Going underground: The massive European network of Stone Age tunnels that weaves from Scotland to Turkey

By Daily Mail Reporter

From: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/

Stone Age man created a massive network of underground tunnels criss-crossing Europe from Scotland to Turkey, a new book on the ancient superhighways has claimed.

German archaeologist Dr Heinrich Kusch said evidence of the tunnels has been found under hundreds of Neolithic settlements all over the continent.

In his book - Secrets Of The Underground Door To An Ancient World - he claims the fact that so many have survived after 12,000 years shows that the original tunnel network must have been enormous.

Evidence of Stone Age tunnels has been found under hundreds of Neolithic settlements all over Europe - the fact that so many have survived after 12,000 years shows the original tunnel network must have been huge

'In Bavaria in Germany alone we have found 700metres of these underground tunnel networks. In Styria in Austria we have found 350metres,' he said.

'Across Europe there were thousands of them - from the north in Scotland down to the Mediterranean.

'Most are not much larger than big wormholes - just 70cm wide - just wide enough for a person to wriggle along but nothing else.

'They are interspersed with nooks, at some places it's larger and there is seating, or storage chambers and rooms.

'They do not all link up but taken together it is a massive underground network.'

Not for the claustrophobic: Most of the tunnels are just 70cm wide - just wide enough for a person to slowly wriggle through

Some experts believe the network was a way of protecting man from predators while others believe that some of the linked tunnels were used like motorways are today, for people to travel safely regardless of wars or violence or even weather above ground.

The book notes that chapels were often built by the entrances perhaps because the Church were afraid of the heathen legacy the tunnels might have represented, and wanted to negate their influence.

In some cases writings have been discovered referring to the tunnels seen as a gateway to the underworld.

Crash test mummies: Egypt's oldest pyramid saved from collapse by giant airbags

By Daily Mail Reporter
From: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/

Egypt's oldest pyramid has been saved from collapse by giant airbags which have been used to prop up the ceilings.

The 4,700-year-old building has been stabilised so engineers can carry out permanent repairs.

The giant structure was built as a burial place for Pharaoh Djoser, a warrior who reigned in the third dynasty for 19 years but has been damaged in an earthquake.

Top support: The Pyramid of Djoser in Memphis, north-west Egypt, was likely to collapse before giant airbags were used to support the ceiling

SAFE FROM COLLAPSE: ANCIENT EGYPTIAN PYRAMIDS

The 4,700-year-old pyramid for Pharoah Djoser which is undergoing restoration work is a step pyramid. Originally it would have been covered by layers of limestone.

As one of the earliest ones created by the Egyptians, it was made from compacted mud brick layers with smaller layers built on top of each other. The square Djoser Pyramid is around 60 metres tall and has six steps.

Later came the bent pyramids which were built in much the same way but had their sides covered with smooth rock to give them angled rules. However, they did not go up at precisely the same angle all the way.

Finally came the true pyramids with the smooth walls rising at the same angle all the way to the top. They had their steps filled in with masonry.

The British team - who helped repair Windsor Castle after it was damaged by fire in 1993 - used technology first developed to aid in the safer disposal of improvised explosive devices in Afghanistan.

Engineering boss Peter James said: 'The entire structure could be destroyed at any point due to the damage caused by the earthquake.

'But we have stabilised the roof with these inflatable airbags and we will soon start repairing this magnificent building.'

The historic pyramid was feared to be so unstable that no-one has taken on the challenge of securing it in the last 19 years.

Peter James, a former Royal Navy lieutenant-commander who served in the Falklands War, has won a £1.8million contract to carry out the repairs.

His company Cintec adapted the airbags used by the British army to support the buidling.

The water filled bags work by surrounding an explosive with a bag which cushions the blast. But for the pyramid Mr James adapted his technology by substituting compressed air for water.

The British engineering firm that used airbags to support the structure are now going to carry out permanent repairs to the pyramid of Djoser now that these airbags are in place

The specialist structural engineers have previously worked on Buckingham Palace, Iron Bridge Gorge and The White House.

Mr James said:'It was very unstable when we got in there.

'The earthquake in 1992 had shifted everything sideways and it was a massive task trying to hold everything up without dislodging anything further.

'Until we got the scaffolding in place, we had no idea what was holding up the remaining 60m of stone.' 


'It was a lethal and massive game of Ker-Plunk - trying to hold everything up, without dislodging anything further.' 

He said: 'We had planned to use our water system but as soon as we got a good look at the chamber it was clear that inflating the bags with water wasn't going to work.

