Looks like a fortification not a monument..................
Or a cockfighting arena. I think I see a food court in the corner.
I agree. A circle fort. Some light, temporary fencing inside that perhaps the team put up. Maybe delineating possible pens for cattle in neolithic times…?
Agreed. Did they say why they thought it was a monument?
I’m amazed that such primitive societies could move the hundreds of thousands of cubic yards of earth to build such things. I asked Grok...
Neolithic societies, which flourished roughly between 10,000 and 4,000 BCE, constructed impressive earthworks such as mounds, barrows, ditches, and enclosures, often for burial, ceremonial, or defensive purposes. These projects involved moving vast quantities of earth—sometimes hundreds of thousands of tons—without metal tools or machinery, relying instead on organized communal labor and simple, locally available implements.
Tools Used for Earth Moving
Neolithic people primarily used tools made from stone, wood, bone, and antler, as metalworking had not yet been developed. Key examples include:Antler picks and bone shovels: Antlers from deer or elk were shaped into picks for breaking up hard soil or chalk, while shoulder blades from large animals served as rudimentary shovels for scooping.
Wooden digging sticks and spatulas: Branches or logs were fashioned into levers or flat tools for prying and shifting dirt.
Baskets, hides, and sledges: Woven baskets or animal skins were used to carry soil in small loads, often over short distances. In some cases, wooden sledges or rollers might have facilitated transport of larger volumes, though evidence is limited for earth specifically (more common for stones).
These tools were labor-intensive, requiring large groups to dig, carry, and pile earth incrementally.