Slave Species of the Gods began as Slave Species of God (2005), self-published in South Africa by Zulu Planet Publishers, and was substantially revised and retitled for the Bear & Company edition in 2012. Michael Tellinger, a South African author, extends Zecharia Sitchin's ancient astronaut thesis to argue that humanity was genetically engineered by the Anunnaki — beings described in Sumerian cuneiform records — to serve as a labour force for gold-mining operations in southern Africa. He draws on Sumerian texts alongside what he interprets as evidence from the prehistoric stone-circle complexes he has documented near South Africa's Mpumalanga region, and on genetic research he reads as corroborating the engineered-origins claim.
The book's central argument is that the Anunnaki arrived on Earth more than 200,000 years ago and that the stone-circle ruins Tellinger identifies with that period represent the remnants of a vast Anunnaki settlement network. Mainstream archaeology identifies the Blaauboschkraal stone structures as 16th-century pastoral boundary markers; Tellinger contests this dating. The book occupies a central place in the sub-genre of ancient-astronaut literature focused on African archaeology and prehistory, and is frequently cited alongside Sitchin's work as a reference for the Anunnaki in Africa thesis. Tellinger developed the related Adam's Calendar claims in a 2008 co-authored book with Johan Heine.
Reception
Standard reference for the African-archaeology branch of the Anunnaki literature. The 2012 Bear & Company edition brought the book to an international audience. Mainstream archaeologists and scientists contest Tellinger's genetic and archaeological readings; the Blaauboschkraal stone structures he cites are classified by archaeologists as 16th-century boundary markers, not prehistoric ruins.
Frequently asked
What is Slave Species of the Gods about?
The book argues that humanity was genetically engineered by extraterrestrial beings called the Anunnaki, as described in ancient Sumerian cuneiform records, to serve as a labour force for gold-mining operations in southern Africa. Tellinger extends Zecharia Sitchin's ancient astronaut thesis and adds evidence from stone-circle complexes he has documented in South Africa's Mpumalanga region.
Is Slave Species of the Gods the same as Slave Species of God?
Yes. The book was first published in South Africa in 2005 under the title Slave Species of God by Zulu Planet Publishers. It was revised and retitled as Slave Species of the Gods for the Bear & Company (Inner Traditions) edition released in 2012, which added updated material and is the version in wider international circulation.
What does Tellinger claim about South African stone circles?
Tellinger argues that the stone-circle complexes of South Africa's Mpumalanga region are remnants of an ancient Anunnaki civilisation more than 200,000 years old. Mainstream archaeology classifies the Blaauboschkraal stone structures as 16th-century pastoral boundary markers. Tellinger's interpretation is not accepted by academic archaeology.