Tag: lost civilizations

Archaeologists Discover Vast, Complex Prehistoric Society That Rewrites History

Archaeologists have discovered evidence of a highly complex prehistoric society in Central Europe that thrived in a region experts previously believed was abandoned in 1600 BC. This sophisticated society was one of the “major cultural centers of southern Europe” and exerted “regional scale influences across the continent and into the Mediterranean,” they report in a new study. 

The Pannonian Basin is a region that centers on modern-day Hungary and touches upon multiple nations in Central Europe. Thousands of years ago, Bronze Age humans settled there and built a complex and influential society that lasted for centuries before it was mysteriously abandoned in 1600 BC. Ancient sites examined by experts show signs of depopulation over several decades, leading to the theory of a “regional scale collapse” and a relatively “abrupt end” for this prehistoric social order. However, the authors of a paper published this month in PLOS One write, based on a remote survey and excavations “a fully opposite trajectory can be identified–increased scale, complexity and density in settlement systems and intensification of long-distance networks.” Rather than disappear, ancient people adapted. 

“In many ways it provides a missing link,” lead author Barry Molloy of University College Dublin told Motherboard in an email. “We know that societies in Europe in the later second millennium BC were interacting at a continental scale. We also knew that material and symbols from this area were influential within Europe, but we had not identified the kind of sophisticated society that would be a driver in those communication networks. This find changes this.” 

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Did A Tribe of Cannibals Interbreed with the Denisovans? 

In the untamed landscapes of Island Southeast Asia, scientists investigating the mysterious a group of hominins called the Denisovans have stumbled upon a revelation that challenges conventional timelines. Deep within the tribal heartland of New Guinea, where traditions of headhunting and elaborate ceremonies once thrived, there are signs that the enigmatic Denisovans may have persisted much later than previously believed. The tale weaves through the narrative of Michael Rockefeller, the adventurous scion whose disappearance in the 1960s fueled legends of encounters with cannibalistic tribes. Yet, beneath the surface of these myths lies a genetic story unveiled by modern research.

The DNA of the indigenous Papuans reveals unexpected complexities in Denisovan ancestry, suggesting multiple populations and interbreeding events, some as recent as 15,000 to 30,000 years ago. This discovery challenges the notion of Denisovans as a homogenous group, portraying them instead as a diverse and enduring lineage that may have mingled with modern humans in the remote mountains of New Guinea. The genetic tapestry hints at adaptability and resilience, echoing the remarkable ability of Homo sapiens to navigate and interweave their existence with even the most secluded corners of our planet.

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Sumerian Anti-Armageddon Device 4,000 Years Older Than Believed

Drone mappers identified a 19 kilometer (12-mile) long canal in rural Iraq. Built over it, archaeologists excavated what was at first thought to be a bizarre-shaped temple. However, it turns out that ,4,000-years-ago, ancient Sumerians built “a one-of-a-kind anti-drought machine.”

Located near the modern city of Nasiriyah, in southern Iraq, the ancient city of Girsu was occupied by the Sumerian civilization from the 3rd millennium BC. Dedicated to the war and agriculture god Ningirsu, artifacts recovered from the site have illustrated both the religious and political history of early Mesopotamian society.

A recent dig by the British Museum at Girsu revealed “a mysterious structure,” which in the 1920s was interpreted as an unusually shaped temple. However, members of the  museum’s Girsu Project have now announced that the curious discovery was a 4,000-year-old “innovative civilization-saving machine.”

The British Museum describe the ancient lifesaving device as a “flume” that was used to deliver water to distant locations for agriculture. Ebru Torun, an architect and conservationist working with the British Museum archeologists in Iraq, said “no other example of it exists in history, really, until the present day. It’s absolutely one-of-a-kind.”

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4000-YEAR-OLD MARKINGS ON STONE HAILED AS ‘EUROPE’S OLDEST MAP’ MAY LEAD RESEARCHERS TO A REMARKABLE DISCOVERY

An ancient stone covered in markings believed to represent the oldest map in Europe is revealing new secrets, according to findings that archaeologists believe could lead them to new ancient discoveries.

First discovered in 1900, the Saint-Bélec slab is a 4,000-year-old carved stone fragment found in an ancient burial mound in the Leuhan parish near France’s Finistère Department. Although a portion of the slab’s upper part is missing, most of the relic managed to survive since its creation sometime between 2150 and 1600 BCE.

Believed to be Europe’s oldest map, and possibly one of the oldest maps of any territory that hails from such an early period, the curious stone, at slightly under four meters in length and just over two meters wide, appears to chart a region of ancient western Brittany.

Now, archaeologists believe that following clues the enigmatic stone and its markings may offer could serve as a veritable “treasure map,” which may lead them to the locations of as-yet undiscovered archaeological sites.

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Accountant Takes An Accurate Shot At Cracking Bronze Age Script, Linear A

The enigmatic script Linear A has long been one of antiquity’s most enduring mysteries. Emanating from Bronze Age Crete, its undecipherable cryptic symbols have frustrated researchers, historians, and archaeologists for over a century, but now, a British accountant in what has been called a “bold new theory” claims to have cracked the code and lifted the veil of mystery that has long hung over the script.

Mark Cook, a British forensic accountant realized the Linear A Tablets are partially complete accounting and argues that Linear A is a form of ancient Egyptian shorthand, similar in form to later Graeco-Roman shorthand (which evidently derived from the earlier Egyptian form). “ It actually seemed odd to me that an accountant had never looked at the Linear A tablets before. Linguists had pored over them, but numbers formed a large proportion of what was written, as well as the characters of whatever language was being conveyed, and it seemed that a large proportion of the information on the tablets was almost being ignored ,” says Cook.

