Bahattin ÇELİK

10.th BC, in the PPNA Period, Neolithic communities lived in the Southeast Anatolia Region illustrated various animals figures on the steles made of limestone. These depictions were embroidered on their flattened surface of the steles. Some were made with high relief technique and some with low relief technique. The most interesting animal figure among these animal reliefs is the figure of desert monitor (Varanus griseus), which depiction is controversial. In Göbekli Tepe, the figures of monitor depicted on steles and stone plates are a reptile named desert monitor, which can be seen even in the area today, and it is carnivore, shy and afraid of people. In this study, the general characteristics of the desert monitor depicted in the Neolithic period and the way it’s depiction in the Neolithic period will be emphasized.

Key Words: Desert monitor (Varanus giriseus), Monitor illustrations, Lion illustrations, Pre-Pottery Neolithic Period.