Pharoah dynamics: These airbags first used in Afghanistan to help with the disposal of roadside bombs have been used to support the 4,700-year-old pyramid

'The rocks in the ceiling were too jagged and there was a risk of deluging the pyramid which has been bone dry since it was built.' 

The team will now thread thermo-dynamic steel rods diagonally through the steps of the pyramid to stabilise the roof.

Mr James said: 'The really tricky parts are the visible bits of the pyramid.' 

'Underneath the surface we're able to use 21st Century technology to make it as strong as we know how to - but on the outside it needs to be per cent authentic.' 

'That's involved finding the strongest blend - by using components which would have been available to the ancient Egyptians.'

Tunnel found under temple in Mexico

From: http://www.physorg.com/
Researchers found a tunnel under the Temple of the Snake in the pre-Hispanic city of Teotihuacan, about 28 miles northeast of Mexico City.

 

The tunnel had apparently been sealed off around 1,800 years ago.

Researchers of Mexico's National University made the finding with a radar device. Closer study revealed a "representation of the underworld," in the words of archaeologist Sergio Gomez Chavez, of Mexico's National Institute of Anthropology and History.

Experts found "a route of symbols, whose conclusion appears to lie in the funeral chambers at the end of the tunnel."

The structure is 15 yards beneath the ground, and it runs eastwards. It is about 130 yards long.
"At the end, there are several chambers which could hold the remains of the rulers of that Mesoamerican civilization. If confirmed, it will be one of the most important archaeological discoveries of the 21st century on a global scale," Gomez Chavez said late Thursday.

Teotihuacan, with its huge pyramids of the Sun and the Moon, its palaces, temples, homes, workshops, markets and avenues, is the largest pre-Hispanic city in Mesoamerica. It reached its zenith in the years 300-600 AD.

(c) 2011, Deutsche Presse-Agentur GmbH (Hamburg, Germany).
Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.

Egypt finds 17 lost pyramids

From: http://www.globalpost.com/

A satellite survey used infra-red images to detect underground buildings.

Egyptians ride their camels past the pyramid of Khafre in Giza, on the outskirts of Cairo, on November 30, 2010. (Patrick Baz/AFP/Getty Images)

A new satellite survey of Egypt reportedly found 17 lost pyramids along with more than 1,000 tombs and 3,000 ancient settlements.

The survey used infra-red images to detect underground buildings, the BBC reports.

Satellites above the earth were equipped with cameras that could pin-point objects on the earth's surface less than three-feet wide. The infra-red imaging then highlighted different materials under the surface, it states.
The work was done by a NASA-sponsored laboratory in Birmingham, Alabama.

"To excavate a pyramid is the dream of every archeologist," Sarah Parcak who led the project told BBC.
See some of the satellite images.

Meanwhile, Egypt opened the tombs of seven men, including some who served King Tutankhamen, to tourists earlier this week after restoration, the Associated Press reports.

Egypt hopes the tombs in the New Kingdom Cemetery in South Saqqara will draw more tourists to the area.
Egypt's tourism industry has been badly hit by the revolution that toppled the government in February and subsequent political uncertainty.

Archaeologists Bring Mona Lisa’s Top Model to Light

From: http://www.history.com/

Archaeologists in Florence, Italy, are digging for the bones of the woman who may have sat for Leonardo da Vinci’s iconic and enigmatic “Mona Lisa,” which now hangs in the Louvre. With the help of ground-penetrating radar machines, they are on the verge of unsealing a tomb thought to contain the remains of Lisa Gherardini del Giocondo, the most widely accepted candidate for the world-renowned painting’s model. The team hopes that facial reconstruction technology will finally put a name to one of the most recognizable and cryptic expressions in portraiture.

Over the years, scholars have debated the true inspiration behind what may be the most famous half-smile in history. Proposed sitters for the “Mona Lisa” have included da Vinci’s mother Caterina, Princess Isabella of Naples, a Spanish noblewoman named Costanza d’Avalos and Cecilia Gallerani, who posed for an earlier painting, “The Lady With an Ermine.” Some of the more provocative theories emphasize the subject’s masculine facial features, suggesting that da Vinci based the portrait on his own likeness or that of his longtime apprentice and possible lover, Gian Giacomo Caprotti, known as Salai, who inherited the work after his mentor’s death. (In February 2011, the art historian Silvano Vinceti, who is leading the current dig, intriguingly pointed out that the title “Mona Lisa” could be interpreted as an anagram for “Mon [French for ‘my’] Salai.”)

