Secret HistoryS


Blue Planet

America Before by Graham Hancock - Book review

Greg Taylor
Daily Grail
Mon, 04 Nov 2019 12:00 UTC
hancock graham before america
© SOTT / atlas-v7x
There are few people that raise the ire of 'skeptical' archaeologists than Graham Hancock. That's a shame, because Hancock is the best writer in the world on archaeology.

Let me clarify (for the archaeologists who just choked on their coffee). Whether or not you agree with his assumptions and conclusions about the evidence, Graham Hancock makes the presentation of that evidence - the detail of archaeological investigations and minutiae of history - a joy to explore. And that is certainly the case once again in his latest book, America Before: The Key to Earth's Lost Civilization (Amazon US / Amazon UK).

America Before once again showcases the fact that Hancock's books are built upon two very important pillars. Firstly, his work ethic when it comes to research: from spending months learning about the topic through reading and talking to people, to getting his feet on the ground and traveling the globe. And secondly, in his abundant writing talent (no doubt the result of being both naturally blessed, and also doing the hard yards in journalism for many years to refine that talent).

Comment: See also: And for in-depth discussion on the book, check out SOTT radio's: MindMatters: America Before: Comets, Catastrophes, Mounds and Mythology

Read More...
Archaeology

DNA tests confirm one-legged skeleton found under Russian park's dance floor is Napoleon's 'lost general'

Henry Samuel
The Telegraph
Wed, 06 Nov 2019 17:47 UTC
napoleon general
© UIG/Getty ImagesCharles Etienne Gudin of Sablonniere was a general under Napoleon
More than 200 years after he died of his battlefield wounds in Russia, one of Napoleon Bonaparte's favourite generals has been formally identified thanks to DNA tests on a one-legged skeleton found under a dance floor.

His heirs are now calling for him to receive a state funeral in his native France.

Charles Etienne Gudin, whose name is inscribed on the Arc de Triomphe in Paris, died aged 44 on August 22, 1812, after being hit by a cannon ball during Napoleon's unsuccessful invasion of Russia.

Gudin was personally known to and respected by Napoleon. A bust of his likeness resides in the Palace of Versailles, and a Paris street bears his name.
Read More...
Boat

Missing WWII submarine found in 'fantastic condition'

Lee Brown
New York Post
Wed, 06 Nov 2019 17:42 UTC
british submarine
© ReutersThe wreck of a submarine, which University of Malta says is Britain’s HMS Urge that vanished during World War Two, is seen lying at the bottom of the sea off Malta.
A British submarine that mysteriously vanished during World War II has been found at the bottom of the sea in "fantastic condition," marine archaeologists revealed Thursday.

HMS Urge never reached its destination, Alexandria, Egpyt, in 1942, and the exact fate of its 44 souls has been a mystery for the last 77 years.

A specialist university team of marine archaeologists finally found it lying at the bottom of the Mediterranean Sea off Malta, thanks to the use of sonar imaging technology, they revealed Thursday.
Read More...
Blue Planet

Humans migrated from Europe to the Levant 40,000 years ago

Tel Aviv University
Phys.org
Tue, 05 Nov 2019 21:51 UTC
molars
© Dr. Rachel Sarig.Upper and lower molars taken from the Manot cave, dated to 38,000 years ago, showing a mixture of characteristics.
Who exactly were the Aurignacians, who lived in the Levant 40,000 years ago? Researchers from Tel Aviv University, the Israel Antiquities Authority, and Ben-Gurion University now report that these culturally sophisticated yet mysterious humans migrated from Europe to the Levant some 40,000 years ago, shedding light on a significant era in the region's history.

The Aurignacian culture first appeared in Europe some 43,000 years ago and is known for having produced bone tools, artifacts, jewelry, musical instruments, and cave paintings. For years, researchers believed that modern man's entry into Europe led to the rapid decline of the Neanderthals, either through violent confrontation or wresting control of food sources. But recent genetic studies have shown that Neanderthals did not vanish. Instead, they assimilated into modern human immigrant populations. The new study adds further evidence to substantiate this theory.

Comment: See also: And check out SOTT radio's:

Read More...
Brick Wall

Best of the Web: Fall of the Berlin Wall - 30th anniversary: Don't forget Gorbachev's key role in re-uniting Germany and creating EU

John Laughland
RT
Tue, 05 Nov 2019 16:44 UTC
Mikhail Gorbachev
© AFP / VITALY ARMANDMikhail Gorbachev (L) and German Chancellor Helmut Kohl shake hands as they exchange documents after signing several agreements 13 June 1989 in Bonn
The German foreign minister's view of the collapse of communism and the fall of the Berlin Wall owes more to fairy tales than reality, writes John Laughland.

As the 30th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall approaches, it is inevitable that there will be a deluge of sentimentalizing about that great event. German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas has given us a taste of things to come in an editorial published in 26 EU countries, where he thanked "the hundreds of thousands of East Germans who took to the streets to protest for freedom... the Gdansk shipyard workers, the singing revolutionaries in the Baltic countries, the Hungarians who were the first to cut through the Iron Curtain... the pioneers of Charter 77 in Prague, those who took part in the Candle Demonstrations in Bratislava, the revolutionaries of Timișoara".

"In other words, all the women and men whose desire for freedom swept away walls and barbed wire. And we have our friends and Alliance partners in the West, as well as Gorbachev's policy of glasnost and perestroika, to thank for this, paving the way to reunification," he wrote.

