Göbekli Tepe: The Dawn of Civilization 

I've been to Ankor Wat, the Great Pyramid, Petra, even Stonehenge, but this site affected me the most. It's a simply mind-boggling site. I saw it in 2007, and you can't help but feel the awe of being in the presence of something so immensely ancient. It was so ancient it would have been immensely ancient even to the cultures WE consider to be ancient, if they'd been remembered at all. Yet, you can't help but feel a connection to those long-ago peoples. You ask, "What were your dreams? What gods did you worship...what did your people see in your time?" Its staggering

We don't know if it is the first... Just the oldest...so far.

I love the fact that there must be hundreds of places like this that are still buried and history is always being re written.

This video is only a year old, but so much has changed. New evidence has come to light that this site did have people dwelling there, possibly year-round. Water was harvested by collecting rain in multiple cisterns, a burial has been found, along with hearths at deeper layers. There is no doubt that the tee-pillars represent humanoids from some ancient narrative as evidenced by arms, belts, necklaces, etc. carved into the stones. There are dozens of other contemporary sites, but one major sister site being excavated is Karahan Tepe 35 KM to the east that is more focused on humans in the artwork in comparison to the emphasis on wild animals at Gobleki Tepe.

Klaus Schmidt, a hero of archaeology.

We must finally admit, the whole, 'hunter-gatherer', rise of cities about 5000 years ago... Needs some revision. Not the 'alien visitor' revision, but serious academic, peer-revue stuff.

This structure is so advanced for its time and leads me to believe that there are other structures that would be ancient when this was being built.

What this proves is that we have no idea how or when society started or anything really

It's amazing that humanity's history is constantly being rewritten. We keep finding more and more and keep going further back. Excited to see what else comes next

Here's to Klaus Schmidt for finding this place and rewriting human history 🙋

"It was here... that humanity's first great construction project was born." Until we find an older, greater one.

This needs to be updated. Apparently, there is now evidence of habitation on site, though it’s probably way too early to draw any conclusions. The question of how this (apparently) hunter-gatherer culture could have successfully organized the requisite social structures required to build this site is truly captivating. And just how they learned the necessary skills…is truly a potentially history-upending puzzle.

Why don’t more people talk about this? This is huge!

"Stuff just keeps on getting older..." -Graham Hancock If you haven't heard of this man, you are missing out.

What catches my eye is that all of the carvings are in relief. Primatives may scratch into stone, but it takes higher thinking to plan out and then execute a relief carving.

Great job!!

I think we made a grave error in assuming that ancient humans were not as intelligent or resourceful as modern man.

I don't think the t-shaped pillars are meant to resemble people (or gods). Look at those animal carvings. Those people knew how to make realistic images of the world around them. If they had wanted the pillars to resemble people or gods, they would look like people or gods, not like something a three year old put together from very heavy very large lego bricks. Picasso and cubism was still a few thousand years away. Those pillars probably had a very mundane function, which required them to be t-shaped. My guess is that they held up a roof of some kind. Maybe a large tent top, made from animal skins or woven reeds. Something that 12000 years later we would not find any remnants of. The way the pillars are laid out suggests that as well. You have smaller ones around the shape of the building and then two higher ones more to the middle. If I was trying to create a simple yet impressive "room" of some sort, that's probably the design I would come up with after a few tries. I studied history at a German university in the 1990s. The discovery of Göbleki Tepe was ... well ... at first our professors laughed about it and waved it of. It was too unbelievable to be true. The dating must be wrong. It must be some kind of hoax. But the data kept coming and it was convincing. It was earth shattering. Everything taught about early human history and the rise of civilization had to be re-written. I've still not been to Turkey to see it myself, but I absolutely plan to.

Awesome video!

I think it’s equally important to focus on what we can’t see then only what remains. We are predisposed to ‘fill in the blanks’ based on our experience. As a kid, in order to build a great snow fort I’d dig down deep then add the roof with branches and wood scraps, then I’d comer it up again. It looked dug out until you were inside and saw the layer of wood holding the snow up. It was also crazy warm and hidden. Seems to me something similar could have been done.

Definitely didn't expect a jojo's reference with my history lesson today but I'm here for it.

This is when RPG stories start, an ancient evil, sealed for aeons, is released once again upon the world.

Awesome Video!

This is such a remarkable site. We know so little about human history & it’s exciting to be alive now when science is finally helping us uncover our history more quickly & efficiently.

I am so excited you covered this!!!

Great job Fact Boi

Great video..😊

I can't wait to see an archeologist 10 000 years from now to find my house and theorize if it was an ancient temple to trees because of the two plastic christmas trees is found in the cellar.

