The purpose of this blog is the creation of an open, international, independent and free forum, where every UFO-researcher can publish the results of his/her research. The languagues, used for this blog, are Dutch, English and French.You can find the articles of a collegue by selecting his category. Each author stays resposable for the continue of his articles. As blogmaster I have the right to refuse an addition or an article, when it attacks other collegues or UFO-groupes.
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Deze blog is opgedragen aan mijn overleden echtgenote Lucienne.
In 2012 verloor ze haar moedige strijd tegen kanker!
In 2011 startte ik deze blog, omdat ik niet mocht stoppen met mijn UFO-onderzoek.
BEDANKT!!!
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UFO'S of UAP'S, ASTRONOMIE, RUIMTEVAART, ARCHEOLOGIE, OUDHEIDKUNDE, SF-SNUFJES EN ANDERE ESOTERISCHE WETENSCHAPPEN - DE ALLERLAATSTE NIEUWTJES
UFO's of UAP'S in België en de rest van de wereld Ontdek de Fascinerende Wereld van UFO's en UAP's: Jouw Bron voor Onthullende Informatie!
Ben jij ook gefascineerd door het onbekende? Wil je meer weten over UFO's en UAP's, niet alleen in België, maar over de hele wereld? Dan ben je op de juiste plek!
België: Het Kloppend Hart van UFO-onderzoek
In België is BUFON (Belgisch UFO-Netwerk) dé autoriteit op het gebied van UFO-onderzoek. Voor betrouwbare en objectieve informatie over deze intrigerende fenomenen, bezoek je zeker onze Facebook-pagina en deze blog. Maar dat is nog niet alles! Ontdek ook het Belgisch UFO-meldpunt en Caelestia, twee organisaties die diepgaand onderzoek verrichten, al zijn ze soms kritisch of sceptisch.
Nederland: Een Schat aan Informatie
Voor onze Nederlandse buren is er de schitterende website www.ufowijzer.nl, beheerd door Paul Harmans. Deze site biedt een schat aan informatie en artikelen die je niet wilt missen!
Internationaal: MUFON - De Wereldwijde Autoriteit
Neem ook een kijkje bij MUFON (Mutual UFO Network Inc.), een gerenommeerde Amerikaanse UFO-vereniging met afdelingen in de VS en wereldwijd. MUFON is toegewijd aan de wetenschappelijke en analytische studie van het UFO-fenomeen, en hun maandelijkse tijdschrift, The MUFON UFO-Journal, is een must-read voor elke UFO-enthousiasteling. Bezoek hun website op www.mufon.com voor meer informatie.
Samenwerking en Toekomstvisie
Sinds 1 februari 2020 is Pieter niet alleen ex-president van BUFON, maar ook de voormalige nationale directeur van MUFON in Vlaanderen en Nederland. Dit creëert een sterke samenwerking met de Franse MUFON Reseau MUFON/EUROP, wat ons in staat stelt om nog meer waardevolle inzichten te delen.
Let op: Nepprofielen en Nieuwe Groeperingen
Pas op voor een nieuwe groepering die zich ook BUFON noemt, maar geen enkele connectie heeft met onze gevestigde organisatie. Hoewel zij de naam geregistreerd hebben, kunnen ze het rijke verleden en de expertise van onze groep niet evenaren. We wensen hen veel succes, maar we blijven de autoriteit in UFO-onderzoek!
Blijf Op De Hoogte!
Wil jij de laatste nieuwtjes over UFO's, ruimtevaart, archeologie, en meer? Volg ons dan en duik samen met ons in de fascinerende wereld van het onbekende! Sluit je aan bij de gemeenschap van nieuwsgierige geesten die net als jij verlangen naar antwoorden en avonturen in de sterren!
Heb je vragen of wil je meer weten? Aarzel dan niet om contact met ons op te nemen! Samen ontrafelen we het mysterie van de lucht en daarbuiten.
01-07-2021
Catastrophic Comet Impact 13,000 Years Ago Likely Sparked the Rise of Civilization
Catastrophic Comet Impact 13,000 Years Ago Likely Sparked the Rise of Civilization
Humans suddenly changed around 13,000 years ago. Hunter-gatherer societies began to rapidly change their way of life. They began to build permanent settlements and focused their efforts on farming. The oldest man-made megalithic structures around were also built around this period. Was a comet impact the reason behind this rapid development of human civilization?
An international team of scientists has presented a new study with evidence that a comet impact could have triggered a shift in the development of human civilization towards rapid progress around 13,000 years ago.
Did a comet impact influence the rise of civilization
The research team analyzed data from excavations carried out around the world. In particular, during archaeological excavations in Arizona (USA), characteristic black layers were discovered, indicating significant changes in the environment.
Calculations showed that these changes began to occur from about 10 800 BC. More importantly, archaeologists also discovered space debris in the area.
Similar discoveries have been made all over the world before. Scientists believe that almost 13 thousand years ago, a stream of debris from an exploding comet hit the Earth or the entire comet did, with the impact causing a catastrophe on a planetary scale. Scientists believe that the only impact stronger than that one is the asteroid that put an end to the dinosaurs about 66 million years ago.
The archaeological site in Arizona, where you can see a black layer that indicates sudden and substantial environmental changes. Scientists believe that this event was linked to a comet debris impact around 10,800 BC. Credit: Comet Research Group
The new study focuses on the fact that the destructive cosmic impact chronologically coincides with major shifts in the self-organization of human societies. A little more than 12 thousand years ago, humanity very rapidly began to change its way of life. It was then that the first settled settlements appeared.
Gobekli Tepe
An example of this is Gebekli Tepe, located on the territory of modern Turkey. By the way, recently, during excavations in this settlement, the world’s oldest open-air temple was discovered. Experts have speculated for years that the symbols carved into its giant stone pillars may be an attempt to perpetuate a global cosmic catastrophe.
In the past, scientists used computer simulations and found that the art of Gobekli Tepe could be describing a major cosmic event (that appears to be a comet impact) that took place around 10,950 BCE, a period surprisingly close to the latest estimates.
Furthermore, Gobekli Tepe is the oldest (to date) manmade temple/complex and has been dated to around 12,000 years ago, making it the earliest known architectural achievement after the hypothetical sudden development of humankind.
Aerial view of Gobekli Tepe. Credit: DAI, Gobekli Tepe Project
Rise of civilization
The researchers also write in their new work that the analysis showed that the collision of comet fragments occurred before the beginning of the Neolithic period in southwestern Asia. Namely, in the region that covers parts of modern Egypt, Iraq, and Lebanon.
It is known that in this vast region, more than 12 thousand years ago, hunter-gatherer societies began to rapidly change their way of life. They began to build permanent settlements and focused their efforts on farming. It was there that the first powerful civilizations of the world arose.
Scientists write that the impact of the comet likely wiped out many species of large animals and marked the beginning of a small ice age that lasted just over 1000 years. By the way, this theory was first proposed in 2007. It seems that it is only now that she has received the first hard evidence.
Researchers analyzed geological data from four continents, in particular North America and Greenland, where the largest number of traces of a cosmic catastrophe were found. Among them, experts include an increased amount of deposits of platinum and signs of melting of materials, which could only occur at extremely high temperatures. They also discovered nanodiamonds that exist inside comets and are formed during high-energy explosions.
According to the authors of the work, all this convincingly confirms the theory of the impact of comet debris on the earth’s surface almost 13 thousand years ago. Further research is of course needed. Scientists suggest that a comet impact could provoke climate change, and people had to quickly adapt to new conditions for their own survival. This gave an impetus to the development of technology, and further technical progress was increasing.
Sources:
Bressan, D. (2021, June 25). Controversial Theory Claims Comet Impact Sparked Human Civilization. Forbes.
Gohd, C. (2021, June 25). Did a comet strike 13,000 years ago change human civilization as we know it? Space.com.
ScienceDaily. (2021, June 24). Comet strike may have sparked key shift in human civilization.
Sweatman, M. (2021, May 13). The Younger Dryas impact hypothesis: review of the impact evidence. University of Edinburgh Research Explorer.
Translation of 5,500-Year-Old Babel Text from China Reveals Oldest Known Map of Inner Solar System
Translation of 5,500-Year-Old Babel Text from China Reveals Oldest Known Map of Inner Solar System
It is obvious to any astronomer that some of the brightest objects in the night sky are the planets. It is thus mysterious that there are so few references to the planets in ancient literature.
Prior to decoding the Babel Text , which is an archaic geometric text that is based on astronomy, the oldest representation of the planets orbiting around the sun was ancient Greek philosophers Hicetas and Philolaus’ discussion on the planets orbiting a hot ball of metal, but there is little to indicate that they knew the relative orbital distances.
Identifying Astronomical Details with the Babel Text
However, with Dr. Derek Cunningham’s recent discovery of the Babel Text, a 5,300 to 5,600-Year-Old text from Lingjiatan, China, our understanding of the ancient past has changed dramatically. Now it is possible to read the enigmatic geometrical symbols on ancient artifacts and to identify subtle astronomical details that prior historians have missed.
In China, one of the most intriguing sites is Lingjiatan. The Lingjiatan culture existed from 5,500 to 4,000 years ago; and at around the same time as Stonehenge was constructed, the Chinese also created astronomical observatories and stone circles. Remarkably, the larger stones used to create the Chinese stone circles were not local to the area, which is the exact same trend seen later at Stonehenge.
Amongst the thousands of artifacts recovered at site 87M4:30, two items have caught the attention of Chinese archaeologists and historians.
A Depiction of Heaven and Earth
The first is an engraved geometric plaque that was found in 1987 between two jade tortoise shells that draws the ancient Chinese description of Heaven and Earth. This is a geometric drawing with lines radiating through two concentric circles, with four arrow-type symbols placed on the outer circle.
At the center of this complex drawing is an eight pointed star that is still used as a pattern in local tribal clothing. For example, the Yi describe (note: the linked text is in Chinese) the eight pointed star as the "the heaven and earth gossip pattern."
A representation (not the actual image) of the Jade Heaven and Earth plaque from Lingjiatan.
Credit: Derek Cunningham
This symbol is also mentioned in the Chinese document called the “Book of Changes”, where it is said the universe began in a state of chaos called Taiji and it was centered on the rotation of the North Pole. Then order developed from this chaos and Taiji created two Yis. One Yi was called Earth (Yin). The other Yi was called Heaven (Yiang).
In the book “Chinese Jade”, the author Ming Yu then states that Yin created what was called the four Xiangs, which is represented by four arrow-type images. These are argued by Chinese historians to be the same symbols drawn on this jade plaque. Then Yin developed into the shape of a square (perhaps reflecting a rectangular Mercator Map of Earth), and the heavens then circled three (or four) times around Earth. The jade plaque is dated differently by various researchers, but it is normally considered to be between 5,600 to 5,300 years old (see work by Li Liu, and Xingcan Chen.)
Variant of the Taijitu ("supreme ultimate diagram"). A number of similar such diagrams are known from the Ming-era Daoist canon. The origin of this particular design is unknown (but it likely predates the 18th century). ( Public Domain )A more detailed explanation surrounding this ancient description of a square-shaped Earth is provided in “ The Map that Talked ”; which looks at the creation of an intriguing Stone Age map, which uses the stars to create a relatively accurate map of Earth.
This archaic map can also explain the various aquatic descriptions that the Greeks gave to the constellations; where it is found that, when an expanded map of the stars is wrapped three times around Earth the Greek water constellations intriguingly mark the oceans and the constellations that describe heroes that did not drown mark the continents. The same book also describes the initial discovery of the original Babel Text.
“Aquarius, Piscis Australis & Ballon Aerostatique”, plate 26 in Urania's Mirror, a set of celestial cards accompanied by A familiar treatise on astronomy ... by Jehoshaphat Aspin. London. Astronomical chart, 1 print on layered paper board: etching, hand-colored.
Though many dedicated Ancient Origin readers will know of Derek Cunningham’s prior work, where he analyzed many geometric symbols around the world and noted the archaic patterns were apparently used as a very simple code, in which the angles of the lines were set to reflect the key astronomical values that astronomers used to calculate time and predict eclipses, few will have heard the phrase, “The Babel Texts”.
The reason for now referring to these lines as being the original written and spoken world language comes from a preliminary analysis that has recovered a phonetic code that can be attached to the lines. This means the lines are both mathematical values (that reflect astronomical terms) and a type of alphabet, where each line can be given a consonant that depends on the angle of the line.
To this pictorial text a vowel can also be attached, where the vowel depends on whether the offset is to above or below the horizontal, or to the right or left of the vertical.
This idea is discussed in much more detail in the author’s latest book “The Babel Texts”, where the basic conclusion is that the same astronomical code was used worldwide, including in Australia and in North and South America, during the Stone Age.
