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The Sumerians were noted
for their worship of many gods.

Among them was Enki,

a god known for being the patron deity
of the city of Eridu.

Enki is depicted in many
pieces of Sumerian art

and literature, including
the Babylonian creation epic,

the "Enuma Elish",
"The Epic of Gilgamesh," and others.

Due to his prominence in such works,

it's fair to assume he played a large role
in Sumerian culture.

Much about Enki remains
shrouded in mystery

and begs further exploration.

Enki, a god known for his inherent worth,

represented healing, fertility,

and creation in Sumerian culture.

His intelligent magic
often included trickery

to benefit the good of the human race.

Son of a sky god, Enki was
thought to reign over the earth

and high heavens as a leader

of the Anunna gods in Sumeria.

It is believed that Enki inhabited

the Earth nearly 400,000 years ago.

Enki was known by a variety of names,

including Enkig, Ea, Nissiku,

and Nudimmund.

The names come
with a variety of translations

such as prince, lord of the earth,

and creator, gift of
fertility and creation.

In Sumerian culture,
Enki is heavily connected

to the concepts of fertility and creation.

This is often represented by water.

Ancient images of Enki show rivers flowing

from his masculine shoulders.

The rivers depicted are
thought to be the Euphrates

and Tigris rivers that
flow through Mesopotamia

and signify his gift of
fertility to the land.

According to legend,

the rivers were formed from his semen,

which further supports his ties
to the concept of fertility.

In addition, other symbols associated

with Enki are the goat and the fish,

which also signify
fertility or fertileness.

One Sumerian lore depicts
Enki as the founder of Eridu,

possibly Mesopotamia's first city,

thus establishing the
beginning of life on earth.

The spiritual site of
Eridu has been compared

to the Judeo-Christian
concept of the Garden of Eden.

The intelligent yet
mischievous Enki suggested

the gods create other beings
to mine the gold for them.

The Anunnaki were thought to
be clone masters who sought

to clone lesser beings
such as the human race

to do their work.

Control of human beings is still thought

to be happening under Anunnaki gods today.

Although Enki contributed
to the concept of cloning,

which could be considered
manipulation of the human race,

he was well intended

and provided humans
with information on how

to restore balance to the Earth

after devastating droughts and famine.

Enki had a substantial cosmic family line.

His immediate family
included a father figure,

mother, brother, wife, and four sons.

An additional eight children
were born later as mentioned

in a folk tale.

The names and relations

of Enki's family members vary
throughout ancient texts.

Enki was a very powerful god

and had the assistance of
mythical beings at his service.

Legends describe an
assortment of creatures such

as mermaids, giants,

and even demons that aided
Enki in his earthly endeavors.

Also, he could call upon both destructive

and caring existences
and keep favored humanity

and social justice.

He was known for his intelligence, wisdom,

and gift for divine arts and crafts.

Enki's knowledge of rituals
included exorcism as well

as healing prayers and chants.

An important figure in
mythological history,

Enki remains one of the
greatest Sumerian legends

and one of the most complex Sumerian gods.

As such, one can spend a
significant amount of time delving

into the history and mystery of Enki.

Continue to explore this
fascinating mythical being

on your own and enjoy the journey.

A discovery comes along that
challenges those theories.

We can thank the late great
journalist George Plimpton

for one artifact

that has recently
challenged that narrative,

potentially setting back
the history of mathematics

and casting a new light on
the ever-intriguing culture

of the ancient Babylonians.

The artifact known as Plimpton 322 is
a cuneiform tablet

that was purchased almost a century ago
from the real-life Indiana Jones

and could potentially prove that

the ancient Babylonians
were the first civilization

to understand trigonometry.

Cuneiform tablets.

Pythagoras is thought
to have been the first

to understand that the area of the square

of the hypotenuse of a
right-angle triangle is equal

to the sum of the areas of the squares

of its other two sides,
aka the Pythagorean theorem,

but it's not necessarily well documented

that Pythagoras actually
conceptualized this equation,

nor are there any other of
his mathematical achievements.

Pythagoras ran a school
that was shrouded in mystery

and secrecy with a cabalistic
take on math and numbers.

Some believe it is possible

that his students may
have been responsible

for his supposed
achievements in mathematics,

but due to either reverence or fear,

gave credit to Pythagoras.

Interpretations and documentation
from the time are scarce

as knowledge was typically
spread by word of mouth.

At the same time,

Pythagoras's school was
almost cult-like with stories

of members being murdered

for not maintaining the
school's secrecy and learnings.

The ancient Babylonians,
on the other hand,

used cuneiform tablets to record much

of their intellectual work with thousands

of tablets having been
recovered to this day.

Many of them were excavated
in the early 1900s

and sold to museums or collectors,

but some of the implications
of their carvings

are challenging what
archeologists have believed

about ancient history.

One of these tablets was
purchased by George Plimpton

for a mere $10 in 1922

and has been the center of a heated debate
between archeologists.

The new theory pairs the
findings from Plimpton 322

with another tablet known as YBC 7289

and posits that Babylonian
mathematics included trigonometry

predating the Greeks by 1,000 years.

These ancient Babylonians
used a base-60 system

of mathematics rather than

the base-10 system that we use today.

While we have all assumed
Pythagoras to be the first

to postulate his eponymous theory,

Hipparchus is generally known
to be the Greek father of trigonometry

and the first to produce
a trigonometric table known

as the table of chords.

Hipparchus's work required
a knowledge of trigonometry

for measuring astronomical distances,

but much of the basis for his work came

from Babylonian mathematics
using the base-60 system.

Also, few details are known specifically

about his life despite being
credited with the discovery

of a large field of mathematics.

The base-60 system allowed the Babylonians

to make trigonometric
calculations in terms

of ratios rather than angles.

What is so fascinating

about this discovery is that it brings

a subjective interpretation
to mathematics,

which may seem counterintuitive,

but the ancient Babylonian system

of trigonometry shows
that they were capable

of achieving similar results using

a different mathematical perspective.

Part of their base-60

or sexagesimal system
is even retained today

in certain elements of our lives.

Long before the sprawling city streets

of Mexico City stood another city,

one almost lost in the mists of time,

if not for the efforts of
some amazing archeologists

and a little luck.

Under the streets

of this Latin American
city is another city that

was once called Tenochtitlan,

found underneath the now historical sector

of modern Mexico City.

Although its initial construction
would look nothing like

what we see today.

Instead, the present
Mexico City has been built

on a dry lake bed,

previously known as Lake Texcoco

and the former Tenochtitlan
had its foundations built

on an island by the
once great Aztec empire.

The great city was expanded

and added to over the centuries
until its ultimate fall

at the hands of the invading
Spanish in the 15th century.

Before its downfall, it
was a true marvel to behold

and was one of the largest cities

in the pre-Columbian Americas.

