The Cow Imagery At Gobekli Tepe

Clifford C. Richey
August 201
It might be helpful to read! as backgrou"d!
http://www.scribd.com/doc/125076415/Universal-Prehistoric-Depicted-i!n-"an!#a!e
or at
%cademia.ed#
whe" readi"g this paper as it e#plai"s the use of $orm! Imagery! Gesture sig"s!
%ta"ce! allusio" a"d positio" as used i" composi"g glyphs.
One of the Pillars at Gobekli Tepe has the Imagery of a Cow, as opposed to a Bull, engraved upon it.
There is an abundane of Bull Imagery in many prehistori ultures as suh depitions, assoiatively,
represent a strong leader. !e need to resort to the signs that ompose the Cow imagery in order to
understand this differene.
Illustration 1: Color Coded Signs
Illustration 2: Color Coded Signs
The Body of the Cow served as a template upon whih the signs ould be positioned and were used to
allude to various, meaningful, Body parts. The Body provided the ardinal diretions as well as the
diretions for above and below. Cows when fighting with eah other for dominane tend to turn their
"eads sideways. This #tane may have been intended to indiate a protective mother $$a fighter.
The %argest &meaning, !reat' sign is that of the Cow(s Body. It is a &red' Triangle that informs us that
the Body represents the !reat& 'emale-earth. The Teats of the Cow also inform us that this animal is
female. "er Teats, her Breasts, her hills, are reated from )our &green' *ertial +etangles &vertical-
places signs' that mean In all )our diretions or ever(where.
In gesture signing the %eft side indiates the east while the +ight side indiates the west. The Tail, may
represent the past tense &that whih is behind' and here we find Two #evered )ingers of rather large
si,e &greatness'. On the %eft of the omposition, in the east, The &tan' )ingers, the two' point a
diretion, below and are positioned as on the side. The &dark$tan' %egs )the lon!* and )eet &wal+s or
,o#rne(s' of the Cow are #pside-down and through their #tane, indiate that these -ourneys are below
Illustration 3: Color Coded Signs
Illustration 4:
Fighting Stance
the earth and headin! #pwards. The pairs of %egs are positioned in the east and west. Their #tane is
one of being, to!ether.
.e/t we look at the relatively large &green' *ertial$+etangle& the !reat& vertical-place& that alludes to
the .ek or Throat of the Cow as a connectin! t#be or t#nnel. There are Two #mall *ertial
+etangles, "er 0ars, allude to, the holes, the vertical-places positioned as above and below, the
onneting tunnel.
The &light$blue' "ead, the male-spirit sign &that was based on the human Glans Penis' of the Cow was
turned sideways and positioned as on the side &of the earth'. The &dark$blue' "orns of the Cow were
the signs for a leader while the )orm of the "orns are the signs for arisin! or descendin! based on
their position. This was another reason for the Cow(s "ead being turned side ways &aside from the
#tane of fighting'. The 1ouble %ines of the "orns indiate that the arising and desending are #nseen.
-he .ow& the protective mother.
-he !reat 'emale-earth&
/er hills&
/er vertical-places&
0ver(where.
1n the east&
-he two&
2elow&
on
/er side.
-he !reat&
Illustration 5: Associational Imagery
3o#rne(s&
-o!ether&
2elow&
1n the east and west&
/eadin! #pwards.
-he connectin! t#nnel&
-he !reat vertical-place&
-he vertical-places&
-he holes&
4n the sides&
%bove and below.
-he !reat male-spirit.
4n her western& side.
-he leader& the 5i!hter&
Unseen&
4n the sides&
%scendin!
%bove&
Descendin!&
2elow.
This glyph does not tell us, in its message, the identity of the great male$spirit. But the referene to the
two-to!ether& or twin ,o#rne(s that arise and desend would rule out the sun(s movements while the
dual asension and dissension in the east and west would fit the planetary movements of *enus. The
"orns on the male-sirit!s head tell us that this was a the spirit of a deeased human leader.
!hen viewing and interpreting eah setion of a glyph one must think in terms of independent )orm
and Imagery. Therefore the "ead of the Cow does not reflet bak diretly to the Cow but rather should
be thought of as restrited to the male-spirit-leader. "owever, the #tane of the tilted "ead and "orns
still reflet, a 5i!hter 6a warrior. In many prehistori glyphs *enus was onsidered male when it was
visible in the sky. It was alled by various assoiative or metaphorial names suh as, the great star,
the eye of the sun" the #olf star, and the warrior star.
The Cow glyph seems to deal with the time period when *enus was not observable in the sky. This may
have had to do with the osmologial value of being able to predit when *enus would appear.
The glyph(s message also tells us the rationale behind the site and its hillside plaement as due to the
hills being onsidered the breasts of the earth. This would further lead us to believe that some soure of
moisture or water was, at one time, found on or near the hills of Gobekli Tepe. In many anient ultures
hillside springs were oneptuali,ed as portals from whih the spirits of the deeased made their flight
to the sky.