Part of the Wurdi Youang stone arrangement in Victoria, Australia.
Intriguingly, though the original world “spoken” language rapidly diverged over time, it appears the written text was far more resistant to change, and that permits more modern texts, such as proto-cuneiform and other angular-based texts such as Irish Ogham , to be used to recover phonetic clues; which now brings us back to the Chinese Neolithic Lingjiatan astronomical site and a second intriguing pattern that was found on a jade eagle.
The Jade Eagle
The Babel Text also appears on this jade artifact, but what is important about this archaic text is the pattern apparently names six planets and the moon and the sun. From its layout it is possible to extract the names of the celestial bodies.
The most important point to note is the inverted triangles on this jade eagle are almost all symmetrical. The exception is just one pairing, which is created using the -18.6, -5.1 degree pairing. These astronomical values are linked to the angle of the moon’s orbital plane relative to Earth, and the moon’s 18.6 year long orbital cycle around Earth. As this is the only inverted triangle that uses the 5.1 degree value, this inverted triangle is believed to represent the moon.
Using various ancient texts to try to determine phonetic values for these lines then produces a relatively simple text that matches later Ogham phonetic values. In this case it appears the names for the celestial bodies are GeGo (Earth); ShyiShyu (Mercury); Ish(o)?Ishe (Venus); NuNi (Mars); IsheIsh(o)? (Jupiter); NiNu (Saturn); Ish(o)?Hes (The Moon) and ShyuShyi (The Sun).
Intriguingly, this jade eagle also provides the earliest known drawing of the inner solar system.
The jade eagle also appears to draw the inner solar system. Credit: Derek Cunningham
By using the holes that create the eyes and the nose of the various animals to draw circles, it is found that the image draws the orbital distances for the first four planets.
It is also intriguing that this jade eagle is considered to be circa 5,300 years old, which makes it marginally older than the earthwork found at Stonehenge.
In this image, which is a representation (and not the actual image of the jade eagle) it is found that the angles drawn by the lines that create the central star pattern are aligned to the astronomical values that astronomers use to measure time and predict eclipses. For example, the 27.32 degree value is the sidereal month, which is central in determining where the Earth is in its orbit around the sun.
Credit: Derek Cunningham
Both the jade eagle and the layout of Stonehenge are described in more detail in the author’s book “The Babel Text”, but what is now becoming clear is the same astronomical knowledge was present in both Britain and China at around the same time period.
The Case of Stonehenge
In the case of Stonehenge, I could find no prior work by any other author that mentions the size of the Stonehenge earthwork relative to the central stone circle appears to show the relative diameters of the moon and planet Earth.
The width of the stone circle at Stonehenge also appears to reflect the apparent change in the size of the moon at apogee and perigee.
This drawing of Stonehenge is based on recent LIDAR data, which shows the outer earthwork that surrounds Stonehenge is actually a reasonable representation of the size of Earth if the inner stone circle is considered to the moon. (See here)
It thus seems likely that circa 5,300 years ago the Mesopotamians, the people who settled in the Orkney Isles , and the Stone Circle Builders of Lingjiatan were in contact.
However, this is not the only time the world was in contact.
A Connection Since the Appearance of the Fist Homo sapiens
For this archaic text to be the original Babel Text, it must be old enough to explain the appearance of the same geometric text in Australia and in California and Nevada in North America; and with the original text to guide us, it is actually possible to follow this text through time. Amazingly, the journey does takes us all the way back to the appearance of the first Homo sapiens.
Unfortunately, it is not possible to discuss all the results here, but it is now clear that the Bible was correct. There was a time when the whole earth was of one language , and of one speech . The only surprise is we didn’t realize that the phrase “One Language” was referring to an archaic written text.
‘The Confusion of Tongues’ (1620) by Karel van Mander I.
“Interstellar vehicles” visited Earth: ancient manuscripts confirm it
“Interstellar vehicles” visited Earth: ancient manuscripts confirm it
The history of mankind keeps many secrets hidden for millennia. It is possible that the Earth was visited by interstellar vehicles from other worlds.
Interstellar vehicles were on Earth: ancient manuscripts confirm this.
There are ancient manuscripts , possibly written for some purpose . The truth is that humanity will always be oriented to discover its true origin. And the story tells of interstellar vehicles , beings from other worlds, and many other events that orthodox historians wish to eliminate.
In these ancient texts mention is made of exotic technologies, such as antigravity . Whose control came from the human mind.
For many, civilizations such as the Sumerian or Egyptian are considered those that would have the greatest relevance in terms of the evolution of the Earth .
However, ancient India keeps ancient texts with a unique and surprising knowledge.
The oldest history of mankind?
One of the broadest histories of society is found in ancient India, and its texts known as the Vedas considered the greatest ancient manuscripts of mankind.
Among some of the particularities found in these texts is the mention of flying ships that traveled the Earth 6000 years ago .
These Vedic Sanskrit texts constitute the oldest link in Hinduism in terms of Sanskrit literature and writing.
In the book, Vaimanika Shastra or “Science of Aeronautics” are descriptions of interstellar vehicles , whose control was the mind through. A technology of ancient cultures, now defunct.
According to various experts, the texts show real aeronautical ships.
Mention is also made of antigravity or levitation as technologies used in the past.
Interstellar vehicles in ancient times
For some scholars the sacred text Vaimanika Shastra can be considered as a guide for space, interstellar and space travel
V. Raghavam, writer of more than 120 books and 1,200 articles , which credited him with the Sahitya Akademi Prize for Sanskrit in 1966, was commissioned to interpret those spoken by Vaimanika Shastra.
Dr. V. Raghavam interpreted that thousands of years ago alien beings visited our ancestors. In the same way, human beings inhabited other planets .
Other scholars and authors agree with Raghavan, that evidence of various types of written technologies can be found in the Ramayana and the Mahabharata.
For the professor of aeronautics at the Indian Institute of Science in Bangalore, Dr. AV Krishna Murty, what has been said is totally true.
Stating that “ancient Indian Vedas and other texts describe aeronautics, flying machines, spaceships and ancient astronauts.”
It is worth mentioning that, although the Hindu Vedas is not the only text that makes mention of flying ships, it is the most explicit and graphic. So can we say that the Earth was visited by the Ancient Astronauts?
Denisova Cave DNA: Neanderthals, Denisovans and Humans Lived Together!
Denisova Cave DNA: Neanderthals, Denisovans and Humans Lived Together!
The deeply-ancient Denisova Cave in Siberia was at times home to Neanderthals, Denisovans and modern humans “at the same time” based on the latest Denisova Cave DNA research.
Nobody in the world had expected first-contact to come from a tiny, fossilized pinkie bone, but 10 years ago it was the discovery of such a bone that introduced us to the hitherto unknown and now extinct "Denisovans.
A new study of Denisova Cave DNA sampled from the floor of the Russian cave has revealed for the first time that the cave was also used by modern humans. But what was completely unexpected is that the new dating suggests the ancestors of modern humans lived “alongside Denisovans and Neanderthals.”
Researchers Zenobia Jacobs, Bo Li and Kieran O'Gorman collecting soil samples in the main chamber to test for Denisova Cave DNA.
Denisova Cave DNA Changes Everything And Proves More
“Aju-Tasch” is more famously known as the “ Denisova Cave ,” and this time capsule of anthropological treasures was found hidden in a cliff face in the Anui River valley in the Altai Mountains of Russia. The cave comprises 20 layers of excavated artifacts indicating occupation by hominins as long ago as 280,000 years before the present, and signs of habitation have been found all the way into the Middle Ages.
Up until recently, according to Britannica encyclopedia , researchers have suspected that the cave was inhabited by early modern humans ( Homo sapiens ) and Neanderthals ( H. neanderthalensis ). However, evidence of a previously unknown group of hominins, the Denisovans, who were neither modern humans nor Neanderthals, was also discovered at the site.
Researchers Zenobia Jacobs, Bo Li and Kieran O'Gorman in the south chamber of the cave taking sediment samples as they search for more Denisova Cave DNA.
The new research was published in the Nature journal and covered as well in a release from the Max Planck Institute . The research study’s lead author, Dr Elena Zavala, a graduate student at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, and her colleagues worked with a team of Russian DNA researchers. The primary goal was to test the soil floor of the three-chamber cave to try and gain a clearer picture of how and when modern humans, Neanderthals and Denisovans lived in the now famous Denisova Cave.
For four decades researchers have been studying artifacts and DNA gathered from soils within the cave. However, according to an article about the new research in Science Mag , only over the last 4 years has anyone found DNA from extinct humans in the ancient cave soil.
A Denisovan tooth found in Russia’s famous Denisova Cave in 2000.
Previous research highlighted in this Science Mag article stated that “728 soil samples” had been taken in the cave. And now, after almost 24 months, the researchers have published new research about their discovery of “ human DNA in 175 of the samples.”
An article about the paper published by the Max Planck Institute quotes Dr Katerina Douka, an archaeological scientist at the institute who said the new study represents the “largest and most systematic of its kind.”
The study concludes that the three different groups “moved in and out of the cave over time.” However, Dr Zavala’s work confirms that Denisovans were the cave ’s first inhabitants about 300,000 years ago and that they disappeared 130,000 years ago. A different group of Denisovans who “likely made many of the stone tools,” then moved into the cave shelter about 30,000 years later. It would be 170,000 years after the first inhabitants that Neanderthals used the cave, at times, “overlapping with the Denisovans,” and the first humans used the cave beginning around 45,000 years ago.
A reconstructed fossil skeleton of a cave hyena (Crocuta crocuta spelaea). Cave hyena bones were also found in the Denisova Cave, and this must have resulted in horrible attacks on the hominins living there.
DNA is like any organic matter, and it has a shelf life dependent on the environment in which it found. The Denisova Cave DNA covered all three human groups, and the researchers wrote in their paper that the time periods represented by each soil layer “are quite large.” According to Dr Zavala, this is the first time archaeologists have discovered an ancient site where Homo sapiens, Neanderthals and Denisovans “lived together through time.”
The fossils of many ancient animals were also discovered in the cave which corresponded with times the climate became cooler. Over time, many different species of hyenas and bears use the cave to shelter from the harsh Russian winters, and it was for this reason it is known locally in Altay as “ Aju-Tasch” or “bear rock.”
Top image:The entrance to the Denisova cave in the Altai Mountains of Siberia where the so-called new “Denisova Cave DNA” has proven, for the first time, the Neanderthals, Denisovans and Homo sapiens occupied the same cave at the same time sometimes!
‘Dragon Man’ Skull Found in China May Be ANOTHER New Human Species
‘Dragon Man’ Skull Found in China May Be ANOTHER New Human Species
In the latest edition of the journal The Innovation, a team of evolutionary scientists led by Professor Qiang Ji from Hebei GEO University in Shijiazhuang, China have announced the discovery of a new human species. Their startling conclusion is based on the results of a sophisticated computer analysis of a strange human-like skull that emerged three years ago from a source in northern China.
The scientists say the Harbin skull belonged to a 50-year-old man who lived sometime between 146,000 and 296,000 years ago. This dates him to the Middle Pleistocene, or Middle Stone Age .
The skull (cranium) was intact and was most notable for its extraordinarily large size. The skull´s combination of features had never been seen before, the scientists claim, and seems to represent some type of hybrid between archaic humans and modern humans ( Homo sapiens ).
“The discovery of the Harbin cranium and our analyses suggest that there is a third lineage of archaic human [that] once lived in Asia, and this lineage has [a] closer relationship with H. sapiens than the Neanderthals,” said Xijun Ni , a Hebei GEO University paleoanthropologist and co-author of this new study.
Based on its huge head, the team have named their new species Homo longi , which means ‘Dragon Man’ in Chinese.
Amazingly, the large cranium was discovered more than 80 years ago, near Harbin City in China’s Heilongjiang province. A workman found it embedded in river mud, while laboring on a construction crew building a bridge over the Songhua River in the early 1930s.
For reasons unknown, the man who discovered the skull kept its existence hidden until 2018. Only then, when he was dying, did he reveal that he had the skull and had dropped it into a well for safekeeping. After his death, his family agreed to donate the cranium to the Geoscience Museum of Hebei GEO University, where the evolutionary scientists launched their three-year investigation into its likely origins.
The cranium nicknamed Dragon Man, which could be a new species of ancient human.
The standout characteristic of the skull is it size. It is the largest hominin skull ever discovered.
“This is biggest human skull I’ve seen – and I’ve seen a few,” said Chris Stringer, a paleoanthropologist from London’s Natural History Museum and human evolution expert who participated in this research project.
In comparison to a modern human cranium, there are similarities and differences. The Harbin skull has thick brow ridges and square eye sockets, like an archaic man . The cranium is also longer than that of Homo sapiens . But overall, the shape and contours of its face resemble that of an impossibly large human being. The skull’s brain cavity is also similar in size to that of a modern human.
