Kobol (TOS)

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The tombs of the Lords of Kobol (TOS: "Lost Planet of the Gods, Part II").

Kobol is the ancestral homeworld for humanity located in the Cyrannus galaxy. An unexplained event or environmental catastrophe causes humanity to leave Kobol and settle on the planets that form their new homeworlds known as the Twelve Colonies. During the migration, twelve tribes set out for the stars and became lost in a starless void before stumbling upon the worlds that would become The Twelve Colonies of Man, while the Thirteenth Tribe headed for a world called "Earth."

Kobol is located in a quadrant of space known to the Colonials as Epsilon Quadrant (TOS: "Lost Planet of the Gods, Part I"), approximately one to three parsecs from its star, according to Commander Adama of Galactica (TOS: "Lost Planet of the Gods, Part II")).

Kobol is rediscovered by chance during the exodus from the Twelve Colonies, following reports of a magnetic void that Adama recalls from the Book of the Word. A team from the battlestar arrives among the ruins[1] of Eden, the planet's largest city, seeking to enter the tomb of the Ninth Lord of Kobol in order to find clues as to the route taken by the Thirteenth Tribe. A Cylon attack ultimately prevents them from doing so (TOS: "Lost Planet of the Gods, Part II").

Notes[edit]

In attempting to prove the truth behind the Book of the Word, a holy scripture in Colonial society, many Colonials have attempted to link the sudden appearance of the pyramids on Kobol to the contact of a superior civilization (i.e. Beings of Light). However, the weight of evidence to the contrary supports a belief that Kobol's humans had been "fully capable of achieving their high civilization" without external aid.[2]
  • Possibly because the series-bible was not fully planned during script-writing, during Saga of a Star World, Serina mentions that the Armistice talks are happening, "at this very moment on the Star Kobol," which implies specific knowledge of where Kobol is, rather than stumbling upon it.

See Also[edit]

  • Kobol, for similarities between the Original and Re-imagined Series and the etymology of the planet's name.

References[edit]

  1. Eden's appearance is obviously based on the pyramids of Giza of the real-world Earth. The Original Series used Egyptian themes in several episodes.
  2. Kraus, Bruce (1979). Encyclopedia Galactica, p. 21-22.