I was about to write a comment completely unrelated to Jojo nor even related to anime but... 11:35 JOSEPH JOESTAR? WHAT? Wow, I never expected for them to make a Jojo Reference....oh I realized...Pillar Men. EDIT: 13:40 PILLAR MEN???? DUDE STOP, MY JJBA REFERENCE DETECTOR IS TINGLING ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Jojo references aside, that German archaelogist' discovery really changed our timeline of history and made us modern humans even more puzzled of our ancient origins.

this is a favorite subject, the early culture of that area and the beginning of farming etc, Neolithic farmer folk and their migrations into Europe. For comparison of time, Otzi the Iceman died 5300 years ago and Gobekli Tepe was that distance and a bit more, to him as he is to us. There are habitations found there now, some years after this was filmed, and I have hopes of learning so much more of this culture of people around the Harran Plains

Thank you my dude.

Visiting Gobekli Tepe is going at the top of my bucket list!

Never underestimate the impact that can be made my one enthusiastic German.

Great Story Thanks 👍

Amazing video

'Tis said it is the brewing of beer that first inspired man to form permanent settlements ... not agriculture ... makes perfect sense to me ...

How about giving some credit to the farmer who found the artifacts and brought them to Schmidt and others when he found them on and around the hill. The team of archeologists at first didn't believe him, but when Schmidt saw them he saw the similarity to the ones he found at Nevali Cori. That's why he went to the hill. Also, the local people in the area still had a spring festival including feasts on the hill! Ask the locals and you'll probably find out more about any place you go.

because *Harran Plain* was the Garden of Eden. Hunter-gatherers suddenly began to carve some giant T-shaped pillars around Harran Plain 12.000 years ago. First, they built those 6 metres long enclosure D central pillars at Göbekli Tepe…

That chain of events that led Schmidt to read that 'paragraph' etc. etc. Is mind boggling

1:20 - Chapter 1 - The ancient hill 5:25 - Chapter 2 - Building a miracle 9:00 - Chapter 3 - Potbelly hill 12:20 - Chapter 4 - The pillars of creation 15:40 - Chapter 5 - The return

The fall of the ice age was violent and sudden. We didn't start then, we started over then.

Building quality digress over the course of 1800 years. Holy cow. That's interesting.

Very professional i vote for the theory of Graham Hancock supporting the younger dryas and that it was an astronomical site

If the most sophisticated construction found was the oldest, and dates back 13,000 years, how many millennia do you think it took those ancient peoples to master that building skill? It took thousands of years to completely forget the technique, may have take that long or much longer to develop the process. Where are the examples of this civilization PERFECTING this technique over time? They did not just START at Gobekli Tepe, that seems to be the pinnacle of their stonework and civilization. Wait until we find their earlier buildings. This just keeps pushing the "Dawn of Civilization" back by thousands of years. And we have no idea what we haven't found yet. Peoples from areas like the Yellow River Valley, the Indus River Valley, Aboriginal Australia and New Zealand, the original builders of Machu Pichu, even some parts of North America, show true antiquity in their cultural origins. I have the feeling 13,000 years ago may not be nearly far enough back to find the real origins of civilization in human culture.

The Boy with the Blaze seems to be slowly seeping into the rest of Simon's channels and I'm on board for it! 😃

This place is definitely on my bucket list

I’m going to give you a thumbs up Blevins tough you dissed Delaware!

Loved the Jostar reference

The chances of being killed by a duck are low, but never zero!

Randall Carlson has done some incredible research regarding this site.

Thanks Joe

that is now undeniable verifyable facts

It's all part of a continuum. They will find even older, slightly less complicated stuff eventually, and on and on. People then were just as smart as we are today.

"And before you ask, YES THIS IS A JOJO REFERENCE!"

Saving for.later... very interesting site.

Look at Native American clans/totems and the animals that represented them. It's not hard to imagine that this was a similar system. When many clans gathered together (or perhaps just the hunters from different clans for certain ceremonies), the animals represented each group. Look at the carvings and you know Fox is meeting here, Bear over there, etc. Of course you're also invoking the spirit of the animal with the carving.

I’ve been there 2 years ago it had an amazing athmosphere! It’s is so hard to grasp the fact that those tall pillars standing there is at least 12.000 years old and was long been burried under soil, but yet there they were! Also you must check the museum before the entrance for more context and the little 10 minute long installation there really helps with the experience. They are still digging around the area there were a bigger field about 500 meters away. I can’t wait to visit there again and learn more about that place it was truely magical!

2:40 wow, that sure was a busy & productive “four centuries”! crazy!

Exceptionally exciting site

Whats the piano music at the end when he started talking about Klaus Schmidts death ?

I'll venture to give you a simple explanation for what it was used for: it was the site of Burning Man - 10,000 BC.

Graham Hancock was the first I ever heard talk about this!

LMAO had to pause to comment because the JJBA reference was so unexpected. Man now I wanna go watch it again

How far away is this from the flanks of the mountains of state?

The boi covers something I love. I am going to watch this at least a dozen times.

I think it's an ancient hunter gatherer trade site. Every year they meet up for a big festival, exchange goods and carve their stories.

