The Owls are Watching

There is a city in D—n which is older than any memory. It has come to be known as Olukhawa, the City of Owls.

Few discoveries have sparked so much intrigue in the world of archaeology in recent years. But despite a flurry of research activity, Olukhawa’s people and culture still remain largely a mystery to us. What we have learned, however, shatters many of our preconceptions of our Bronze Age antecedents.

Olukhawa has now supplanted Babylon in our knowledge as the first known ancient “mega city”. At its peak it may have housed as many as 100,000 inhabitants. This achievement is particularly impressive considering the site’s location in a region generally thought to have been untouched by agriculture at the time. Research is underway to understand how the city could have sustained such a population; as yet, we have only theories.

Olukhawa’s design is quite unique for its place and time. Viewed from above, the city resembles an eight spoked wheel: an outer wall measuring c 4km in diameter surrounds the periphery and another inner wall c 1km in diameter surrounds the citadel (a raised central area at the centre of the settlement). Eight straight walls run between the two to subdivide the city into districts. In appearance the nearest analogues would be the round cities of Baghdad and Firouzabad, though Olukhawa of course long precedes both the Abbasids and the Sassanians.

Despite the weatherings of age, the city’s walls are still a magnificent sight. Built from colossal stone blocks welded together with clay mortar, they are more reminiscent of the Cyclopean masonry of the Mycenaeans than any of Olukhawa’s neighbouring cities. Paved avenues fan out from the city’s centre to its eight great gates; still largely intact, they are a further testament to the skill of Olukhawa’s artisans.

Like many of the great cities of the Bronze Age, Olukhawa met a violent end. Arrow heads, battered weaponry and bronze face plates fashioned to resemble the faces of owls litter the ground - remnants of a bloody conflict which consumed and razed most of the city. Among the detritus of battle, numerous specimens of a particularly gruesome type of one-handed weapon abound, with a three-pronged head resembling an owl’s curled talons. Scattered across the sand lie thousands of bones, many of them bearing the marks of these fearsome weapons.

Given Olukhawa’s size and the strength of its fortifications, the question arises as to how (and to whom) it might have fallen. A clue may be offered by the fact that - while the settlement’s inner fortifications appear to have been breached in several places - the outer defences are still relatively intact. The obvious conclusion to draw is that Olukhawa was attacked from within.

On top of the citadel lie the ruins of what was likely a fortress or temple complex of considerable size. This structure has been so comprehensively destroyed that we can only now guess at its shape. Still, these ruins have much to tell us about the Olukhawans and it has been my privilege to lead on their excavation.

One of my team’s first discoveries of note: buried beneath the rubble was a gigantic stone sculpture depicting an eight-faced owl’s head. Roughly three metres tall, this sculpture likely sat on top of the city’s central structure. Interestingly, it appears that someone made a particularly strenuous effort to hack away at the eyes.

Digging farther down revealed a subterranean tunnel beneath the citadel, lining the walls of which were numerous intricate carvings of owls. Those familiar with Greek mythology might associate the owl with the Athena Noctue, the emblem of Classical Athens and a symbol of knowledge and wisdom. However, the Olukhawan iconography suggests an association with more savage qualities, accentuating the animal’s fearsome talons and leering eyes. Notably, most of these carvings depict the owls in the act of capturing and eviscerating prey.

A particularly unsettling motif which adorns these hallways is a series of concave owl faces carved into the walls. Playing on the “hollow face” optical illusion (the cognitive bias which causes us to perceive concave faces as convex), these carvings give the distinct impression of following your every movement. I confess to feeling a measure of unease under the owls’ watchful eyes...

Further excavation of this corridor revealed that it leads to a central chamber. This substructure remains largely intact despite the destruction above. It is circular in shape and lined with eight doors, one to match each district of the city. Interspersed between these is a series of depictions of creatures with human-like bodies and owl-like heads. Most of these appear to be consuming men, women and children in a particularly violent manner.

In the centre of the space is a curious device: an intricately-carved bronze figure of a barn owl resting on a raised plinth. The workmanship of the piece is magnificent, with flawless red rubies for eyes and exquisitely carved feathers and adornments. Purely by chance, a member of my team discovered that stepping on a section of the floor nearby activates a primitive clockwork mechanism. Each time it is set off, this causes the figure’s head to swivel around on its neck, eventually coming to rest to face any one of the eight doors seemingly at random. What purpose this unusual device served is still open for speculation.

However, based on what we have uncovered so far, I might advance my own preliminary theory. I believe all of this was part of an elaborate hunting ritual carried out by the ruling caste of the city. They would don their owl faces and - under the light of the desert moon - descend on whichever district of the city the owl would designate to capture their prey.

In short, I believe the ruling caste of Olukhawa were cannibals who feasted on their own people. With that in mind, it is no wonder the ordinary citizens of Olukhawa turned on their watchful masters.

Already my team has discovered further tunnels that lead farther underground, and I suspect there we will find the charred bones of the victims. Our work continues apace; there is still much to learn.