And for that I am truly proud.
So barring my daughter from joining my expedition, I have chosen a team comprised of five senior archeologists from the AIAA, my apprentice and aide Montario, and three candidates from the German Archaeological Institute of Istanbul (the latter condition mandated by the Turkish government, requesting that I share mutual authority with the professorships from the Institute of Istanbul in order to receive the proper licensing).
After weeks of preparation we began our journey to said coordinates. I, however, kept the location a secret from my team for fear of misappropriation from competing scholars. But the underlying truth is more selfish, since I want to be the one to point the finger of discovery of this site. But on the flip side, I also regard this to be my personal right.
After reaching our debarkation point, which was seven miles from ground zero, at least according to my GPS tracker, we trekked over rocky terrain until we came upon the fringe of what appeared to be an unnatural formation. Whereas the region was entirely flat, this area was lifted as if the landscape heaved squarely upward.
After scaling the rise, it was quite clear that it was the only such mount for as far as the eye could see. And rather than being rounded or taking on an indescribable shape, the rise was nearly perfectly square with the four sides equal in length at one-half kilometer per side, or by American standards, one-third of a mile.
Whatever lay beneath the terrain was massive.
By the time the sun set, we had made camp at the crown point of the rise, all of us chatting excitedly by the fire wondering what historical treasures lay beneath our feet. But it wasn’t until the following morning that we discovered a passage on the southeast side of the rise — a small opening large enough for a man to pass easily through.
What was most disturbing; however, were the fresh tracks around the hole. Since we’re archeologists and hardly knowledgeable about the nature of beasts, we tried to determine which nocturnal creature would possess such prints, which appeared to be heavily padded, with the points of its claws leaving impressions in the sand. The consensus was that it was a large cat, perhaps the cave a refuge from the hot sun. But whatever it was, it put us on alert.
Nevertheless, science does press on.
After taking a lamp from Montario, I pointed it into the hole, the light penetrating perhaps thirty feet. However, at the breach of the opening where the sand had been blown in by desert winds, I could see walls that were black and polished as an onyx gemstone.
So without fear of consequence as to what made those footprints around the breach, I cast aside all caution and ventured inside.
When I stood within the warren with the opening to my back and the lamp held high, I could see that the tunnel had been fashioned into a perfect trapezoid shape, wide at the bottom and thin at the top with the walls slanting inward and upward to meet ceiling with floor. It was faultless in its geometric shape, the walls perfectly flat and completely unblemished.
The marvel of such technology was a puzzle to me. How was it even possible to develop this tunnel thousands of years ago when the Neanderthal still walked the planet? I was so stunned I couldn’t begin to conceive anything around me as being genuine because everything appeared so surreal.
But the most astonishing thing was the engravings on the wall above the entrance. The figures appeared to have been acid-etched into the surface of black silica, the calligraphy of four letters a combination of pre-Sumerian characters and Göbekli script.
As I pieced them together, my heart appeared to still inside my chest, or perhaps I was just holding my breath too long as my eyes went from one letter to the next, deciphering.
What I translated was this: α Ϯ Д Ѡ
α, represented the letter E,
Ϯ, the letter D,
Д, the letter I,
Ѡ, the letter N.
I was literally standing upon the threshold of EDIN. And because it was such a glorious moment in my life, I didn’t realize that I had lowered myself to my knees until Montario lifted me back up.
And as I stood there looking at the etchings with awe, my mind understood everything as I read further text: In the Land of Edin is the Garden of God, the One True Paradise.
According to scientific conventions, the world began in about 4000 B.C., which is 8000 years after the civilization of Göbekli Tepe was created. The intricate writings found upon the pillars in Göbekli Tepe are the same found upon this wall as the Sumerian-like text clearly defines this as the temple of {Edin}. The only difference within the written configuration is that it predates the syntax of the language discovered in Göbekli Tepe. The wordage, barring archaic symbols, does bear a striking resemblance to Göbekli Tepe text, which leaves me to believe that those discovered within this temple is somewhat of a genesis language that had modified over time to become the language discovered in Göbekli Tepe. Since the writing appears to be primitive in structure but maintains some similarities to the writings discovered in Göbekli Tepe, this tells me that the script found here predates the Göbekli scripts by thousands of years, which will be clarified by carbon dating. So this place, this wonderful temple, may be the oldest existing civilization ever created, the true cradle of humanity which the ancient texts define as {Edin}, the paradise located within the juncture of the four rivers as all the religious texts have indicated.
Therefore, in terms of sacred reference according to the Torah, the Bible and the Koran, {Edin}, or {Eden}, may be the first site of humanity.
Dr. John Moore
The Archaeological Institute of Ancient Antiquities
New York, New York
Her father, as always, wrote in cryptic language, usually in ancient prose, especially in Sumerian. Whereas it would be difficult for others to read, it came as easy to her as if the text was written in English. But the enigmatic writing was more of a learning tool for her. Whatever symbols or inscriptions she could not determine became the source of further study, requiring her to examine and discover their meanings for future readings.
And within the first paragraph, as she knew her father would perform by using his cryptic skills, he had written down the exact coordinates to Eden.
She set those pages aside and read on.
It is beyond comprehension that the discoveries I’ve made thus far in the warrens appear to lead to the temple’s center. The surrounding walls seem to be constructed of black silica, giving it a polished sheen. The surfaces are entirely smooth, nothing but perfect geometrical planes that could only be rivaled by modern technology. Yet here we are, inside a temple that was created when man was still foraging for food and residing in caves. It is like comparing New York City to some obscure hutted village deep within the Amazon.
Even more astonishing are the ancient inscriptions along the tunnel walls. The writings, the cuneiform, the raised images of the carved reliefs, were either sculpted or etched to the finest detail that would have made Michelangelo proud.
In detail I drew the reliefs as best I could — same with the cuneiforms and inscriptions. Art was never my forte but that of my daughter’s. I certainly hope she has enough of a keen eye to decipher my renditions, since they appear to tell the chronological history of {Edin} Eden.
Most interesting was the fonts spaced every twenty meters. Each one bears a carved relief of creatures on its silica base beneath the well of a deep basin, which I believe were mandated to hold combustible oils volatile enough to remain lit by fires to light the way. Scorched residue remains along each of the basin’s rim as evidence of the fonts’ true purposes.