In 2008, researchers at Heidelberg University announced they had cracked the puzzle of Mona Lisa’s identify after finding a handwritten note in the margin of a 500-year-old manuscript, penned by a Florentine clerk who admired da Vinci. The note, dated October 1503, states that the artist was working on a portrait of Lisa Gherardini del Giocondo, a wealthy silk merchant’s wife whom art historians have long considered the leading candidate for the famous painting’s model. When da Vinci bequeathed the portrait to Salai, he referred to it as “La Gioconda,” the Italian word for playful, which may also have been a pun on the feminine form of Gherardini’s married name.

One year before the note’s discovery, an amateur historian tracked down a death certificate for Gherardini—who became a nun during her widowhood—showing she had died at 65 on July 15, 1542, and was buried in Florence’s Saint Ursula convent. The site, which dates back to 1309, was converted into a tobacco factory in the 19th century and sheltered World War II refugees during the 1940s and 1950s. Saint Ursula later fell into disrepair and remained empty until recent weeks, when archaeologists used ground-penetrating radar machines to search for graves under the three-story complex’s concrete floor. They broke ground on May 9, uncovering a layer of ancient bricks and what they believe to be steps leading to Gherardini’s tomb.

Once they unseal the crypt, the team hopes to hand over skull bones to the paleoanthropologist Francesco Mallegni, who will use them to reconstruct Gherardini’s face and try to discern the haunting features of the “Mona Lisa.” The researchers will also attempt to verify Gherardini’s identify by comparing the remains’ genetic material to DNA from her children, who are known to be buried at Florence’s Santissima Annunziata church.

While this exercise may help determine just whose eyes millions of observers have been staring into for five centuries, it did not immediately sit well with Gherardini’s descendants. In late April, Natalia Guicciardini Strozzi, a member of one of Florence’s oldest noble families, told the The Telegraph that the excavation was “a sacrilegious act.” After visiting the site and meeting with Silvano Vinceti and his team, however, she shed some of her earlier reservations, saying, “At first the thought of the dig horrified me but now I am fascinated.”

9 Jaw-Dropping Caves

From: http://www.mnn.com/

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Humans have discovered and stepped on almost every swath of terrain on the planet, yet there are still places that have not been explored. Modern spelunking expeditions are unlikely to produce such fantastical results as Jules Verne's "A Journey to the Center of the Earth", but there are still some stunning sights to behold. Here are nine amazing caves from around the world that will make your jaw drop.

The Eisriesenwelt, 40 kilometers south of Salzburg, Austria

Photo: Geoffrey Blass

Click here for the Full article with pics: http://www.mnn.com/lifestyle/eco-tourism/photos/9-jaw-dropping-caves

World's oldest human remains claimed in Israel

From: http://www.physorg.com/

December 28, 2010 Enlarge

A handout photo made available by Tel Aviv University spokesperson office shows the Qesem Cave near Rosh Haayin, in central Israel, where human teeth were found. According to Researchers from Tel Aviv University they have uncovered finds that indicate the existence of modern man (Homo sapiens) in Israel as early as about 400,000 years ago.

Israeli archaeologists have discovered human remains dating from 400,000 years ago, challenging conventional wisdom that Homo sapiens originated in Africa, the leader of excavations in Israel said on Tuesday.

 

Avi Gopher, of Tel Aviv University's Institute of Archaeology, said testing of stalagmites, stalactites and other material found in a cave east of Tel Aviv indicates that eight teeth uncovered there could be the earliest traces so far of our species.

"Our cave was used for a period of about 250,000 years -- from about 400,000 years ago to about 200,000 years ago," he told AFP.

"The teeth are scattered through the layers of the cave, some in the deeper part, that is to say from 400,000 years and through all kinds of other layers that can be up to 200,000 years. The oldest are 400,000 years old", he added."


Enlarge

A handout photo made available by the Tel Aviv University shows human teeth found in the Qesem Cave near Rosh Haayin, in central Israel. According to researchers from Tel Aviv University they have uncovered finds that indicate the existence of modern man (Homo sapiens) in Israel as early as about 400,000 years ago.

That calls into question the widely held view that Africa was the birthplace of modern man, said Gopher, who headed the dig at Qesem Cave. 

"It is accepted at the moment that the earliest Homo sapiens that we know is in east Africa and is 200,000 years old, or a little less. We don't know of anywhere else where anyone claims to have an earlier Homo sapiens," he said.

Gopher said the first teeth were discovered in 2006 but he and his team waited until they had several samples, then conducted years of testing, using a variety of dating methods, before publishing their findings.
Digging continues at the cave, the university said, with researchers hoping to "uncover additional finds that will enable them to confirm the findings published up to now and to enhance our understanding of the evolution of mankind, and especially the appearance of modern man."

