GÖBEKLI TEPE: A mystery made of stone

Göbekli Tepe is the first of a series of settlements discovered in recent years on the border between Turkey and Syria. Radiocarbon tests tell us that the oldest organic remains found at Göbekli Tepe date back at least 12,000 years. But some individual statues could be considerably older.

The Strange Figures at the Center

As you can see in the drawing depicting one of the ‘stone circles’ that have been uncovered, the two central statues have a very different style from the culture that inhabited the region. They are square, headless humanoid figures, carved directly on pillars, wearing loincloths.

Many have thought that these statues could date back to before the last ice age. Others think they depict ‘non-human’ beings, either imagined or actually encountered.

A Culture That Seemed to Lose Skills

Another unexplained aspect of Göbekli Tepe is its transformation over time. Over time, the first circular stone structures were buried. Later others were erected on top of them.

But for some reason, each successive circle was smaller than the one that had been buried, and not larger, as one would expect from an evolving civilisation. Strangely, the skills of the builders seem to have diminished over time, and not improved, as is the case, for example, in our day.

Göbekli Tepe society seems to deteriorate with each cycle of burial and rebuilding. Why this strange phenomenon occurred remains unexplained.

Why Were the Enclosures Buried?

After several cycles of burial and rebuilding, the remains were left permanently underground, as if they had exhausted their function. But what exactly was this function? So far, no one knows for sure, and we are still left largely with conjecture.

None of the buildings were burnt or torn down. There is no clear sign that the buildings were destroyed by fire or by an enemy attack. The site was simply filled with earth, as if to bury it peacefully.

Some scholars claim that when the inhabitants of the area had to migrate, they performed a kind of ritual ‘burial’ of buildings they considered sacred. While this may certainly be true, it would not explain why other, similar but smaller buildings were built on top of the buried buildings.

How Many Göbekli Tepes Are Still Underground?

What civilisation was capable, even 12,000 years ago, of building something like this?

As some of the ‘enclosures’ emerged from the ground, archaeologists were forced to question almost everything they had been taught at university about Stone Age societies.

Namely, if these hunter-gatherers were able to build settlements such as Göbekli Tepe between 12,500 and 11,500 years ago, why would other ‘Stone Age men’ scattered in other parts of the Earth not be able to do the same?

This ‘postulate’ no longer makes any sense and must be set aside.

So how many other ‘Göbekli Tepes’ might still lie buried beneath meters of earth around the world?

For those who wish to explore these topics further, the subject is discussed in greater detail in the following publications: