The book begins with a puzzle: leopards are a central part of Çatalhöyük’s art, but virtually none of their remains have been found. In solving this mystery, the reader is led into the elaborate social and symbolic world of Çatalhöyük―a world where people were buried beneath the floors of houses, later to be exhumed and decapitated, and the head handed down from generation to generation.

This lively firsthand account of a major archaeological site is full of insights into past lives and momentous events, and is richly illustrated with images of the art, the artifacts, and the excavations themselves. 24 full-color and 113 black-and-white illustrations.

Category: Paleolithic Beginnings

Subjects: Çatalhöyük, civilization, Neolithic period