Bernal Diaz del Castillo

in his "Conquest of New Spain" offers us

some insights into the surprise

of the conquerors as
they approached the city.

"When we saw so many cities

and villages built in the water

and other great towns on
dry land, we were amazed

and said that it was like
the enchantments on account

of the great towers and cues

and buildings rising from the water,

and all built of masonry.

And some of our soldiers
even asked whether

the things that we saw were not a dream.

I do not know how to describe it,

seeing things as we did
that had never been heard

or seen of before, not
even dreamed about."

The great city was founded in 1325 AD

and unlike most of the
civilizations around the world,

great cultures need a secure cornerstone

of religious underpinnings to bring order

and control to the masses.

The Mexica was founded the city

and ruled over the Aztec empire.

However, there are
suggestions that they were

a harsh civilization and plenty

of evidence that shows they
possessed a cruel streak.

The religion was based

on an ancient prophecy that recognized

the early tribal cultures
of Central America

and noted that they would find peace

in a great city whose sight
would be signaled to them

in the form of a great
eagle that held a snake

in its mouth resting on top of a cactus.

Interestingly, the Mexica
concluded that the answer

to this prophecy was found
on an island in Lake Texcoco,

fulfilling their belief

and creating a foundation
to build the great city

and open it to not only their people

but also to their gods.

During excavations of
Tenochtitlan in 2006,

archeologists uncovered a
massive stone tablet dedicated

to one of their gods called Tlaltecuhtli.

They're calling it the
largest Aztec idol ever found,

and it seems a title
well deserved weighing

at 12 and 1/2 tons.

A spectacular statue of that size

with almost perfect detail
should be fascinating enough,

but it seems it's even more intriguing

because some were speculating

this structure may have been a door

to a hidden chamber.

The monolith of Tlaltecuhtli

was excavated within close
proximity to the Templo Mayor,

which was actually discovered by accident
as workers uncovered a corner

of the great monolith while sweeping
some of the temple steps.

Templo Mayor was the main temple

and was used by the Aztecs
for ceremonial purposes.

Unfortunately, this was
primarily human sacrifice.

Archeologists have reported
that in one ceremony alone,

thousands of victims
were sacrificed in 1487.

Tlaltecuhtli, the Earth God goddess was

a Mesoamerican earth goddess
associated with fertility.

As she was seen as their source of life,

the Aztecs sought necessary

to constantly please their
goddess with blood sacrifices,

especially human hearts.

According to the creation
legend surrounding it,

the earth first roamed on the
primordial sea in the form

of a monster by this name.

The legend also goes on to say
that this goddess was fierce

and had a taste for
human flesh so ferocious

that one single gaping mouth

with teeth of flint knives was not enough

to satisfy her bestial hunger.

To remedy this, she had
more mouths at her elbows

and knees that could
simultaneously devour her victims.

She was so savage that even
other gods were afraid of her.

The myth continues to say
that the gods Tezcatlipoca

and Quetzalcoatl transformed
into giant serpents

and strangled Tlaltecuhtli

until her giant body split in two.

They threw one half of her
broken body up in the sky

and it was transformed into
the vault of the heavens

and the other half of
her created the earth.

The other deities were appalled

by what the serpents had
done to Tlaltecuhtli,

so they descended to the
earth half to console her.

They commanded that all
the fruits necessary

for the survival of humans
should come from her.

From that moment, all creation
was to come from her body.

They made it so that all trees, flowers,

and herbs would spring
from her hair, wells,

and springs to come from her eyes,

her mouth would create the
rivers, lakes, and caverns,

and her nose would create the
mountain ranges and valleys.

The goddess sprang back
to life in a new way,

but despite the gifts she had been given,

she is said to still cry out
at night with her longing

to continue to eat the
hearts of humankind.

The legend continues,

the goddess was restless
and will not stay quiet

and still until she was
given the sacrifices,

nor would she bear fruit

on the land unless her thirst was quenched
with the blood of men.

Some researchers believe that the increase

in human sacrifice in the later stages

of the Mayan civilization

and the almost frenzied pace it took

with the Aztecs was due to
the decline of their society.

This downward spiral
would've made it very easy

for the Spanish to conquer them.

Unfortunately, when the massive statue

of Tlaltecuhtli was discovered,

it was fragmented into
four pieces with a section

of its core missing

or possibly destroyed by
the decimation of time.

However, despite its
incomplete appearance,

the monolith of this
earth monster deity is

one that radiates great power

and intimidation to all
those in its presence.

The Aztecs believed that the presentation

of a monument should be in accordance

with its cosmological place

and as Tlaltecuhtli was
depicted as an earth monster,

she was placed in the earth underneath

or below other objects.

She was also often carved

beneath Aztec monuments
rather than in plain sight,

like those of the carvings at Tlaloc,

and is believed that this

is so that she can take her
position of the earth as well

as resting against the earth itself.

She's also placed front forward

in the many representations found of her.

In the Aztec culture,

it was commonplace for their deities

to be presented this way
as to show their power

and distinguish them from other figures.

Directly underneath the statue,

they discovered the
largest find of offerings,

which included shells and corals,

a tiny pine mask, a sawfish bill,

8 and 1/2 thousand animal bones,

a jar of grain, a scepter,
and many fire god sculptures.

Archeologists believe these
used to be an arrangement

of sacrificial ornaments or
offerings to the goddess.

The gods of old and their worshipers

have always fascinated us.

Even in modern religion,

we venerate statues of saints in buildings

and churches that were
adorned with symbolism

and carvings that are
linked to old pagan worship,

but sadly, even with the many lives

that the Aztecs sacrificed to Tlaltecuhtli

to placate her thirst for human hearts,

the once great city of
Tenochtitlan was abandoned

by their goddess.

Following a failed aqueduct design

to bring fresh water to the Aztec people,

a massive flood destroyed the city

in 1502 AD including many
satellite towns and villages.

Even though the city was built by mortar,

the walls could not sustain

the devastating attack by the water.

However, the Mexica were persistent

and began rebuilding
once the waters receded.

For the most part,

the technological genius

of the Aztec people
allowed them to build dams,

which actually controlled the
level of water quite well.

However, after the Spanish conquest,

the dams were destroyed

and the flooding once again
claimed this great city

of ancient times.

A strange circular rock
known as Alien Mountain

in Sri Lanka is so called
because of its cylindrical shape,

numerous UFO sightings, ancient legends,

and spiritual connotations.

Now newly discovered petroglyphs,

which some believe to be an
antique astronomical code

have been discovered at the site as well.

Some researchers believe that the mountain

and its ancient rock
carvings provide proof

of extraterrestrial visitors on Earth.

Sri Lanka is a large
independent island nation

in the Indian Ocean,

located about 26 miles off
the southeast coast of India.

