1 00:00:02,292 --> 00:00:03,667 WILLIAM SHATNER: A sprawling, ancient city 2 00:00:03,792 --> 00:00:06,833 located entirely underground. 3 00:00:06,917 --> 00:00:11,000 A giant, stone tomb built to be a gateway 4 00:00:11,083 --> 00:00:13,333 to the afterlife. 5 00:00:13,458 --> 00:00:16,833 And 11 enormous churches that were carved 6 00:00:16,958 --> 00:00:19,375 out of solid rock. 7 00:00:20,833 --> 00:00:23,167 Throughout the world, there are ancient structures 8 00:00:23,292 --> 00:00:26,542 that seem to defy explanation. 9 00:00:26,708 --> 00:00:28,000 Monuments so massive 10 00:00:28,083 --> 00:00:29,708 and so intricately constructed 11 00:00:29,833 --> 00:00:31,500 that even with today's technology, 12 00:00:31,625 --> 00:00:34,917 they would be nearly impossible to duplicate. 13 00:00:35,042 --> 00:00:38,417 How were ancient civilizations able 14 00:00:38,542 --> 00:00:41,167 to build such extraordinary structures? 15 00:00:41,292 --> 00:00:43,542 And perhaps more importantly, 16 00:00:43,667 --> 00:00:46,958 what purpose did they serve? 17 00:00:47,083 --> 00:00:50,292 Well, that is what we'll try and find out. 18 00:00:50,417 --> 00:00:52,292 ♪ ♪ 19 00:01:05,500 --> 00:01:08,083 High in the mountains of northern Ethiopia, 20 00:01:08,208 --> 00:01:10,292 a mile and a half above sea level, 21 00:01:10,417 --> 00:01:13,458 lies the city of Lalibela. 22 00:01:13,542 --> 00:01:17,042 Each year, tens of thousands of worshippers 23 00:01:17,208 --> 00:01:19,167 make the arduous journey here, 24 00:01:19,292 --> 00:01:21,833 despite its remote location, 25 00:01:21,917 --> 00:01:25,500 to visit 11 of the strangest 26 00:01:25,625 --> 00:01:28,167 holy places on Earth. 27 00:01:30,000 --> 00:01:32,875 Lalibela is one of Africa's 28 00:01:33,042 --> 00:01:36,000 most mysterious sites. 29 00:01:36,125 --> 00:01:40,167 It's a complex of 11 monolithic churches that are 30 00:01:40,250 --> 00:01:42,250 hewn right out of the bedrock. 31 00:01:42,375 --> 00:01:44,500 Most churches are built on the surface, 32 00:01:44,625 --> 00:01:47,417 and they're built from the bottom up. 33 00:01:47,542 --> 00:01:51,417 Whereas in Lalibela, they're built from the top down. 34 00:01:51,542 --> 00:01:54,917 It's the only place on the Earth that has cathedrals that are 35 00:01:55,042 --> 00:01:59,083 built underground as opposed to being built on the surface. 36 00:02:01,750 --> 00:02:06,458 ANDREW COLLINS: What makes the Lalibela churches so unique 37 00:02:06,542 --> 00:02:11,000 is not just their building construction, 38 00:02:11,083 --> 00:02:13,375 which is unlike anything else in the world, 39 00:02:13,500 --> 00:02:19,500 but also the otherworldly feel of the complexes 40 00:02:19,625 --> 00:02:23,333 where these different monuments can be found. 41 00:02:24,625 --> 00:02:29,042 Entering into the complex of churches 42 00:02:29,208 --> 00:02:33,250 was almost like entering another realm. 43 00:02:35,542 --> 00:02:40,292 Almost as if those who constructed Lalibela 44 00:02:40,375 --> 00:02:43,167 had a ritual function, 45 00:02:43,333 --> 00:02:48,542 and that was to bring themselves closer to God. 46 00:02:50,083 --> 00:02:52,500 STEVE BURROWS: It's an incredible piece of engineering, 47 00:02:52,625 --> 00:02:56,458 this idea that you build 11 churches below ground, 48 00:02:56,583 --> 00:02:59,333 but it creates its own unique problems. 49 00:02:59,458 --> 00:03:01,417 How do people get down there? 50 00:03:01,542 --> 00:03:04,542 How did they move all of the rock out and where did it go? 51 00:03:04,708 --> 00:03:07,417 Uh, those are the things that start running through my mind. 52 00:03:09,417 --> 00:03:12,167 SHATNER: Dating back to the 12th century A.D., 53 00:03:12,333 --> 00:03:14,500 each of Lalibela's 11 churches 54 00:03:14,625 --> 00:03:17,792 was painstakingly carved by hand, 55 00:03:17,875 --> 00:03:22,667 and from the outside, like enormous sculptures. 56 00:03:22,750 --> 00:03:27,167 The complex also includes an extensive system of tunnels 57 00:03:27,250 --> 00:03:31,333 and catacombs, all carved out of solid bedrock. 58 00:03:31,458 --> 00:03:33,500 But why? 59 00:03:33,667 --> 00:03:37,333 Why build a magnificent series of structures 60 00:03:37,500 --> 00:03:39,833 in the toughest way possible? 61 00:03:41,292 --> 00:03:45,500 COLLINS: The builder of Lalibela was a king 62 00:03:45,583 --> 00:03:48,333 by this very name, Lalibela. 63 00:03:48,417 --> 00:03:52,000 And it is said that, in the 12th century, 64 00:03:52,083 --> 00:03:56,875 he was living in Jerusalem, and decided to come back 65 00:03:57,042 --> 00:04:00,333 into Ethiopia and create 66 00:04:00,458 --> 00:04:04,167 these monolithic churches. 67 00:04:04,250 --> 00:04:08,083 And it's very clear that Lalibela, 68 00:04:08,208 --> 00:04:12,167 in the design of these different churches, 69 00:04:12,292 --> 00:04:14,917 was trying to replicate Jerusalem. 70 00:04:15,042 --> 00:04:19,583 Indeed, he was trying to create a new Jerusalem. 71 00:04:19,708 --> 00:04:23,375 So, by entering into this complex, it's almost like 72 00:04:23,500 --> 00:04:26,417 you were entering into Jerusalem itself, 73 00:04:26,542 --> 00:04:29,083 which was considered to be the most 74 00:04:29,208 --> 00:04:31,500 holy shrine in the world. 75 00:04:31,625 --> 00:04:36,958 MICHAEL GERVERS: It is described that Lalibela had a dream. 76 00:04:37,042 --> 00:04:40,667 And in the dream he was instructed by God to go back and 77 00:04:40,792 --> 00:04:46,125 make a copy of Jerusalem at the site. 78 00:04:46,208 --> 00:04:49,375 And, in order to fulfill God's request, 79 00:04:49,500 --> 00:04:52,167 King Lalibela and others who were involved 80 00:04:52,292 --> 00:04:55,625 worked night and day for 20 years. 81 00:04:55,708 --> 00:04:58,333 So, in their minds, right at the beginning, 82 00:04:58,500 --> 00:05:00,958 they had a three-dimensional structure in mind. 83 00:05:01,083 --> 00:05:04,958 Because, when they started, it was just a big piece of rock. 84 00:05:05,042 --> 00:05:07,875 And how did they know that, if they were going to go 85 00:05:08,042 --> 00:05:09,875 150 feet down into the ground, 86 00:05:10,042 --> 00:05:11,333 that everything was okay? 87 00:05:11,458 --> 00:05:13,125 Because the worst possible thing 88 00:05:13,208 --> 00:05:15,000 would be that you'd almost finished, and then 89 00:05:15,083 --> 00:05:17,417 you found that there was a massive problem at the bottom. 90 00:05:19,208 --> 00:05:22,333 SHATNER: 11 underground churches, 91 00:05:22,458 --> 00:05:25,167 some over 100 feet deep, 92 00:05:25,292 --> 00:05:27,333 each carved from a single block 93 00:05:27,458 --> 00:05:31,750 of stone in only 20 years' time? 94 00:05:31,875 --> 00:05:36,333 Archaeologists date the churches back nearly a thousand years. 95 00:05:36,417 --> 00:05:40,208 But even with today's modern technology, 96 00:05:40,375 --> 00:05:42,583 such an incredible architectural feat 97 00:05:42,708 --> 00:05:44,625 would be considered impossible. 98 00:05:44,708 --> 00:05:48,167 So, how was it accomplished? 