The idea that Ahkenaten may actually have been in some sense a conservative trying to turn the clock back to an earlier period when the Sun god was supreme, (Along with the Pharaoh.), and the priesthood firmly under the control of the God-King is a idea that has been around for a while.
I suspect that it was not direct influence from Khufu to Ahkenaten but more or less knowledge that there ha
by
Pacal
-
Ancient Egypt
Volume II of Romer's A History of Ancient Egypt came out recently. It covers the period from the Great Pyramid to the end of the Middle kingdom. See
My problem with the first volume is the lack of conventional narrative political history. For example his lack of discussion of the mysterious 2nd dynasty Pharaoh Peribsen is frankly annoying. On the same tangent he almost entirely ignores
by
Pacal
-
Ancient Egypt
This appears to indicate that the Hyksos dynasties and the Hyksos themselves are very similar to the Libyans who established a dynasty in Egypt after the end of New Kingdom.
In other words like the Libyans the so-called Hyksos gradually infiltrated Egypt and settled there much of the time peacefully before the establishment of their respective dynasties.
Certainly the article linked to indi
by
Pacal
-
Ancient Egypt
Atlantis Rising of course should now join that worthless "documentary" from the 1990s The Mysterious Origins of Man, as an outstanding example of pseudo excrement.
Atlantis Rising, appears to contain the same mixture of lies, distortions / fabrications and fake experts that The Mysterious Origins of Man contained and so is like it of little to zero value.
I agree that shows like A
by
Pacal
-
Paper Lens
Regarding your questions:
"1) some tool making hominid species spread from Africa all across Asia to north China 1.7 million years ago but apparently never reached the Americas. Yet horses, camels, cheetahs, mammoths, etc. migrated from the Americas to Asia."
I could list a whole series of animals of the Americas that failed to cross the Bering strait land bridge such has Giant Sl
by
Pacal
-
Paper Lens
Read the three postings. Looks like one more non mystery too me.
by
Pacal
-
Humanities
Since Graham Hancock, as evidenced by his past writings, will almost certainly distort, fabricate and exaggerate aside rom relying on outdated and fringe sources while ignoring the more up to date and accurate sources. We can rest assured that the "masses" will be mislead and sold a bill of lying goods.
There is little evidence that past writings by Graham Hancock lead very many peop
by
Pacal
-
Paper Lens
Just a few days after her daughter's, (Carrie Fisher), death Debbie, Singing in the Rain, Reynolds has also died. Apparently while planning her Daughter's funeral. A Screen Legend is no longer with us.
by
Pacal
-
Paper Lens
I would also think that that one of the reasons right is favoured over left is because most people are right-handed.
by
Pacal
-
Ancient Egypt
Perhaps the so-called "fringe" might do better if they didn't habitually, lie, fabricate, and distort in order to advance their favorite hobby horses. Perhaps they might do better if they didn't rely so much of the time on outdated evidence and research. Perhaps they might do better if they didn't fantasize idiotic notions of conspiracy; that supposedly is supressing the
by
Pacal
-
Ancient History
Well somebody had to show that in the case of Graham Hancock the Emperor had, and has no clothes.
by
Pacal
-
Ancient History
The idea that Antarctica has been around for a while. In 1995 Rand & Rose Flem-Ath published When the Sky Fell: In Search of Atlantis, (Weidenfeld & Nicolson, London.), that advanced the idea that Atlantis was in the Antarctic. So it is not very new.
Of course the idea faces many, many problems the most important being that Antarctica has been covered with a immense thick ice sheet for
by
Pacal
-
Ancient History
I recently ordered Bernard's Aztec Medicine, Health, and Nutrition. I got it today. And then I get the this news.
I will miss him.
by
Pacal
-
Coffee Shop
The voyages were hardly themselves state secrets and Gades had long been known to the western Greeks who did in fact visit Athens. So no Plato would not have needed the www at all. All he would need would be to be reasonably knowledgable. After all the Greeks had known for centuries about the pillars of Heracles and Herodotus knew of the Atlantic ocean.
by
Pacal
-
Ancient History
The Phoenicians had long before Plato established a colony at Gades, (Modern Day Cadiz), on the Atlantic coast of Spain c. 1000 B.C.E., and the Phoenician explorers Hanno and Himilco had explored in Hanno's case the coast of Africa and in Himilico's case the Atlantic coast of Western Europe up to Britain. All this happening about a century before Plato.
