Ancient pillar at Gobeklitepe may reveal world's oldest calendar
New findings suggest Gobeklitepe's 12,000-year-old carvings may mark the birth of timekeeping.
The carvings reveal both lunar and solar cycles, indicating a sophisticated grasp of astronomical phenomena. / Photo: AA Archive
Archaeologists in southeastern Türkiye have uncovered what may be the world's oldest known calendar at the famed site of Gobeklitepe, shedding light on potential traces of civilisational changes.
A recent study published by the University of Edinburgh suggested that Gobeklitepe, a Neolithic site known for its elaborate stone pillars, may hold the earliest known record of a solar calendar.
Researchers have identified a calendar spanning 365 days, including 12 lunar months and an additional 11 days, suggesting an advanced understanding of time.
The intricate carvings, located in what is today the province of Sanliurfa, date back 12,000 years and depict a sophisticated system for tracking the time and seasons, according to Mail Online.
Notably, the summer solstice is depicted with a V symbol around the neck of a bird-like figure, possibly representing the summer constellation of that era.
This calendar may predate other known lunisolar calendars by millennia, offering insight into how early humans observed and recorded celestial events.
Analysis of V-shaped symbols carved onto the pillars indicates that each V shape could represent a single day.
Marking a comet strike
Researchers further proposed that the carvings memorialise a significant comet strike around 10,850 BC, which likely triggered a mini-ice age lasting over 1,200 years.
This event led to the extinction of numerous large species and is believed to have catalysed shifts in agriculture and societal development in the region known as the Fertile Crescent.
One pillar at the site appears to illustrate the Taurid meteor stream, associated with regular comet fragments. It provides evidence of early date-recording methods based on precession — the wobble in the Earth's axis affecting constellation movements.
This predates similar Greek records by approximately 10,000 years, it added.
Martin Sweatman, a scientist of the University of Edinburgh's School of Engineering who led the study, suggested that Gobeklitepe's inhabitants were meticulous observers of the sky, motivated by the comet strike's impact.
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