Comment: Look, we get it; the sicko elites in today's Europe are gloating about how they 'saved Europe'. That's rank propaganda, obviously. The 'fall of the wall' couldn't have happened without the USSR letting it happen.

But is even that reason to celebrate?? Maybe it was for a couple of decades, but now... totalitarianism is pouring out of every Western orifice.

Read More...
Brick Wall

Ancient 70-mile-long wall found in Western Iran

Owen Jarus
Live Science
Tue, 05 Nov 2019 14:08 UTC
Gawri
© (Image: 2019 Maxar Technologies)This satellite image was taken on July 31, 2019 by the WorldView-2 satellite. The red arrows show a surviving section of the Gawri Wall.
Archaeologists have identified the remains of a stone wall in Iran about the length of the famous Hadrian's Wall that was built across England by the Romans.

The wall, which extends about 71 miles (115 kilometers), was found in Sar Pol-e Zahab County in western Iran.

"With an estimated volume of approximately one million cubic meters [35,314,667 cubic feet] of stone, it would have required significant resources in terms of workforce, materials and time," wrote Sajjad Alibaigi, a doctoral student in the department of archaeology at the University of Tehran, in an article published online in the journal Antiquity. The structure runs north-south from the Bamu Mountains in the north to an area near Zhaw Marg village in the south, Alibaigi wrote.

Comment: See also:

Read More...
Fire

Neanderthals were able to control fire

Elaina Hancock
University of Connecticut
Fri, 25 Oct 2019 17:50 UTC
Fire
© Arkeolojik Haber
Fire starting is a skill that many modern humans struggle with in the absence of a lighter or matches. The earliest humans likely harvested fire from natural sources, yet when our ancestors learned the skills to set fire at will, they had newfound protection, a means of cooking, light to work by, and warmth at their fingertips.

Just when this momentous acquisition of knowledge occurred has been a hotly debated topic for archaeologists.

Now, a team of University of Connecticut researchers, working with colleagues from Armenia, the U.K., and Spain, has found compelling evidence that early humans such as Neanderthals not only controlled fire, but also mastered the ability to generate it.

"Fire was presumed to be the domain of Homo sapiens but now we know that other ancient humans like Neanderthals could create it," says co-author Daniel Adler, associate professor in anthropology. "So perhaps we are not so special after all."

Their work, published today in Scientific Reports, pairs archaeological, hydrocarbon and isotope evidence of human interactions with fire, with what the climate was like tens of thousands of years ago.
Read More...
Info

Bronze Age ring cairn monument discovered in England


BBC
Thu, 31 Oct 2019 03:06 UTC
Ring Cairns
© Anne LeaverArchaeologist Jon Hoyle said nobody knows precisely what ring cairns were used for.
A previously unknown Bronze Age monument has been discovered hidden in woodland in the Forest of Dean following an airborne laser scan.

The ritual monument, known as a ring cairn, dates back to about 2,000 BC.

It consists of a circular bank with several small limestone standing stones on top.

Archaeologist Jon Hoyle, who found it, said it was the only site of its kind known about in Gloucestershire, and was a "very significant" discovery.

It was identified following a LiDAR (light detection and ranging) survey of the Forest of Dean.

The technique used laser beams fired from an aeroplane to create a 3D record of the land surface, effectively removing the trees from the landscape.

Mr Hoyle said when he studied the data, he spotted an "extremely circular" feature, which he thought initially might be a World War Two gun emplacement.

After visiting the site, at a secret location near the village of Tidenham, he realised it was much older, dating to between 2,500 BC and 1,500 BC.
Read More...
Attention

A World Split Apart: Solzhenitsyn's Warning to the West

Alexandr Solzhenitsyn
Harvard Commencement Speech
Sun, 03 Nov 2019 15:53 UTC
Solzhenitsyn

Comment: The following is a transcript of the historic speech Alexandr Solzhenitsyn gave at the Harvard Commencement in 1978. Often times, great ideas and men are forgotten or not thought of anymore, but much of what Solzhenitsyn said then is still applicable today 40 years later.


I am sincerely happy to be here with you on this occasion and to become personally acquainted with this old and most prestigious University. My congratulations and very best wishes to all of today's graduates.

Harvard's motto is "Veritas." Many of you have already found out and others will find out in the course of their lives that truth eludes us if we do not concentrate with total attention on its pursuit. And even while it eludes us, the illusion still lingers of knowing it and leads to many misunderstandings. Also, truth is seldom pleasant; it is almost invariably bitter. There is some bitterness in my speech today, too. But I want to stress that it comes not from an adversary but from a friend.

Three years ago in the United States I said certain things which at that time appeared unacceptable. Today, however, many people agree with what I then said...

Comment: For more on Solzhenitsyn and the message(s) he had for the world, see also:

Read More...
Gem

Staffordshire hoard revealed to be most important Anglo-Saxon find in history

David Keys
The Independent
Fri, 01 Nov 2019 11:20 UTC
staffordshire hoard
© PA WireStaffordshire hoard: Archaeologists believe it was captured across several mid-seventh century battles
Britain's most spectacular Anglo-Saxon treasures may well have been captured on a series of Dark Age battlefields - during bitter conflicts between rival English kingdoms.

Archaeologists, who have just completed a major study of the finds, now believe that they were captured in several big mid-seventh century battles.

It is likely that the treasures, now known as the Staffordshire Hoard, were seized (in perhaps between three and six substantial military encounters) by the English midlands kingdom of Mercia from the kingdoms of Northumbria, East Anglia and possibly Wessex.

Comment: Evidently our understanding of the period is murky and it would appear a revision of accepted history is in order. See:

Read More...