Archaeologists and engineers from the University of Edinburgh claim that a set of Stone Age stone tablets seem to confirm the theory that an ancient comet strike led to the development of modern societies and agriculture. That theory has it that a catastrophic comet impact led to a period of climatic instability which forced early humankind to come together into new social arrangements based on the changing climate, largely spawning modern civilization as we know it. The stele stones believed to depict this strike were found in Göbekli Tepe, one of the most mysterious archaeological sites in the world.
Göbekli Tepe is a series of structures atop a ridge in the Anatolian Mountains in southern Turkey. Rows of buildings all converge on a central structure believed to be a Stone Age temple for some unknown belief system. The temple’s purpose remains a mystery, with theories ranging from a temple for a cult of the dead, an astronomical calendar, or a shrine for animal gods worshiped by Stone Age people. The site has been dated to 9,000 BCE, making it the world’s first known temple. Archaeologists are still unsure how early civilizations could have erected some of the structures found at the site.
The temple contains several large stone steles which depict various animals. Most of the animals correspond to well-known constellations like a bull (Taurus), a scorpion (Scorpius), and a dog (Canis Major and Minor). A strange fox carving also appears, but researchers do not know which constellation it represents. Several other symbols and objects such as a strange belt buckle are found in the carvings but their meanings are still debated. One theory posits that these symbols depict an ancient astronomical event, possibly a cataclysmic one.
According to new research published in Mediterranean Archaeology and Archaeometry, analysis of the carvings along with computer simulations of astronomical data confirmed that the animal carvings, in fact, represent constellations seen in the sky above an ancient cataclysmic comet strike.
Using constellation map software, the researchers found that the particular arrangement of animals seen on the stele would have occurred in 10,950 BCE. The University of Edinburgh’s Dr. Martin Sweatman believes that the date also just so happens to line up with a comet strike believed to have brought on the Ice Age in what is called the Younger-Dryas event:
I think this research, along with the recent finding of a widespread platinum anomaly across the North American continent virtually seal the case in favour of (a Younger Dryas comet impact). Our work serves to reinforce that physical evidence. What is happening here is the process of paradigm change. It appears Göbekli Tepe was, among other things, an observatory for monitoring the night sky. One of its pillars seems to have served as a memorial to this devastating event – probably the worst day in history since the end of the ice age.
That comet theory is backed up by other recent archaeological finds which suggest a platinum-rich comet struck the Earth around the same time and may have wiped out North America’s earliest civilizations. Evidence of such a strike can be seen in the ‘pockmarks’ dotting America’s entire east coast. If our deep geological and archaeological history shows anything, it’s that it’s only a matter of time before the next big one strikes and turns a new page in the Earth’s long and catastrophic history. Carpe diem.
Previous article