Persia and Asia

Gobekli Tepe and Early Monuments

Carved pillars and enclosures built before farming villages.

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The Forgotten City of Gobekli Tepe: A Treasure Trove of Ancient History

Gobekli Tepe in southeastern Turkey is a monumental site from about 9500 BCE, not a city. This overview covers its discovery, Klaus Schmidt's excavations and what remains debated.

5 min read

The Mysterious Case of the Ancient Gobekli Tepe

A close look at the T-shaped limestone pillars of Gobekli Tepe: their size, the human features carved on them, and how they were quarried, shaped and set in place.

4 min read

The Mysterious Case of the Gobekli Tepe Temple

Is Gobekli Tepe a temple? Why the label is only an interpretation, and how ritual, feasting, funerary and domestic explanations are weighed by archaeologists.

4 min read

The Mysterious Case of the Gobekli Tepe Temples

The animal reliefs carved on the pillars of Gobekli Tepe, including foxes, snakes, boars and vultures, and what scholars suggest the imagery may have meant.

4 min read

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