99 00:05:48,292 --> 00:05:51,750 TRAVIS TAYLOR: If we go and build a big structure today, a skyscraper, 100 00:05:51,875 --> 00:05:53,625 we have blueprints, we have engineering, 101 00:05:53,708 --> 00:05:56,875 design pathways, and we have a construction plan. 102 00:05:57,000 --> 00:05:59,833 It tells us how we will do every step of the way, 103 00:05:59,958 --> 00:06:03,917 where every screw, nut, bolt, weld, poured concrete goes. 104 00:06:04,042 --> 00:06:07,583 None of that exists for these large, ancient structures. 105 00:06:07,708 --> 00:06:10,167 So, we really got to think outside the box 106 00:06:10,292 --> 00:06:13,833 and try to find how they were done, 107 00:06:13,917 --> 00:06:17,875 why they were done, and who built them. 108 00:06:19,625 --> 00:06:22,917 WHITEHEAD: A very curious thing at Lalibela is that there are some 109 00:06:23,042 --> 00:06:25,750 very unique carvings there, some very interesting symbols 110 00:06:25,875 --> 00:06:27,458 that are carved into these churches. 111 00:06:27,583 --> 00:06:30,000 Do they mean something if you put them together? 112 00:06:30,083 --> 00:06:34,542 COLLINS: In the church of St. Mary at Lalibela, 113 00:06:34,667 --> 00:06:37,375 there is the Star of David, 114 00:06:37,500 --> 00:06:41,333 and this, along with a number of other mementos 115 00:06:41,417 --> 00:06:45,417 and designs, are extremely indicative 116 00:06:45,542 --> 00:06:47,292 of the presence of the Knights Templar. 117 00:06:47,375 --> 00:06:51,458 This has suggested to many 118 00:06:51,542 --> 00:06:54,958 that they may well have been present 119 00:06:55,083 --> 00:06:56,958 during the construction 120 00:06:57,042 --> 00:07:00,292 of the churches at Lalibela. 121 00:07:00,375 --> 00:07:02,792 TOK THOMPSON: Now, the Knights Templar were a very interesting 122 00:07:02,875 --> 00:07:05,250 religious order that became very powerful 123 00:07:05,375 --> 00:07:07,167 during the Middle Ages, 124 00:07:07,292 --> 00:07:09,333 but what people don't often realize is 125 00:07:09,458 --> 00:07:11,417 they were very interested in building, 126 00:07:11,542 --> 00:07:14,000 in, uh, geometry, 127 00:07:14,083 --> 00:07:15,917 in, uh, numerology, 128 00:07:16,042 --> 00:07:18,375 uh, and so, they're at once very practical 129 00:07:18,500 --> 00:07:19,625 and pragmatic, and on the other hand, 130 00:07:19,708 --> 00:07:21,500 also very spiritual and mystic. 131 00:07:21,625 --> 00:07:23,833 WHITEHEAD: The Knights Templar had 132 00:07:24,000 --> 00:07:26,167 a great amount of knowledge in masonry 133 00:07:26,333 --> 00:07:28,958 and architecture and building structures. 134 00:07:29,042 --> 00:07:31,708 Now, it's debated as to whether or not the Knights Templar 135 00:07:31,875 --> 00:07:34,333 would have been in Ethiopia at this time. 136 00:07:34,458 --> 00:07:36,208 But there's some interesting evidence that 137 00:07:36,333 --> 00:07:38,500 an Armenian geographer at the time 138 00:07:38,667 --> 00:07:42,833 documented seeing men with red and white regalia, 139 00:07:42,917 --> 00:07:45,792 blonde or reddish hair, long hair, 140 00:07:45,875 --> 00:07:49,417 which could indicate that he's talking about Templars. 141 00:07:49,542 --> 00:07:52,333 So, it could be that the Templars themselves 142 00:07:52,500 --> 00:07:54,625 were the ones that built Lalibela 143 00:07:54,708 --> 00:07:57,958 or that they helped King Lalibela build the site. 144 00:07:59,917 --> 00:08:02,417 SHATNER: Could Templar stone masons have influenced 145 00:08:02,542 --> 00:08:05,750 the construction of the churches at Lalibela? 146 00:08:05,875 --> 00:08:09,333 And if so, for what purpose? 147 00:08:09,417 --> 00:08:13,083 COLLINS: If you look around Lalibela, there are altars there 148 00:08:13,208 --> 00:08:16,667 that have spaces in them that would 149 00:08:16,750 --> 00:08:20,792 precisely fit the Ark of the Covenant, 150 00:08:20,875 --> 00:08:25,000 which was approximately four feet in length, 151 00:08:25,125 --> 00:08:29,042 two feet wide, and around two feet in height. 152 00:08:29,208 --> 00:08:33,750 It has been suggested that the rock-cut churches 153 00:08:33,875 --> 00:08:38,458 at Lalibela were built to house the Ark of the Covenant. 154 00:08:39,875 --> 00:08:41,708 SHATNER: The lost Ark of the Covenant-- 155 00:08:41,833 --> 00:08:45,500 the gold box which contained the original Ten Commandments-- 156 00:08:45,583 --> 00:08:50,500 could it have been hidden at Lalibela centuries ago? 157 00:08:50,583 --> 00:08:53,333 During the Crusades, we know that the Templars 158 00:08:53,500 --> 00:08:55,208 occupied the Temple of Solomon. 159 00:08:55,333 --> 00:08:57,375 And so, it could be that they were 160 00:08:57,500 --> 00:08:59,958 the keepers of the Ark of the Covenant. 161 00:09:00,042 --> 00:09:02,708 And the more you look at Lalibela and given the fact 162 00:09:02,875 --> 00:09:05,458 that we see that it's built underground, 163 00:09:05,542 --> 00:09:07,833 you start to think, here we have these churches 164 00:09:08,000 --> 00:09:10,750 that are hewn out of these megalithic rocks. 165 00:09:10,875 --> 00:09:13,458 They're built like defensive structures. 166 00:09:13,583 --> 00:09:16,083 They have all kinds of interesting 167 00:09:16,208 --> 00:09:18,500 symbolism there that indicate Templars. 168 00:09:18,583 --> 00:09:20,792 And you start getting the impression that this is 169 00:09:20,917 --> 00:09:26,042 actually some kind of defensive fortress to protect something. 170 00:09:31,125 --> 00:09:35,542 Was Lalibela originally built to house and hide 171 00:09:35,667 --> 00:09:37,500 the Ark of the Covenant? 172 00:09:37,625 --> 00:09:39,583 Well, if that's true, then it would certainly 173 00:09:39,708 --> 00:09:42,958 explain why the churches resemble fortresses. 174 00:09:43,083 --> 00:09:46,792 There's another ancient structure, located in Turkey, 175 00:09:46,917 --> 00:09:50,167 that may also have a connection to the divine. 176 00:09:50,333 --> 00:09:55,000 It's an ancient temple that some believe was built on the site 177 00:09:55,125 --> 00:09:56,833 of the Garden of Eden. 178 00:10:04,958 --> 00:10:08,833 SHATNER: While plowing his field, shepherd Safak Yildiz spots 179 00:10:08,958 --> 00:10:13,208 a strangely-shaped stone emerging from the parched earth. 180 00:10:13,375 --> 00:10:15,667 When he brushes away the dirt, he realizes the stone 181 00:10:15,750 --> 00:10:19,333 may be part of a much larger object. 182 00:10:19,417 --> 00:10:21,000 After reporting his find, 183 00:10:21,125 --> 00:10:24,167 he is visited by archaeologist Klaus Schmidt 184 00:10:24,292 --> 00:10:28,167 and a team from the German Archaeological Institute. 185 00:10:29,958 --> 00:10:33,333 Further excavation reveals the stone is actually part 186 00:10:33,417 --> 00:10:35,292 of a massive, elaborately carved 187 00:10:35,417 --> 00:10:37,833 stone pillar, one 188 00:10:37,958 --> 00:10:40,042 in what turns out to be dozens 189 00:10:40,167 --> 00:10:44,583 that form an ancient underground complex. 190 00:10:46,667 --> 00:10:49,667 Göbekli Tepe is arguably the most important 191 00:10:49,750 --> 00:10:52,500 archaeological discovery in recent years. 