“It’s got such an interesting combination of features,” Stringer noted. “The morphology shows that this is definitely a distinct lineage in eastern Asia. It’s not Neanderthal and it’s not Homosapiens, it’s something quite distinctive.”
Evolutionary Analysis Reveals Surprising Results
One thing that was clear to the scientists was that the Harbin skull wouldn’t fit neatly into an already discovered species. Many of its features were familiar, but their combination was perplexing and unusual.
To find out where the Dragon Man skull belonged on the hominin evolutionary chart, the researchers used information obtained from 95 fossil crania, jawbones, and teeth, representing different hominin groups. In total they had more than 600 skull and facial features to use as points of comparison.
With this information as a baseline, they programmed a supercomputer to construct billions of theoretical evolutionary trees. When the results were in, the researchers were quite surprised to find that the computer had placed the Harbin skull on its own separate evolutionary branch. It had identified the skull as belonging to a whole new hominin species, a type of archaic man that was closely related to Homo sapiens but not identical to anything else.
Here the phylogenetic analysis puts the skull in the context of human development.
“I was surprised to see this,” Stringer said. He had anticipated that the skull would be labeled as an offshoot of the Neanderthals, not as a close relative of modern humans.
To place the skull in the Middle Pleistocene, the scientists relied on results obtained from two types of advanced dating technology, X-ray fluorescence and direct uranium-series dating. These tests showed that the Dragon Man skull had to have been at least 146,000 years old.
Alternate Theories: Was the Dragon Man a Denisovan?
The announcement of the Dragon Man skull research team is being met with some degree of skepticism. It is rare to discover a new species of archaic man, and some scientists are wondering if evidence from one cranium is enough to prove the existence of Homo longi .
“Whether or not this skull is a valid species is certainly up for debate,” anthropologist Michael Petraglia , from the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History, told Smithsonian Magazine .
The Harbin skull is only one of many unique hominin fossils recovered from China that date to the Middle Pleistocene. The rarity of such finds raises questions about possible hidden connections.
“How do they fit in terms of their evolutionary relationships, to what degree are they interbreeding with the populations across Eurasia, and to what degree do they become isolated resulting in their distinctive features?” Petraglia asked rhetorically. “This brings up a lot of interesting questions and in human evolution China is still really a great unknown.”
Surprisingly, study participant Chris Stringer also doubts that his team has discovered a new and distinct species of ancient man. He notes some intriguing similarities between the Harbin cranium and the Dali skull , a 250,000-year-old-fossilized cranium discovered in China’s Shaanxi province. At present, Stringer believes these two skulls should be grouped together and labeled as a different species known as Homo daliensis .
One of the more fascinating suggestions is that the Harbin skull may actually belong to the mysterious Denisovans. This ancient hominin species was well-established in Asia during the Middle Pleistocene. The Denisovans were closely related to the Neanderthals and are known to have interbred with Homo sapiens (modern humans carry traces of Denisovan DNA ).
Only a few Denisovan fossils have been found, none of which were intact craniums. But one recovered Denisovan jawbone had very large teeth—just like the Harbin skull.
Is this a clue that the Harbin skull may be giving scientists their first-ever look at the true face of the Denisovans? As of now, that is not the official conclusion. But as the number of fossilized remains recovered in China increases, new relationships between archaic human species may be observed and theories may change dramatically as a result.
Top image:A full-length artist's impression of what the human species ‘Dragon Man’ could have looked like. (Chuang Zhao/ The Innovation )
Massive "Dragon Man" skull found in China might be a new human evolutionary branch
Massive "Dragon Man" skull found in China might be a new human evolutionary branch
BY ALEXANDRA LARKIN
A gigantic fossilized skull that was hidden in a well in China for 90 years has just been discovered by scientists — and it's making them rethink human evolution.
The skull was originally found in 1933 by Chinese laborers building a bridge in Harbin, a northern Chinese city, during the Japanese occupation, researchers said. To prevent the skull from falling into Japanese hands, it was wrapped and hidden in an abandoned well. It was only rediscovered in 2018 when the old man who originally hid it told his grandson, shortly before his death.
The remarkably well-preserved fossil has been labeled a new human species, Homo longi, by Chinese researchers. The species has been dubbed "Dragon man," for the northern Chinese province where the skull was found, Heilongjiang — or in English, the "Black Dragon River" region.
Map shows the location that the Harbin cranium was discovered. QIANG JI
In a series of threearticles published in research journal the Innovation on Friday, scientists posited that the skull belonged to an approximately 50-year-old man. He would have had a wide nose to allow him to breathe uninhibited during heavy activity and probably would have been built sturdily to withstand the frigid regional winters, researchers wrote.
One of the most remarkable aspects of the Harbin cranium is its massive size, which, at 9 inches long and more than 6 inches wide, is significantly larger than the modern human skull.
The skull also has a cranial capacity of approximately 1,420 milliliters or 48 fluid ounces. That falls into the cranial capacity range of modern humans, but the skull also possesses many primitive features that make it a unique link between modern humans and Neanderthals.
A photo of the Harbin cranium.QIANG JI
Beneath the thick brow ridge, the face has large square eye sockets, but is delicate despite its size.
"It differs from all the other named Homo species," researchers wrote, noting that it has a mix of ancient and modern features like a "gently curved" but "massively developed" brow ridge and low, flat cheekbones with "shallow" depressions beneath them. And compared to today's more modern, round skull, researchers said the Harbin cranium was long and low.
The international research team, led by Professor Qiang Ji at the Hebei Geo University in China, used geochemical techniques to date the skull to at least 146,000 years old.
An illustration of what the "Dragon Man" may have looked like. QIANG JI
When the scientists compared the fossil to 95 other skulls using a software program, they found that the Harbin cranium and a few other Chinese skulls seemed to form a new branch that was closer to modern humans than Neanderthals.
The Chinese team said they think the Harbin cranium is sufficiently unique that it qualifies as a new species. However, others are not convinced. Professor Chris Stringer, a research leader at the Natural History Museum in London who also worked on the project, told the Guardian that the skull may be similar to another skull found in China in 1978.
He said, "The important thing is the third lineage of later humans that are separate from Neanderthals and separate from Homo sapiens."
400,000 Year Old Giant Skull Humanoid Species, Dubbed Dragon Man Found
400,000 Year Old Giant Skull Humanoid Species, Dubbed Dragon Man Found
A photo of the Harbin cranium.
QIANG JI
400,000 Year Old Giant Skull Humanoid Species, Dubbed Dragon Man Found
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Scientific Evidence for the Many Myths of the Great Flood
Scientific Evidence for the Many Myths of the Great Flood
Have you ever heard about Noah's Ark story? This story of the great flood is one of the most popular stories from the Bible. But it is far from the only great flood story to be found in history. Christians are quite familiar with Noah's story when God destroyed all of creation through the great flood owing to the wickedness of men. While many people perceive all this as the great flood myth, scientists have found evidence of the great deluge. Before going to the scientific evidence, let's take a look at the known mythologies that relate to the flood myth.
The Great Flood: Myths in the Bible, Hindu Texts and More
Noah's story in the Hebrew Bible is probably the most well-known myth relating to the great flood. However, a number of other myths related to this event also exist.
According to the Gilgamesh flood myth, Enlil, the highest god, decided to completely destroy the whole world by means of a great flood as the humans had increasingly become noisy. Ea, the god who created human beings of divine blood and clay, warned Utnapishtim secretly about the flood and gave him instructions to build a boat and be saved.
In the Bible’s Book of Genesis , it is written that Yahweh (the name of the monotheistic god of the Israelites), who created man from dust, decided to bring the great flood to Earth because of mankind’s increasing corruption.
Yahweh was, however, pleased with Noah and instructed him to create an ark for saving humans and animals. On completion of the ark, Noah, his entire family, and two of every type of animal on earth entered the ark. Once the door of the ark was closed, the destructive flood started and cleared all other living beings from the face of the earth. After the flood ended, everyone inside the ark came out, and Yahweh promised never to subject humans to something like the great flood again. The rainbow is known as the symbol of Yahweh's promise.
A 3D illustration of Noah’s Ark in a storm during the Great Flood. Reality or myth?
According to Hindu mythology there is a story about "manvantara-sandhya," a great flood. In the story, Vishnu's Matsya Avatar warned Manu, the first man, about the impending flood and instructed him to construct a giant boat.
According to Zoroastrian Mazdaism, Ahriman tried to destroy the whole world by means of a drought. It is believed that Mithra shot an arrow at a rock, and the flood poured out. Only one man, along with his cattle, survived the flood in an ark.
As per Plato, Timaeus describes a flood myth that is quite similar to the other versions of the great flood. In the Timaeus version, the Bronze race of humans made Zeus angry with constant warring. Zeus decided to cause a flood to punish humanity. The Titan Prometheus , who created humans with clay, shared the plan with Deucalion and advised him to build an ark. It took nine days and nights for the water to recede, and the ark landed on a mountain.
Researchers study a ship graveyard discovered in the Black Sea that may be linked to the Great Flood.
Scientific Evidence of the Occurrence of the Great Flood
While there are a number of stories or myths relating to the great flood, scientists have recently found evidence of the flood. The scientists believe that the great flood did take place around 7,000 years ago in the Black Sea region.
In a book named "Noah's Flood: The New Scientific Discoveries about the Event that Changed History," two marine biologists Walter Pitman and William Ryan, describe a flood that took place several thousand years ago, before the Biblical story was written by the ancient Hebrews .
According to the two marine biologists , nearly 12,000 years ago, after the last Ice Age, the Black Sea was a partially dried freshwater lake. It was separated from the Mediterranean Sea by the Bosporus Strait , which is a land strip.
The shore of the Black Sea was fertile and was used by the people to start large farming societies. When the ice sheets that covered the Northern Hemisphere started melting, the levels of the sea began rising. It is believed that the Mediterranean Sea broke through the Bosporus Strait about 7,600 years ago.
With a force about 200 times that of Niagara Falls, the seawater had started rushing in. The level of the Black Sea was increasing by 6 inches (15 cm) every day. Within one year, about 60,000 square miles (15,539,929 hectares) was engulfed and disappeared beneath the rising waters. The settlers of the land moved to different high grounds and never returned.
Pitman and Ryan hypothesize that this trauma story was handed down for about 3,000 years and has been recorded in the form of myths and songs. One of the versions is believed to be the story of Noah's Ark found in the Bible.
The hypothesis of the two marine biologists is mainly based on the sediment cores of the Black Sea as well as seismic profiles. The cores did tell a strange and unique story. Pitman and Ryan discovered a single mud layer that was typically left after the great flood.
It lay over sediment layers that were at one time land surface. The surface contained mud cracks, plant root fossils, and freshwater mollusks that were similar to the dried-out lakeshore. The ancient shoreline was submerged about 460 feet (140 meters) below the Black Sea.
The marine biologists have also pointed out that according to the study of ancient civilizations made by archaeologists, during the flood several peoples with new customs appeared at different places. They were even found in Egypt, as well in the foothills of the Himalayas, and around Paris and Prague. The majority of these “new” people were Indo-European speakers. According to Ryan and Pitman, these peoples might be the Black Sea farmers who had to leave their homes due to the great flood.
The Great Flood (Die Sintflut, Suendflut), a painting by Lesser-Ury (1861-1931), depicts the “horror” of what the deluge of the Bible might have looked like.
In addition to the evidence offered by Pitman and Ryan, there are also other pieces of evidence that support the occurrence of the great flood. One such significant piece of evidence was provided by the world-famous underwater archaeologist Robert Ballard. He is especially known for locating and exploring the Titanic wreck.
Ballard found evidence of people who had perished in the great flood that took place in the Black Sea and linked it with Noah's Ark story.
Ballard and his team made use of advanced robotic technology to find evidence that might support the Noah story. They were able to unearth an ancient coastline that was about 550 feet (168 meters) under the water surface. It was considered significant proof of the catastrophic event. Ballard took some samples including saltwater and freshwater mollusks from the ancient beach for testing.
When radiocarbon dating of the samples was done, it was revealed that the freshwater mollusks were relatively older in comparison to the saltwater ones. All the freshwater mollusks that were taken for sample testing were of the same age.
It could be assumed that all the mollusks died due to the occurrence of a sudden flood. This is because if they had died due to the slowly rising water, the ages would have differed. It was found that the mollusks died somewhere around 5,600 BC. It is approximately the same time when the great flood during Noah's time is believed to have occurred.
About 310 feet (94 meters) below in the Black Sea, Ballard and his team were also able to find an ancient house that had collapsed. In addition to the house, they also unearthed a number of stone tools, storage vessels made of ceramic, and ancient mud. The archaeologists believe that the culture found at the bottom of the sea was thousands of years old.