So it would have been readily
by
Pacal
-
Ancient History
You say:
QuoteTime to stir things up.. The story of Atlantis by Plato. The claim is that it is a philosophical treatise. In the story Plato describes a specific concrete description. The description is that of the Atlantic Ocean. Just HOW did he know of that? He also said that in that time it was navigable. He also described an area of mud in the middle of it. The Sargasso sea? None of these d
by
Pacal
-
Ancient History
You say:
QuoteWell a small problem. Mentioning the atlantic (what does that have to do with a philosophical parable?) is a concrete place. And how would he know of it? It's a long way from Greece. In addition he indicates that the Atlantic is navigable. That is also a concrete activity. Lots of bodies of water much closer to Greece if one is including such in a philosophical tale. He also
by
Pacal
-
Ancient History
The Mythology said they walked by themselves and that is wrong.
And to repeat if the statues had all been walked there would be particular wear patterns and bluntly they aren't found on the great majority of statues. So I suspect the majority of statues weren't walked.
by
Pacal
-
Ancient History
It is generally thought that the Sumerian King List distorts by listing kings has if they reigned over the whole land of Sumer. So Dynasties are left out and dynasties that occurred at the same time are put as if one came after the other.
I have my doubts given that evidence has been found of some of the kings in the early part of the king list that the list is simply "fiction". A go
by
Pacal
-
Ancient History
There is a Chinese account of an Embassy, it could also just be a group of Merchants, from what appears to be the Roman Empire during the reign of Marcus Aurelius. (c. 166 C.E.)
Also Chinese accounts refer to a state in the far west called Ta-ch'in, (Unsure of the spelling), which appears to be the Roman Empire. There is also a Chinese account of a traveller who journeyed as far as the Pe
by
Pacal
-
Ancient History
QuoteI take Plato's words at face value. No hidden agenda or parable. I rather suspect with Plato's status if he wanted to describe the ideal society he would have just done so.
Really so you accept the absurdities in Plato's story like the date of Athens, (9600 B.C.E.), the size of Atlantis being larger than Libya and Asia etc., and etc.
As for a "hidden" agenda jus
by
Pacal
-
Ancient History
QuoteNicely state Roxana. You believe that Plato made all of this up as a philosophical parable. Each human being can believe ANYTHING they want. Anything. That belief counts for NOTHING. Where is your PROOF of the proposed belief that Plato created this concoction as a parable?
Lets see. Plato wrote dialogues which never happened and had people saying things which they never said. So it seems
by
Pacal
-
Ancient History
There is a huge mountain of excavation reports, books, articles etc., about the Mound builders. But I have little doubt Hancock will largely ignore it in favour of pseudo crap, and what he does use he will distort.
It would take quite sometime to master the truly massive archeological literature about the Mound builders but since Hancock won't be doing that his book will take less time.
by
Pacal
-
Ancient History
QuoteThere are many documented cases in which there have been visual sightings of such craft that do not then show up in attempts to photographically record the event. This does not then mean the craft do not exist, but rather instead may simply mean that the technology we are using is not capable of capturing the event electronically.
Aside from the special pleading if the event can't be
by
Pacal
-
Paper Lens
QuoteThat said, I do not know who this Jason Colavito is, but from the little I read in these links I would say two things - first, I don't see him disproving the testimony given by hundreds of credible witnesses, and I don't see him exhibiting a full and accurate command of what is now, and what has been for some 70 years, going on. He strikes me as a young pup who is trying desperatel
by
Pacal
-
Paper Lens
First of all Mythology often has nothing even remotely to do with History. As for Oral History being a primary source? That depends. Oral history when it comes to narrative preserves elements that continue to make sense to the listeners and drop out those things that do not. Also stuff is added to it with great regularity. Without an external check Oral History is not much to rely on.
I will k
by
Pacal
-
Ancient History
Aside from the fact that this particular version of how the statues were moved is not accepted by everyone there is the fact that the myth states the statues "walked" to their final resting places by themselves. Frankly I suspect sleds and/or rollers are more likely than the "walk" method, if only because they are easier. Also the lack of wear patterns where they would be if t
by
Pacal
-
Ancient History
Sorry but the flood myth is not universal. It is very common, with lots of wildly different versions all over the world, which precludes the story from diffusing from a single origin.
In Sub-Saharan Africa for example flood myths are very much the minority.
by
Pacal
-
Ancient History
Intresting.
I note this Indian migration did not bring agriculture, or the bow and arrow. Or any of a vast host of Indian cultural items. I think this tells us something about the nature of the contact.
by
Pacal
-
Ancient History