192 00:10:52,625 --> 00:10:55,958 We're talking about a whole series 193 00:10:56,042 --> 00:10:57,958 of stone circles 194 00:10:58,042 --> 00:11:01,042 built on the top of a mountain. 195 00:11:01,167 --> 00:11:04,708 If you can imagine Stonehenge in England, 196 00:11:04,833 --> 00:11:07,583 but multiply it by 20 times 197 00:11:07,708 --> 00:11:10,250 and have these stones in circles 198 00:11:10,375 --> 00:11:15,042 facing towards two massive, great monoliths, 199 00:11:15,167 --> 00:11:17,958 as much as 18 and a half feet tall, 200 00:11:18,083 --> 00:11:21,458 weighing between 15 and 20 tons, 201 00:11:21,542 --> 00:11:26,083 this is what we see at Göbekli Tepe. 202 00:11:26,208 --> 00:11:30,958 Göbekli Tepe could very well be the first lost civilization. 203 00:11:31,042 --> 00:11:33,667 We've only uncovered a small percentage 204 00:11:33,750 --> 00:11:35,625 of it, like ten or 15%. 205 00:11:35,750 --> 00:11:38,792 We have no idea, really, how much bigger this is 206 00:11:38,875 --> 00:11:42,000 and what else we're gonna find there. 207 00:11:42,167 --> 00:11:46,000 We have to ask ourselves, "Could Göbekli Tepe 208 00:11:46,125 --> 00:11:49,792 been a place of commerce and trade?" 209 00:11:49,875 --> 00:11:54,083 And I think the answer is an undoubted yes 210 00:11:54,208 --> 00:11:58,625 because its construction would have necessitated 211 00:11:58,750 --> 00:12:01,333 the presence of not just hundreds, 212 00:12:01,458 --> 00:12:03,750 but many thousands of people 213 00:12:03,875 --> 00:12:06,917 coming from across the region who, 214 00:12:07,042 --> 00:12:09,208 at the beginning, were hunter-gatherers. 215 00:12:11,125 --> 00:12:13,000 SHATNER: While there are many theories, 216 00:12:13,125 --> 00:12:17,000 the true purpose of Göbekli Tepe remains shrouded in mystery. 217 00:12:17,125 --> 00:12:21,083 But no less mysterious than the stones themselves 218 00:12:21,208 --> 00:12:24,667 is the lost civilization that fashioned them. 219 00:12:24,750 --> 00:12:26,917 Because when sediment layers of the site 220 00:12:27,042 --> 00:12:30,000 were carbon dated, it was shockingly revealed 221 00:12:30,125 --> 00:12:35,125 that Göbekli Tepe is more than 12,000 years old. 222 00:12:37,208 --> 00:12:39,875 PAUL BAHN: Göbekli Tepe really did send shockwaves 223 00:12:40,000 --> 00:12:42,417 through the whole world of early pre-history 224 00:12:42,542 --> 00:12:45,625 because we'd never before known or imagined, even, 225 00:12:45,750 --> 00:12:47,792 that simple hunter-gatherers 226 00:12:47,917 --> 00:12:49,833 could produce such spectacular monumental 227 00:12:49,958 --> 00:12:52,583 structures as are found at Göbekli Tepe. 228 00:12:52,708 --> 00:12:56,500 Now, many of these pillars also have remarkable carvings 229 00:12:56,625 --> 00:12:57,792 on them, wonderful carvings 230 00:12:57,917 --> 00:12:59,250 and bas-reliefs of animals, 231 00:12:59,375 --> 00:13:02,042 birds, insects, all kinds of things. 232 00:13:02,167 --> 00:13:05,917 So, to fashion those and carve them and set them up in these 233 00:13:06,042 --> 00:13:08,000 structures was just absolutely amazing. 234 00:13:09,792 --> 00:13:13,000 SHATNER: More than one-third of Göbekli Tepe's stone pillars 235 00:13:13,083 --> 00:13:16,875 contain elaborate bas-relief carvings of various animals. 236 00:13:17,000 --> 00:13:20,750 But what has many archaeologists and historians puzzled 237 00:13:20,875 --> 00:13:24,583 is that many of the species depicted-- like geese 238 00:13:24,708 --> 00:13:27,583 and armadillos and wild boar-- 239 00:13:27,708 --> 00:13:30,833 are not indigenous to the area. 240 00:13:30,958 --> 00:13:35,000 That location just happens to be near where 241 00:13:35,125 --> 00:13:38,000 Noah and the animals and the ark 242 00:13:38,083 --> 00:13:40,917 ended the long journey through the flood. 243 00:13:41,042 --> 00:13:44,583 And these giant pillars in Göbekli Tepe 244 00:13:44,708 --> 00:13:48,333 have carvings of animals, many different kinds of animals. 245 00:13:48,417 --> 00:13:51,542 Are these the animals from the ark? 246 00:13:51,667 --> 00:13:54,167 Did the stories about those animals 247 00:13:54,292 --> 00:13:57,917 end up being depicted in stone? 248 00:13:59,833 --> 00:14:01,167 SHATNER: Could there really be a connection 249 00:14:01,250 --> 00:14:04,083 between Göbekli Tepe and the great flood? 250 00:14:04,208 --> 00:14:06,042 Perhaps. 251 00:14:06,167 --> 00:14:09,083 But according to another audacious theory, 252 00:14:09,208 --> 00:14:12,125 the animal carvings at Göbekli Tepe may have been 253 00:14:12,208 --> 00:14:16,333 inspired by another, even older, Biblical story. 254 00:14:18,500 --> 00:14:23,333 COLLINS: Göbekli Tepe is located in the very area 255 00:14:23,458 --> 00:14:28,417 that the Bible tells us the Garden of Eden was located. 256 00:14:28,542 --> 00:14:32,458 It is said that Eden was where the four rivers 257 00:14:32,583 --> 00:14:34,708 of paradise took their rise. 258 00:14:34,833 --> 00:14:38,333 Two of those rivers were the Euphrates 259 00:14:38,417 --> 00:14:42,042 and the Tigris that flowed through Mesopotamia. 260 00:14:42,167 --> 00:14:48,167 And these both rose in the same area as Göbekli Tepe. 261 00:14:48,292 --> 00:14:52,667 Professor Klaus Schmidt, the German archeologist, 262 00:14:52,792 --> 00:14:54,792 even suggested himself 263 00:14:54,917 --> 00:14:57,792 that this could be the area of Eden 264 00:14:57,875 --> 00:15:02,000 and the point of foundation of civilization. 265 00:15:04,042 --> 00:15:05,875 SHATNER: The Garden of Eden? 266 00:15:06,042 --> 00:15:09,333 It's a fascinating theory, 267 00:15:09,458 --> 00:15:13,208 but one that is not without its problems. 268 00:15:13,333 --> 00:15:17,083 Because archeological evidence shows that Göbekli Tepe 269 00:15:17,208 --> 00:15:19,958 was not only later abandoned, 270 00:15:20,042 --> 00:15:23,042 but also backfilled and deliberately buried. 271 00:15:23,208 --> 00:15:28,500 Why would anyone want to leave and bury 272 00:15:28,625 --> 00:15:32,000 paradise? 273 00:15:32,125 --> 00:15:34,375 COLLINS: Around 8,000 B.C., 274 00:15:34,500 --> 00:15:38,000 the people of Göbekli Tepe just vanish. 275 00:15:38,083 --> 00:15:40,833 They just disappear. 276 00:15:41,000 --> 00:15:43,333 So, we have to ask ourself, where did they go? 277 00:15:43,500 --> 00:15:47,167 Did they just vanish into oblivion? 278 00:15:47,250 --> 00:15:51,583 What we know is that, recently, archeologists discovered 279 00:15:51,708 --> 00:15:55,042 a number of human skulls that had been modified. 280 00:15:56,417 --> 00:16:00,750 And what this means is that they had been sculpted 281 00:16:00,875 --> 00:16:03,792 or that they had been pierced, 282 00:16:03,917 --> 00:16:06,750 uh, so that they could be hung up, 283 00:16:06,875 --> 00:16:09,542 perhaps on some kind of frame or platform. 284 00:16:11,375 --> 00:16:14,000 WHITEHEAD: They found skulls that are smashed in, 285 00:16:14,083 --> 00:16:16,583 they've found remains that look as if there's been 286 00:16:16,708 --> 00:16:20,542 some kind of mass ritual or murder or sacrifice going on. 287 00:16:20,667 --> 00:16:24,167 There may have actually been a skull cult there. 