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The Amazon may contain thousands of undiscovered ancient structures

There are probably more than 10,000 undiscovered pre-Columbian archaeological sites hidden in the Amazon, researchers have concluded after surveying a fraction of the sprawling rainforest.

The study adds to growing evidence suggesting that the region isn’t a pristine tropical forest, but has been significantly altered by Indigenous societies that have inhabited it for more than 12,000 years.

Luiz Eduardo Oliveira e Cruz de Aragão at the National Institute for Space Research in Brazil and his colleagues surveyed 5315 square kilometres of the Amazon using lidar, a technology that uses reflected laser light to create a 3D representation of a landscape.

By beaming pulses of light into the rainforest, usually from planes or drones, lidar records slight variations in topography and has uncovered numerous archaeological sites in recent years.

The team discovered 24 previously unknown earthworks in the areas it surveyed, which are thought to be the remnants of civilisations that lived between 1500 and 500 years ago.

The discoveries include a fortified village in the southern Amazon, a region known to have been densely populated due to the high concentration of earthworks that were connected by ancient roads.

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Further evidence points to footprints in New Mexico being the oldest sign of humans in Americas

New research confirms that fossil human footprints in New Mexico are likely the oldest direct evidence of human presence in the Americas, a finding that upends what many archaeologists thought they knew about when our ancestors arrived in the New World.

The footprints were discovered at the edge of an ancient lakebed in White Sands National Park and date back to between 21,000 and 23,000 years ago, according to research published Thursday in the journal Science.

The estimated age of the footprints was first reported in Science in 2021, but some researchers raised concerns about the dates. Questions focused on whether seeds of aquatic plants used for the original dating may have absorbed ancient carbon from the lake — which could, in theory, throw off radiocarbon dating by thousands of years.

The new study presents two additional lines of evidence for the older date range. It uses two entirely different materials found at the site, ancient conifer pollen and quartz grains.

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9 Mysterious Undeciphered Codes and Inscriptions in History

From Neolithic tablets containing the oldest known system of writing, to a series of letters scrawled on the back of a dead man’s book, some of the most legendary undeciphered codes and texts remain a challenge for even the world’s best cryptographers, code breakers and linguists. Yet unravelling these mysterious puzzles remains as important as ever, since many of these enigmatic inscriptions could hold the keys to understanding civilizations that have long since faded into historic oblivion. Here we feature nine of the most fascinating undeciphered codes and inscriptions throughout history.

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Previously Unknown Language Found on Ancient Hittite Tablets in Turkey

In the midst of artificial intelligence and cutting-edge language models, a significant archaeological discovery has unfolded in Boğazköy-Hattusha ( Hattusa), the old Hittite capital in Turkey. Archaeologists have unearthed a previously unknown ancient language in a cultic ritual text, adding a fresh dimension to our understanding of Late Bronze Age Anatolia.

The Hattusa archaeological site in north-central Turkey is an ancient Hittite rock sanctuary and open-air shrine. Boasting impressive rock reliefs depicting deities and mythological scenes, the earliest settlement dates back to the Late Bronze Age (1650 to 1200 BC), when the Hittite Empire dominated the region.

Hattusa was an ancient capital of the Hittite Empire , and until now, among the most impressive discoveries at this UNESCO World Heritage Site, was a representation of the Storm God “Tarhunt,” who symbolized the Hittite pantheon’s strength and power. However, a recent excavation has unearthed a hitherto unknown Indo-European language.

Excavations at Hattusa have been undertaken for over a century, mostly under the direction of the German Archaeological Institute . Under the watch of the current site director, Professor Andreas Schachner of the Istanbul Department of the German Archaeological Institute, numerous cuneiform tablets have been unearthed.

In total, around 30,000 clay tablets inscribed with cuneiform writing have been recovered from this site. While these tablets offer archaeologists insights into Hittite cultural traditions, Professor Daniel Schwemer, head of the Chair of Ancient Near Eastern Studies at Julius-Maximilians-Universität (JMU) Würzburg in Germany, said the recent discovery of “a previously unknown Indo-European language,” reaches new archaeological heights.

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Biblical sin city Sodom destroyed by asteroid stronger than nuke – expert

An ancient city that met a fiery end in what could be described as an asteroid impact more powerful than an “atomic explosion” has been identified as the biblical city of Sodom, according to a biblical studies expert. Dr. John Bergsma, a prominent theologian, contends that excavations in Jordan provide substantial proof that one of the Bible’s most dramatic and improbable narratives may indeed be factual.

Bergsma asserts that archaeological findings in Jordan corroborate the existence of the biblical city of Sodom. Prior research had already indicated that the ancient city of Tell el-Hammam, located in the southern Jordan Valley, suffered a catastrophic fate—a revelation that Dr. John Bergsma, a theology professor at Ohio’s Franciscan University, believes aligns with the biblical account.

As per the Book of Genesis, God unleashed brimstone and fire upon the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah in response to the sins of their inhabitants, resulting in their complete obliteration. Similar destruction patterns were uncovered at Tell el-Hammam, leading Bergsma to reevaluate the credibility of the biblical narrative. He pointed to signs of extreme heat detected on skeletons and pottery fragments unearthed by archaeologists, suggesting a possible impact from an asteroid. 

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