Researchers believe the intricate carvings at Gobekli Tepe, an ancient temple complex in southern Turkey, may document an astronomical event that significantly impacted early human civilization. The findings indicate that ancient people used these carvings to observe the sun, moon, and constellations, forming a solar calendar to track time and seasonal changes.
Detailed analysis of V-shaped symbols on the pillars revealed that each V might symbolize a single day. This interpretation led researchers to identify a solar calendar comprising 365 days, divided into 12 lunar months plus 11 additional days.
The summer solstice is depicted as a unique day, represented by a V on the neck of a bird-like figure thought to symbolize the summer solstice constellation. Similar V-markings were found on statues nearby, possibly representing deities.
These carvings could be the world's earliest lunisolar calendar, integrating both lunar and solar cycles, and predate other known lunisolar calendars by thousands of years.
Researchers suggest that the Gobekli Tepe carvings were created to mark the date of a comet fragment swarm that struck Earth around 13,000 years ago (10,850 BC). This event is believed to have initiated a mini ice age lasting over 1,200 years, leading to the extinction of many large animal species and triggering changes in lifestyle and agriculture linked to the rise of civilization in the fertile crescent of West Asia.
Another pillar at the site appears to depict the Taurid meteor stream, believed to be the source of the comet fragments, lasting 27 days and originating from the Aquarius and Pisces constellations.
The discovery also suggests that ancient people understood precession - the wobble in Earth's axis affecting the movement of constellations - at least 10,000 years before it was documented by Hipparchus of Ancient Greece in 150 BC.
The importance of these carvings at Gobekli Tepe over millennia implies that the comet strike may have sparked a new cult or religion that influenced the development of civilization.
This finding supports the theory that Earth faces increased comet strikes as its orbit intersects with circling comet fragments, typically observed as meteor streams.
Dr. Martin Sweatman, from the University of Edinburgh's School of Engineering, who led the research, stated, "It appears the inhabitants of Gobekli Tepe were keen observers of the sky, which is to be expected given their world had been devastated by a comet strike. This event might have triggered civilisation by initiating a new religion and by motivating developments in agriculture to cope with the cold climate. Possibly, their attempts to record what they saw are the first steps towards the development of writing millennia later."
Research Report:Representations of calendars and time at Gobekli Tepe and Karahan Tepe support an astronomical interpretation of their symbolism
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University of Edinburgh
Understanding Time and Space
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