288 00:16:24,333 --> 00:16:26,000 Do we know what these people were doing? Of course not 289 00:16:26,125 --> 00:16:27,292 because they were doing this thousands 290 00:16:27,417 --> 00:16:29,042 of years before writing took place. 291 00:16:29,167 --> 00:16:31,250 We can try and guess. 292 00:16:31,375 --> 00:16:34,208 We-we know important rituals took place there. 293 00:16:37,167 --> 00:16:40,583 Klaus Schmidt would talk about this as Eden. 294 00:16:40,708 --> 00:16:43,708 I think what he meant was this is an Edenic society because 295 00:16:43,833 --> 00:16:47,708 if you look at the story of the Garden of Eden in the Bible, 296 00:16:47,833 --> 00:16:49,292 that's a hunter-gatherer society, 297 00:16:49,417 --> 00:16:52,708 that's before we discover agriculture. 298 00:16:52,833 --> 00:16:56,292 And so, the fact that here's this place, Göbekli Tepe, 299 00:16:56,417 --> 00:16:58,333 it's really challenging our understandings 300 00:16:58,500 --> 00:17:01,542 of our own origins, our own religious origins. 301 00:17:01,667 --> 00:17:03,958 And you start thinking about what else we're gonna find. 302 00:17:04,083 --> 00:17:06,208 BAHN: It remains to be seen what will be found 303 00:17:06,333 --> 00:17:07,875 in the rest of the site. 304 00:17:08,000 --> 00:17:09,750 But certainly, I'm sure Göbekli Tepe 305 00:17:09,875 --> 00:17:11,667 has plenty more surprises for us. 306 00:17:11,792 --> 00:17:14,333 Every new enclosure excavated, every new piece of evidence 307 00:17:14,458 --> 00:17:16,000 puts another piece in the jigsaw, 308 00:17:16,083 --> 00:17:18,792 but also at the same time raises new questions 309 00:17:18,917 --> 00:17:21,458 that we find very difficult to answer. 310 00:17:23,625 --> 00:17:28,125 Whether or not Göbekli Tepe has a connection to stories 311 00:17:28,250 --> 00:17:30,875 from the Bible, one thing appears to be certain: 312 00:17:31,000 --> 00:17:33,833 it was built for a profound purpose. 313 00:17:33,958 --> 00:17:38,250 Which is also the case with another massive stone structure. 314 00:17:38,375 --> 00:17:41,500 One that can be found in the Irish countryside, 315 00:17:41,667 --> 00:17:44,542 and may have served as a bridge between the living 316 00:17:44,667 --> 00:17:46,750 and the dead. 317 00:17:55,208 --> 00:17:57,458 SHATNER: Rising above this region's lush fields, 318 00:17:57,542 --> 00:17:59,750 not far from the banks of the River Boyne, 319 00:17:59,875 --> 00:18:04,833 is one of the most mysterious ancient tombs in the world. 320 00:18:05,000 --> 00:18:07,458 Newgrange. 321 00:18:08,792 --> 00:18:10,333 This massive stone structure 322 00:18:10,458 --> 00:18:12,375 has a diameter of 87 yards, 323 00:18:12,500 --> 00:18:15,500 or nearly the size of a football field. 324 00:18:15,583 --> 00:18:19,583 Newgrange is the envy of monuments all around the planet. 325 00:18:20,792 --> 00:18:23,208 The thing that people say when they come here is 326 00:18:23,375 --> 00:18:25,125 they're surprised how big it is. 327 00:18:25,208 --> 00:18:29,375 It is huge. It takes up over an acre 328 00:18:29,542 --> 00:18:32,833 of ground, and there is an estimated 329 00:18:33,000 --> 00:18:37,083 200,000 tons of stone in the monument. 330 00:18:39,417 --> 00:18:41,875 SHATNER: According to archaeological findings, 331 00:18:42,042 --> 00:18:46,083 Newgrange was built around the year 3200 BC, 332 00:18:46,208 --> 00:18:49,833 making it centuries older than both Stonehenge 333 00:18:49,958 --> 00:18:52,042 and the Great Pyramid in Egypt. 334 00:18:52,167 --> 00:18:55,875 Because Newgrange is so ancient, 335 00:18:56,000 --> 00:18:59,083 there's still much that we don't know about the people 336 00:18:59,208 --> 00:19:01,583 who built this extraordinary tomb. 337 00:19:01,708 --> 00:19:03,917 MURPHY: Probably one of the most fascinating 338 00:19:04,042 --> 00:19:06,667 things about Newgrange is the fact that it was built 339 00:19:06,750 --> 00:19:08,667 in pre-metal days, 340 00:19:08,750 --> 00:19:13,417 just as the Stone Age was kind of sort of coming to a close. 341 00:19:13,542 --> 00:19:18,375 And it's difficult to imagine how ancient people were able to 342 00:19:18,500 --> 00:19:20,625 assemble this massive monument, but they managed to do so. 343 00:19:22,583 --> 00:19:25,625 TUFFY: A lot of work went into the building of this monument, 344 00:19:25,708 --> 00:19:28,375 and it was all done with extreme precision. 345 00:19:29,917 --> 00:19:33,375 Inside, there are carved stones. 346 00:19:35,208 --> 00:19:40,000 And then you come into a chamber, which is quite roomy. 347 00:19:40,125 --> 00:19:44,667 So, you have this cathedral-like feeling when you walk inside. 348 00:19:46,250 --> 00:19:49,667 MURPHY: Newgrange is what archaeologists refer to as a passage tomb. 349 00:19:51,125 --> 00:19:53,792 It has a passage leading into the interior. 350 00:19:55,375 --> 00:19:58,333 And in that interior, human bones have generally 351 00:19:58,458 --> 00:20:00,167 been found, in different quantities. 352 00:20:01,667 --> 00:20:03,500 THOMPSON: There are human remains in these places, 353 00:20:03,625 --> 00:20:06,875 but the most common, um, burial practice 354 00:20:07,042 --> 00:20:08,667 around this time was cremation. 355 00:20:08,833 --> 00:20:13,250 So, we find most people would be cremated and then interred. 356 00:20:13,375 --> 00:20:16,042 In the traditional Irish folklore 357 00:20:16,208 --> 00:20:18,167 that dates way, way back, 358 00:20:18,333 --> 00:20:19,583 the other world of the dead-- 359 00:20:19,708 --> 00:20:22,250 it sort of overlapped with our own. 360 00:20:22,375 --> 00:20:25,375 So, the idea is that these sites would sort of allow 361 00:20:25,500 --> 00:20:27,833 for this passage between the realm of the dead 362 00:20:27,917 --> 00:20:29,167 and the realm of the living. 363 00:20:30,708 --> 00:20:34,542 TUFFY: On the back recess of the inner chamber there is a tri-spiral. 364 00:20:34,708 --> 00:20:37,458 The most common interpretation that people 365 00:20:37,542 --> 00:20:39,750 come up with is that it represents 366 00:20:39,875 --> 00:20:43,667 this constant cycle of renewal and regeneration. 367 00:20:43,750 --> 00:20:47,125 On a spiritual level, it may promise rebirth 368 00:20:47,250 --> 00:20:49,125 for the spirits of the dead. 369 00:20:49,208 --> 00:20:52,333 The tri-spiral is unique to Newgrange. 370 00:20:52,417 --> 00:20:54,750 And it's also found on the entrance stone 371 00:20:54,875 --> 00:20:57,333 and throughout the tomb. 372 00:20:59,042 --> 00:21:01,667 SHATNER: Archeologists who have studied Newgrange 373 00:21:01,750 --> 00:21:04,458 have theorized that this ancient tomb 374 00:21:04,583 --> 00:21:09,042 was intended to serve a profound and mystical purpose. 375 00:21:09,208 --> 00:21:13,667 And as evidence, they point to a curious element of its design 376 00:21:13,833 --> 00:21:18,667 that is visible only one day a year. 377 00:21:18,750 --> 00:21:22,333 Newgrange is unusual in that it has 378 00:21:22,500 --> 00:21:24,833 a very special aperture, 379 00:21:25,000 --> 00:21:29,917 or opening, above the entrance. 