ABSTRACT
Some of the goddess pilgrims who visited atalhyk have been openly angry with Ian Hodder and the other archaeologists for their doubts about Neolithic matriarchies and goddess worship, as indicated by hostile comments they have left in the visitor's book. The frequent visitors were contingents of goddess worshippers, many of whom considered atalhyk to be their equivalent of Mecca. The famous seated 'Mother Goddess' was found in a grain bin perhaps this has something to do with fertility, but there is no suggestion that grain bins were symbolically important. Rissa and Stephanie had taken a close look at the animal symbolism at atalhyk, particularly the artworks that the James Mellaart excavations had uncovered. They found a number of interesting facts, including that although leopards are depicted in a number of sculptures and figurines, and the men running around after the bulls in the wall paintings seemed to be wearing leopard skins, this animal was never found in the faunal assemblage.
