Josh Gates ventures to the Harran Plain in southern Turkey to investigate Göbekli Tepe, a site that has upended our understanding of human history. Erected 12,000 years ago—6,000 years before Stonehenge—this collection of circular buildings, massive stone megaliths, and distinctive T-shaped pillars represents the oldest standing structures ever discovered. The mystery deepens because Göbekli Tepe was built during the Stone Age, before the invention of metal tools and even before the development of farming. Gates sets out from the ancient city of Şanlıurfa to separate sensational claims about alien observatories and lost civilizations from the archaeological evidence, joining researchers as they decipher symbols and unearth clues about the site's true builders and purpose.
Mainstream archaeology recognizes Göbekli Tepe as a revolutionary discovery that challenges conventional timelines of civilization's origins. German archaeologist Klaus Schmidt first excavated the site in 1995 after noticing an unusual 50-foot mound rising above the plain, suspecting it was man-made rather than natural. The episode gains its compelling edge from new excavations revealing evidence of skull rituals and rites of passage that may identify who built this enigmatic complex and what ultimately happened to them. Perhaps most startling, researchers now believe Göbekli Tepe isn't an isolated phenomenon—suggesting our Stone Age ancestors were far more sophisticated and organized than previously imagined, with implications that echo into the modern world.