380 00:21:30,042 --> 00:21:32,625 On the day of winter solstice, 381 00:21:32,750 --> 00:21:36,958 this glimmering golden beam of sunlight enters there 382 00:21:37,083 --> 00:21:39,375 and pierces the darkness. 383 00:21:41,000 --> 00:21:44,417 TUFFY: When the sun rises at winter solstice, 384 00:21:44,542 --> 00:21:47,250 the light hits the chamber 385 00:21:47,375 --> 00:21:51,333 for precisely 17 minutes. 386 00:21:51,500 --> 00:21:54,500 And some even speculate that the spirits 387 00:21:54,625 --> 00:21:58,208 would have used the light to leave the burial chamber 388 00:21:58,333 --> 00:22:00,292 and go and join the deities. 389 00:22:02,500 --> 00:22:04,833 SHATNER: Did the builders of Newgrange specifically 390 00:22:04,917 --> 00:22:09,375 design it to be a gateway into the afterlife? 391 00:22:09,542 --> 00:22:14,083 Some archaeologists believe that the answer is yes. 392 00:22:14,208 --> 00:22:16,292 And they also claim that Newgrange was built 393 00:22:16,375 --> 00:22:19,750 to allow those who stood within its inner chamber 394 00:22:19,875 --> 00:22:24,333 to communicate directly with the dead. 395 00:22:24,500 --> 00:22:26,125 MURPHY: In the case of Newgrange, 396 00:22:26,208 --> 00:22:29,500 the notion of the sunbeam drawing out 397 00:22:29,625 --> 00:22:32,375 the souls of the deceased and-and leading them 398 00:22:32,500 --> 00:22:35,667 to that other world, is not just a one-way ticket. 399 00:22:35,792 --> 00:22:38,458 It was a portal between worlds. 400 00:22:38,542 --> 00:22:40,958 Were the people inside there-- the priests, 401 00:22:41,083 --> 00:22:43,375 for instance, the druids-- were they in contact 402 00:22:43,542 --> 00:22:45,708 with the ancestors who'd gone before? 403 00:22:45,833 --> 00:22:48,333 TUFFY: The builders of the monument 404 00:22:48,458 --> 00:22:51,667 have created a space which is separate, 405 00:22:51,792 --> 00:22:53,333 which is a world for the dead. 406 00:22:55,000 --> 00:22:59,333 There is always a feeling that this is a house for the spirits. 407 00:22:59,458 --> 00:23:02,333 Where consulting with the ancestors, 408 00:23:02,458 --> 00:23:04,375 asking advice from the ancestors, 409 00:23:04,542 --> 00:23:07,792 would have happened 5,000 years ago, 410 00:23:07,917 --> 00:23:09,500 which is extraordinary. 411 00:23:11,125 --> 00:23:14,583 SHATNER: Was Newgrange constructed to be not only a tomb 412 00:23:14,708 --> 00:23:17,042 but also a place where the living 413 00:23:17,167 --> 00:23:19,417 communicated with the dead? 414 00:23:19,542 --> 00:23:22,500 It's an intriguing theory, 415 00:23:22,583 --> 00:23:26,458 which is why archaeologists continue to study Newgrange 416 00:23:26,583 --> 00:23:30,917 in the hope of one day unraveling all of its mysteries. 417 00:23:32,917 --> 00:23:36,167 THOMPSON: How people choose to handle their remains 418 00:23:36,333 --> 00:23:38,458 always tells you a lot about what people 419 00:23:38,542 --> 00:23:39,583 think about the afterlife. 420 00:23:39,708 --> 00:23:42,000 Where are they going? 421 00:23:42,125 --> 00:23:46,250 What is the relationship between the soul and the body? 422 00:23:46,375 --> 00:23:49,333 And in Newgrange, this had a lot to do 423 00:23:49,500 --> 00:23:51,917 with this notion that the dead are still around 424 00:23:52,042 --> 00:23:54,375 and perhaps can see you even if you can't see them. 425 00:23:54,542 --> 00:23:58,083 So, in a sense, with Newgrange, 426 00:23:58,208 --> 00:24:02,917 we might even say that the dead did achieve immortality. 427 00:24:04,292 --> 00:24:09,167 The theory that Newgrange was built to be not just a tomb 428 00:24:09,292 --> 00:24:12,292 but also a gateway 429 00:24:12,417 --> 00:24:14,583 between our world and the afterlife 430 00:24:14,708 --> 00:24:17,917 suggests that some ancient structures may have served 431 00:24:18,042 --> 00:24:21,208 a higher purpose than we might have once believed. 432 00:24:21,375 --> 00:24:26,417 In fact, there's a vast underground city 433 00:24:26,542 --> 00:24:29,333 that was constructed more than 2,000 years ago 434 00:24:29,417 --> 00:24:32,542 that some believe was designed to ensure 435 00:24:32,708 --> 00:24:35,708 the survival of the human race. 436 00:24:43,542 --> 00:24:46,542 SHATNER: Bordered by the Black Sea to the north 437 00:24:46,667 --> 00:24:49,458 and by the Taurus Mountains to the south 438 00:24:49,542 --> 00:24:53,583 lies the craggy regions of Cappadocia. 439 00:24:53,708 --> 00:24:57,667 Here, wind, water, and time 440 00:24:57,750 --> 00:25:00,625 have sculpted the volcanic rocks into bizarre 441 00:25:00,708 --> 00:25:04,167 and almost surreal shapes. 442 00:25:04,250 --> 00:25:07,833 But, believe it or not, the most unusual thing 443 00:25:07,958 --> 00:25:11,292 that was ever discovered in this otherworldly landscape 444 00:25:11,375 --> 00:25:15,792 was found not above ground but far below. 445 00:25:17,708 --> 00:25:21,500 In 1963, during a simple home renovation 446 00:25:21,583 --> 00:25:23,542 in the town of Derinkuyu, 447 00:25:23,667 --> 00:25:28,583 a cave wall was punctured, revealing a passageway 448 00:25:28,708 --> 00:25:31,875 to what appeared to be an intricate underground city 449 00:25:32,000 --> 00:25:36,708 thousands of years old and more than 280 feet deep. 450 00:25:39,542 --> 00:25:41,750 Derinkuyu is a pretty amazing story 'cause, 451 00:25:41,875 --> 00:25:44,167 just imagine that you're working in your basement one day, 452 00:25:44,292 --> 00:25:46,292 you knock a hole in the wall, 453 00:25:46,417 --> 00:25:50,583 and what you find is a-a city that is sort of the size 454 00:25:50,708 --> 00:25:55,000 of a-a really large castle, but it's actually underground, 455 00:25:55,083 --> 00:25:57,083 uh, and it was done in a time before there was 456 00:25:57,208 --> 00:26:00,167 really any mechanical means to provide 457 00:26:00,292 --> 00:26:03,500 water or ventilation or any of those things. 458 00:26:04,875 --> 00:26:08,167 COLLINS: The only thing on the surface that you can see 459 00:26:08,292 --> 00:26:10,833 are what appear to be wells. 460 00:26:10,917 --> 00:26:14,167 As you approach Derinkuyu, 461 00:26:14,250 --> 00:26:16,333 you would certainly not be aware 462 00:26:16,417 --> 00:26:19,042 that you were walking over 463 00:26:19,167 --> 00:26:21,375 the position of an underground city. 464 00:26:21,500 --> 00:26:27,000 It would have been the home for thousands of people at a time 465 00:26:27,125 --> 00:26:29,958 at some point in the distant past. 466 00:26:30,083 --> 00:26:34,167 SHATNER: Experts believe that Derinkuyu housed an estimated 467 00:26:34,292 --> 00:26:37,875 20,000 men, women, and children, and included 468 00:26:38,000 --> 00:26:40,708 religious centers, storerooms, and living rooms. 469 00:26:40,833 --> 00:26:44,667 Many archaeologists and scholars propose that Derinkuyu 470 00:26:44,792 --> 00:26:48,792 was most likely built around 800 B.C. by the Phrygians, 471 00:26:48,917 --> 00:26:51,417 a Bronze Age people related to the Trojans, 472 00:26:51,542 --> 00:26:56,167 and was intended to serve as a temporary shelter from invasion. 