The evidence collected by Robert Ballard and his team suggests that the traumatic great flood story was handed down from generation to generation. This eventually inspired Noah's Ark story that is mentioned in the Bible.
"The Deluge" drawing was used as the frontispiece to Gustave Doré's illustrated edition of the Bible. Based on the story of Noah's Ark, the drawing shows humans and a tiger doomed by the flood futilely attempting to save their children and cubs.
While there is scientific evidence that supports the occurrence of the great flood, there is also scientific evidence that argues against it. Some believe that the great flood may have occurred during Noah's time, but that it happened over the entire Earth rather than some regional parts.
As per the Bible, the rain during the great flood lasted for 30 days, and the Earth was flooded for 150 days. Only after one year, two months, and twenty-seven days, did the Earth dry and thus Noah, his entire family, and all the animals were able to move out of the ark.
The great flood was intended to completely destroy all life on Earth. As the sedimentary rocks over all the continents do contain fossils, the great flood could represent the destruction of all living beings. Thus, the story of the global flood mentioned in the Bible might have been true.
However, the sedimentary rocks have interlayers of gypsum, evaporite rock salt, anhydrite, and magnesium and potash salts. All these are related to red beds that contain fossilized mud cracks. The red beds and mineral compounds have a measurable combined thickness on various continents.
The red color of the red beds is mainly due to the presence of hematite, an iron oxide that is formed from oxidized magnetite grains when the mud gets exposed to oxygen present in the open air. Mud cracks can only occur under severe drying conditions that result in the shrinking of mud and the formation of polygonal cracks.
The evaporite deposits are believed to occur when a marine sea that existed disappears and becomes completely dry. In such a case, the evaporites are expected to be found at the top of the flood deposits of the great flood. However, the evaporites were found in different layers and not on the top of the flood deposit. This makes certain scientists believe that the great flood never took place.
Moreover, it is written in the Bible that at some time the flood waters started receding and left the ground completely dry. There were no repeated cycles of floods of this size. According to this, it is quite logical that the red beds and evaporite deposits in different levels of the flood deposit could only be formed in local climates having desert drying conditions.
However, it is not possible this was formed at the same time the great flood covered the surface of the whole Earth. On this basis, it can be said that a massive regional flood could have occurred but not a whole-Earth flood.
The Matsya Avatar of Vishnu Uttar Pradesh, India. Matsya is an avatar of the Hindu god Vishnu. Often described as the first of Vishnu's ten primary avatars, Matsya is said to have rescued the first man Manu from a great deluge. The Matsya Avatar is often depicted as a giant fish.
While much debate surrounds the “truth” of the great flood, it is quite hard to say whether it actually occurred or not. As per the Bible, Noah used to live in the Mesopotamian desert , but the coastline of the Black Sea was forested and lush back then.
More and more geologists are coming up with different revised theories and trying to build solid proof for an event that occurred during ancient times. Geological expeditions continue to search the Black Sea. These very expensive geological expeditions are also getting funded by people who are interested in knowing the truth of the Noah's Ark story mentioned in the Bible.
Scientists and archaeologists are still trying to locate ancient villages beneath the surface of the seas. It will be very interesting to see what additional evidence for the great flood is revealed in the coming years.
Top image: The Deluge (1840), a painting by Francis Danby, part of the Tate Gallery collection, which shows how horrible the Great Flood must have been, if, and when, it happened.
AI Finds New Neanderthal and Denisovan DNA Mutations in Human Genome
AI Finds New Neanderthal and Denisovan DNA Mutations in Human Genome
Scientists affiliated with the GLOBE Institute’s GeoGenetics Centre at the University of Copenhagen in Denmark have created an Artificial Intelligence program that is helping them identify ancient mutations in the human genome. As they explain in an articlein the online journal eLife, they are using this program to find out more about the genetic materials modern humans inherited from archaic hominin species, particularly noting the DNA inherited from our long-extinct cousins the Neanderthals and the Denisovans.
The scientists use the term “adaptive introgression” to describe this type of cross-species inheritance. Introgression refers to the process by which outside genetic material is absorbed into the human genome, while adaptive refers to the evolutionary advantage humans gain from possessing such material.
This new AI program is uniquely suited for identifying instances of adaptive introgression. In the years ahead, it may dramatically expand our knowledge about the relationships that were formed between ancient Homo sapiens (modern humans) and their nearest living relatives.
Early human migrations from Africa and onwards across planet Earth, measured in thousands of years ago (kya), included Homo sapiens, Neanderthals and Denisovans. And now we know the modern human genome, as a result of hominin species interbreeding, has a lot of genetic material from Neanderthals.
The Human Genome: Early Human Migrations and Interbreeding
When humans migrated from Africa to Europe, Asia, and beyond more than 60,000 years ago, they met the Neanderthals, who were already living in those areas. Moving eastward they eventually encountered the mysterious Denisovans, who resided in what is now southern and eastern Asia and in Oceania (Australia, New Zealand, and the nearby islands of Melanesia, Polynesia, and Micronesia).
While these were separate species, they were closely related to Homo sapiens , close enough to make interbreeding possible. Neanderthals and Denisovans went extinct tens of thousands of years ago, but at least some of their genetic material has survived inside human DNA because of the interactions that took place in prehistoric times.
Only a few traces of Denisovan DNA are likely to be found in the collective human gene pool. But scientists believe that up to 40 percent of Neanderthal DNA may have survived inside the genomes of humans. It is widely spread out, meaning that Neanderthal DNA makes up no more than two percent of any individual’s total genetic material.
An image of the DNA helix that hints at the powers of AI or deep learning methods in learning more about the evolution of the human genome.
Those 40 percent and two percent figures are estimates, not precise measurements. Scientists don’t know for certain exactly how much Neanderthal or Denisovan DNA human beings have inherited, or how it might be distributed ethnically or geographically. They also aren’t sure where all of it is located inside the human genome. Most importantly, they still aren’t sure which functions it performs. These are the issues the GLOBE Institute scientists are trying to remedy.
"We developed a deep learning method called 'genomatnn' that jointly models introgression, which is the transfer of genetic information between species, and natural selection,” Fernando Racimo, a GeoGenetics Centre geneticist and the co-author of the eLife paper, told the author of a University of Copenhagen article about this new study. “The model was developed in order to identify regions in the human genome where this introgression could have happened."
“Deep learning” is a general form of artificial intelligence (AI). The specific form of AI applied in this case is known as a convolutional neural network (CNN), which is a type of deep learning program used for image recognition .
In this experiment, the researchers ran hundreds of thousands of simulations as a way to teach the CNN to identify patterns in genomes that would be created by adaptive introgression. The AI network was specially trained to spot mutations traceable to interactions with Neanderthals or Denisovans.
“Our method is highly accurate and outcompetes previous approaches in power,” Racimo said. “We applied it to various human genomic datasets and found several candidate beneficial gene variants that were introduced into the human gene pool.”
DNA sequences in colored letters on a black background containing the word "mutation." Based on the recent AI study of the human genome at the University of Copenhagen, researchers are now focusing on mutations more and more to understand the evolution of the modern human genome.
So far, some of what the scientists have discovered confirms existing theories about where Neanderthal DNA could be found. But in the process they uncovered some new and surprising information as well.
“We recovered previously identified candidates for adaptive introgression in modern humans, as well as several candidates which have not previously been described,” said GeoGenetics Centre researcher Graham Gower, the lead author of the eLife article.
Some of the newly discovered candidates involve mutations that impact human metabolism and immunity system functioning.
“In European genomes, we found two strong candidates for adaptive introgression from Neanderthals in regions of the genome that affect phenotypes related to blood, including blood cell counts,” Gower explained. “In Melanesian genomes, we found candidate variants introgressed from Denisovans that potentially affected a wide range of traits, such as blood-related diseases, tumor suppression, skin development, metabolism, and various neurological diseases.”
Gower is quick to point out that these are preliminary findings. As of now, the scientists aren’t completely sure what impact these mutations might have on those who carry them. They might cause positive responses, negative outcomes, or have no significant effect at all.
In general, scientists assume that when mutations last for tens of thousands of years, they will do so because they are in some way beneficial. Humans who interbred with their archaic cousins likely improved the gene pool overall, adding new genetic material from species that had been surviving in environments that were relatively new to African-born Homo sapiens .
A Neanderthal skull (left) next to a Homo sapiens skull. Though the skulls are very different, it turns out that the modern human genome is almost 40% related to interbreeding and mutations related to Neanderthals.
Finding Prehistoric Facts with Future Technologies
As their study continues, the University of Copenhagen researchers hope to learn more about the actual effects of the mutations they’ve found (and those they’ve yet to find, but soon will) in the human genome.
Also, they plan to work backward from the mutations to trace the histories of the ancient people who introduced them into the gene pool. By studying which mutations developed in which population groups, they may be able to determine where Neanderthal, Denisovan, and Homo sapiens interactions occurred in the distant past, and where they were the most extensive.
This type of knowledge will give anthropologists, evolutionary biologists, and archaeologists a better idea about where fossilized remains of various species might be found, along with any artifacts they might have created and left behind.
Top image: A drawing of a Neanderthal man looking to the horizon and wondering if he will meet another "human" and, if so a human woman. The human genome it turns out has a lot of Neanderthal genes and now a Danish AI program is proving it.
Mysterious skull fossils expand human family tree — but questions remain
Mysterious skull fossils expand human family tree — but questions remain
Fossilized bones found in Israel and China, including a specimen named ‘Dragon Man’, could belong to new types of ancient human. But the findings have sparked debate.
Excavation site near Nesher Ramla in central Israel.Credit: Yossi Zaidner
Fossils found in China and Israel dating from around 140,000 years ago are adding to the ranks of hominins that mixed and mingled with early modern humans.
The fossils from Israel hint that a previously unknown group of hominins, proposed to be the direct ancestors of Neanderthals, might have dominated life in the Levant and lived alongside Homo sapiens1,2. Meanwhile, researchers studying an extremely well-preserved ancient human skull found in China in the 1930s have controversially classified it as a new species — dubbed Dragon Man — which might be an even closer relative to modern humans than are Neanderthals3,4.
But both findings have sparked debate among scientists. The studies are based on analyses of the size, shape and structure of fossilized bones — methods that are subject to individual judgement and interpretation. As is often the case for fossil finds, there is no DNA evidence.
Separating early hominin specimens into unique species, working out if and how they interacted with others, and tracing their evolution are all difficult and contentious: “It’s very messy,” says Jeffrey Schwartz, an anthropologist and evolutionary biologist at the University of Pittsburgh in Pennsylvania.
Ancestor to Neanderthals
Since 2000, the view of human evolution during the past half a million years has become ever-more complicated as researchers have added to the list of species in the genus Homo that lived in the Middle and Late Pleistocene. The family tree now includes the Indonesian H. floresiensis, discovered in 2003; Siberian Denisovans, identified in 2010; South African H. naledi, described in 2015; and Filipino H. luzonensis, detailed in 2019.
These species overlapped in time with modern humans (H. sapiens), which are thought to have emerged from Africa and spread into Israel and other regions some 200,000 years ago, and Neanderthals (H. neanderthalis), which had a stronghold in Europe 300,000 years ago and were outcompeted by, or subsumed into, modern humans by around 40,000 years ago.
However, some hominin fossils from this time period still don’t fit neatly into any existing categories. Now, researchers studying some of these odd-ball fossils, found in Israel, think they might have identified a new group of hominins. Physical anthropologist Israel Hershkovitz at Tel Aviv University and his colleagues focused on skull fragments found at the site of Nesher Ramla in central Israel — parts of parietal bones and a jaw, probably belonging to the same individual — that date to between 140,000 and 120,000 years ago.
Conventional thinking is that only H. sapiens lived in the Levant at this time, the team says; the earliest conclusive evidence of Neanderthals being there is from 70,000 years ago. “What we expected to find was Homo sapiens,” says co-author Hila May, also at Tel Aviv University. “At first glance, for sure it wasn’t.” The jaw and teeth were Neanderthal-like, but the skull shape was more archaic — an unusual combination.
The oddity seems to match up with a handful of other fossils found around Israel, some dating back 400,000 years, none of which had previously been classified. “We couldn’t assign them to any Homo group,” says May. “It was a mystery.” In a pair of studies1,2 published in Science on 24 June, the group proposes that all of these fossils belong to a newly named hominin population — the Nesher Ramla people — who might have dominated this region for hundreds of thousands of years. The team says the Nesher Ramla people belonged to an unknown umbrella species, rather than constituting a new species themselves.