The island was colonized by
anatomically modern humans

in the last Interglacial
period dating back

to around 125,000 years ago.

Danigala Mountain is situated

in the Polonnaruwa district of Sri Lanka

and has long been known as a sacred site

to the local population.

The mountain itself is a
unique cylindrical shaped rock,

which is known by various intriguing names

including Alien Mountain,

Kandegama Rock, and the
Stargate of King Ravana.

It's believed to be one of the places

where King Ravana landed his
special aircraft Dandu Monara.

According to Hindu legend,

King Ravana was one of the
most powerful beings ever

to roam the universe.

He ruled in Sri Lanka
over the Monara gods,

humans, and demons.

Legend says that Ravana ruled Lanka

for several hundred
years prior to the times

of Ramayana when he was
killed by Prince Janmab

for kidnapping his wife Sita.

Some researchers believed
that this Ramayana

was not entirely a fictional character

and may have been based

on a real king who ruled over Sri Lanka

from 2554 to 2517 BC.

Under the rule of the scholarly Ravana,

Sri Lanka witnessed great advancements

in science and medicine.

The Pushpaka Vimana or the airplane

in which some versions
of the legend is said to have flown

during his reign is held up as an example

of the great scientific
achievements taking place at the time.

The word vimana is
composed of "vi" the sky,

"mana" meaning measure.

Vimana is something that measures
the sky as it crosses it.

Indian legends are full
of stories of vimana.

The most well-known of these legends

of the Pushpaka Vimana
concerns Rama who was returning

from Lanka to Ayodhya along with Sita

after defeating Ravana.

The vimana that was used by
Ravana himself was also known

as Dandu Monara.

In the local Sinhalaese language,

monara means peacock

and Dandu Monara means

that which can fly resembling a peacock.

In fact, the story of
Ravana flying in a vimana

with his wife Mandodari is
depicted in the insignia

of Sri Lanka's most famous hotel,

Galle Face Hotel Colombo.

In some ancient texts which
discuss these flying machines,

there are tantalizing mentions
of possible fuels used,

aeronautics, meteorology,

and aerial maneuvers that
were deployed in flying them.

Some researchers have noted the connection

between these ancient vimanas

and the designation of Alien Mountain

to describe Danigala Mountain.

There's just one problem,

there is no record of any
UFO sightings in the area

of the mountain.

It could be perhaps the
designation Alien Mountain comes

from the connection with
the ancient vimanas,

though no one seems to be sure of that,

it's possible through

the alien connection that it goes

further back than modern UFO sightings.

In September 2020,

a doctor published a controversial report

on the Research Gate
scientific networking site

on the petroglyphs

at Alien Mountain entitled
"Danigala Coding Sri Lanka".

In this report,

which describes the new
discovery of petroglyphs

in a part of the northwest
slope of the mountain

in July 2020,

Danigala states, "Those bind ruins

are dominantly compared

with other archeological
sites in Sri Lanka

and the Southeast Asia region.

The type of symbols bind ruins

and petroglyphs found are quite new,

and for the first time
discovered in Sri Lankan

during archeoastronomical

and geological preliminary
survey conducted

by the Central Culture
Fund with a corporation

of South Asian Astrobiology

and Earth Sciences Research
Unit of Eco Astronomy Sri Lanka.

Hence, this is a new discovery.

It should be considered as our geological,

astronomical, and
archeological heritage site,

which represents the collective memory

of the anthropomorphic scenes
affected by mother nature."

He's the CEO and founder
of Eco Astronomy Sri Lanka

established in 2016 as a newly developed
research area in Sri Lanka.

Their research focuses

on comparative systematic analysis

of extreme environmental
conditions of planet Earth,

which related to
extraterrestrial life based

on paleontological and
meteorological factors.

He believes that the rock
carvings found at Alien Mountain,

so-called bind ruins,

when two or more ruins are connected

or bound together,

constitute a lost astronomical
counting system created

by the Neolithic hunters
thousands of years ago.

Though such bind ruins are unique,

ancient rock art in Sri
Lanka is fairly common.

It first came to the attention
of researchers in 1897

and to date over 40 sites

have been cataloged on the island.

These sites mostly rock shelters

are mainly concentrated in the eastern,

southeastern north, central,

and central hill regions of the island.

The paintings in the caves
generally depict humans

and animals such as elephants, leopards,

stags, deer, and dogs.

It's important to note that

the animals depicted are not shown

in hunting scenes when they're
shown alongside humans,

they appear almost as
companions rather than prey.

Some researchers have pointed
out these similarities

between the circular Danigala Mountain

and the prominent ancient rock fortress

in the Northern Matale district near

the town of Dambulla

in the central province of Sri Lanka,

this enigmatic rock
outcrop rises dramatically

from the plains.

Its almost vertical walls soar skyward

to a flat top summit
that contains the ruins

of an ancient civilization believed

to be once the focal point

of the short-lived kingdom of Kassapa.

Given its stunning appearance,

it's perhaps not surprising
that Sigiriya is known

by locals as the eighth
wonder of the world.

The fortress complex is located
on a massive rock plateau,

1,214 feet above sea level.

The fortress complex includes the remains

of a ruined palace,

surrounded by an extensive
network of fortifications,

huge gardens, ponds, canals,
alleys, and fountains.

From the 3rd century BC,

the rocky plateau of Sigiriya
functioned as a monastery.

In the second half of the 5th century AD,

King Kashyapa constructed
a royal residence there,

but after his death,

the site again became
a Buddhist monastery,

which lasted up until the 14th century

when it was finally abandoned.

The western wall of the palace

was almost entirely covered

by stunning frescoes created
during the reign of Kashyapa,

18 of which survived to this day.

The frescoes depict naked females

and are considered to be either portraits

of Kashyapa's wives and concubines

or priestesses performing
religious rituals.

Another striking feature of
Sigiriya is its mirror wall.

In ancient times, it was
polished so thoroughly that

the king could see his reflection in it.

The mirror wall is
painted with inscriptions

and poems written by the
visitors to the area,

the most ancient of which dates back

to the 8th century
showing that Sigiriya was

a tourist destination more
than a thousand years ago.

Sigiriya has also water gardens,

cave and boulder gardens,

and also terrace gardens.

They're located on the
western part of the site

and were watered using

an incredibly complex hydraulic system

which consisted of canals, locks,

lakes, dams, bridges, fountains,

as well as surface and
underground water pumps.

The buildings and landscape gardens

of Sigiriya show that the creators

of this incredible architectural
monument used unique

and creative technical
skills and technologies.

In fact, so astonishing are

the features that some
paranormal researchers believe

the site to be the result

of extraterrestrial intervention

rather than human ingenuity and hard work.

These researchers point
out the architectural

and engineering design at the
site which is advanced even

by 21st century standards.

One legend surrounding

the huge rock fortress states

that it was built initially for Kubera,

the treasurer of the Gods of Vishwakarma,
the divine engineer.

One alien hunter suggested
that the rock fortress

was something like a lighthouse

for ancient aliens and their vimanas,

reasoning that if they
were landing at night,

the crystals in the mirror wall

of the site would reflect the
light back from the craft.

Believers in the ancient alien theory

for the site question how
ancient builders created

such extraordinary structures

on top of a rock over 1,200 feet high.

But why would this suggest aliens?

There are numerous archeological sites

throughout the world,

far higher up and more inaccessible.

The most obvious examples
being the Inca Citadel

of Machu Picchu in Peru,

located 7,970 feet up on a mountain ridge.

The palace and fortress complex
of Sigiriya has been recognized

as one of the finest examples
of ancient urban planning in the world.

Taking into account
the uniqueness of this site,

UNESCO declared it a world
heritage site in 1982.

The Inga Stone is located
in the middle of the waters

of the Inga River near
the small city of Inga

in Paraiba state in the
northwest of Brazil.

This controversial historical
treasure 150 feet long

and 13 feet in height
is covered in carvings

of strange unidentified geometric symbols

of various sizes and shapes.

Although many researchers
have speculated on the origins

and the meaning of the symbols,

no theory has yet been proven.

Were they made by

a previously unknown civilization

maybe possessing ancient
technology long since forgotten?

What do the symbols really mean?

The area where the site is located covers

around 40 hectares of
extensive granite outcrops

that contain a large
number of rock carvings.

The main outcrop is popularly known

as Pedra do Inga, the Stone of Inga,

and forms a wall oriented
northeast-southeast

and features the three main
rock panels at the site.

In the rainy season,

this large monolith is
partially covered by water

and can only be seen in
its entirety in dry weather

and when the riverbed is completely dry.

Although there is speculation as

to what tools could have been
used to make the carvings,

it's believed that the figures were made

with round stones found in nearby streams.

Archeological research
indicates the existence

of lithic workshops in
the vicinity of the site

and temporary camps
associated with the main site

in use from about 10,000
BC to around 1,400 AD,

possibly as a sacred place used

by the local prehistoric populations.

There is also evidence
of other occupations

in the areas outside of the main site,

which is associated with it.

So far, experts have identified

more than 400 engravings
on the stone's surface.

Most of the Inga carvings
are hard to understand,

but some of them are thought

to represent celestial features

with two being similar to the Milky Way

and the constellation of Orion.

Others are thought to be
representations of circles,

geometric shapes,
animals, fruits, weapons,

human shapes, and birds.

Many of the carvings seem
to relate to the daily life

of the local population at the time.

The exact origin of the
inscriptions is still unknown.

Brazil was officially discovered in 1500

when a fleet on its way to India commanded

by Portuguese diplomat
Pedro Alvarez Cabral landed

in Porto Seguro between
Salvador and Rio de Janeiro.

The first references to
the mysterious carvings

are found in the reports
of the European settlers

in the state in the 16th century.

Among these references,

the most important is

the "Dialogues of Brazil's Grandness"

attributed to Ambrosio Fernandes Brandao

written between 1519 and 1618.

According to the researcher
Gabriela Martin in 2008,

"The Inga stone is undoubtedly

the most famous rock engraving in Brazil,

but as a result of this
exalted reputation,

a number of groundless
theories, hopeful speculations

and popular myths have
grown up around the stone

and the origin and
meaning of its carvings.

Hidden treasures are mentioned
as are lost Venetian sailors

and of course extraterrestrial beings.

Where would we be without their help?"

Gabriele D'Annunzio
Baraldi from 1938 to 2002

was Italian by birth,

but lived in Brazil, Sao
Paulo until his death.

Baraldi claimed that the area

around the Inga Stone was a Hittite colony

and that the Hittite empire
had existed in Brazil.

This was apparently based
on the basic similarity

and nothing more between
Hittite inscriptions

and those on the Inga stone.

The Hittites occupied the ancient region
of Anatolia, modern-day Turkey,

around 1700 BC,

so how they found the way
to Brazil is anyone's guess,

perhaps the extraterrestrials
brought them.

In the early 20th century,

the Austrian traveler
Ludwig Schwennhagen toured

various parts of Northeastern
Brazil studying traces

of what he believed to be the presence
of Phoenicians in this region.

Besides numerous articles,

he published a book,
"Ancient History of Brazil",

associating the inscriptions of Inga
with the Phoenicians.

The Phoenicians were a maritime people

who occupied the coast of Levant,

modern Syria, Lebanon, Palestine,
and most of Western Turkey

from around 1500 to 332 BC.

Again, what were they doing in Brazil?

But the theory of Phoenicians in Brazil

and the Americas has
a long history as part

of the recurring, often bizarre attempts

to find ancient Semitic inscriptions

in the western hemisphere.

In 1872, a stone inscribed

with Phoenician writing
was allegedly discovered

in Paraiba, northeast Brazil.

The letter sent from
the original discoverer

of the stone to the president

of the Brazilian Historical

and Geographic Institute is worth quoting:

"As I was having stones
carried into my property,

my slaves brought me one
that they had already broken

into four pieces.

This stone presented numerous characters

that no one understood.

I had them copied by my son,

who knows a little about draftsmanship,

and I was resolved to send
this copy to your Excellency

as president of the Historical

and Geographical Institute of Brazil

to see if your Excellency

or some other person could determine

what these letters mean,

and as I have arrived in this capital city

and have not had the time
to give them personally

to your Excellency,

I have sent them to him through the post.

I am with all consideration
and respect for your Excellency.

Attentive, devoted, and obliged servant,

Joaquim Alves de Costa,

Rio, 11th of September, 1872."

The inscription itself told the story

of a Phoenician ship which
was caught in a storm

and separated from a fleet sailing
from Egypt around Africa.

The stone also mentions the
Pharaoh Necho I or Necho II.

A transcription was shown to the director

of the National Museum of Brazil who

at first accepted the
inscription as genuine,

but Alves de Costa

and his estate proved impossible to locate

and it was concluded that the whole affair

was nothing more than a hoax.

Marshall McKusick has reviewed

and dismissed various
theories of Phoenicians

or Canaanites in the new world,

observing that "In this
modern day everyone wishes

to be his own authority

and the personal search

for cultural alternatives seems

to make every idea or
theory equal in value."

Ronald H. Fritze has discussed

the theory of such claims

from the 17th to the 20th centuries,

concluding that although the journey

to Brazil was technically possible,

no archeological evidence
has yet been discovered

to prove it.

Peruvian electrical engineer Huari Roman

has linked the Inga stone

with refugees from the
sunken continent of Atlantis.

Roman claims that before the great flood,

most of central Brazil
was a huge inland sea

and that the Atlanteans

and Arawaks lived around this lake,

and that the one artifact left behind

by them was the Inga stone.

