Gobekli Tepe 1400-1600

Göbekli Tepe is regarded as an archaeological discovery of the greatest importance since it could profoundly change the understanding of a crucial stage in the development of human society. Ian Hodder of Stanford University said, "Göbekli Tepe changes everything". And David Lewis-Williams, professor of archaeology at Witwatersrand University in Johannesburg, has said, "Göbekli Tepe is the most important archaeological site in the world." It shows that the erection of monumental complexes was within the capacities of hunter-gatherers and not only of sedentary farming communities as had been previously assumed. As excavator Klaus Schmidt puts it, "First came the temple, then the city."