German archaeologist professor Klaus Schmidt is being remembered on the 12th anniversary of his death for the discoveries at Göbeklitepe that transformed understanding of the origins of human civilization and brought the ancient site to worldwide prominence.
Known in Türkiye as the "zero point of history," Göbeklitepe dates back about 12,000 years and is widely regarded as the world's oldest known monumental ritual site. Schmidt's excavations revealed evidence that challenged long-held assumptions about the development of early societies, showing that complex social organization and monumental construction predated agriculture.
Göbeklitepe first entered the scientific spotlight during a 1963 surface survey conducted jointly by Istanbul University and the University of Chicago. Interest in the site grew after a farmer uncovered a carved stone statue while plowing a nearby field in 1986.
When Schmidt visited the site in 1994, he recognized that partially exposed stone pillars belonged to the Neolithic period, laying the groundwork for what would become one of archaeology's most significant excavation projects. Excavations began the following year under the coordination of the Şanlıurfa Museum Directorate, with Schmidt playing a central role. He was appointed excavation director in 2007.
Over the course of the excavations, Schmidt and his team unearthed towering T-shaped limestone pillars measuring 3 to 6 meters (10 to 20 feet) high and weighing up to 60 metric tons. They also uncovered circular and rectangular stone enclosures, a 12,000-year-old human statue measuring 65 centimeters (26 inches) tall, a limestone wild boar sculpture, reliefs depicting foxes and birds and numerous flint arrowheads.
Together, the discoveries painted a striking picture of Neolithic communities that were capable of planning and building monumental structures, suggesting a level of social and cultural sophistication previously thought impossible for hunter-gatherer societies.
As the findings attracted international attention, Göbeklitepe quickly became one of the world's most important archaeological sites. It was added to UNESCO's Tentative World Heritage List in 2011 and, four years after Schmidt's death, was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List on July 1, 2018, fulfilling one of his longtime ambitions.
Schmidt died of a heart attack while on vacation in Germany on July 20, 2014. He was 61. He was buried five days later in Diebach, Germany.
Mehmet Kamil Türkmen, head of the Şanlıurfa Tourism Development Association, said Schmidt's legacy extends well beyond archaeology.
"He brought extraordinary discoveries to our city," Türkmen said. "I never saw him without his traditional headscarf. To me, he was more of a Şanlıurfa native than many people born here. He was passionate, disciplined and completely dedicated to his work. Even in the intense summer heat, he would greet visitors from the small cabin at the entrance to the excavation site, always with his dog by his side. His contribution to making Göbeklitepe known around the world was immense."
