BAALBEK [14d]
Eastern Lebanon, the Beqaa Valley. Here at this archaeological site stand the ruins of Heliopolis, built in the 4th-century BC. by Alexander the Great to honor Zeus. But beneath the Corinthian columns and remnants of both Greek and Roman architecture lie the ruins of a site that is much, much older. According to archaeologists, it dates back nearly 9,000 years: the ancient city of Baalbek, named after the early Canaanite deity, Baal.
|
“Baal is the god of life, the god of the sky, the god of the sun. He was the god that was venerated on the site of Baalbek during the Canaanite and the Phoenician times.” – Hanan Charaf (Archaeologist) |
|
“And so, because it was already sacred to the god Baal, then later the Greeks and the Romans then would build temples on this very same spot.” – Robert Mullins, Ph.D. (Archaeologist) |
Archaeological surveys have revealed that the enormous stone foundation that lies at the base of the site dates back tens of thousands of years.
|
“Baalbek, as we know from the archaeological evidence, must have existed during the Neolithic Period, between 6000 to ,000 years or even 9000 years BC.” – Hanan Charaf (Archaeologist) |
But even more significant to Ancient Astronaut Theorists is their belief that the colossal stone platform may once have served as a landing pad for space travelers.
|
“We don’t know why Baalbek was chosen as this specific site. It may well be some kind of special power place. But what was originally there before the Roman temple was this spaceport platform that was apparently used for extraterrestrials coming and going on planet Earth.” – David Childress (Author, Technology of the Gods) |
As evidence, researchers point to the gigantic megalithic stones incorporated into the foundation, each weighing between 800 to 1,200 tons and perfectly fitted together.
|
“This is the real mystery of Baalbek, how these stones came to be there, why they were placed there and specifically how they were transported into place, because some of the stones are of such magnitude that modern machinery is incapable of putting them there, but somehow our ancestors were able to do this.” – Philip Coppens |
|
“Some have suggested that this stone alone weighs in excess of 1,200 tons. How was it moved there? Because obviously it’s situated on top of these stone rows that we can find down here, which means that this stone had to be lifted and then set on top of these stones down here.” – Giorgio A. Tsoukalos |
|
“And because these stones were gigantic, ancient people assumed that extraterrestrial or unknown forces brought them to the site itself.” – Hanan Charaf (Archaeologist) |
|
“It is one of the oldest, oldest megalithic sites on the planet, and it has these huge stones laid out in a precise geometrical shape at a time when the prehistoric people who would have lived there, who would have gone to the Beqaa Valley in Lebanon, would have no concept of how to move stones of that nature.” – Bill Birnes, J.D., Ph.D. |
But if the moving, hoisting and setting of such massive stones was so incredibly difficult, then who or what placed them there? And perhaps more importantly: Why?
|
“We know that the ancients always went to power places, and Baalbek clearly is one of them. It is a place where the gods were worshipped, where the gods were said to be present. And so when it comes to Baalbek, this platform was built there for a reason. For what purpose it was used is a question we can’t answer at this moment in time. But what we do know is that whatever was happening there had a great religious significance to them and was linked with worshipping deities, deities which clearly are of an otherworldly origin.” – Philip Coppens |
Is it possible, as Ancient Astronaut Theorists believe, that Baalbek had been considered a sacred place for tens of thousands of years because it was where extraterrestrial beings first arrived on Earth? Perhaps the answer can be found by examining other megalithic stones on Easter Island.
Previous: Puma Punku & Gobekli Tepe | Next: The Moai
References:
[1a] Prometheus Entertainment. (2014). Ancient Aliens: Season 6, vol 1. [DVD Back Cover]. Los Angeles, CA: A&E Networks, LLC / History™.
[1b] Prometheus Entertainment. (2014). Ancient Aliens: Season 6, vol. 2. [DVD Back Cover]. Los Angeles, CA: A&E Networks, LLC / History™.
[2] History™. (2014). Ancient Aliens: 6.1 – Aliens & Forbidden Islands. [Episode Description]. Retrieved: November 29, 2013, from http://www.history.com/shows/ancient-aliens/season-6.
[3] History™. (2014). Ancient Aliens: 6.2 – Aliens & the Lost Ark. [Episode Description]. Retrieved: December 6, 2013, from http://www.history.com/shows/ancient-aliens/season-6.
[4] History™. (2014). Ancient Aliens: 6.3 – Aliens & Mysterious Mountains. [Episode Description]. Retrieved: December 13, 2013, from http://www.history.com/shows/ancient-aliens/season-6.
