As far as we know currently, Gobekli Tepe was not a part of any civilization. Mesopotamia had a network of cities bound (loosely by our standards) by culture and trade.
That said, I suspect those creatures depicted on the GT pillars were totem animals, representing not prey but tribes of humans. This would suggest GT was a meeting place, a primitive “summit.”
We still do totems, and not just for sports; it may be pre-installed in us.
Check your taskbar or dock, count the animal icons :)
That said, I suspect those creatures depicted on the GT pillars were totem animals, representing not prey but tribes of humans
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Or astrological figures - the Vulture seen on several pillars later may have became the Swan - a very prominent star group all around the world in many old world views.
Then there is the interpretation that there is actually a message conveyed and a warning using symbols people of that time would have understood.