After the deluge,

a cataclysm inundated Atlantis and Brazil,
destroying the Inland Sea.

Some groups fled to the Andean Highlands

of Peru eventually developing
the empire of Tiwanaku,

which then later became the Incan Empire.

What is Roman's evidence for
this extraordinary theory?

Apparently, he's keeping that to himself.

Who also those who believe that the signs

on the Inga stone are the
work of extraterrestrials?

According to Claudio Quintans

of the Paraibano Center for Ufology,

it is unlikely that the prehistoric people

of the area would've been able
to make such intricate carvings.

Therefore, he believes the
carvings were actually made

by extraterrestrial
visitors to the planet,

and some symbols may be interpreted

as explaining the distance
between the planets such

as the Earth and the Moon,

and even further beyond that.

He adds that the Inga
stone shows some formulas

for the production of quantum energy.

There must be a queue

of physicists forming
around Quintans's house

to ask just where he obtained

that earth-shattering
information and what it means.

The attitude of Quintan's is very common
in alternative history theories.

The belief is that there's
no way that the natives

of Brazil could have
ever been advanced enough

to make anything that required
any technological skill

or knowledge.

In fact, in Brazil's
Natural History Museum,

there are stone instruments
which the natives used

for various activities
including grooving stones

to make inscriptions such
as those on the Inga stone.

Spanish engineer Francisco Pavia Alemany

has mathematically studied the stone,

and his first results
were published in 1986.

Alemany identified a series of
bowls on the stone's surface

and another petroglyph etched

into the vertical surface
of the wall of Inga

that formed a solar calendar.

Alemany later focused on recording

and documenting a series of symbols

on the surface which
represented stars that appeared

to have been grouped
together in what appeared

to be constellations.

According to him, it's the
coexistence of the bowls

and constellations on the
rock surface which give

the stone its
archeoastronomical significance.

Although there are a number of theories

to explain the unusual
designs on the stone,

the simplest is probably true.

The symbols represent various cultural

and spiritual teachings passed
on by local tribal elders

to the younger generations.

Unfortunately, there have
been virtually no studies

of the technological
development, social structure,

or cultural complexity of
the prehistoric populations

of Northeastern Brazil.

Hence, there's a gap in our knowledge
of the cultures of the area,

which allows all sorts
of bizarre unsubstantiated theories

to wriggle through unchecked.

The Inga stone and the
area around it represents

a people who created
expressive art in rock

with a high technical capacity.

The site is remarkable for
its almost exclusive use

of non-figurative representations

on its panels expressing
the creative genius of

a human group that appropriated
abstract aesthetic standards

as a means of expression

of possibly symbolic religious concepts.

The local populations were unlike

other prehistoric
Brazilian cultures in this,

who mostly made use of anthropomorphic
and zoomorphic representations.

Unfortunately today the site
where the Inga stone stands

is under constant threat,

not only from the elements
but from the hundreds

of tourists who trample
all over it almost daily.

There have been also cases

of the stone being damaged by vandals,

so there is an urgent
need for the Inga stone

to be protected and preserved

if we want future generations to be

as fascinated by it as we are.

Controversy has arisen
around an artifact known

as the Nazareth Inscription long believed

to be an official Roman
response to the disappearance

of Jesus' body from its tomb.

New researchers cast doubt

on the origin of the inscription,

which was acquired

by German collector in Paris in 1878.

However, apart from a note indicating

that it had come from Nazareth,

its history has remained
something of a mystery.

The Nazareth Inscription.

The Nazareth Inscription
itself is written on a block

of marble, about two
feet tall, a foot wide,

and two inches deep.

The first of its 22 lines of text carved

in Greek letters announces
an "Edict of Caesar".

The edict calls for capital punishment

for anyone who removes a body from a tomb.

If the tablet did originate in Nazareth,

it's understandable how
one could make a connection

between this edict and the
beginnings of Christianity.

Perhaps the inscription
had something to do

with the controversy over
the famous empty tomb

and suggests that a
Roman emperor was aware

of disturbing claims about
a crucified man rising

from the dead in a distant
province of his wide empire.

The style of the letters used

in the inscription certainly
indicates it was written

in the first half of the 1st century.

-What do we want!
-Indeed, no one

-has ever questioned
-Justice!

When do we want it!

-Now!
-the authenticity

of the Nazareth inscription,

so it's highly unlikely
that this is a forgery,

but its interpretation

and possible connection to the story
of the resurrection of Christ

are still fiercely debated today.

The translation of the inscription reads:

"Edict of Caesar.

It is my decision,

graves and tombs,
whoever has made them

for the religious observances
of parents, or children,

or household members,

that these remain undisturbed forever.

But if anyone legally charges
that another person has destroyed

or has in any manner extracted

those who have been buried,

or has moved with wicked intent

those who have been
buried to other places,

committing a crime against them,

or has moved sepulchral stones,

against such a person,

I order that a judicial
tribunal be created,

just as concerning the gods
in human religious observances.

Even more so it will
be obligatory to treat

with honor those who have been entombed.

You are absolutely not
to allow anyone to move,

But if so, I wish that one

to suffer capital
punishment under the title

of tomb-breaker."

The discovery of the Nazareth Inscription.

When scholar and collector of antiquities,

Wilhelm Froehner died in
his Paris home in 1925,

he left behind among his possessions

a curious inscription

and manuscripts that could be

the oldest surviving
artifact of Christianity.

By the time he died,

he'd been in possession of
the Nazareth Inscription

for nearly 50 years.

His inventory of the
inscription simply states,

"This marble was sent
from Nazareth in 1878."

In 1925, the collection was acquired

by the Paris National Library where

the Nazareth inscription was rediscovered

and read by a monsieur Rostovtzeff.

Rostovtzeff informed his friend

the scholar Franz Cumont
about the inscription,

and in 1930 he published
a Greek transcription

and a translation of the
inscription with a commentary.

Cumont came to the conclusion

that there were two possible contexts

for the inscription,

which have remained the
leading contenders to this day

Theories about the inscription's origin.

The first suggests that

the edict was issued
against the background

of the general upheavals
of Rome's violent transition

from republic to empire.

The end of the republic had witnessed

the eastern provinces
extensively plundered,

tombs and temples alike were ravaged.

Perhaps the Nazareth inscription was part

of a general effort to restore order.

If this is the case, then
the inscription would belong

to the final decade's BC

and thus originally to
a fully Roman dominion

somewhere like Greece
or more likely Asia Minor,

before eventually surfacing in Palestine.

Palestinian origins.

The primary alternative explanation

is that the edict is a response
to the Christian gospel

and the hostile conflicts it aroused.

In the Bible, the disciples

of Jesus claimed that they
found their master's tomb empty,

and the Gospel of Matthew makes it clear

that opposing accounts of the empty tomb
were being circulated.

