D — have been uncovered, alongside later structures including a rectangular building (Enclosure H) from a younger phase. Each circle has its own character, named features and signature reliefs, even as they share this common architecture. Because only a fraction of the mound has been dug, more enclosures are expected to remain buried.

Enclosure A — the snakes

Often called the "Snake Pillar Building," Enclosure A is distinguished by its concentration of snake iconography, with sinuous serpents carved in relief across several pillars. It was among the first of the great circles to be investigated.

Enclosure B — the fox

Enclosure B is associated above all with the fox. Pillar 10 carries a fox relief, and fox sculptures were recovered here as well. The fox is one of the most frequently depicted creatures across the site as a whole.

Enclosure C — the largest

The biggest of the excavated enclosures, Enclosure C is wrapped in a series of concentric walls and features reliefs of wild boar and a powerful predator, notably on Pillars 12 and 27. Its scale gives a vivid sense of the labour these communal projects demanded.

Enclosure D — the best preserved

Enclosure D is the best-preserved and most elaborate of the four. Its twin central pillars, Pillars 18 and 31, stand around 5.5 metres tall and are clearly anthropomorphic, carved with arms, hands, a belt and what appears to be a fox-pelt loincloth — the T-shaped top reading as a head atop a body. Enclosure D also holds Pillar 43, the "Vulture Stone," the site's most discussed and debated relief. The enclosure appears to have been damaged by a landslide towards the end of the early Pre-Pottery Neolithic B.