Mysteriously Complex Geometric Architecture Discovered in Neolithic Temple – Built 6,000 Years Before Stonehenge

Gobekli Tepe Earliest Known Temple

Göbekli Tepe, Enclosure C. Credit: Gil Haklay/AFTAU

Hunter-gatherers built colossal Göbekli Tepe 11,500 years ago in today’s Turkey as a single structure of ritual significance, say Tel Aviv University researchers.

The sprawling 11,500-year-old stone Göbekli Tepe complex in southeastern Anatolia, Turkey, is the earliest known temple in human history and one of the most important discoveries of Neolithic research.

Researchers at Tel Aviv University and the Israel Antiquities Authority have now used architectural analysis to discover that geometry informed the layout of Göbekli Tepe’s impressive round stone structures and enormous assembly of limestone pillars, which they say were initially planned as a single structure.

Three of the Göbekli Tepe’s monumental round structures, the largest of which is 20 meters (66 feet) in diameter, were initially planned as a single project, according to researchers Gil Haklay of the Israel Antiquities Authority, a Ph.D. candidate at Tel Aviv University, and Prof. Avi Gopher of TAU’s Department of Archaeology and Ancient Near Eastern Civilizations. They used a computer algorithm to trace aspects of the architectural design processes involved in the construction of these enclosures in this early Neolithic site.

Their findings were published in Cambridge Archaeological Journal in May.

“Göbekli Tepe is an archaeological wonder,” Prof. Gopher explains. “Built by Neolithic communities 11,500 to 11,000 years ago, it features enormous, round stone structures and monumental stone pillars up to 5.5 meters (18 feet) high. Since there is no evidence of farming or animal domestication at the time, the site is believed to have been built by hunter-gatherers. However, its architectural complexity is highly unusual for them.”

Gobekli Tepe Earliest Known Temple Schematic

Geometric pattern underlying the architectural planning of a complex at Göbekli Tepe. A diagram superimposed over the schematic plan. Credit: Gil Haklay/AFTAU

Discovered by German archaeologist Dr. Klaus Schmidt in 1994, Göbekli Tepe has since been the subject of hot archaeological debate. But while these, and other early Neolithic remains, have been intensively studied, the issue of architectural planning during these periods and its cultural ramifications have not.

Most researchers have made the case that the Göbekli Tepe enclosures at the main excavation area were constructed over time. However, Haklay and Prof. Gopher say that three of the structures were designed as a single project and according to a coherent geometric pattern.

“The layout of the complex is characterized by spatial and symbolic hierarchies that reflect changes in the spiritual world and in the social structure,” Haklay explains. “In our research, we used an analytic tool — an algorithm based on standard deviation mapping — to identify an underlying geometric pattern that regulated the design.”

“This research introduces important information regarding the early development of architectural planning in the Levant and in the world,” Prof. Gopher adds. “It opens the door to new interpretations of this site in general, and of the nature of its megalithic anthropomorphic pillars specifically.”

Certain planning capabilities and practices, such as the use of geometry and the formulation of floor plans, were traditionally assumed to have emerged much later than the period during which the Göbekli Tepe was constructed — after hunter-gatherers transformed into food-producing farmers some 10,500 years ago. Notably, one of the characteristics of early farmers is their use of rectangular architecture.

“This case of early architectural planning may serve as an example of the dynamics of cultural changes during the early parts of the Neolithic period,” Haklay says. “Our findings suggest that major architectural transformations during this period, such as the transition to rectangular architecture, were knowledge-based, top-down processes carried out by specialists.

“The most important and basic methods of architectural planning were devised in the Levant in the Late Epipaleolithic period as part of the Natufian culture and through the early Neolithic period. Our new research indicates that the methods of architectural planning, abstract design rules, and organizational patterns were already being used during this formative period in human history.”

Next, the researchers intend to investigate the architectural remains of other Neolithic sites throughout the Levant.

Reference: “Geometry and Architectural Planning at Göbekli Tepe, Turkey” by Gil Haklay and Avi Gopher, 14 January 2020, Cambridge Archeological Journal.
DOI: 10.1017/S0959774319000660

13 Comments on "Mysteriously Complex Geometric Architecture Discovered in Neolithic Temple – Built 6,000 Years Before Stonehenge"

