© Peter Watson 2017 No less important, the idea of ‘ancestor’ would have become much more specific. People for the first time knew who they were ‘descended’ from and, if that ancestor was a distinguished ‘elder’, they would feel that set them apart. They would have been much more interested in specific ancestors and in continuity. The plastered skulls at Çatalhöyük suggest that this was just such a treasured ancestor. Chapter 8: The House The most obvious knock-on effect of this was the development of the house. Several archaeologists have observed how, during the Neolithic, traditional round houses change to rectangular ones, and at the same time ceremonial buildings (as at Göbekli Tepe) gave way to smaller domestic units (as at Çatalhöyük). This is surely a function of the change from a communal form of identity (people were members of a tribe or clan) to one where they were members of a family, a small, more specific unit. Are the three two-headed figurines that occur at ‘Ain Ghazal (6750 BC) divinities, as some claim, or anything more than evidence that some people now thought of themselves as ‘couples’? Kent Flannery, an American archaeologist, admitted as much, but went no further. The same reasoning might apply to Nevali Corsi (8,400-8,100 BC) where three pits were found, in each of which there were two skulls. In each case the skulls faced one another: were they ‘divinities’ or just ‘couples’? Rectangular house units fit together much more comfortably than round family units, and offer more privacy. This would also explain other aspects of houses. It would explain why some houses were more ‘successful’ than others, lasted longer, and were rebuilt and replastered more often. And why some houses had more burials underneath them. A successful father – one with more offspring or greater wealth – would attract specific interest, and his house would become special. When he died, the house would be preserved for his descendants who would do their best to emulate him. In this way, some houses would emerge as distinctive. If the male line continued for generations, the house would be built on as a line of distinguished ancestors consolidated their position. From time to time, of course, and with the principle of paternity being all-important, male lines would die out. This would explain why houses were from time to time burned down, to mark