473 00:26:56,333 --> 00:27:00,583 But others believe it was built by the Hittites, 474 00:27:00,708 --> 00:27:02,875 a warrior people mentioned in the Bible 475 00:27:03,000 --> 00:27:06,250 who flourished a few hundred years before that. 476 00:27:07,875 --> 00:27:10,917 BURROWS: It's in a place that's had multiple wars. 477 00:27:11,042 --> 00:27:13,167 There's conflict taking place all the time. 478 00:27:13,250 --> 00:27:15,833 And when you're above ground, people can see you for miles. 479 00:27:15,958 --> 00:27:18,833 You know, each night, you're lighting fires 480 00:27:18,917 --> 00:27:21,000 to get some light inside the space. 481 00:27:21,125 --> 00:27:23,667 And so that can be seen from 20 miles or more. 482 00:27:23,833 --> 00:27:26,875 Once they go below ground, they're invisible. 483 00:27:29,083 --> 00:27:32,875 JOHN BRANDENBERG: It has massive stones that can be lowered to block 484 00:27:33,000 --> 00:27:36,333 passageways that human beings can only go through 485 00:27:36,417 --> 00:27:39,625 in single file, making it very easy to defend. 486 00:27:39,750 --> 00:27:44,208 There are also rumors that it is connected by a vast 487 00:27:44,375 --> 00:27:48,500 tunnel system going many, many kilometers to other 488 00:27:48,625 --> 00:27:51,292 underground cities in the neighborhood. 489 00:27:51,375 --> 00:27:54,792 So, it had emergency escape routes. 490 00:27:54,875 --> 00:27:57,833 So, the whole thing was a quite remarkable 491 00:27:57,958 --> 00:28:00,833 subterranean fortress. 492 00:28:01,000 --> 00:28:03,792 SHATNER: While there is evidence to suggest 493 00:28:03,875 --> 00:28:07,125 that several different cultures have used Derinkuyu 494 00:28:07,208 --> 00:28:08,917 as a fortified sanctuary, 495 00:28:09,042 --> 00:28:11,375 in the centuries that have passed since its initial 496 00:28:11,542 --> 00:28:13,875 construction, some researchers 497 00:28:14,042 --> 00:28:16,792 have theorized that it is much, much older 498 00:28:16,875 --> 00:28:20,167 than mainstream archaeologists think. 499 00:28:20,333 --> 00:28:23,792 And that its original architects had an even bigger threat 500 00:28:23,917 --> 00:28:26,625 in mind when they built it. 501 00:28:26,750 --> 00:28:31,000 COLLINS: The curator of Derinkuyu in Cappadocia, 502 00:28:31,083 --> 00:28:33,958 Ömer Demir, had found the evidence 503 00:28:34,042 --> 00:28:37,625 suggesting that each of the different stories 504 00:28:37,708 --> 00:28:40,167 or levels would seem to have been constructed 505 00:28:40,250 --> 00:28:43,000 by different cultures at different times. 506 00:28:43,083 --> 00:28:45,500 And what he found was incredible. 507 00:28:45,583 --> 00:28:48,417 For he discovered that there were tools, 508 00:28:48,542 --> 00:28:52,917 stone tools, here, that dated back to paleolithic times. 509 00:28:53,042 --> 00:28:56,625 The implications of this are enormous 510 00:28:56,750 --> 00:28:59,083 because what this suggests is that 511 00:28:59,208 --> 00:29:03,750 Derinkuyu goes back at least 12,000 years 512 00:29:03,875 --> 00:29:08,250 and was present at the end of the last ice age 513 00:29:08,375 --> 00:29:10,125 and may well have been 514 00:29:10,208 --> 00:29:15,292 a place where our ancestors sought refuge 515 00:29:15,375 --> 00:29:17,875 at the time of a cataclysm, 516 00:29:18,042 --> 00:29:20,958 a cataclysm that may well have devastated 517 00:29:21,042 --> 00:29:22,833 large parts of the Earth 518 00:29:22,917 --> 00:29:26,625 at the very end of the paleolithic era. 519 00:29:26,708 --> 00:29:30,167 SHATNER: A cataclysm? 520 00:29:30,292 --> 00:29:33,292 Could it be that the original inhabitants of Derinkuyu 521 00:29:33,375 --> 00:29:37,000 built it as a shelter to protect them 522 00:29:37,125 --> 00:29:40,042 during the Earth's last great ice age? 523 00:29:40,167 --> 00:29:43,500 A time when the Earth's climate was estimated to be more than 524 00:29:43,667 --> 00:29:45,708 ten degrees colder than it is now? 525 00:29:45,833 --> 00:29:48,667 So cold that hardly anything could 526 00:29:48,792 --> 00:29:52,333 grow or even survive above ground. 527 00:29:52,458 --> 00:29:55,708 MICHAEL DENNIN: When you build your city underground, 528 00:29:55,875 --> 00:29:58,917 you get two major off-the-top advantages, 529 00:29:59,042 --> 00:30:00,708 one sort of environmental. 530 00:30:00,833 --> 00:30:02,333 You're gonna have great thermal properties. 531 00:30:02,458 --> 00:30:04,958 It's gonna be cool when you need it to be cool, 532 00:30:05,042 --> 00:30:07,792 but it won't get too cold, so it'll be kind of warm enough 533 00:30:07,917 --> 00:30:09,500 when you need it to be warm. 534 00:30:09,625 --> 00:30:12,667 Thinking about when this was built and inhabited 535 00:30:12,750 --> 00:30:16,000 really remains this exciting, mysterious, open question. 536 00:30:16,125 --> 00:30:19,125 Even this idea of other cities underground, 537 00:30:19,208 --> 00:30:22,083 like, how common was that for humans to build their homes 538 00:30:22,208 --> 00:30:25,125 underground versus on the surface of the ground? 539 00:30:25,250 --> 00:30:27,250 It does feel like we've just really 540 00:30:27,375 --> 00:30:30,083 scratched the surface of what could be below us. 541 00:30:30,208 --> 00:30:32,375 There could be much more. There could be many more 542 00:30:32,500 --> 00:30:34,917 of these cave systems in Turkey. 543 00:30:35,042 --> 00:30:37,000 So, there's mystery still to be found 544 00:30:37,125 --> 00:30:38,458 deep within the Earth. 545 00:30:40,667 --> 00:30:44,000 SHATNER: The truth is we may never know for sure why 546 00:30:44,125 --> 00:30:47,167 or even how these ancient underground cities were built. 547 00:30:47,333 --> 00:30:49,958 And that's especially true in the case of Derinkuyu, 548 00:30:50,042 --> 00:30:53,750 because the secrets of its construction techniques 549 00:30:53,875 --> 00:30:56,125 seem to have disappeared 550 00:30:56,250 --> 00:30:58,958 along with whoever built it. 551 00:30:59,042 --> 00:31:02,500 BURROWS: Even today, with all of the modern technology 552 00:31:02,583 --> 00:31:05,292 that we have, it would be incredibly complicated and 553 00:31:05,375 --> 00:31:07,875 a massive undertaking to do something like that. 554 00:31:08,042 --> 00:31:10,292 And sometimes we look at these ancient marvels 555 00:31:10,375 --> 00:31:13,167 and we try and figure out could we build that today 556 00:31:13,250 --> 00:31:16,625 to that level of accuracy, that sort of quality 557 00:31:16,750 --> 00:31:18,917 of construction in that amount of time? 558 00:31:19,042 --> 00:31:21,500 And the answer's no, which is pretty amazing that, 559 00:31:21,625 --> 00:31:23,083 several thousand years later, 560 00:31:23,208 --> 00:31:26,167 they're better than us. 561 00:31:26,333 --> 00:31:29,792 It's humbling to think that more than 2,000 years ago 562 00:31:29,917 --> 00:31:32,167 the builders of Derinkuyu possessed 563 00:31:32,333 --> 00:31:35,167 engineering knowledge that exceeds our own. 564 00:31:35,292 --> 00:31:38,958 And it's also a reminder that our ancestors 565 00:31:39,083 --> 00:31:41,333 were far more ingenious than we often realize. 