Those Jews who did not
believe that Jesus was

the Messiah spread the rumor that

the disciples had stolen the body,
and according to Matthew,

they bribed the Roman guards

into swearing this alternative
truth before the governor.

Could it be that, aware
of enduring tensions

and conflict over the
claims of the resurrection,

the emperor issued an edict
specifying harsh penalties

for violating tombs and
the bodies lying within?

But while this of course doesn't prove

that the inscription is evidence

for the resurrection of Christ,

it does indicate that the
story of the resurrection

of Christ was already
circulating very early on,

perhaps even in the reign

of Emperor Claudius around 41 AD.

If the story of the resurrection

of Christ was widely known
soon after his crucifixion,

it could be that it was circulated

by his apostles themselves.

In his 1968 book,

author Michael Green wrote that there

was firm contemporary evidence

for the presence of Jesus' empty tomb.

He said this piece

of evidence is called
the Nazareth Inscription

after the town where it was found.

It is an imperial edict belonging either

to the reign of Tiberius, 14-37 AD,

or of Claudius 41-54 AD,

and it's an invective
backed with heavy sanctions

against meddling around
with tombs and graves.

It looked very much as if the news

of the empty tomb had got back
to Rome in a garbled form.

Pilate would have had to report

and he would obviously have said

the tomb had been rifled.

This edict, it seems, is
the imperial reaction,

but as mentioned earlier,

the inscription provides no evidence

for any specific event.

Indeed, skeptics of the
Jesus connection argue

that there is absolutely nothing linking

this inscription with Christianity,

only the town it was found in.

Even though Jesus was
not buried in Nazareth,

and its possible date.

They also point out
that the law is prefaced

by a reference to the importance

of family burial cult,

so the incentive for the law seems

seems to been an objection

to those who were depriving
people of the right

to pay homage to their dead ancestors,

something that would appear
to have no connection

with the missing body of Jesus.

Skeptics also point out that

in the late 19th century there were
only two major market centers

for all antiquities recovered in Palestine,
Jerusalem, and Nazareth.

Thus de Zulueta makes the
plausible conjecture that

the slab was recovered either
in Samaria or Decapolis

and either purchased

or shipped via the nearest possible place,

which would've been Nazareth.

New evidence: In April 2020,

it was announced that
scientists had conducted

the first isotope
analysis of marble sample

from the slab containing the inscription.

The research team
sensationally discovered that

the unique isotopic fingerprints

of the marble were a close match

for a signature found in white marble

from the Greek island of Kos
of Turkey's southwestern coast.

As Kos is a long way from Nazareth,

the results of the tests
would certainly seem

to reduce the likelihood that

the edict had any connection
with early Christianity.

Researchers believe that the inscription,

rather than referring

to the story of Jesus' empty tomb,

relates to an incident
which took place decades

before the death of Jesus.

The incident took place
on Kos in the 30s BC

and involved what happened after the death

of an extremely unpopular
but powerful official named Nicias.

After Nicias's demise,

locals broke into his tomb
and desecrated the body.

Researchers now believe
that the Roman edict warning

of harsh punishments for grave desecration

was response to the fate suffered

by the body of Nicias.

Lead study author Kyle Harper,

a professor of classics

and letters at the
University of Oklahoma said

of the discovery,

"We believe that it's
the first time stable isotope chemistry

has ever been used to establish

the provenance of an inscription, period.

We got lucky twice over.

First, it was very direct match with

a rather unexpected marble quarry

so we could really pinpoint
its origins on Kos.

Second, it happened that
we know of an episode

of tomb violation that was very famous

in the exact right period.

I would've never hoped

for such a remarkable alignment."

Harper and his team have also suggested

the Greek dialect on the
inscription does not match

a Nazarene background for the period

and that it could have
been written anywhere

between 100 BC and 100 AD.

But although Harper's work proves

that the marble was sourced from Kos,

it doesn't prove that
Nazareth's Inscription

was inscribed in Kos.

Indeed, since its publication,

Harper's research has been questioned

by other researchers

and is certainly not set

to be the final word on the edict.

One researcher has pointed out

that with the Herodian Dynasty,

which ruled Judea for almost 80 years

from 37 BC to 39 AD,

traded regularly with the island of Kos.

Perhaps, they reason,

marble was commercially
transported to Judea from Kos

and found its way into
Nazareth during the reign

of Claudius or Nero.

At the moment, there's no way of knowing

for certain where the stone was inscribed

and what exactly it was referring to.

It seems the debate about the
Nazareth inscription is set

to rage on for many years to come.

Evidence from the 11,000-year-old carvings

on an ancient temple site

in what is now Turkey suggests

that a mass of comet fragments hit

the Earth around 11,000 BC.

There is also other evidence

to support this catastrophic event

from a Greenland ice core.

The impact, which probably resulted

from the breakup of a giant comet

in the inner solar system,

triggered a cold climate,

which lasted at least a thousand years

and seems to have been remembered

by the hunter-gatherers in the area

for thousands of years afterwards.

Gobekli Tepe.

Gobekli Tepe, Turkish for
the hill of the navel is

a 1,000-foot diameter mound located

at the highest point

of a mountain ridge in
southeastern Turkey.

The site includes two phases of use,

believed to be social

or ritual in nature by its discoverer

and excavator Klaus Schmidt.

It dates back to the
10th-8th millennium BC

and since 1994, excavations
conducted by Klaus Schmidt

of the Istanbul branch

of the German Archeological Institute have

been taking place at the site.

Results to date have been outstanding,

especially bearing in mind that

the excavators estimate that
their work has uncovered

a mere 5% of the site.

Gobekli Tepe consists of four arrangements

of monolithic pillars
linked together by segments

of coarsely built dry stone
walls to form a series

of circular or oval structures.

There are two large pillars

in the center of each complex,

which are encircled

by slightly smaller stones facing inwards.

During the first phase of the site,

circles of huge T-shaped
stone pillars were erected,

at the moment, the world's
oldest known megaliths.

Archeologists believed that these pillars

could have once supported roofs.

The structures vary in size between 33

and 98 feet in diameter

and have floors made of burned lime.

The megaliths themselves,

43 of which have been unearthed so far,

are mainly T-shaped
pillars of soft limestone

up to around 16 feet in height.

The stone would've been excavated

and transported from a stone quarry

on the lowest southwestern
slope of the hill.

Geophysical surveys on the
hill indicate there are

as many as 250 more megaliths
lying buried around the site,

suggesting that another
16 complexes once existed

at Gobekli Tepe.

Although the pictograms at Gobekli Tepe
do not represent a form of writing,

they may have functioned as sacred symbols

whose meanings were implicitly understood
by the local population at the time.

The carving of the comet impact.