This is one of my favorite of your videos, Simon. Brilliant & funny as ever. 💫🇹🇷 Thanks, too, for the kudos to Klaus Schmidt. When hunches & wisdom meet in the middle. Rest in paradise, Herr Schmidt.

Try this, when Noah landed on the mount of salvation (mt. Ararat )and the anunnakis returned to earth from their safe zone to meet up with him, they the anunnakis decided it was time their creation man was to be assisted in developing there on cities with the anunnakis help Gobekli tepe was among the first and many of the stone figurines were of the family of Noah, if you didn't Know this now you do!

Graham Hancock has entered chat.

Few people dare to address the huge elephant in the room. A people that builds a monument like this, isn’t a hunter gatherer people. All they really know for sure is that there was a hunter gatherer tribe in the region at the time. Thank you, Klaus Schmidt, for your work.

what freaks me out the most is the stone handbag caving , its carved into the stones of so many cultures and we have no idea what it represents

I just had a LOVELY weekend in Delaware...

11:35 "pillar men" "Joseph Joestar" 😂

Did...did he just make a JoJo joke? Does he even know what it is or was it just off the script...I MUST KNOW 🤣🤣🤣

You should do a video on the younger dryas impact theory

A theory: the constant building, burying and restarting wasn’t due to design flaws, but fear. Whatever they were building caused terror in the neighboring peoples, and they killed the builders and buried the site. Only for the descendants or relatives of the builders to return to the site and restart construction. This could also explain how the building techniques grow worse over time, as the most advanced of the culture were purged early and their understudies or apprentices begin construction again.

It's great to see that one of humanities first greatest achievements was a JoJo's reference.

Younger Dryas Impact Hypothesis. We're just scratching the surface of the full history of human civilization.

Gobekli Tepe was absolutely not the dawn of civilization, but indeed the continuation of an older civilization

Hey have they done a video on the eye of Africa I didn't see it in the lists but maybe on one of the 12 channels that he's working does anyone know?

The fact that you mentioned that as time passed the skills of the workforce or engineering devolved really reminds me of Machu Pichu where the most remarkable parts of it are the oldest whereas the most modern is essentially piles of rocks

Simon, at 2:50 you said, "Packed four centuries", you meant "Four Millennia"-Very easy to do when discussing the incredible timespans of Gobekli Tepe.

What method are they using to date this location?

It’s not the Dawn of civilization - it is only the latest in archaeological finds-there are hundreds of civilizations that go back further and further - but the total extinction and complete destruction of cataclysms over millions of years wiped away any trace of them. Once in a while we get lucky and dig one up and we call that “the Dawn of civilization”

The fact that you put a JJBA reference in the makes this just perfect xD

11:35 That JoJo reference was as unexpected as the Spanish Inquisition

visiting this spot in a month. in pumped

One big question is missing: why the main pillars in the center are standing/pointing towards the South?? :)

4 thousand years not not 400 hundred years. Millennium not century.

Simon: “What else may be buried under the sand, long forgotten”? Me: your jumper collection. Duh-dum doosh.

The Great Pyramid is being disputed, using geo-climatic investigation, especially the wet weathering around the Sphinx, that area is now speculated to be nearer to 14-15k years ago. Eypgt does not want to acknowledge that because they would lose the clout of being the ancient sites builders.

Since this video came out several important discoveries have been made. The site might not be just a gathering point with religious significance but rather a full fledged settlement. Also, 11 other sites similar to Göbekli Tepe have been found throughout Turkey

You said "it took 4 centuries" when you were mentioning historical milestones from the great pyramids to modern times. Spoilers, it was 4 millennia. And than add six more of those, and we are there. Crazy...

"Humanity's first great construction project" - yeah, somehow I still doubt that. I don't think we have a clue just how old the things under our feet are, and how long we've been around.

At 11:37: did Simon just make a... Jojo's Bizarre Adventure-reference?!?! amazing! This is the real Geographics,Simon is so amazing!

This helps put me to sleep…interesting until i fall asleep

Our past was magnificent and unbelievable and ended 13k years ago. This will come to light soon

In Peru and Colombia, the ancient buildings also carry that "the older the bigger and better" trace

Younger Dryas Comet Hypothesis intensifies... especially now that Karahan Tepe and I believe one more site like that have been discovered in that region. These sites indicate highly ordered society, rather than hunter-gatherers. You need a surplus of labour, and a lot of it, in order to build a thing like that. Let alone the astronomical allignments of the site or weird sculptures showing animals found nowhere that region. Oh, and it has been INTENTIONALLY BURIED for some reason. Oh, the Pyramids' quality also deteriorates in later stages of their construction rather than improve. Just as if they were losing previous generations' expertise and building skills abd could not replicate them.

Wait: so there WAS agriculture at that period? You said that crops were cultivated as the work went up or did i understand badly?