[5] History™. (2014). Ancient Aliens: 6.4 – Aliens & Stargates. [Episode Description]. Retrieved: January 24, 2014, from http://www.history.com/shows/ancient-aliens/season-6.
[6] History™. (2014). Ancient Aliens: 6.5 – Aliens in America. [Episode Description]. Retrieved: January 31, 2014, from http://www.history.com/shows/ancient-aliens/season-6.
[7] History™. (2014). Ancient Aliens: 6.6 – The Star Children. [Episode Description]. Retrieved: February 7, 2013, from http://www.history.com/shows/ancient-aliens/season-6.
[8] History™. (2014). Ancient Aliens: 6.7 – Treasures of the Gods. [Episode Description]. Retrieved: February 14, 2014, from http://www.history.com/shows/ancient-aliens/season-6.
[9] History™. (2014). Ancient Aliens: 6.8 – Aliens & the Red Planet. [Episode Description]. Retrieved: February 21, 2014, from http://www.history.com/shows/ancient-aliens/season-6.
[10] History™. (2014). Ancient Aliens: 6.9 – The Shamans. [Episode Description]. Retrieved: February 28, 2014, from http://www.history.com/shows/ancient-aliens/season-6.
[11] History™. (2014). Ancient Aliens: 6.10 – Aliens & Insects. [Episode Description]. Retrieved: March 7, 2014, from http://www.history.com/shows/ancient-aliens/season-6.
[12] History™. (2014). Ancient Aliens: 6.11 – Alien Breeders. [Episode Description]. Retrieved: March 14, 2014, from http://www.history.com/shows/ancient-aliens/season-6.
[13] History™. (2014). Ancient Aliens: 6.12 – Alien Transports. [Episode Description]. Retrieved: June 13, 2014, from http://www.history.com/shows/ancient-aliens/season-6.
| [14] History™. (2014). Ancient Aliens: 6.13 – Mysterious Structures. [Episode Description]. Retrieved: June 20, 2014, from http://www.history.com/shows/ancient-aliens/season-6.
[14a] Prometheus Entertainment. (2014). Ancient Aliens: 6.13 – Mysterious Structures. [DVD Footage: Introduction]. Los Angeles, CA: A&E Networks, LLC / History™. [14b] Prometheus Entertainment. (2014). Ancient Aliens: 6.13 – Mysterious Structures. [DVD Footage: Carnac]. Los Angeles, CA: A&E Networks, LLC / History™. [14c] Prometheus Entertainment. (2014). Ancient Aliens: 6.13 – Mysterious Structures. [DVD Footage: Puma Punku & Gobekli Tepe]. Los Angeles, CA: A&E Networks, LLC / History™. [14d] Prometheus Entertainment. (2014). Ancient Aliens: 6.13 – Mysterious Structures. [DVD Footage: Baalbek]. Los Angeles, CA: A&E Networks, LLC / History™. [14e] Prometheus Entertainment. (2014). Ancient Aliens: 6.13 – Mysterious Structures. [DVD Footage: The Moai]. Los Angeles, CA: A&E Networks, LLC / History™. [14f] Prometheus Entertainment. (2014). Ancient Aliens: 6.13 – Mysterious Structures. [DVD Footage: The Coral Castle]. Los Angeles, CA: A&E Networks, LLC / History™. |
[15] History™. (2014). Ancient Aliens: 6.14 – Mysterious Devices. [Episode Description]. Retrieved: June 27, 2014, from http://www.history.com/shows/ancient-aliens/season-6.
[16] History™. (2014). Ancient Aliens: 6.15 – Faces of the Gods. [Episode Description]. Retrieved: July 11, 2014, from http://www.history.com/shows/ancient-aliens/season-6.
[17] History™. (2014). Ancient Aliens: 6.16 – The Reptilians. [Episode Description]. Retrieved: July 25, 2014, from http://www.history.com/shows/ancient-aliens/season-6.
[18] History™. (2014). Ancient Aliens: 6.17 – The Tesla Experiment. [Episode Description]. Retrieved: August 1, 2014, from http://www.history.com/shows/ancient-aliens/season-6.
[19] History™. (2014). Ancient Aliens: 6.18 – The God Particle. [Episode Description]. Retrieved: August 8, 2014, from http://www.history.com/shows/ancient-aliens/season-6.
[20] History™. (2014). Ancient Aliens: 6.19 – Alien Encounters. [Episode Description]. Retrieved: August 15, 2014, from http://www.history.com/shows/ancient-aliens/season-6.
[21] History™. (2014). Ancient Aliens: 6.20 – Aliens & Superheroes. [Episode Description]. Retrieved: August 22, 2014, from http://www.history.com/shows/ancient-aliens/season-6.
ancientalienpedia 