The mysterious megaliths at Gobekli Tepe

have been puzzling archeologists
and challenging presumptions

about prehistoric culture
since their discovery.

The most debated point is how

a nomadic hunter-gatherer society

with a supposedly primitive
social structure could plan

and build such monumental stone circles.

It was recently announced that researchers

from the University of Edinburgh

in Scotland had found
evidence for the recording

of a devastating comet impact

more than 13,000 years ago
while examining symbols

on a decorated stone

from Gobekli Tepe called
the Vulture Stone.

Using computer star tracking
software called Stellarium,

the researchers were able to track

what the sky looked like

in the time Gobekli Tepe was in use.

The team matched carvings of
animals on the Vulture Stone,

which they interpreted
as astronomical symbols,

to patterns of stars

and were able to pinpoint
the cataclysmic event caused

by the comet fragments hitting the Earth

to 10,950 BC, give or take 250 years.

Another image on the stone,

that of a headless man,

is believed to symbolize human disaster

and extensive loss of life.

Scientists have speculated for decades

whether a comet could have been the cause

of a sudden fall in temperature
during a period known

as the Younger Dryas.

The Younger Dryas was
essentially a mini ice age,

which lasted around a thousand years

and it's considered a
critical period for humanity

as it was around the time agriculture

and the first Neolithic
civilizations arose,

possibly in response to the
arrival of a colder climate.

Dr. Martin Sweatman of
the School of Engineering

at the University of
Edinburgh led the research

into the Vulture Stone and commented

on the team's findings.

"I think this research,
along with a recent finding

of a widespread platinum anomaly

across the North American continent,

virtually seal the case in favor

of a Younger Dryas comet impact.

Our work serves to reinforce
that physical evidence.

What is happening here is

the process of paradigm change.

It appears Gobekli Tepe
was, among other things,

an observatory for
monitoring the night sky.

One of its pillars seems to have served

as a memorial to this devastating event,

probably the worst day
in history since the end

of the Ice Age."

The Vulture Stone,

labeled by archeologists Pillar 43,

is one of the oldest artifacts discovered
at Gobekli Tepe,

and archeologists have
found that it exhibits signs

of being cared for by the
people there for millennia,

which indicates that what was carved onto it
was very important.

Perhaps the event that
researchers believe the images

on the stone depicted
had a long-lasting impact

on the civilization in the area.

In their paper published
on the Vulture Stone,

images in "Mediterranean Archeology

and Archeometry" in 2017, Dr. Sweatman

and Dimitrios Tsikritsis described

their findings connecting

the comet strike with Gobekli Tepe

and the onset of the Younger
Dryas in more detail.

They said, "Symbolism on
pillar 18 is consistent

with an event of cosmic origin.

The fox symbolism in particular suggests

a cosmic event originating

from a specific position.

The belt, buckle, eclipse,

and snake symbols are consistent
with a cometary encounter.

We also find evidence that a key function

of Gobekli Tepe was to
observe meteor showers

and record cometary encounters.

Indeed, the people of Gobekli Tepe appear

to have had a special interest

in the Taurid meteor stream,

the same meteor stream that
is proposed as responsible

for the Younger Dryas event."

Is Gobekli Tepe the smoking gun

for the Younger Dryas cometary encounter

and hence for coherent catastrophism?

Was Gobekli Tepe an observatory?

Dr. Sweatman's comment that Gobekli Tepe

may have functioned
as an observatory at some stage

in its history is a controversial one.

The claims of Gobekli Tepe's connection

to the night sky have been mostly rejected

by the main archeological
team excavating the temple.

In their opinion,

although Gobekli Tepe is
extraordinarily well preserved,

time and the elements
have changed the location

of certain features at the site.

Some of the pillars at Gobekli
Tepe were certainly removed

and recycled elsewhere during
occupation of the site.

Moreover, later civilizations in the area

and more recently farmers
have repositioned parts

of certain pillars,

even on some occasions
breaking pieces off.

In a paper written in response

to the claims of Dr.
Sweatman and his team,

they stated their main objection

to his claim that Gobekli
Tepe was an observatory is

"There is significant possibility

that we are dealing
with roofed structures.

This fact alone would pose limitations

to a function of sky observatories.

The arches depicted on
the western broad side

of Pillar 43 could even be images

of the monumental buildings
themselves covered

by a corbel roof."

Dr. Sweatman published a quick response

to the criticism of their work

by the excavators of Gobekli Tepe,

and in this response they reiterated

their hypothesis that
Gobekli Tepe had been,

at an early stage at the
site's history, an observatory,

whether it was in later life
a roofed structure or not.

They said, "We suggest construction

of the rough stone enclosure walls,

might or might not have supported a roof,

might have followed an earlier phase

of construction consisting

of relatively freestanding pillars.

We suggest this because
the carvings on many

of the pillars are covered by these walls.

Given the undoubted
extreme effort required

and limited resources available
to construct the pillars

and their carvings,

it makes little sense
to us that the builders

of Gobekli Tepe would have
immediately hidden many

of the carvings within the
rough stone enclosure wall.

We also note that whether Gobekli Tepe

was roofed at some point or not,

this has little bearing on the statistics

in our interpretation.

It only affects
interpretation of the usage

of Gobekli Tepe at some
point in its history."

Most people are familiar
with the biblical story

of Sodom and Gomorrah.

For most scholars, it is just a story,

but one scientific study has determined

that a clay tablet dating

from around 700 BC is a copy

of notes taken by an eyewitness

to the ancient asteroid impact

believed to be responsible
for the destruction

of the two biblical cities.

The cuneiform symbols on the tablet,

recently translated by researchers,

are believed to detail an account written

by an ancient Sumerian astronomer watching

the asteroid impact.

There were other competing theories

for the destruction of
the two cities however.

Recently one researcher wrote

that he was convinced that Sodom

and Gomorrah were destroyed

by a massive earthquake followed

by a catastrophic landslide.

The destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah.

Sodom and Gomorrah were two
notoriously sinful cities

in the biblical book of Genesis,

located in the region of the Dead Sea

between what are now Israel

and Jordan in the Middle East.

Along with the cities of Admah, Zeboim,

and Zoar, Sodom and Gomorrah constituted

the five cities of the plain referenced

throughout both the Old

and New Testaments and the Quran.

Genesis describes God's dissatisfaction

with Sodom and Gomorrah and his decision

to destroy them,

"The sun had risen over
the earth when Lot came to Zoar.

Then the Lord rained on
Sodom and Gomorrah brimstone

and fire from the Lord out of heaven,

and he overthrew those cities,
and all the valley,

and all the inhabitants of the cities,

and what grew on the ground.

But his wife from behind him looked back,

and she became a pillar of salt.

