Abstract It had previously been proposed ( Cohen, 1970 ) that after large-scale Early Holocene alluviation, no post-occupational sediment accumulated around the neolithic site of Catal Huyuk in south-central Anatolia. Data presented here, however, indicate that several metres of archaeological deposit at both east and west mounds are overlain by alluvium. This implies that the modern distribution of soil and water resources cannot be used directly to assess past agricultural potential in the vicinity of the site.