  1. We need some other than the Israelis to tell us about it.

  2. Petr Jandáček | May 13, 2020 at 3:11 pm | Reply

    It was erroneous to think that Agriculture was the First industry to bring together many workers. Mammoth hunting and processing of ivory & other dentals & bone material, pachyderm skin and wool & meats & fats and building material and dung-fuel etc was likely to create cartels which built Gobekli Tepe. To this date the autochthonous word for “MAMOTH” are similar across Eurasia & Canada.
    #1.  Sámi        –   SLONN (loan word from Russian)
    #2.  Latvian     –   ZILONIS
    #3.  Sorbian    –   Slon & Słon 
    #4.  Czech      –   SLON
    #5.  Polish      –   SŁOŃ
    #6.  Slovak     –   SLOŃ
    #7.  Kalderaš   –  woroSLANO or SLONO
    #8.  Roma       –  SLONO
    #9.  Ukrainian  –  слон – Female = слониха
    #10.Belarusian –  слон – Female = сланіха
    #11. Russian    –  слон – Female = слониха (SLONIKHA)
    #12. Amerindian Mythological Elephantine Ogress
    #13.                     TSONOQUA, DZUNNUKWA, DZOO-NOO-QUA,
    #14.                     DZOONOKWA,  TSUNOKWA
    #15.                     DZONOKWA etc…
                               as a Russified – tслониsquaw? (Sloní Squaw) 
    #16. Slovenian   – SLON
    #17. Croatian     – SLON
    #18. Bosnian     – SLON
    #19. Serbian      – слон
    #20.Macedonian – слон
    #21.Bulgarian     – слон
    #22. Tocharian A-  onKALAM
    #23. Tocharian B-  onKOLMO may be from Slavic word for Elephant  TUSK    = KEL or OKEL                                                
    #24. Tibetan      –   GLAN
    #25. Mongolian   –  ZAAN
    #26. Chinese      –  sδaŋ
    #27. South China-  sδoŋ
    #28. Thai           –  Čaŋ (CHANg) 
    #29. Laotian       –  Saŋ   (SANg) 
    #30. Japanese    –  ZO (or  ZOsan)
    #31. NOTA BENE The
    Cambodian word 
    for “elephant” is  –  DAMbRI  and the
    #32. Lithuanian is-  DRAMBLYS.  
    #33. Korean word for IVORY is:
                                 SANG-A
    #34. Finnish word for IVORY is:
                                 norSUNLuu
    #35. Amharic -Ethiopian word 
    for “elephant” is –     ZehON (ዝሆን)
    #36. Hebrew     –       SILONI or SILONIT describe elephant-like Fourth Plague upon Egypt.
    # 37. In India one of the many words
      for ELEPHASNT is SRNI

  3. Petr Jandáček | May 13, 2020 at 3:42 pm | Reply

    A little while ago I proposed that the autochthonous word for MAMMOTH & Elephant indicate that these creatures are
    at the center of extant belief systems and 12,000 years ago built Gobekli Tepe. See attached Abstract:
    Mythological Beings Based on Mammoths
    Petr Jandáček1
    1127 La Senda Rd. (Los Alamos), White Rock, New Mexico87547,USA
    Correspondence: Petr Jandacek, 127 La SendaRd. (Los Alamos), White Rock, New Mexico87547,USA.
    Received:November 21,2017Accepted:December 8, 2017Available online: January 5, 2018
    doi:10.11114/ijsss.v6i2.2915URL: https://doi.org/10.11114/ijsss.v6i2.2915
    Abstract
    Genetics, linguistics, mythology, art, anthropology and other disciplines converge to remind modern humans that much of their belief system harkens back to the hunters of mammoths and related giant fauna.This is manifest in the fact that all across Eurasia the words for the animal elephant are remarkably similar and are ostensibly derived from the onomatopoeic “ZZZAAAN” sound of mammoth trumpeting.In places where memory about mammoths and elephants no longer survives it is perpetuated in mythologies about giants who suck.Thesebeings are described as being wooly, pachyderm, nasal, gigantic, and in other ways remarkably mammoth-like.
    Keywords: elephant, mammoth, ogre, anthropomorphic giants, creatures with proboscis
    1. Introduction
    Across Africa, America, Asia and Europe there exist substantial similarities in words for the animal -elephant. It is postulated that the onomatopoeic “ZZZAAAN” sound of elephant trumpeting was best preserved in the Mongol word for the animal elephant: zaan. It is further postulated that this became the standard word for the animal mammoth across Eurasia. The Slavic word for elephant is slonand it is reasonable to assume that in Western Europe (west of the Elbe river and west of Trieste) the words for elephant were also some form of slonprior to the installation of the Greek and Latin form: elephant. This theory is supported by the fact that virtually all other languages of Eurasia use some form of słəŋ-Latvian zilonis, Polish słoń, Czech slon, Slovenian slon, Russian слон, Chinese sδaŋ or sδoŋ, Thai čaŋ, Laotian saŋ and there are many other such examples(Jandáček, 2013a,b, 2014, 2017).