A mandible and skull found at Nesher Ramla. Researchers suggest these specimens belonged to a previously unknown group of ancient hominins.
Credit: Avi Levin and Ilan Theiler, Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University
The Nesher Ramla population seems to have mastered the same stone tools as H. sapiens living in the area. Artefacts found near the fossils suggest that these people napped flints, bringing in material from up to 10 kilometres away, and re-sharpened the tools when needed. Their use of similar technology hints that they lived together with modern humans and perhaps interbred.
But not all researchers agree with the team’s findings. To palaeoanthropologist Philip Rightmire at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts, the skull looks like an “early, rather archaic-appearing, Neanderthal”. Rightmire says he would not be surprised to see Neanderthals in this region at this time.
Hershkovitz and colleagues argue that the Nesher Ramla people could have established early, pre-Neanderthal communities in Europe, injecting archaic genes from Africa or Asia into a species that has conventionally been thought of as evolving in Europe. “Neanderthals are no longer an exclusive European story,” says Hershkovitz.
But Rightmire argues that the flow could have gone in the other direction. “I don’t see any reason why these early Neanderthals, if that’s what they are, couldn’t have come from Europe,” he says.
Dragon Man
In China, an assessment of a Middle Pleistocene hominin skull that was unearthed decades ago could also shed new light on our ancestors.
The Harbin skull is an extremely well-preserved cranium that dates to about 140,000 years ago and is thought to belong to a 50-year-old male. The skull was originally dug up in 1933 before being hidden from the Japanese army in a well, and was donated to Hebei GEO University in Shijiazhuang in 2018. The skull is particularly large and thick, with big, squarish eye sockets, low cheek bones, large teeth and a wide pallet.
In work published in The Innovation on 25 June, palaeontologist Ji Qiang at Hebei GEO University and colleagues propose that the unique features of the Harbin skull are enough to classify it as a new species3,4. They suggest the species name Homo longi (Dragon Man) after the common name of Heilongjiang Province, Long Jiang (Dragon River), where the fossil was found.
A virtual reconstruction of the Harbin skull (still from video).
Credit: Xijun Ni
However, naming a new species on the back of a single skull — particularly one that has been removed from its original context and comes with no artefacts — is controversial. “I think that there were more species running around Asia than people have allowed themselves to think about,” says Schwartz. But there isn’t enough evidence to convince him that this skull represents a new species.
The Harbin fossil is one of several odd Middle Pleistocene Homo skulls found in China over the years. In Rightmire’s view, these skulls probably represent what became of some of the early Neanderthals who marched from Europe through the Middle East, China and Siberia, eventually becoming the Denisovans. “These Asian bits and pieces probably belong to the same group as Denisovans,” he says. “I bet that’s what we’re talking about here.” Hershkovitz argues that some of these Asian skulls might better fit into the Nesher Ramla group.
In the study, Qiang and colleagues say that, given the Harbin skull’s similarity to some early H. sapiens fossils, H. longi might be an even closer relative to modern humans than Neanderthals are. But Schwartz thinks some of these fossils have been inappropriately lumped into the H. sapiens category. “Many of these fossils are very, very different from each other,” he says.
Overall, the current hominin classifications make little sense, argues Schwartz, because they bundle too much diversity together into species such as H. sapiens. “I think we should start from scratch,” he says. “Some people aren’t bold enough to say: ‘let’s look at everything from the beginning.’”
While the release of the Pentagon report on UAPs put a damper on finding new intelligent species from other planets, archeologists are busy finding new species of humans right here on Earth. Shortly after the blockbuster find of a jaw and partial skull of a Neanderthal ancestor named Nesher Ramla Homo in Israel, researchers in China rediscovered a massive skull lost for 90 years that appears to be the cranium of a new Homo species that is the closest relative of modern humans. Does this change everything that was just changed a few days ago?
“The Harbin fossil is one of the most complete human cranial fossils in the world. This fossil preserved many morphological details that are critical for understanding the evolution of the Homo genus and the origin of Homo sapiens.”
This discovery is so big, it prompted Qiang Ji, a professor of paleontology of Hebei GEO University, to co-author threeseparatepapers about it in the journal The Innovation. In 1933 in Harbin, a city it north-east China’s Heilongjiang province, the skull was reportedly found by a construction worker working on a bridge on the Songhua river – Songhua means ‘Black Dragon’. Fearing that China’s Japanese occupiers at that time would confiscate it, the man was said to have hidden it in a family well, only telling his family about it right before he died in 2018. Fortunately, they did the right thing and contacted archeologists who recovered the well-preserved skull which, unlike Neanderthals and other ancient Homo species, was as large as modern human heads.
Where will it fit in the evolution of homo sapiens?
“While it shows typical archaic human features, the Harbin cranium presents a mosaic combination of primitive and derived characters setting itself apart from all the other previously-named Homo species.”
Ji explains in a press release that, while its hat size was the same as that of modern humans, the species had larger, almost square eye sockets, thick brow ridges, a wide mouth, and oversized teeth – enough to prompt him to call it a new species he named Homo longi or Dragon Man – ‘long’ means dragon. (Photos here.)
KAI GENG
image captionThe Dragon Man's skull is huge, with a brain size about the same as the average for our species
KAI GENG
image captionArtist's impression of what Dragon Man may have looked like. His skull suggests he was powerfully built and rugged
KAI GENG
image captionThe researchers claim the form of ancient human on the far left may have evolved into the relatively modern Dragon Man on the far right over millions of years
His research team dated the skull to at least 146,000 years in the Middle Pleistocene, a time of migration for other Homo species, which means H. longi and H. sapiens could have been in the area at the same time. Co-author Xijun Ni, a professor of primatology and paleoanthropology at the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Hebei GEO University, thinks the relationship may have been even closer than just a chance meeting in Harbin.
“It is widely believed that the Neanderthal belongs to an extinct lineage that is the closest relative of our own species. However, our discovery suggests that the new lineage we identified that includes Homo longi is the actual sister group of H. sapiens.”
Would Dragon Man want to still be around today?
Ni thinks the divergence time between H. sapiens and the Neanderthals may have occurred over one million years ago, putting it 400,000 years earlier than scientists commonly believe. However, co-author Chris Stringer, research leader at the Natural History Museum in London, isn’t convinced just yet that Dragon Man is indeed a new species or simply a variation of another one found in Dali county in China in 1978.
“I prefer to call it Homo daliensis, but it’s not a big deal. The important thing is the third lineage of later humans that are separate from Neanderthals and separate from Homo sapiens.”
As with other ancient human species, it will be difficult to trace lineage because of all of the inbreeding that took place between them. While the discovery of Dragon Man is probably a “this changes everything” moment, it also reinforces the fact that, when it comes to humans and sex, some things never change.
Farmer Digs Up Stone Egyptian Stele Saluting Sixth Century BC Pharaoh
Farmer Digs Up Stone Egyptian Stele Saluting Sixth Century BC Pharaoh
Recently, a farmer ploughing his field in Egypt’s Ismailia Governorate dug up something massive and historically significant. The unnamed farmer was shocked to realize the heavy object he’d uncovered was not a large rock. It was actually a huge stone Egyptian stele that contained hieroglyphic writing in an ancient language.
Suspecting he’d found something important the man immediately contacted the local Tourism and Antiquities Police. After retrieving it, antiquities experts identified the thick stone slab as an ancient Egyptian stele, or sandstone monument. This stele was constructed in the sixth century BC, as a monument to a largely forgotten pharaoh.
The Egyptian stele of Apries, as it was found in the farmer’s field, with its hieroglyphic inscription related to one of the pharaoh’s numerous completed or planned military campaigns .
The Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities has confirmed the Ismailia Egyptian stele , found in the farmer’s field, was hammered in stone in honor of the Egyptian pharaoh Apries . Apries served as the leader of a united and independent Egypt during the 26th dynasty , holding the throne from 589 to 570 BC.
Archaeologists were able to identify the Egyptian stele as a monument to Apries because the pharaoh’s cartouche, or official royal insignia , was carved into the slab at the top. The creator of the monument also decorated it with a winged image of a sun disk, which likely represented the Egyptian sun god Ra .
The latter design choice is consistent with at least one other discovery. Archaeologists previously found a rectangular plaque associated with Apries in the ruins of an ancient temple site project in the city of Abydos, 300 miles (500 kilometers) south of Cairo. That plaque carried an inscription that referred to him as “the son of Re (Ra).” And in fact, Apries real given name was Wah-ib-re, which meant “Constant is the heart of Re (Ra).” His throne name was Haa-ib-re, which meant "Jubilant is the Heart of Re (Ra) Forever."
The buried stele is impressive in size. It is 91 inches (230 centimeters) tall, 41 inches (103 centimeters) wide, and 18 inches (45 centimeters) thick. The farmer discovered it in a field located approximately 62 miles (100 kilometers) northeast of the capital city of Cairo , near the town of Ismailia.
The stele was exceptionally well-preserved. The 15 lines of writing it contained could still be read, and work has already begun to translate the inscription. The current working theory is that Apries ordered the stele built to commemorate a military campaign that he’d either planned or recently completed.
This is not the first stele dedicated to Apries found in Ismailia. In 2011, the Egyptian military found two sandstone slabs buried in the governate’s Tal Defna area , both of which contained hieroglyphic messages and Apries’ distinctive cartouches.
The Egyptian stele from the farmer’s field showing the cartouche of the pharaoh at the top in the middle, just below the winged sun disk image at the very top .
Wah-ib-re, or Apries, ascended to the throne following the death of his father, the 26th dynasty ruler Psamtik II. His service during his 19 years of rule was considered unremarkable and was ultimately destined to end in disaster.
Apries’ style of rule was aggressive and militaristic. He was frequently at war with his neighbors in Greece, Palestine, Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Babylonia, as the various powers and peoples in the region struggled for territorial control or freedom from colonization. He initiated the typical ancient Egyptian building projects, adding to temple complexes in many places. Like other pharaohs, he also ordered the construction of stele that celebrated his achievements (real or imagined).
Seeking glory through military success, Apries made a controversial decision. He supplemented his Egyptian army with a significant population of Greek mercenaries , offering them privileged positions and likely higher pay. This greatly upset the rank-and-file Egyptian native soldiers, who still comprised the bulk of his forces.
Near the end of his reign, Apries committed what turned out to be his greatest blunder. He dispatched his troops to Libya to help repel an invasion by Dorian Greeks from the city of Cyrene, which the Greeks had established as an outpost on Libyan soil. Apries’ forces were decisively defeated during this disastrous adventure, which provoked a massive revolt in the Egyptian army. The subsequent fighting pitted Egyptian natives against Apries’ hated Greek mercenaries, whose presence had likely made civil war inevitable.
Apries sent his most capable general, Amasis, to put down the revolt and stop the civil war from spreading. But to the pharaoh’s shock and horror, the Egyptians successfully recruited Amasis to become their new leader and convinced him to accept the title of the new pharaoh of Egypt.
A rare "portrait in stone" of pharaoh Apries in the Louvre Museum, Paris France.
Refusing to concede his throne, Apries launched two military campaigns against Amasis and his legions in 570 BC. However, both were unsuccessful. After his second failed attempt to retake power, Apries fled to Babylonia, to seek refuge in the court of Nebuchadnezzar.
Apries tried once again to regain his throne, in 567 BC. This time he was accompanied by a new mercenary force, comprised entirely of Babylonians.
Not surprisingly, Apries was easily defeated by the unified Egyptian forces. This time he was not allowed to escape, but instead was placed under arrest and finally executed by Amasis. Despite their intense rivalry, his successor did give Apries a proper burial, in recognition of his one-time status as the legitimate pharaoh of Egypt.
What is known about Apries, and his exploits, mostly comes from the fifth century BC Greek historian Herodotus, who wrote about past events in Egypt and elsewhere in the ancient world. It was Herodotus who called the multi-named pharaoh Apries, and that name is the one he is best known by today. Apries was also mentioned in a few places in the Bible, where he was referred to as the Pharaoh Hophra.
Archaeologists have discovered only a few artifacts that can be linked directly to Apries, which is one reason why Egypt’s Ministry of Antiquities was quite pleased to receive this newly excavated stele.
In 1909, archaeologists from the British School of Archaeology did find and dig out Apries’ magnificent 80,000-square-foot (24,000-square-meter) palace at the ancient site of Memphis , which once functioned as Egypt’s capital. Apries fled to Memphis after his first defeat at the hands of Amasis, in what was to be the pharaoh’s last visit to his lavishly designed and decorated showplace before his exile and eventual death.
This curious monument in Rome, the so-called Pulcino della Minerva, is a statue designed by the Baroque sculptor Gian Lorenzo Bernini of an elephant as the supporting base for an Egyptian obelisk found within Emperor Dominican's garden. This obelisk was first constructed under the 589-570 BC reign of pharaoh Apries.