566 00:31:41,500 --> 00:31:44,375 For instance, the ancient Greeks constructed 567 00:31:44,500 --> 00:31:47,375 a temple that is so brilliantly designed 568 00:31:47,500 --> 00:31:49,833 that it's actually able 569 00:31:49,958 --> 00:31:52,417 to deceive your eyes. 570 00:31:56,458 --> 00:31:58,792 SHATNER: High atop the Acropolis in Athens, Greece 571 00:31:58,917 --> 00:32:00,875 stands one of the most magnificent 572 00:32:01,042 --> 00:32:04,500 and most aesthetically pleasing structures in the world: 573 00:32:04,583 --> 00:32:06,875 the Parthenon. 574 00:32:07,000 --> 00:32:09,292 This 23,000 square foot temple was 575 00:32:09,417 --> 00:32:12,792 constructed using 100,000 tons of radiant white marble. 576 00:32:12,917 --> 00:32:15,542 The exterior of the Parthenon is lined 577 00:32:15,667 --> 00:32:18,333 with 46 colossal columns, 578 00:32:18,458 --> 00:32:20,333 which strikingly appear to be laid out 579 00:32:20,458 --> 00:32:22,792 in the shape of an exact rectangle. 580 00:32:22,917 --> 00:32:25,250 And what's more astonishing is that 581 00:32:25,375 --> 00:32:27,667 the more than 13,000 stone blocks 582 00:32:27,750 --> 00:32:29,875 used to assemble the Parthenon 583 00:32:30,000 --> 00:32:32,667 were precisely fitted together 584 00:32:32,792 --> 00:32:35,500 without the use of mortar. 585 00:32:35,583 --> 00:32:40,083 Which begs the question: how were the ancient Greeks 586 00:32:40,208 --> 00:32:44,458 able to build something that looks so perfect? 587 00:32:45,833 --> 00:32:48,833 YOUNG: The Parthenon is an amazingly beautiful structure. 588 00:32:49,000 --> 00:32:52,333 The design, the spacing of each stone 589 00:32:52,458 --> 00:32:55,583 is so perfect that it inspires just to look at. 590 00:32:57,125 --> 00:33:00,333 The proportions are so exact for a large building 591 00:33:00,417 --> 00:33:04,667 it is an amazing thing, and it lifts the spirit upward. 592 00:33:06,333 --> 00:33:10,083 SHATNER: Built beginning in 447 B.C. on the orders of the famed 593 00:33:10,208 --> 00:33:12,000 statesman and general Pericles, 594 00:33:12,125 --> 00:33:15,500 the Parthenon celebrates the Athenians' victory 595 00:33:15,625 --> 00:33:17,917 over Persian invaders 596 00:33:18,042 --> 00:33:21,292 who had tried to conquer the city for 50 years. 597 00:33:21,375 --> 00:33:25,042 DORAN: Athens during the time of the building of the Parthenon is 598 00:33:25,208 --> 00:33:29,083 an incredible cosmopolitan, vibrant city. 599 00:33:29,208 --> 00:33:34,667 It's producing art, literature, 600 00:33:34,792 --> 00:33:38,000 sculpture, architecture. 601 00:33:38,083 --> 00:33:41,625 It's the Manhattan of the fifth century B.C. 602 00:33:41,708 --> 00:33:46,125 And I think if you're an Athenian citizen walking, 603 00:33:46,250 --> 00:33:50,417 doing your everyday work, and then you see the Acropolis 604 00:33:50,542 --> 00:33:54,583 in the center of the city, this incredible shining hill, 605 00:33:54,708 --> 00:33:57,958 and then you see the Parthenon, the gleaming marble, 606 00:33:58,083 --> 00:34:01,375 the biggest and most beautiful Greek temple 607 00:34:01,542 --> 00:34:05,250 that existed, at least in mainland Greece at this point, 608 00:34:05,375 --> 00:34:07,417 you'd be filled with a sense of wonder. 609 00:34:09,542 --> 00:34:12,542 SHATNER: Although most of the interior of the Parthenon has decayed 610 00:34:12,667 --> 00:34:15,042 due to the ravages of time, 611 00:34:15,208 --> 00:34:18,000 the rectangular symmetry of its exterior 612 00:34:18,083 --> 00:34:21,542 looks flawless to this day. 613 00:34:21,667 --> 00:34:25,167 But strangely, for a temple that was clearly built 614 00:34:25,292 --> 00:34:27,458 with perfection in mind, 615 00:34:27,542 --> 00:34:31,167 what makes the Parthenon so fascinating 616 00:34:31,250 --> 00:34:34,042 is actually its imperfections. 617 00:34:35,208 --> 00:34:38,042 Not only were the Greeks masters of geometry, 618 00:34:38,167 --> 00:34:41,208 they were also masters of optical illusions. 619 00:34:41,333 --> 00:34:45,083 They knew the fact that your eye plays tricks on you. 620 00:34:45,208 --> 00:34:47,500 Therefore they built the Parthenon 621 00:34:47,583 --> 00:34:51,500 "slightly incorrectly" to compensate for this, 622 00:34:51,667 --> 00:34:54,500 so that the net result is perfection. 623 00:34:56,000 --> 00:34:58,458 DORAN: The Parthenon is a rectangle, 624 00:34:58,583 --> 00:35:01,958 but there are no right angles in the entire building. 625 00:35:02,083 --> 00:35:05,333 Everything is slightly off. 626 00:35:05,500 --> 00:35:08,167 The columns look straight from below, 627 00:35:08,292 --> 00:35:11,583 but they are slightly tilted toward each other. 628 00:35:12,875 --> 00:35:16,625 So, if you were standing at the base of the Parthenon 629 00:35:16,750 --> 00:35:21,458 and if the columns didn't stop after a certain number of feet, 630 00:35:21,542 --> 00:35:25,000 but they kept on going all the way up into the sky, 631 00:35:25,167 --> 00:35:27,833 you would see the columns meeting 632 00:35:28,000 --> 00:35:31,083 if they were long enough to actually meet. 633 00:35:32,250 --> 00:35:35,167 This is a very curious thing that the builders did. 634 00:35:36,500 --> 00:35:38,458 KAKU: It turns out that the Parthenon does not 635 00:35:38,583 --> 00:35:41,208 have straight parallel lines at all. 636 00:35:41,375 --> 00:35:44,833 The columns are not vertically cylindrical at all. 637 00:35:45,000 --> 00:35:49,708 They bulge by about an inch at the center of the cylinder. 638 00:35:49,833 --> 00:35:53,375 So, for example, the human brain looking at a column 639 00:35:53,500 --> 00:35:56,333 will actually think that the waist is pinched. 640 00:35:56,458 --> 00:36:00,833 Your eye thinks that the center of the cylinder is shrunk. 641 00:36:01,000 --> 00:36:02,542 To compensate for that, 642 00:36:02,667 --> 00:36:05,458 the columns at the Parthenon bulge. 643 00:36:05,542 --> 00:36:08,292 There is no way this could have been an accident. 644 00:36:08,417 --> 00:36:12,625 SHATNER: But is that all the Greeks were trying to achieve-- 645 00:36:12,750 --> 00:36:14,833 an optical illusion? 646 00:36:14,958 --> 00:36:18,167 Or could they have had another purpose in mind 647 00:36:18,292 --> 00:36:20,583 when they built the Parthenon? 648 00:36:20,708 --> 00:36:23,750 COLLINS: Why do we create monuments like the Parthenon? 649 00:36:24,875 --> 00:36:26,667 And the answer is 650 00:36:26,792 --> 00:36:31,083 we want to try and imitate the divine. 651 00:36:31,208 --> 00:36:34,250 The divine was seen as perfection. 652 00:36:34,375 --> 00:36:37,167 The gods are seen as perfection. 653 00:36:37,250 --> 00:36:40,000 And so, sacred geometry 654 00:36:40,083 --> 00:36:43,042 has been incorporated into the Parthenon 655 00:36:43,167 --> 00:36:45,292 in the belief that it was now endowed 656 00:36:45,375 --> 00:36:48,375 with some kind of divine power. 