Sure, you know about the Egyptian pyramids.
And you know about Stonehenge.
We marvel at these giant structures and wonder at the mystery of their construction. There is controversy regarding when they were built. Have you ever been to an ancient site? I’ve been to Stonehenge, and even amidst the touristy trappings you can still feel the mystery and energy of the place. It’s been called a calendar, an observatory and even a pen for sheep.
We wonder who built these places, and how? How were such giant blocks moved by people whose only power source was their own muscle? In the case of the pyramids, the blocks are so finely shaped and fitted that for the most part you still cannot fit a knife between. Are these sites anomalies? Did the local population just get really lucky and sort of figure it out and throw it together?
Most people have heard of the pyramids and Stonehenge, but have you heard of Puma Punku in Bolivia? It is part of the Tiwanaku complex, for which there is limited data. Dating for this site places it anywhere from 3,000 to 10,000 to 36,000 years old.
Do those precise corners and perfect circles look like they were cut by hand with stone tools? Local legends about Puma Punku say it is the place where the world was created.
Or how about Malta? The temples on these little islands in the Mediterranean are dated by mainstream archeologists to 5,000 years ago and are considered the oldest free-standing megalithic sites on the planet.
What do these sites, located around the globe, have in common? They’re all built with really big rocks. Big rocks that have been shaped and fitted with a precision that is difficult to achieve today. These blocks are so huge that modern cranes would have difficulty picking them up.
The other commonality is their amazingly accurate orientation, to the cardinal points as well as aligning with astronomical events. Solstice markers are generally found at the temple sites. Monitoring the skies is a long and painstaking endeavor. To be able to monitor celestial events, and then translate that knowledge into gigantic stone buildings is not a feat of a hunter/gather level of development. It requires precision in observation as well as construction. It requires an advanced knowledge base and level of development.
But the question of when these places were built remains controversial. Increasing evidence though is surfacing to show that they are much, much older than is commonly thought. Accepted theories on the progress of civilization have us in a fairly steady upward march, placing us at the pinnacle of everything that has ever been known. To suggest an advanced technological civilization in ancient history was dismissed as fantasy. Yet the anomalies of these mysterious sites continue to confound us.
It is horribly difficult to date these sites. Radiocarbon dating does not work unless you have something organic. Other radiometric dating done on the stones themselves would only tell us when the rock was formed, not when it was dressed or placed. So to date the temples we have to look at what surrounds the rocks, or what is under them, which would tell you when the stone was laid down. So far as I know, no one has tried to move one of these megaliths to get to what’s directly under.
But how do you know if the organic material you’re sampling is really the oldest? This question is not always satisfactorily answered, and yet it is still the main source of dating of these ancient megalithic structures. So mainstream theory remained that humans didn’t start to organize into cities until about 6,500 years ago, in Sumer.
Enter Gobekli Tepi, and the modern archeological world is stunned. Gobekli Tepe is located in Anatolia, Turkey, and it is dated to 9,000 to 12,000 years ago. That date was reached by radiocarbon dating, so why is it more acceptable than others? Because Gobekli Tepi was not discovered until 1964, up until then it was thought to be just a hill, until a survey showed otherwise. So any organic material left at the bottom of the structures uncovered so far had to have been buried when Gobekli Tepe was. I find it humorous that the Wikipedia article says it was built by hunter/gathers.
Other megalithic sites around the world.
Somewhere along the way, we lost part of our history. A big part. These ancient sites that circle the globe offer us only an enigmatic snapshot of the ancient world, a distant past more than 10,000 years ago. In light of the evidence uncovered at Gobekli Tepe, it is time to revise our historical timeline. Some time in the past, a civilization existed that was capable of picking up and moving huge stone blocks with ease. A civilization that was global in scope, or multiple civilizations with similar skill sets.
What’s missing? The development of this civilization. Currently there is no archeological data that demonstrates the rise of these cities, or the skills to build on such a grand scale. It is as if these sites appeared suddenly on the earth, and this only adds to their mystery. Recently, an underground chamber was discovered at Puma Punku using ground penetrating radar. Could we be close to getting some of the questions surrounding this site answered?
Have you been to one of these mysterious places? What was your experience?
I really love to hear from you! Please share your thoughts.
Never been, but would love to. A friend of mine tells me that here in Sandpoint there is a strong vortex and former Atlantean’s are re-gathering here. There are Lamureans as well. I’m trying to decide what camp I’m in. I tend to think Atlantean. Perhaps I’ll experience something here in my backyard… stay tuned.