Once the hieroglyphics on the newly discovered Egyptian stele have been translated, the experts will know for sure which military campaign it was intended to document.
If it in some way relates to Apries’ struggles with Amasis, it would be especially significant. These were the most momentous campaigns of the pharaoh’s relatively brief 19-year reign. They were important not because of how they relate to Apries, but because they led to the Amasis’ ascension to the throne.
While Apries didn’t accomplish anything remarkable, his successor did. Amasis, who served as Egypt’s ruler for 44 years under the title Ahmose II, was Egypt’s last great pharaoh . Under his wise leadership Egypt became prosperous and successful, in part because of the close contacts he established with the Greeks.
The reign of the man who began as Apries’ most trusted general brought back memories of past glories. It provided Egypt with one last great moment under the sun, before Persian conquerors arrived and overthrew the 26th Dynasty shortly after Amasis’ death.
Top image: The Sphinx of Apries, dated to between 589 and 570 BC. Like the Egyptian stele found in the farmer's field, this sphinx is dedicated to the pharaoh Apries of the 26th dynasty of Egypt. Inset, stele of Apries in situ at find site.
12 Amazing Discoveries in Egypt That Baffled Scientists
12 Amazing Discoveries in Egypt That Baffled Scientists
The ancient Egyptians are such a mysterious group of people that due to their antiquity it’s hard to solve the many mysterious surrounding their time and world. All that’s left now is to work with the countless artifacts that has been discovered in recent history which brings up a lot more questions than answers. Some discoveries are so reality-shattering that it questions the very foundation of how civilizations evolved over the millennia. Ancient Egyptians have time and again defied our expectations of what is possible in ancient times. Here are 12 amazing discoveries found in Egypt which Scared scientists. Let’s begin.
Mecca (also spelled as Makkah) is regarded as the holiest city in Islam. Apart from the fact that Mecca was the birthplace of the Prophet Muhammad, it is also the city whereIslam’s holiest placeof worship, the Great Mosque (more commonly known as al-Masjid al-Haram) is located. In addition, it is in the direction of Mecca that Muslims face when they perform their daily prayers. Furthermore, one of the Five Pillars of Islam, the Hajj, or Pilgrimage, involves an extended visit to the city.
Where is Mecca?
Mecca is located in the western part of the Arabian Peninsula, in what is today the Makkah region of Saudi Arabia. The sacred city is historically part of the Hejaz, which stretches along the Arabian Peninsula’s Red Sea coast from Jordan in the north to the Asir region in the south. Mecca is situated 73 km (45 mi.) inland from Jeddah, the commercial hub of Saudi Arabia.
The city sits in the Wadi Ibrahim (Valley of Abraham), and is surrounded by the Sirat Mountains. There are four passes through the mountains that grant access to the holy city.
Panoramic View of Mecca, Mecca, Saudi Arabia, 1845. From the Nasser D. Khalili Collection of Hajj and the Arts of Pilgrimage.
Mecca is most closely associated with the Islamic faith. Nevertheless, the city was already a significant religious center and key spot for trading even before the founding of Islam. This is due to the fact that Mecca was an oasis on the trade route that linked the Mediterranean world with Southern Arabia, East Africa, and the Indian subcontinent.
Due to Mecca’s strategic geographical location, it was developed during the Roman and Byzantine periods. It is possible that Mecca was also known to the peoples of the Hellenistic period. In Ptolemy’s Geography, a city in the interior of the Arabian Peninsula called Macoraba is mentioned. Macoraba has been traditionally identified with Mecca, though some modern scholars have cast doubts on this identification.
The Earliest History of Mecca
Still, ancient writings referring to Mecca seems to be scarce. Instead, the main source of information for this part of the city’s history comes from later Islamic and Arabic sources. Islamic tradition, for example, traces the history of Mecca all the way back to the beginning of time .
It is believed that when Adam and Eve were thrown out of Paradise, they were separated. Adam landed on the island of Sri Lanka, while Eve found herself in the area that is now Jeddah. After wandering the earth on their own for a period of time, Adam and Eve were reunited by God on Mount Arafat, to the east of Mecca. Arabic sources also state that Adam was buried in Mecca. Eve, on the other hand, was buried in nearby Jeddah.
The next appearance of Mecca in Islamic tradition is in the story of the Great Flood. It is said that during the flood, Noah’s ark came to Mecca, and passed around the disinterred body of Adam seven times. According to the Quran, Abraham and Ishmael (Abraham’s son by Hagar) were responsible for building (or rebuilding) the Kaaba in Mecca (more about the Ka’aba later in this article). The city is also associated with Abraham by the belief that it was there that Hagar nursed Ishmael back to health with the waters of the Well of Zamzam.
The Arabian Peninsula Before Islam
Muslims refer to the period on the Arabian Peninsula before the arrival of Islam as Jahiliyya, which may be translated to mean ‘Age of Ignorance’. The term Jahiliyya is normally used pejoratively to refer to the pre-Islamic period in the Arabian Peninsula. The Jahiliyya period is important for Muslims, as it is serves to highlight the change brought about by Islam to the Arab way of life.
Some features of the Jahiliyya period include: the worship of idols, tribalism, and the practice of female infanticide. In short, the Jahiliyya period was thought to have been a dark age. Interestingly, the term Jahiliyya is considered to be positive with regards to Arabic literature, as pre-Islamic Arabic poetry is esteemed by Muslims.
"Bayad plays the oud to the lady", Arabic manuscript for ‘Qissat Bayad wa Reyad’ tale (late 12th century).
The birth of Islam is normally portrayed as a radical break from the Jahiliyya period. The story of Islam began in Mecca in 570 AD. According to tradition, this was the year that the Prophet Muhammad was born.
For the first 40 years of his life, Muhammad lived as an ordinary man. Muhammad’s father is said to have died before he was born, while his mother died when he was six years old. The future prophet was raised by his paternal grandfather until the latter’s death two years later.
Finally, he came into the care of his uncle, Abu Talib, who had become the new head of the Hashim clan. According to one story, while accompanying his uncle on a trading journey to Syria, Muhammad was recognized as a future prophet by a Christian monk. At the age of 25, Muhammad married a wealthy woman named Khadijah, who was 40 years old. Khadijah had employed Muhammad to oversee the transportation of her goods to Syria, and was so impressed by him, that she offered to marry him.
Every once in a while, Muhammad would seclude himself in a cave on one of the mountains near Mecca. One night in his fortieth year, as Muhammad was meditating in the cave, the angel Jibril (Gabriel) appeared to him, and gave him his first revelation. The angel taught him the opening verses of Surah 96 of the Quran: “Recite in the name of your Lord who creates, / creates man from a clot! / Recite for your Lord is most generous…”
The encounter with the angel left Muhammad feeling disturbed, but he was reassured by Khadijah and her cousin, Waraqah ibn Nawfal (a Christian who confirmed Muhammad’s prophethood). Muhammad continued receiving revelations from Jibril, but for the next three years, limited himself to speaking about them in private.
The angel Jibrîl stands before Muhammad and instructs him on the call to prayer.
Eventually, Muhammad was commanded by God to preach publicly. Initially, the Meccans did not oppose Muhammad. When the prophet began proclaiming that there is no god but Allah, however, he began to face opposition from the Quraysh of Mecca.
This is due to the fact that the monotheism preached by Muhammad was perceived as an attack on the religious beliefs and practices of the Quraysh. Moreover, the Quraysh feared that the economy of the city would be affected if they accepted Muhammad’s message and became monotheists because pagan pilgrims would stop coming to the city.
Although Muhammad faced opposition from the majority of the Meccans, he received protection from his clan, and was therefore able to stay in the city. In 619 AD, however, his uncle, Abu Talib, died, and leadership of the clan passed to another of the prophet’s uncles, Abu Lahab.
Abu Lahab opposed Muhammad, so he withdrew the clan’s protection of the prophet. This meant that Muhammad was no longer safe in Mecca. In 622 AD, Muhammad and his followers left Mecca for Medina, a journey which is referred to as the Hijrah. 622 AD is also the year in which the Islamic calendar begins. In 630 AD, the Muslims were strong enough to march an army on Mecca. The Meccans submitted, and an amnesty was declared by the prophet.
The Holy City of Mecca
Interestingly, despite being the holiest city in Islam, Mecca never became the capital of any Islamic state. The immediate successors of Muhammad, the Rashidun caliphs, for instance, ruled from Medina (with the exception of the fourth caliph, Ali, who moved the capital to Kufa). The Umayyads who followed ruled from Damascus, while their successors, the Abbasids, were based in Baghdad. The latter moved to Cairo after the Mongols invaded.
Lastly, the Ottoman caliphs ruled from Constantinople. Nevertheless, Islamic rulers continued to contribute to the upkeep of the holy city, and served as its defenders. The title ‘Protector of the Two Holy Cities’ (referring to Mecca and Medina), for instance, has been used by various Muslim rulers in history.
As a holy city, Mecca retained its significance in the Muslim faith. The most obvious sign of this is the fact that when Muslims perform their daily prayers, they do so in the direction of Mecca. Another clear sign of Mecca’s religious significance is the role it plays in the Hajj. This is the last of Islam’s Five Pillars, which states that every Muslim who is physically and financially able to do so should make the pilgrimage to Mecca at least once in their lifetime.
The Hajj is an annual pilgrimage that takes place during the during the Dhu al-Hijjah, the last month of the Islamic year. More precisely, it begins on the 7th day of that month, and ends on the 12th day. One of the most important rituals of the Hajj is the tawaf, which is the circumambulation of the pilgrims around the Ka’aba seven times in an anti-clockwise direction. The Ka’aba is a small shrine located near the center of the al-Masjid al-Haram, and is considered by Muslims to be the most sacred spot on earth.
According to Islamic belief, Abraham was instructed by God to bring Hagar and their son, Ishmael, to Arabia from Palestine to protect them from the jealousy of Sarah. Abraham brought the two of them to the site of Mecca, and left them there, as instructed by God. Although he gave them some supplies of food and water before leaving, it ran out.
Soon, Hagar and Ishmael were suffering from hunger and thirst. In desperation, the mother ran up and down two hills, Safa and Marwa, to see if she could spot any help in the distance. Finally, Hagar collapsed beside her son out of exhaustion, and prayed to God for help. At that moment, Ishmael struck his foot on the ground, and water gushed out, and thus the two were saved. This is said to be the origin of the Well of Zamzam. The Spring of Zamzam, from which the well draws its waters, is believed to be a tributary of the Waters of Paradise.
Historic Zamzam well mouthpiece. The description reads: (line 1) The mouthpiece of the well of Zamzam. (line 2) The pulley for lifting Zamzam water dating back to the end of the fourteenth century of Hijrah. (line 3) The brass bucket which was used to be in the well of Zamzam dating back to 1299 Hijrah.
The miracle not only saved Hagar and Ishmael, but also allowed them to make a living, as they were able to trade their water with passing nomads for food and supplies. Sometime later, Abraham returned to check on Hagar and Ishmael, and was commanded by God to build the Ka’aba. According to one interpretation of the verse, Abraham was told to rebuild the shrine.
This may mean that there was an older shrine, one said to have been erected by Adam, the foundations of which were left by the time of Abraham. As time went by, the people of Mecca became polytheists, and idols were placed in the Ka’aba. When the Meccans surrendered to Muhammad in 630 AD, the Ka’aba was cleansed of its idols.
In the eastern corner of the Ka’aba is the Black Stone. As part of the tawaf, pilgrims touch and kiss this sacred object. The Black Stone is believed to date to the time of Adam and Eve. According to Islamic belief, the stone was given to Adam when he was cast out of Paradise so that he could obtain forgiveness for his sins.
The Black Stone is said to have been concealed during the Great Flood, but was restored to Abraham when he was building / re-building the Ka’aba. Legend has it that the stone was originally white in color, but turned black as a result of absorbing the sins of the countless pilgrims who have touched and kissed it.
Mecca’s status as the holiest city in Islam has been maintained from the faith’s beginning till this day. In the almost 1400 years since Islam was established, Mecca has seen its fair share of ups and downs. Ownership of the sacred city, for instance, has switched hands many times in its long history.
Wide panoramic view on entire Masjid Al Haram mosque from Clock Tower Abraj Al Bait, Mecca, Saudi Arabia.
In 1269, for example, Mecca came under the control of the Mamluks, while in 1517, the city fell into the hands of the Ottomans. In 1925, Mecca was captured by the Saudis, and it has remained a part of their kingdom since then. For the faithful, however, such political changes are of secondary importance, as the Hajj has been performed over the centuries, regardless of who is in charge of the city.
