Kobol is the founding planet of mankind. All Thirteen Tribes of man originated on Kobol, and they themselves founded other colonies, some close by to the Colonies, some light years away.
Until after the war was concluded, the lost planet of Kobol would be considered a myth by most Colonials (despite the fact that most of their history, architecture and culture was all derived from it). Mainly this would be due to the fact that when Kobol was evacuated and the Colonies settled, all records and technology were destroyed by the Colonials, and only a few prominent people in power would keep certain things (like the Book of the Word, the Seal of the Lords of Kobol, and things like that).
However, what was Kobol like?
The ancient history of Kobol is completely unknown. The only facts are that the ancient civilisations are known collectively as 'The Ancient Ones'. A little know fact is that these ancient ones were visited by higher powers at times in their development to instill upon them various values of good and just.
Like most things historical, little can be said about Kobol and especially the people who lived there. However, some things can be determined.
Kobol was a planet with a large population, and many cities. The largest city - and the capital - was called Eden. It was also the first city to be sacked when the troubles hit Kobol. The planet itself was vertiable paradise though, with all the resources the people could ever need, as well as an enirvonment that was just right.
The planet was run by the Lords of Kobols, and thus the planet has a unified government. When the population left Kobol, the Ninth Lord was in power. He never left Kobol and died there, and in his tomb records of the exodus and their co-ordinates were sealed. Only those with the Seal of Kobol would be able to enter the tomb in safety.
The people of Kobol did not know war at all. Throughtout their history, the people of Kobol never warred amongst themselves. If there was a settlment to be made or a land or power grab occuring, then it occured peacefully, without conflict.
It was from the Lords of Kobol period in time that modern Colonials get their values and religious beliefs from. The Seal of the Lords of Kobol - whom every member of the Quorum of Twelve carry - derive from this period, and the Book of the Word, if not written in this period, currently covers the teachings and writings from this period. It could be that the people of Kobol admired the arts and were great philosphers. The people were also reliant on prophercy and fate, and writings and legend that had been written down many thousands of yahren previous were still relied on as truth. As such, they had known for many millienia that there planet was doomed and that they would have to travel through a void to find a new home.
Architectural style was very similar to the Ancient Egyptians of the Thirteenth Tribe of Earth. Pyramids, columns and stone reliefs were the order of the day. Cities were built to last, and millennia after the exodus from Kobol, ruins and structures still stand. The Kobolians built things for their looks and aesthetic appeal as well as their durability, and columns and walls were adorned with decorations and hieroglyphics, the language of Kobol.
Technology, while highly advanced, was ornamental and functional. Designed to be built into things and then forgotten about and out of sight, unlike that of the Colonials that descended them. Locks would be built into the ornaments of buildings, and keys would be made into jewellery and decorations. Obviously there were some exceptions - space craft and the like. The people of Kobol were explorers, and they were constantly sending out scouts to see what the rest of the galaxy was like. It is also likely that they set up some colonies of their own, but it appears that when the people of Kobol left, the colonies left with them.
Despite all their great technology, teachings and values, the people of Kobol could be wasteful people. When they discovered that their star was unstable and they had to leave, they let their planet go to waste. Resources were mined without landscaping the planet to cover up the mess, and pollution started to get rife.
Kobol itself though, was (is) hidden deep within a magnetic void, with only a pulsing star for company. Its location, direction and co-ordinates would be lost to the Colonials for about three and a half thousand yahrens when the Battlestar Galactica would come across the Void, and Kobol on its quest for the Thirteenth Tribe.
Kobol today (when the Galactica found the planet again), is a desert wasteland. It has no life left on it - no animals at all, despite the fact that it does still have an atmosphere and is able to support life. The ruins of the major cities are dotted around the landscape, and it is testiment to the way the Kobolians made things that a lot of them are still in reasonable shape after thousands of yahrens, and some items of technology still indeed work, although these items would be mainly around the tombs of the Lords of Kobol.
The Cylons either do not know that Kobol exists, or they do not know what significance that it has for the Colonials, or they just do not care. Probably an element of all three cases. Certainly they have made no effect to find the mythical planet during the Thousand Yahren war, nor have they attempted to mislead the humans into a trap using Kobol as bait. The Cylons will not actually visit Kobol until just after the Exodus, and then they will not stop to study the planet, just destroy it.
If it ever came to it, my take on the Kobolians is as follows. Note that I have no basis in real fact for any of this, and it is all pure speculation.
However, the culture is a mixture of ancient Eqyptian and ancient Greece rolled into one. This includes architecture and clothes style. Combine the technology from the film "Stargate" and you get a pretty fair representation. In some senses, the Kobolians are still far in excess of the Colonials, but at the same time, they are also lagging far behind in certain sciences.