I moved to the northwest because it ‘felt’ right, and I’ve been told by my guides that this place is being ‘stablized’ Not sure why they used that word, but I love it here. Do you mean vortex like Sedona? Would love to know why Atlanteans and Lemurians are re-gathering at this time.
According to my friend: “I believe the Lemurians are attracted to the Sandpoint area because it was an ancient Lemurian stronghold. This area is also supposed to be a point on the Christ grid, and a place where two synchronic lines intersect. I believe there are 5 pyramid mountains tops here, each where there are lay lines. That would all indicate that there’s ancient sacred energy here, and many of us may be drawn here to help open the living libraries or to send light to the grids for use by light workers in darker areas of the world. It’s probably time to bring back the Lemurian energies and awaken that culture, because it was a peaceful and beautiful culture. I think that may be one reason why I’m drawn to go to Mt. Shasta this week, because it, too, is an ancient Lemurian center and they say there are still ancient Lemurians living in the mountain (where some say they went to find sanctuary when the Atlanteans caused the big flood by misusing their technologies for negative reasons).
Damanhur, Italy, and Tibet are where 4 synchronic lines intersect, so they are both powerful places as well.
Many Atlanteans were also Lemurians, so that may be why they’re in this area. Otherwise I don’t know why Atlanteans would be here.”
About 95% of people who move here cross the Long Bridge and feel the pull of the area. Gardening is a passion here, light work, etc is more common than not. Even though the economy hit this area hard and many work two or three jobs, they are loathe to leave here.
I’ve always been fascinated by these structures.
Newgrange in Ireland is older than Stonehenge. Every year on the winter solstice the sun penetrates the chambers, showing that its creators understood astronomy.
Really cool! I’ll have to look that one up and include next time I touch on this topic. Thanks, Emma!
amazing, Serena. thanks for posting this. there is so much we don’t understand and I’m always delighted to be exposed to more information.
Most welcome, Louise! Glad you enjoyed it.
Very interesting, Serena! I love watching the History channel about this stuff! Did you read that they dug under one of the giant heads on Easter Island and there’s actually a body attached to it? Here’s the link: http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/2012/05/16/easter-island-archaeology-project-digs-up-islands-secrets/
I have not been to any of those sites you mentioned (sadly) but I hope to someday! I’ve been to America’s Stonehenge though! It’s in New Hampshire and is surrounded by just as much mystery. But the stones there aren’t as impressive as those sites covered in your blog. I’ve been to places like the Colliseum in Rome and I thought that was pretty impressive! I’ve been all over Europe and I’ve can’t get over how impressive their churches are! Amazing structures, simply amazing. And to build them without the technology we have today! Even more amazing.
Thanks for sharing!
I wonder if all of them have bodies? Makes you wonder how long it took for all that dirt to pile up? I didn’t know we had a henge circle here in the U.S. How cool! Another site to look up. 🙂
Excellent article, Serena. Even as an archaeologist, I realized we have lost so much our prehistory. It’s one reason I decided to leave the field and try my hand at fiction 🙂
Seriously? That’s your background? Amazing! If you ever read Graham Hancock (he’s one of my favorites) I’d love to know what you think of his stuff. It sounds good to me, just using my critical thinking, but I do wonder what someone with that background would think of his research, sources, data, etc.
Cool stuff, Serena! I’ve not been to any of these places, but I have been to Mesa Verde and other Native American cliff dwellings around the Southwestern part of the United States. Those are pretty cool places, too.
Always leaves me wondering.
w/a Jansen Schmidt
Ah, those places are high on my list of places to see. Very perplexing stuff right here in the U.S.
I’ve been to Chichen Itza, and climbed the big pyramid when they still let people do that. Seeing how everything aligned with the sun and stars during the solstice really made me wonder how a less-technologically-advanced culture could have built these.
Wonderful article, that brings out more questions than it answers, as always happens. I appreciate you stopping by my Obama Care blog and liking it. Your welcome back any time.
Thanks, Shirley! I sure don’t have the answers, but I love hearing all the questions and playing with the possibilities.
I have been to Stonehenge and Avebury, Kilmartin Glen but there are many more interesting places to see one day. Examples of ancient wisdom and technology.
I would expand the list above with Nan Madol, Gudong Padang (http://www.tripbetter.blogspot.com/2014/01/8-of-most-overlooked-megalithic-sites.html)
Thank you Nestor! I am not familiar with Nan Madol, but I have heard of Gunong Padang. Fascinating stuff. I appreciate that you read my blog and took the time to comment.