Now Abraham arose early in the morning

and went to the place where
he had stood before the Lord,

and he looked down
towards Sodom and Gomorrah

and toward all the land of the valley,

and he saw, and behold,

[fire crackling]

the smoke of the land ascended
like the smoke of a furnace.

Thus, it came about,

when God destroyed the
cities of the valley,

that God remembered Abraham

and sent Lot out in the midst

of the overthrow when
he overthrew the cities

in which Lot lived."

It is an extremely dramatic story,

but is it merely fiction?

According to archeologists, scientists,

and biblical scholars, there
is no evidence that Sodom

and its sister town Gomorrah even existed,

let alone that they came

to a sudden and disastrous end.

The ancient clay tablet.

In March 2008, it was
announced in the media that

an ancient clay tablet that
had perplexed scientists

for over 150 years had been identified

as a witness's account of an asteroid

that destroyed the biblical cities

of Sodom and Gomorrah 5,000 years ago.

The cuneiform tablet known
as the Planisphere is

in the British Museum
collection number K8538,

and was discovered by
Henry Layard in the remains

of the library in the
royal palace at Nineveh.

The tablet was made

by an Assyrian scribe around 700 BC.

The recently translated
cuneiform symbols are believed

to be an ancient copy of
the night notebook made

by an ancient Sumerian
astronomer who watched

the asteroid impact.

Astonishingly, scholars have been able

to pinpoint the date of the impact at dawn

on the 29th of June 3123 BC,

based on the symbols on the tablet
which describe cloud formation

and the positions of
constellations in the sky.

The theory was put forward by Alan Bond,

Managing Director of
Reaction Engines Limited,

and Mark Hempsell,

Senior Lecturer in Astronautics

at Bristol University in the UK,

who spent eight years
researching the subject

and collecting evidence
to support their theory.

The asteroid in question is believed

to have been over half a mile wide

and probably crashed
into the Austrian Alps

at Kofels where there is evidence
of a huge ancient landslide.

It had long been thought

that a large object
had impacted at Kofels,

the evidence being a giant
landslide 640 feet thick

and 3.1 miles in diameter.

Hempsell described the ancient event

as he believes it happened.

"It came in at a very low angle

around six degrees and then clipped

a mountain called Gamskogel

around 11 kilometers from Kofels.

This caused it to explode,

and as it traveled down the valley,

it became a fireball.

When it hit Kofels

it created enormous pressure,

which pulverized the rock
and caused the landslide,

but because it wasn't solid,
there was no crater."

Another conclusion can be made
from the trajectory.

The back plume from the explosion,

the mushroom cloud,

would be bent over the Mediterranean Sea,
reentering the atmosphere

over the Levant, Sinai,
and Northern Egypt.

The ground heating, though very short,

would be enough to ignite
any flammable material

including human hair and clothes.

It's probable more people
died under the plume

than in the Alps due to the impact blast.

According to Dr. Hempsell,
around 386,000 square miles

would've been devastated by the asteroid,

and the impact would've been equivalent

to more than 1000 tons of TNT exploding.

He believes that

at least 20 ancient
myths record devastation

which could equate to that of the type

and on the scale of the asteroid's impact.

These stories include
the Old Testament tale

of the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah

and the ancient Greek myth
of Phaeton, son of Helios,

who fell into the river Eridanus

after losing control of
his father's sun chariot.

Bond and Hempsell presented their theory

in their 2008 monograph,

"A Sumerian Observation
of the Kofels Impact."

However, the academic world
was far from convinced

by the asteroid theory.

Jon Taylor, a retired expert
in Near Eastern archeology

at the British Museum,

pointed out that there
was no evidence that

the ancient Sumerians had the ability

to make such accurate
astronomical records,

and that our knowledge
of Sumerian language

was very far from complete.

"I remain unconvinced by
these results," he stated.

In December 2018, yet
another theory accounting

for the destruction of
Sodom and Gomorrah emerged.

This time, it was a meteor that exploded

in the air near the
Dead Sea 3,700 years ago

and could have wiped out
communities in the area

of the Bronze Age city of Tall el-Hammam,

which according to one of its
excavators, Steven Collins,

is the biblical city of
Sodom from the Bible.

Part of the abstract from
the conference presentation

by the two proponents of this new theory,

archeologists Philip J. Silvia

and Steven Collins

of Trinity Southwest University
in Albuquerque, reads,

"The paper surveys the multiple lines

of evidence that collectively suggest

a Tunguska-like cosmic airburst event

that obliterated civilization,

including the Middle Bronze
Age city-state anchored

by Tall el-Hammam.

In the Middle Ghor,

the 25-kilometer diameter circular plain

immediately north of the Dead Sea,

3,700 years before present."

The two researchers also have
an intriguing explanation

as to how Lot's wife
could have been turned

into a pillar of salt.

They theorize that the intense shock waves

from the blast may have
also covered the area

with a superheated brine of
Dead Sea anhydride salts.

This catastrophic event
could also account for

the archeological evidence

that indicates that it
took almost 600 years

for civilization to return to the area,

as the soil had been rendered
useless for agriculture.

Did an earthquake destroy
Sodom and Gomorrah?

A conflicting theory for the destruction

of the two biblical cities
emerged a few years ago.

Retired geologist Graham Harris believes

that not only did Sodom
and Gomorrah exist,

but that they were also destroyed

by a dreadful natural
apocalypse corresponding

to the description in the book of Genesis.

Harris spent 10 years researching

in the area where the two biblical cities
were supposed to be located

and came to the conclusion that
the conditions there were perfect

for a massive earthquake
that would've triggered a huge landslide.

Harris believes the resulting destruction

of settlements in the area would've been

so devastating that it could
have passed into folklore.

A summary of Harris's
2015 book on the subject,

"Destruction of Sodom:

The A Scientific Commentary," states,

"In 'The Destruction of Sodom,'

the biblical account of
the destruction of Sodom

and Gomorrah is examined
under the spotlight

of modern science against
a cultural backdrop

of history and archeology.

In this scientific reconstruction,

the account of the events described

in the book of Genesis is verified,

and it is established that

the destruction occurred at
about 2350 BC as a result

of an earthquake-induced
landslide transporting Sodom

to the depths of the Dead Sea.

Strands of geography, geology,

and engineering science are drawn together

to provide comprehensive treatment

of all relevant scientific
aspects pertinent

to a rational understanding
of the mechanics

of the disaster.

Graham Harris provides
evidence that the mainstay

of Canaanite commerce was the exploitation

of the bitumen resources of the Dead Sea,

that the Sodomites were among
the world's first chemical engineers.

"The Destruction of Sodom" is an example
of the application of science

to a fuller understanding

of one of the most intriguing
events in the Old Testament

and will be of direct
interest to scholars,

as well as to the wider public.

All these competing theories, of course,

can't be right, and thus far,

none of them have proved convincing enough

to be taken seriously
by the academic world.

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