Scientific Evidence for the Many Myths of the Great Flood
Scientific Evidence for the Many Myths of the Great Flood
Have you ever heard about Noah’s Ark story? This story of the great flood is one of the most popular stories from the Bible. But it is far from the only great flood story to be found in history. Christians are quite familiar with Noah’s story when God destroyed all of creation through the great flood owing to the wickedness of men. While many people perceive all this as the great flood myth, scientists have found evidence of the great deluge. Before going to the scientific evidence, let’s take a look at the known mythologies that relate to the flood myth.
The Great Flood: Myths in the Bible, Hindu Texts and More
Noah’s story in the Hebrew Bible is probably the most well-known myth relating to the great flood. However, a number of other myths related to this event also exist.
According to the Gilgamesh flood myth, Enlil, the highest god, decided to completely destroy the whole world by means of a great flood as the humans had increasingly become noisy. Ea, the god who created human beings of divine blood and clay, warned Utnapishtim secretly about the flood and gave him instructions to build a boat and be saved.
In the Bible’s Book of Genesis , it is written that Yahweh (the name of the monotheistic god of the Israelites), who created man from dust, decided to bring the great flood to Earth because of mankind’s increasing corruption.
Yahweh was, however, pleased with Noah and instructed him to create an ark for saving humans and animals. On completion of the ark, Noah, his entire family, and two of every type of animal on earth entered the ark. Once the door of the ark was closed, the destructive flood started and cleared all other living beings from the face of the earth. After the flood ended, everyone inside the ark came out, and Yahweh promised never to subject humans to something like the great flood again. The rainbow is known as the symbol of Yahweh's promise.
A 3D illustration of Noah’s Ark in a storm during the Great Flood. Reality or myth?
According to Hindu mythology there is a story about "manvantara-sandhya," a great flood. In the story, Vishnu's Matsya Avatar warned Manu, the first man, about the impending flood and instructed him to construct a giant boat.
According to Zoroastrian Mazdaism, Ahriman tried to destroy the whole world by means of a drought. It is believed that Mithra shot an arrow at a rock, and the flood poured out. Only one man, along with his cattle, survived the flood in an ark.
As per Plato, Timaeus describes a flood myth that is quite similar to the other versions of the great flood. In the Timaeus version, the Bronze race of humans made Zeus angry with constant warring. Zeus decided to cause a flood to punish humanity. The Titan Prometheus , who created humans with clay, shared the plan with Deucalion and advised him to build an ark. It took nine days and nights for the water to recede, and the ark landed on a mountain.
Researchers study a ship graveyard discovered in the Black Sea that may be linked to the Great Flood.
Scientific Evidence of the Occurrence of the Great Flood
While there are a number of stories or myths relating to the great flood, scientists have recently found evidence of the flood. The scientists believe that the great flood did take place around 7,000 years ago in the Black Sea region.
In a book named "Noah's Flood: The New Scientific Discoveries about the Event that Changed History," two marine biologists Walter Pitman and William Ryan, describe a flood that took place several thousand years ago, before the Biblical story was written by the ancient Hebrews .
According to the two marine biologists , nearly 12,000 years ago, after the last Ice Age, the Black Sea was a partially dried freshwater lake. It was separated from the Mediterranean Sea by the Bosporus Strait , which is a land strip.
The shore of the Black Sea was fertile and was used by the people to start large farming societies. When the ice sheets that covered the Northern Hemisphere started melting, the levels of the sea began rising. It is believed that the Mediterranean Sea broke through the Bosporus Strait about 7,600 years ago.
With a force about 200 times that of Niagara Falls, the seawater had started rushing in. The level of the Black Sea was increasing by 6 inches (15 cm) every day. Within one year, about 60,000 square miles (15,539,929 hectares) was engulfed and disappeared beneath the rising waters. The settlers of the land moved to different high grounds and never returned.
Pitman and Ryan hypothesize that this trauma story was handed down for about 3,000 years and has been recorded in the form of myths and songs. One of the versions is believed to be the story of Noah's Ark found in the Bible.
The hypothesis of the two marine biologists is mainly based on the sediment cores of the Black Sea as well as seismic profiles. The cores did tell a strange and unique story. Pitman and Ryan discovered a single mud layer that was typically left after the great flood.
It lay over sediment layers that were at one time land surface. The surface contained mud cracks, plant root fossils, and freshwater mollusks that were similar to the dried-out lakeshore. The ancient shoreline was submerged about 460 feet (140 meters) below the Black Sea.
The marine biologists have also pointed out that according to the study of ancient civilizations made by archaeologists, during the flood several peoples with new customs appeared at different places. They were even found in Egypt, as well in the foothills of the Himalayas, and around Paris and Prague. The majority of these “new” people were Indo-European speakers. According to Ryan and Pitman, these peoples might be the Black Sea farmers who had to leave their homes due to the great flood.
The Great Flood (Die Sintflut, Suendflut), a painting by Lesser-Ury (1861-1931), depicts the “horror” of what the deluge of the Bible might have looked like.
In addition to the evidence offered by Pitman and Ryan, there are also other pieces of evidence that support the occurrence of the great flood. One such significant piece of evidence was provided by the world-famous underwater archaeologist Robert Ballard. He is especially known for locating and exploring the Titanic wreck.
Ballard found evidence of people who had perished in the great flood that took place in the Black Sea and linked it with Noah's Ark story.
Ballard and his team made use of advanced robotic technology to find evidence that might support the Noah story. They were able to unearth an ancient coastline that was about 550 feet (168 meters) under the water surface. It was considered significant proof of the catastrophic event. Ballard took some samples including saltwater and freshwater mollusks from the ancient beach for testing.
When radiocarbon dating of the samples was done, it was revealed that the freshwater mollusks were relatively older in comparison to the saltwater ones. All the freshwater mollusks that were taken for sample testing were of the same age.
It could be assumed that all the mollusks died due to the occurrence of a sudden flood. This is because if they had died due to the slowly rising water, the ages would have differed. It was found that the mollusks died somewhere around 5,600 BC. It is approximately the same time when the great flood during Noah's time is believed to have occurred.
About 310 feet (94 meters) below in the Black Sea, Ballard and his team were also able to find an ancient house that had collapsed. In addition to the house, they also unearthed a number of stone tools, storage vessels made of ceramic, and ancient mud. The archaeologists believe that the culture found at the bottom of the sea was thousands of years old.
The evidence collected by Robert Ballard and his team suggests that the traumatic great flood story was handed down from generation to generation. This eventually inspired Noah's Ark story that is mentioned in the Bible.
"The Deluge" drawing was used as the frontispiece to Gustave Doré's illustrated edition of the Bible. Based on the story of Noah's Ark, the drawing shows humans and a tiger doomed by the flood futilely attempting to save their children and cubs.
While there is scientific evidence that supports the occurrence of the great flood, there is also scientific evidence that argues against it. Some believe that the great flood may have occurred during Noah's time, but that it happened over the entire Earth rather than some regional parts.
As per the Bible, the rain during the great flood lasted for 30 days, and the Earth was flooded for 150 days. Only after one year, two months, and twenty-seven days, did the Earth dry and thus Noah, his entire family, and all the animals were able to move out of the ark.
The great flood was intended to completely destroy all life on Earth. As the sedimentary rocks over all the continents do contain fossils, the great flood could represent the destruction of all living beings. Thus, the story of the global flood mentioned in the Bible might have been true.
However, the sedimentary rocks have interlayers of gypsum, evaporite rock salt, anhydrite, and magnesium and potash salts. All these are related to red beds that contain fossilized mud cracks. The red beds and mineral compounds have a measurable combined thickness on various continents.
The red color of the red beds is mainly due to the presence of hematite, an iron oxide that is formed from oxidized magnetite grains when the mud gets exposed to oxygen present in the open air. Mud cracks can only occur under severe drying conditions that result in the shrinking of mud and the formation of polygonal cracks.
The evaporite deposits are believed to occur when a marine sea that existed disappears and becomes completely dry. In such a case, the evaporites are expected to be found at the top of the flood deposits of the great flood. However, the evaporites were found in different layers and not on the top of the flood deposit. This makes certain scientists believe that the great flood never took place.
Moreover, it is written in the Bible that at some time the flood waters started receding and left the ground completely dry. There were no repeated cycles of floods of this size. According to this, it is quite logical that the red beds and evaporite deposits in different levels of the flood deposit could only be formed in local climates having desert drying conditions.
However, it is not possible this was formed at the same time the great flood covered the surface of the whole Earth. On this basis, it can be said that a massive regional flood could have occurred but not a whole-Earth flood.
The Matsya Avatar of Vishnu Uttar Pradesh, India. Matsya is an avatar of the Hindu god Vishnu. Often described as the first of Vishnu's ten primary avatars, Matsya is said to have rescued the first man Manu from a great deluge. The Matsya Avatar is often depicted as a giant fish.
While much debate surrounds the “truth” of the great flood, it is quite hard to say whether it actually occurred or not. As per the Bible, Noah used to live in the Mesopotamian desert , but the coastline of the Black Sea was forested and lush back then.
More and more geologists are coming up with different revised theories and trying to build solid proof for an event that occurred during ancient times. Geological expeditions continue to search the Black Sea. These very expensive geological expeditions are also getting funded by people who are interested in knowing the truth of the Noah's Ark story mentioned in the Bible.
Scientists and archaeologists are still trying to locate ancient villages beneath the surface of the seas. It will be very interesting to see what additional evidence for the great flood is revealed in the coming years.
Top image: The Deluge (1840), a painting by Francis Danby, part of the Tate Gallery collection, which shows how horrible the Great Flood must have been, if, and when, it happened.
The Legendary Emerald Tablet and its Secrets of the Universe
The Legendary Emerald Tablet and its Secrets of the Universe
The origins of Western alchemy can be traced back to Hellenistic Egypt, in particular to the city of Alexandria. One of the most important characters in the mythology of alchemy is Hermes Trismegistus (Hermes the Thrice-Great). The name of this figure is derived from the Egyptian god of wisdom, Thoth, and his Greek counterpart, Hermes. The Hermetica, which is said to be written by Hermes Trismegistus, is generally regarded as the basis of Western alchemical philosophy and practice. In addition, Hermes Trismegistus is also believed to be the author of the Emerald Tablet.
Legends of the Emerald Tablet
The Emerald Tablet is said to be a tablet of emerald or green stone inscribed with the secrets of the universe. The source of the original Emerald Tablet is unclear; hence it is surrounded by legends. The most common story claims that the tablet was found in a caved tomb under the statue of Hermes in Tyana, clutched in the hands of the corpse of Hermes Trismegistus himself.
And the creator of the Emerald Tablet has been provided in myth as the Egyptian god Thoth, who Armando Mei writes “divided his knowledge into 42 plates of emerald, codifying the great scientific principles ruling the Universe. The legend tells that after the gods’ fall, the Hermetic tablets were cleverly hidden so that no human being might find them. Only Thoth, on his return to that dimension, was able to recover the mysterious book.”
Another legend suggests that it was the third son of Adam and Eve , Seth, who originally wrote it. Others believed that the tablet was once held within the Ark of the Covenant . Some even claim that the original source of the Emerald Tablet is none other than the fabled city of Atlantis.
While various claims have been made regarding the origins of the Emerald Tablet, as yet no verifiable evidence has been found to support them. The oldest documentable source of the Emerald Tablet’s text is the Kitab sirr al-haliqi (Book of the Secret of Creation and the Art of Nature), which was itself a composite of earlier works.
This was an Arabic work written in the 8th century AD and attributed to ‘Balinas’ or Pseudo-Apollonius of Tyana. It is Balinas who provides us with the story of how he discovered the Emerald Tablet in the caved tomb. Based on this Arabic work, some believe that the Emerald Tablet was also an Arabic text and written between the 6th and 8th centuries AD, rather than a piece of work from Antiquity, as many have claimed.
While Balinas claimed that the Emerald Tablet was written originally in Greek, the original document that he purportedly possessed no longer exists, if indeed it existed at all. Some say the text burned up in the Library of Alexandria . Nevertheless, Balinas’ version of the text itself quickly became well-known, and has been translated by various people over the centuries.
For instance, an early version of the Emerald Tablet also appeared in a work called the Kitab Ustuqus al-Uss al-Thani (Second Book of the Elements of the Foundation), which is attributed to Jabir ibn Hayyan. It would, however, take several more centuries before the text was accessible to Europeans. In the 12th century AD, the Emerald Tablet was translated into Latin by Hugo von Santalla.
The Emerald Tablet would become one of the pillars of Western alchemy. It was a highly influential text in medieval and Renaissance alchemy, and probably still is today. In addition to translations of the Emerald Tablet, numerous commentaries have also been written regarding its contents.
