# The enclosures were open-air sanctuaries used by mobile hunter-gatherers who did not live on the mound.

> Disputed: The enclosures were open-air sanctuaries used by mobile hunter-gatherers who did not live on the mound.

Source: https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/gobekli-tepe/answers/ANS0D956WQ42DNK/the-enclosures-were-open-air-sanctuaries-used-by-mobile  
Publisher: Mysteries Department  
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (credit Mysteries Department and link the page)  

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[Questions](https://mysteriesdept.com/questions)[Göbekli Tepe](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/gobekli-tepe)[What were the pillar buildings of Göbekli Tepe for?](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/gobekli-tepe/questions/QST0D956VG255C1/what-were-the-pillar-buildings-of-gobekli-tepe-for)Answer

Answer · Göbekli Tepe

# The enclosures were open-air sanctuaries used by mobile hunter-gatherers who did not live on the mound.

The enclosures were open-air sanctuaries used by mobile hunter-gatherers who did not live on the mound.

**Disputed** Answers **1** questionPublished0

## Where it stands

**Disputed** Two pieces of evidence for, three against. It needs two reviews to be accepted.

## What it predicts

- No houses, hearths, storage or burials on the mound contemporary with the enclosures.
- Faunal and lithic material from a wide regional catchment; seasonal rather than year-round occupation.
- The enclosures were unroofed and deliberately backfilled at the end of use.

## What would rule it out

- Contemporary domestic buildings, cisterns and burials on the mound, and evidence the enclosures were roofed.

## Evidence 2 for · 3 against

[Central pillars 5.5 m tall with anthropomorphic reliefs, far larger than any PPN dwelling.](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/gobekli-tepe/evidence/EVD0D956WYY0PWM/central-pillars-5-5-m-tall-with-anthropomorphic-reliefs-far)

Established

FOR

[The enclosures lack the hearths, floors and installations found in PPN houses.](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/gobekli-tepe/evidence/EVD0D956X6R1WNM/the-enclosures-lack-the-hearths-floors-and-installations)

Supported

FOR

[Building archaeology indicates the enclosures were roofed and repeatedly repaired, and the fills formed over…](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/gobekli-tepe/evidence/EVD0D956XY60GN0/building-archaeology-indicates-the-enclosures-were-roofed)

Supported

AGAINST

[Domestic buildings, rock-cut cisterns and more than 7,000 grinding stones are present on the mound.](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/gobekli-tepe/evidence/EVD0D956XEJ41J4/domestic-buildings-rock-cut-cisterns-and-more-than-7-000)

Established

AGAINST

[Two intact PPNB burials were found on the mound in settlement deposits.](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/gobekli-tepe/evidence/EVD0D956XPC7605/two-intact-ppnb-burials-were-found-on-the-mound-in)

Established

AGAINST

## The questions it answers

[What were the pillar buildings of Göbekli Tepe for?](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/gobekli-tepe/questions/QST0D956VG255C1/what-were-the-pillar-buildings-of-gobekli-tepe-for)

Most likelyThe enclosures were roofed communal and ritual buildings within a permanent hunter-gatherer settlement

## Cite it

```
Mysteries Department. (2026). The enclosures were open-air sanctuaries used by mobile hunter-gatherers who did not live on the mound. [Answer ANS0D956WQ42DNK]. https://mysteriesdept.com/r/ANS0D956WQ42DNK
```

Key

**ANS** 0D956WQ42DNK

Kind

Answer · hypothesis

Origin

Published

Version

1

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