  4. Kurtis Engle | May 14, 2020 at 5:45 am | Reply

    Does it not occure to the authors that just possibly the existence of this archeological site might be a reason to conclude the folks who built it were NOT hunter-gatherers? Merely moving all those stones would take an unreasonable number of man-hours. Now you are saying, they had a plan. A big plan. Three at once! Using geometry! Where did they get this geometry? Pretty sophisticated stuff for hunter-gatherers. And what about that art? Is that a diagram of the Solstice? If so, does it say a date? Which date? It seems like a lot of trouble to go to to write down a date. At what point does the scientist say, “Hang on, that doesn’t make sense…”

    When one looks around and notes other things, like the impact events resulting in the Younger Dryas Boundary Layer. A black mat laid down 12,900 years ago covering a third of the Earth from Alaska to Syria. Where a village was destroyed. And was rebuilt by a different group of people, who were farmers. Apparently 1,000 years before the dates attributed Gobekli Tepe.

    smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/comet-upended-life-paleolithic-village-12800-years-ago-180974575/

    nature.com/articles/s41598-020-60867-w

    Considering the destruction involved in laying down that black mat, which included sudden change in sea level, should lead one in the direction of the thought that whatever Man was up to 12,900 years ago ended very abruptly. And most evidence from that time was smashed, burned and/or sunk in the Oceans. At such a time, it would be the hunter-gatherers who most easily adapt. The expression, ‘set back to the stone age’ applies here. Scientists need to include these facts in thier view of the past.

    Those who want to learn more might enjoy Randall Carlsons’ exellent podcast on the matter.

    youtube.com/playlist?list=PLHY4t-R0YADjCkxB0PVYPqoSGrspbryHg

    Mr. Carlson also presents an astonishing lecture on the actual purpose of the Great Pyramid. It seems they were able to measure the Earth as accuratly as we can, now. Think about what that means.

    Part 1
    youtube.com/watch?v=H43z2xAis4c
    Part 2
    youtube.com/watch?v=SMH8X6f0ek8
    Part 3
    youtube.com/watch?v=zOk9xJUGSJ0

  5. These are excellent comments. You will learn so much more by following the information provided by the intelligent commentators here. Much like mainstream media, the mainstream scientific community sticks to an official narrative. So much is known about the past through the work of independent researchers and scientists, but you will not be able to read about it in any of these mainstream news publications. I am pleasantly suprised to see so many people aware of the enormous amount of hidden truth.

  6. William J Bishop | May 15, 2020 at 11:27 am | Reply

    I had read that this site was purposely buried and abandoned. If true, why go through all that trouble buildings this massive complex, just to bury it?

  7. Humanity , and what it this metamorphosis ,from the imagination ofthis hairless ape , sudden dramatic realization within the cerebral consciousness , multiple uneducated , nomad communities response in the other wise uncivilized warrior clans to suddenly united in force to waste precious resource responding to fairy tale and the urge to conceal this monument. Hmmm , why? Just maybe they were as conscious as we are today, less superstitious and had a real encounter as all great civilizations disconnected by vast barriers with similar historical response telepathic communication of Universal world consciousness to live and die ,slave to a lie, shared hallucinations ofreligious practices out of thin air without rhyme or reason. There most be more than meets the eye.

  8. Johann Wundersamer | May 15, 2020 at 7:07 pm | Reply

    William J. Bishop,

    “this site was purposely buried and abandoned. If true, why go through all that trouble buildings this massive complex, just to bury it?”

    – because

    Proto European settlements were destroyed and abandoned still in the Hallstatt period, after ~30 years utilization:
    Sanitary conditions, water polluted: bacteria, viruses, no trees / firewood within 30 km radius. Caesar ordered the Celtic Helvetians to return to their destroyed = burned down villages. Leaving with their Household items carried on bullock carts.

  9. Johann Wundersamer | May 15, 2020 at 7:24 pm | Reply

    Anyway thanks for a good question William J. – I’d never combined that “ornate, lavish” stone constructions” with simple “residences”.

  10. Sonny Clement | May 16, 2020 at 1:39 am | Reply

    I would point out that this site has direct indicators in connection to another mysterious site of Puma Punka. If you look at the pillars ,you will notice “H”carvings covering a majority of all the pillars and are identical to the “H” blocks of Puma Punka

  11. No matter what they try to say, this took years and much manpower to construct. It wasn’t a weekend barn raising. Those people needed to eat. Thinking that all those people were fed by hunter gathers shows just how rigid, and unable to step outside the box modern archeology is. Obviosly they must have had farming and feed animals. Theres no other way to explain it.

  12. Hunter gatherers MY FOOT. Please read unbiased scientific investigative works by eminent personalities like Graham Hancock, Robert Schoch and Firestone to know the real story. Mainstream scientific community are nothing but a bunch of cowards and freaks who want to keep the real history of the world hidden from humanity so they can let uniformitarianism continue to thrive. It was an highly advanced ancient culture, some of them who survived a cataclysm and erected this monument to warn the generations to come about how sudden cataclysm of global scale can wipe out humanity and shroud our collective memories. Same story for every single cyclopean architecture across the world – everything being explained away as stone age hunter gatherers who managed to build stuff that even the arrogant civilisation of today cant build.

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