For instance, a translation by Isaac Newton was discovered among his alchemical papers. This translation is currently being held in King’s College Library in Cambridge University. Other notable researchers of the Emerald Tablet include Roger Bacon , Albertus Magnus, John Dee , and Aleister Crowley . And today knowledge of the legendary Emerald Tablet (at least one interpretation of it ) is reaching new audiences with its presence in the surreal German-language series Dark.
An imaginative 17th century depiction of the Emerald Tablet from the work of Heinrich Khunrath, 1606.
The interpretation of the Emerald Text is not a straightforward matter, as it is after all a piece of esoteric text . One interpretation, for instance, suggests that the text describes seven stages of alchemical transformation – calcination, dissolution, separation, conjunction, fermentation, distillation and coagulation. Yet, despite the various interpretations available, it seems that none of their authors claim to possess knowledge of the whole truth. Furthermore, readers are encouraged to read the text and try to interpret and find the hidden truths themselves.
Top Image: Representation of what the Emerald Tablet may have looked like. Source: info consapevole
Scythians and other warring cultures and the archaeological remnants of their history are under attack by developers in Ukraine looking to construct new luxury country homes. There are two roadblocks in their quest for unrestricted profiteering. The first comes in the form of 4,000-5,500-year-old burial mounds, almost 100,000 in number and scattered across the countryside, which are only protected by a very thin topsoil.
The stone circle discovered within the Ukrainian burial mound.
“It has a very thin topsoil, literally 10 cm. This is very little and it is causing it to swell, deteriorate, etc. This is why it was decided to investigate it", says Dmitry Teslenko, head of the Dnieper archaeological expedition of the Ukrainian Archaeological Guard Service.
A unique Ukrainian burial mound found during roadwork in the village of Novooleksandrivka.
The second roadblock to the construction project is the nongovernmental preservation group Guardians of the Mounds , founded in 2019 under the aegis of Oleksandr Klykavka, which has become a national movement over the last 20 months. In the village of Novooleksandrivka, 10 kilometers (6.21 miles) south of the town of Dnipro in east-central Ukraine, “excavations of a unique kurgan or burial mound have been underway for more than 1.5 months” reports Archaeology News Network .
These are burial mounds that have attracted grave robbers and archaeologists in equal measure, with a variety of artifacts - which includes combs and dishes, but also heaps of golden jewelry, according to NY Times . The dimensions of the unique kurgan are astounding, 120 x 80 m (393.70 x 262.47 ft.) and 7 m (22.97 ft.) in height! Proper road clearance and construction equipment had to be employed to conduct a field survey of this unimaginable scale, including bulldozers. The excavations have revealed 24 burials from the Bronze Age, Scythians (Iron age), and the Middle Ages.
"Because of their nomadic nature, the people carried only the bare necessities. However, sometimes interesting finds are found: pots, necklaces made of wolf or dog canines. For example, a burial has now been discovered where dog toe bones were lying next to human remains. A triple grave has also been found where the skeleton of a man lay in the middle and the skeletons of a woman and child were pressed against him on each side.", says Teslenko.
"The central part is being explored now. There is a lot of manual work. We also use machinery. But I would like to point out that all the machinery works solely under the supervision of archaeologists. The bulldozer removes several centimetres of the soil layer and if we see that something is wrong, the work stops," says field archaeologist Yaroslav Yaroshenko.
Several historians postulate that the mounds served a purpose that exceeded simple religious rites. Noblemen were sent into the after-life with the luxuries and status they enjoyed when alive, along with “ sacrificed wives, servants and horses ”.
There are other interpretations of the mounds too, keeping in mind the topography of the Ukrainian countryside and land, and the ever-looming threat of Russian invasion. The mounds were perhaps erected as a show of strength and defiance against the enemy , most definitely the Russians, to deter their advance into land that was not theirs.
The Cromlech – A Ukrainian Stonehenge?
The mound was dated to 5,500 years ago, coinciding with the Eneolithic period (the transitional period between the Neolithic and Bronze Age, 2500-2000 BC). In the middle of the mound, the “Dnipro Stonehenge” was found – a series of stone blocks (like megaliths) forming an 18 m (59.06 ft.) diameter circle, called a “cromlech”. According to the archaeologist :
"As for the stone circle, it is worth noting that it had a purely structural function above all. The cromlech is an integral part of a massive complex structure. The structure consisted of a stone circle set vertically. There was a truncated cone on top of the circle. This allowed the ground to be supported and prevented the mound from sprawling outwards. The mounds could then be given other symbolic meanings. For example, one of the most famous cromlechs in the world, Stonehenge, has at various times been interpreted as a druid sanctuary or an astronomical observatory. It is also worth noting that the oldest burials on the Novoalexandrovsky burial mound date to about 3,500 BC. This potentially suggests that the cromlech near the Dnieper is older than Stonehenge."
The stone circle discovered within the Ukrainian burial mound.
The Challenge of Ukrainian Burial Mounds and Accurate Historical Reconstruction
Ukraine is coming to terms with its illustrated past, even while the Russian threat is constantly on the horizon. In this midst, a development of fascinating scientific techniques is turning up a lot of answers about ancient Ukrainian history, including DNA taken from the people within the mounds. It is imperative to preserve this history by studying it first, instead of destroying it for housing.
As it is, these mounds have been repeatedly robbed and stripped bare of their valuables, making the reconstruction of the past even more difficult. These mounds have also been reused, with new bodies being dumped in older structures to cut labor costs and effort, whilst enjoying the splendor of royal burials.
For example, one of the Dnipro mounds “dates to a pre-historic Indo-Iranian culture ”, but contains a coffin from around the 4th century BC. Another addition to this mound is a coffin emblazoned with a red star, probably a local Communist Party leader. A Scythian mound also witnessed a mass burial of deceased World War II soldiers, with the Soviet government building a monument on top.
"The mound's exploration has not yet been completed. The best is yet to come", says Teslenko. "In about a week, we will completely clear the cromlech and the space inside it, allowing the ancient structure to be seen in virtually pristine condition. It's estimated that in just ten days we will reach the most ancient burials inside the stone ring, if the weather permits", Teslenko adds. "Certainly it is a foregone conclusion that the individual buried and protected by the cromlech was highly respected by this society. This is the only way to explain the monumental character of the construction."
Top Image: Excavations of a unique Ukrainian burial mound found during roadwork in the village of Novooleksandrivka.
Back in 2006, two locals were assembling their cattle on their property close to Eromanga in the south-western part of Queensland when they found very significant dinosaur bones. And now, 15 years after Robyn and Stuart Mackenzie made the discovery, the Eromanga Natural History Museum has officially announced that the skeleton belonged to the largest dinosaur that ever roamed Australia and is one of the biggest in the entire world.
The dinosaur, which has been named, “Australotitan cooperensis”, is nicknamed “Cooper” because it was found close to the Cooper Creek. This new gigantic sauropod species is said to be one of the top 15 biggest dinosaurs in the world. This long-necked dinosaur lived between 92 and 96 million years ago during the Cretaceous Period.
It measured between 5 and 6.5 meters in height (16.4 to 21.3 feet) and between 25 and 30 meters long (82 to 98.4 feet). Additionally, the researchers estimated that it would have weighed between 50 and 70 tonnes. Now that’s massive!
Mrs. Mackenzie, who is a palaeontologist that runs the Eromanga Museum, stated that when she found the first bones belonging to the dinosaur, she had no idea how significant they were, “It wouldn’t have entered our mind that we were about to deal with an animal that was the largest in Australia and one of the largest in the world.”
Dr. Scott Hocknull, who is a vertebrate palaeontologist at the Queensland Museum, described the exceptionally long work they did to finally be able to properly identify this large dinosaur, “It’s taken this long because it’s such a painstaking piece of work, you’ve got to take the bones out of the ground, you’ve got to prepare the fossils, and then you’ve got to study them and compare them against all other species of dinosaurs worldwide,” adding, “This is huge, this is a fantastic beast. Imagine something the size of a basketball court walking around on land.”
Mrs. Mackenzie is optimistic that more significant discoveries like “Cooper” are just waiting to be made. “There’s dozens of sites, there’s dozens of dinosaurs potentially out there that will need preparation and then research after they’ve been dug up,” she noted.
Dr. Hocknull went a step further by saying that there are potentially even larger dinosaurs waiting to be unearthed, “One of the questions that I’m always asking is what ate the plant eaters?” “We know that Australotitan — or Cooper — was a plant eater, so what was marauding around trying to eat these guys? We don’t have any evidence of that just yet.” “That’s exciting because it means that there must be another big story out there.” The study was published in PeerJwhere it can be read in full.
Pictures of the bones and images of what “Cooper” would have looked like can be seen here.
An animated reconstruction of Australotitan cooperensis, better known as Cooper.
( Supplied: Eromanga Natural History Museum )
Scott Hocknull and Robyn Mackenzie with Cooper's fossilised humerus, and a model of what it looked like.
( Supplied: Eromanga Natural History Museum )
An animation of Cooper standing alongside the dig site and next to the earth mover used to uncover the skeleton.
( Supplied: Eromanga Natural History Museum )
Palaeontologist and Eromanga Natural History Museum director Robyn Mackenzie with Cooper's fossilised bones.
( Supplied: Eromanga Natural History Museum )
The animals was so large it is considered a titanosaur, which were previously only discovered in South America.
Erich von Daniken: Ancient Flying Machines of the Sky Gods Described in the Holy Hymns of Sumer
Erich von Daniken: Ancient Flying Machines of the Sky Gods Described in the Holy Hymns of Sumer
Erich von Daniken: Ancient Flying Machines of the Sky Gods Described in the Holy Hymns of Sumer
Researcher and prolific author Erich von Daniken reveals some startling discoveries within the cuneiform tablets of ancient Sumer known as the Holy Hymns where ancient flying machines are written along with space stations that orbit our planet. Mr. von Daniken takes us a on a journey around the world, pinpointing significant sites, records of which can be found in many of world’s holy texts and artefacts.
Huge “highway” emerges from the Pacific Ocean: a lost civilization?
Huge “highway” emerges from the Pacific Ocean: a lost civilization?
Just a few days ago, after the tide had dropped sharply, a “huge highway” of the Pacific Ocean appeared from the seabed.
The huge highway appeared on the shores of Sakhalin Island
The images went viral immediately and theories about a lost civilization were not long in coming.
On the shores of the Russian island of Sakhalin a huge stone road emerged from the waters. Although it did not last long on the surface, it was enough for hundreds of photographs to be taken.
Is this an artificial work or a product of nature? Although there was no time to analyze it, everything indicates that it is a man-made construction.
Huge highway in the pacific ocean
The mysterious apparition surprised the inhabitants of the island in the extreme east of Russia, very close to the Japanese archipelago.
This was announced by the Institute of Alternative History and Archeology in a publication on its website.
He also explained that, through Google Earth , many other underwater formations can be found on the same coast, a little further north.
The island of Sakhalin is the largest in the entire Russian Federation and borders the Japanese islands to the south. It is located in the Ring of Fire , known for having the most important subduction zones on the planet. This causes that, generally, it receives strong seismic and volcanic activity.
Obviously, some skeptics claim that this is most likely the natural reason for the mysterious structures. However, this would only explain its “formation”, but not its creation.
The Institute of Alternative History and Archeology showed other similar structures further north
To begin with, the formations that the institute mentions are further north.
In addition, when observing the huge road it can be seen that it is very similar to those created by ancient man , but eroded by the obvious action of the sea.
Possible lost civilization
For that reason, many people have requested that a formal geological or archaeological investigation be made of this mysterious structure. Although no institute of traditional archeology has come forward.
It should be noted that, not far from that area, on the Japanese coast, are the mysterious underwater structures of Yonaguni .
According to different researchers, these sunken constructions belonged to the lost civilization of Mu .
The huge road along the Sakhalin coast also reminds the Bimini road , the possible Atlantean remains found in the Caribbean Sea.
So far not much is known about the huge road, other than that it is quite unusual and that its appearance was short-lived.
As long as one of the traditional institutions is not pronounced, speculation will continue. The only good thing is that since there are so many images taken at the moment, there is no possibility that they hide the fact or want to deceive us by changing their shape.
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Over mijzelf
Ik ben Pieter, en gebruik soms ook wel de schuilnaam Peter2011.
Ik ben een man en woon in Linter (België) en mijn beroep is Ik ben op rust..
Ik ben geboren op 18/10/1950 en ben nu dus 74 jaar jong.
Mijn hobby's zijn: Ufologie en andere esoterische onderwerpen.
Op deze blog vind je onder artikels, werk van mezelf. Mijn dank gaat ook naar André, Ingrid, Oliver, Paul, Vincent, Georges Filer en MUFON voor de bijdragen voor de verschillende categorieën...
Veel leesplezier en geef je mening over deze blog.
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