Tell Qaramel
تل قرامل
Neolithic site north of Aleppo where round stone towers were found, among the oldest structures of their kind in the world.
About 25 km north of Aleppo near the town of Qaramel lies Tell Qaramel, one of the key early Neolithic sites of Syria and the Near East. Its earliest settlement dates to around the 11th millennium BC, when people began moving from mobile hunting to permanent villages.
A Polish–Syrian mission excavating since the early 2000s uncovered round houses and massive circular stone structures described as towers, thought to be among the oldest of their kind in the world, predating famous towers elsewhere in the region.
Stone tools, small figurines and animal and plant remains shed light on the diet, life and beliefs of these early villagers at the dawn of farming. Later occupations followed, but the site's global importance lies in its earliest layers. To the eye it is an earthen mound; to history, an early chapter of settled human life.
Note: photos may not reflect the site's current condition.
For the visitor
Location: 36.3780, 37.2750 · Open on the map
Photos: R. F. Mazurowski — via Wikimedia Commons (CC0)
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