Description:

Seven thousand years before Stonehenge, hunter-gatherers near the headwaters of the Euphrates erected several circles of megaliths that are not only larger than the one on the Salisbury Plain, they are magnificently carved. Within the perimeter of the site, archeologists have so far discovered no signs of permanent settlement, but they have found vast troves of butchered antelope bones and stone bowls with a beer-like residue. Among the many pillar carvings of animals, birds and insects are those of mushrooms. Clearly, Gobekli Tepe served as a site for celebration and exchange. Sound familiar?

Gobekli Tepe and recently discovered nearby sites raise many questions. What prompted a still nomadic people to erect these monumental assemblages? Why did this astonishing feat take place at exactly that point in time? Are the towering pillars aligned with any specific astronomical phenomena? How is it possible that architecture on this scale emerged before agriculture, cities and strict social hierarchies? Why is it that the most prominent voices discussing Gobekli Tepe and its sister sites couch their analyses in the language and philosophy of anarchism? Clearly, we can't definitively answer any of these questions from our dusty sofa, but we can explore the latest theories and revel in the thought that we are participating in a tradition that began many thousands of years ago.