Microscopic analysis showed that the grooves on the Göbekli Tepe skull fragments were deliberately made with a flint tool.
Notes on verification
Confirmed by peer-reviewed study (Gresky et al., Science Advances 2017) and corroborated independently by multiple science journalism outlets (Phys.org, Smithsonian, ZME Science, Archaeology Wiki), all consistent with the original microscopic analysis findings.
Sources
- Hints of Skull Cult Found at World's Oldest Temple (nationalgeographic.com)
- https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.1700564 (science.org)
- https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/ancient-temple-shows-evidence-stone-age-skull-cult-180963877/ (smithsonianmag.com)
- https://www.zmescience.com/science/news-science/carved-gobekli-tepe-4322/ (zmescience.com)
- https://www.archaeology.wiki/blog/2017/06/29/mysterious-death-rituals-gobekli-tepe/ (archaeology.wiki)