Archaeologists recently unearthed enormous, crescent-shaped stone structures near the Sea of Galilee in Northern Israel that could predate the Biblical era by several centuries.

The stone structures are almost 500 feet long and measure 66 feet wide. They’re almost 25 feet tall, making them significantly large monuments that would have dominated the Stone Age landscape.

Pottery dated at the site is from 3050 to 2650 B.C., meaning that the structure could be older than Stonehenge, Newgrange, or the pyramids of Egypt.

Experts have debated the structure’s purpose; some believe it could be the remains of a city wall, while others are firm that the structure denoted specific land ownership. The structure would have clearly indicated who owned the land due to its enormous size.

The structure is crescent-shaped, indicating a relationship with the Mesopotamian moon god named Sin. It’s on the outskirts of the ancient town of Bet Yerah, meaning “house of the moon” in the Hebrew language.

Other ancient stone structures have been found near this site. A structure referred to as Rujum el-Hiri, east of the Sea of Galilee towards the Golan Heights, is thought to be almost a thousand years older than the structure recently found by scientists. Rujum el-Hiri contains four circles centered around an ancient cairn. Next to structures like those found at Gobekli Tepe, it is helping to rewrite the history of ancient cultures in the Mediterranean area.

An enormous stone cairn was recently discovered in the Sea of Galilee. Its date is unknown, but it is thought to be associated with the town of Bet Yerah. Underwater archaeologists made the discovery, as sea levels have shifted dramatically over the past six thousand years.

Archaeological discoveries in Israel are frequently a touchy subject, as the land has been fought over for millennia. Current land disputes are still ongoing in the West Bank as Israeli settlements compete with Palestinian towns for land ownership.