657 00:36:48,542 --> 00:36:51,542 And this was done very specifically 658 00:36:51,667 --> 00:36:55,583 to connect the mundane with the divine, 659 00:36:55,708 --> 00:37:00,250 to create the connection between this world and the next. 660 00:37:02,500 --> 00:37:05,167 It's hard to look at the Parthenon 661 00:37:05,292 --> 00:37:07,667 and other marvelous structures 662 00:37:07,833 --> 00:37:11,708 from the ancient world and not feel a sense of awe 663 00:37:11,833 --> 00:37:14,375 at what our ancestors accomplished. 664 00:37:15,625 --> 00:37:19,167 But in the early 20th century, one man attempted 665 00:37:19,292 --> 00:37:22,167 to unravel the engineering secrets 666 00:37:22,250 --> 00:37:26,292 of the ancients by creating his own monuments 667 00:37:26,417 --> 00:37:30,625 built entirely out of giant stones. 668 00:37:36,708 --> 00:37:39,500 SHATNER: In this small town, tucked away between 669 00:37:39,625 --> 00:37:42,125 Miami and Everglades National Park, 670 00:37:42,250 --> 00:37:46,292 stands an elaborate stone edifice. 671 00:37:47,583 --> 00:37:51,417 The locals call it Coral Castle. 672 00:37:51,542 --> 00:37:54,458 Sculpted from massive blocks of coral, 673 00:37:54,583 --> 00:37:57,417 this incredible structure features a five-ton, 674 00:37:57,542 --> 00:37:59,625 heart-shaped table, 675 00:37:59,708 --> 00:38:02,667 a 28-ton obelisk, 676 00:38:02,833 --> 00:38:06,417 and a perfectly balanced nine-ton door 677 00:38:06,542 --> 00:38:09,000 that opens with the touch of a finger. 678 00:38:09,167 --> 00:38:13,000 And even more incredible than this marvel of design and 679 00:38:13,167 --> 00:38:19,000 engineering is the fact that it was built by just one man, 680 00:38:19,125 --> 00:38:22,417 and nobody knows how he did it. 681 00:38:22,542 --> 00:38:26,167 R.L. POOLE: Ed Leedskalnin was an immigrant from Latvia 682 00:38:26,250 --> 00:38:28,667 who immigrated to the United States, and 683 00:38:28,792 --> 00:38:32,458 he built the only modern megalithic structure ever known. 684 00:38:34,292 --> 00:38:38,333 The Coral Castle is 1,100 tons of coral bedrock 685 00:38:38,500 --> 00:38:41,333 that he dug out of the property on which it rests. 686 00:38:41,417 --> 00:38:43,667 He was only about five feet tall, 687 00:38:43,750 --> 00:38:47,125 but he managed to move hundreds of tons of coral rock 688 00:38:47,208 --> 00:38:50,875 into this megalithic modern temple. 689 00:38:51,042 --> 00:38:53,708 He had no technology there that could have 690 00:38:53,875 --> 00:38:56,167 lifted these stones or cut the stones 691 00:38:56,292 --> 00:38:58,833 and yet it's there to this day. 692 00:38:58,958 --> 00:39:02,292 And the story goes that Ed Leedskalnin built this 693 00:39:02,375 --> 00:39:06,500 incredible megalithic site using only a few pulleys, 694 00:39:06,625 --> 00:39:09,792 a tripod, he did it all by himself, 695 00:39:09,875 --> 00:39:12,708 and he worked at night, and he was very secretive. 696 00:39:14,375 --> 00:39:17,333 SHATNER: From 1923 until 1951, 697 00:39:17,458 --> 00:39:22,250 Leedskalnin perfectly shaped, lifted, fitted, 698 00:39:22,375 --> 00:39:26,083 and stacked over two million pounds of limestone. 699 00:39:26,208 --> 00:39:28,750 For decades, hundreds of the world's 700 00:39:28,875 --> 00:39:31,833 top architects and engineers have come to this place 701 00:39:31,917 --> 00:39:34,792 to solve the mystery of its construction. 702 00:39:34,875 --> 00:39:38,750 The tripods, for instance, were three pieces of Florida pine, 703 00:39:38,875 --> 00:39:41,958 about the same size as a telephone pole. 704 00:39:42,042 --> 00:39:46,500 He used five-ton chains, he used a ten-ton chain hoist, 705 00:39:46,667 --> 00:39:49,542 yet, somehow, was able to impossibly 706 00:39:49,667 --> 00:39:53,792 lift stones that were wider than the tripods' diameter, 707 00:39:53,917 --> 00:39:56,625 that were taller than the tripods stood, 708 00:39:56,708 --> 00:39:59,667 that weighed more than the chains were rated for. 709 00:39:59,833 --> 00:40:02,083 TAYLOR: There has to be some other 710 00:40:02,208 --> 00:40:03,667 technology being used here, 711 00:40:03,833 --> 00:40:06,167 or this is one of the best magic tricks 712 00:40:06,292 --> 00:40:08,042 ever pulled over on mankind. 713 00:40:08,167 --> 00:40:10,917 So, what could it have been? 714 00:40:11,042 --> 00:40:15,125 Did he learn some unique mechanical trick? 715 00:40:15,250 --> 00:40:16,917 Or did he learn some new physics? 716 00:40:18,583 --> 00:40:21,083 POOLE: He was found often at the public library 717 00:40:21,208 --> 00:40:22,667 studying the Egyptians, 718 00:40:22,833 --> 00:40:25,833 studying ancient megalithic structures. 719 00:40:26,000 --> 00:40:29,083 Ed said he knew the secrets of the pyramids. 720 00:40:29,208 --> 00:40:31,250 I believe this to be accurate. 721 00:40:31,375 --> 00:40:34,458 He was able to replicate their accomplishments, 722 00:40:34,542 --> 00:40:36,917 which enabled him to be able to create something 723 00:40:37,042 --> 00:40:40,042 which, by any other standard, you cannot do. 724 00:40:40,167 --> 00:40:42,833 TAYLOR: Ed claims in his notes 725 00:40:43,000 --> 00:40:46,542 that he used reverse energy or antigravity. 726 00:40:46,667 --> 00:40:48,417 The question is what did he mean by this? 727 00:40:48,542 --> 00:40:51,417 The device that Ed used, or allegedly used, 728 00:40:51,542 --> 00:40:53,875 to move these rocks were an old-school tripod 729 00:40:54,042 --> 00:40:56,667 that had a large black box on top of it. 730 00:40:56,792 --> 00:40:58,875 We don't know what was in that box, 731 00:40:59,042 --> 00:41:01,250 and Ed never says what was in that box. 732 00:41:01,375 --> 00:41:03,625 We could speculate that it's some device 733 00:41:03,708 --> 00:41:06,250 that he's created that enables him to lift more weight 734 00:41:06,375 --> 00:41:08,208 than he should be able to lift with this 735 00:41:08,375 --> 00:41:11,667 rudimentary tripod fulcrum and lever system, 736 00:41:11,750 --> 00:41:16,083 but we have no idea what it was he did. 737 00:41:16,208 --> 00:41:19,500 What makes the Coral Castle so unique and mysterious 738 00:41:19,625 --> 00:41:21,542 is that no one has ever been able 739 00:41:21,667 --> 00:41:24,667 to replicate his results using his methods. 740 00:41:24,750 --> 00:41:29,125 What this means is that he knew something that we do not know. 741 00:41:30,208 --> 00:41:34,125 Did Edward Leedskalnin rediscover building techniques 742 00:41:34,208 --> 00:41:36,833 used by our ancestors? 743 00:41:36,958 --> 00:41:39,458 Well, if he did, he took their secrets to the grave. 744 00:41:39,542 --> 00:41:42,083 So, for now, we'll continue to try 745 00:41:42,208 --> 00:41:45,792 to understand just how ancient temples, churches 746 00:41:45,875 --> 00:41:49,875 and tombs were constructed thousands of years ago. 747 00:41:50,000 --> 00:41:53,500 And perhaps one day we too will unlock 748 00:41:53,583 --> 00:41:56,292 the secrets of these extraordinary structures 749 00:41:56,375 --> 00:41:58,708 that, for now, remain... 750 00:41:58,875 --> 00:42:01,625 unexplained. 751 00:42:01,708 --> 00:42:03,500 CAPTIONING PROVIDED BY A+E NETWORKS