(c) 2010 AFP

Ellora Caves: Exquisite Rock-Cut Architecture

From: http://weburbanist.com

Ellora Caves in India is an archeological site near the ancient Indian village of Ellora. It is most well known for its magnificent caves. Ellora is a World Heritage Site and the “epitome of Indian rock-cut architecture.” There are 34 caves which were excavated and hand-carved out of high basalt cliffs between the 5th century and 10th century. Caves 1-12 are the Buddhist Caves. Caves 13-39 are the Hindu Caves. Caves 30-34 are Jain Caves. The mixture of religious cultures dug out side by side shows that ancient India had a terrific spirit of tolerance. The intricate and exquisite temples, shrines and caves are some of the oldest rock-cut architecture in the world.

Pictures: 12 Ancient Landmarks on Verge of Vanishing

From: http://news.nationalgeographic.com/

Pictures: 12 Ancient Landmarks on Verge of Vanishing

Click here for the whole article and gallery: Pictures: 12 Ancient Landmarks on Verge of Vanishing

7 Lesser Known Wonders of the World

Written by tonyleather
From: http://www.environmentalgraffiti.com/

Photo: Jean-Marie Hullot

We all know that there are sights on earth regarded as the Wonders of the World – whether ancient or modern – sights such as the Great Pyramids of Giza, the Taj Mahal, or the Grand Canyon in Colorado with its awesome grandeur. These are not, however, necessarily the sights you have to see, because the word 'wonder' can apply to so many other locations around the globe. Here are a selection of stunning places to see, if you ever get the chance.

7. Metéora Suspended Rock Monasteries, Greece

Photo: Janmad

An astounding sight to behold, Metéora, also known as the 'Suspended Rocks’, is a very large and important complex of Eastern Orthodox monasteries in Greece. Six buildings constructed on the tops of natural sandstone rock pillars make for an impressive sight. These astonishing structures were built amongst the Pindus Mountains of central Greece and were obviously meant as defensive buildings, since access was made as difficult as possible in the beginning. Only through the use of either long ladders lashed together, or large nets for hauling supplies, could access to the monasteries be obtained – though it is somewhat easier nowadays.

6. Banaue Rice Terraces, Philippines

Photo: McCouch S

Over an area of 4,000 square miles, 5,000 feet above sea level in the mountains of Ifuago in the Philippines, you will find something that local people refer to as the ‘eighth wonder of the world’: hand-carved terraces on which rice has been grown for at least 2,000 years. Ancient peoples did this incredible work over an unknown number of generations, the terraces watered through an irrigation system flowing from the rainforests above them. People maintain them to this day for planting crops, and it is widely believed that if all the terraces could be lined up end to end, the resulting line would completely encircle the globe. Truly amazing.

5. Sigiriya Rock Fortress, Sri Lanka

Photo: Ela112

Built over 1,500 years ago, during the reign of King Kassapa I between AD 477 to 495, Sigiriya, also known as ‘Lion’s Rock’, is an ancient rock fortress and palace ruin situated on the island of Sri Lanka. A popular tourist spot, this fantastic outcrop is surrounded by what is left of extensive gardens and reservoirs. Sigiriya is one of the seven World Heritage Sites of the island, renowned for its ancient frescos, similar to those of the Ajanta Caves of India. The site may, during prehistoric times, have been inhabited, and historical records tell us that it acted as a mountain monastery from the 5th century BC.

4. Tower of Hercules, Galicia

Photo: Alessio Damato

The Tower of Hercules is believed to have existed from the 2nd century onwards. Foundation base inscriptions tell of a Roman engineer called "Sevius Lupus", and written references to the Tower have been found from as early as 415AD. The lighthouse is 180 feet tall and overlooks the north Atlantic coast of Spain. The original tower is thought to have had an outer access ramp and to have burned a wood fire as a warning beacon. In 1788, King Carlos IV ordered the building of an enclosing facade around the structure, still in place to this day. The tower is the oldest Roman building acting as a fully functioning lighthouse in the world.

3. Ajanta Caves, Maharashtra, India

Photo: Jonathanawhite

Mentioned earlier in the description of Sigiriya, the Ajanta Caves – ancient and religiously significant – are to be found in Maharashtra, India. These wondrous caverns are home to incredibly detailed paintings and sculpture which belong to the genre of Buddhist religious art. Originally occupied, it is thought, from the 2nd century, some 300 years after that the caves were abandoned. For over 1,000 years they lay unvisited and undisturbed, until 1819, when a British officer in the Madras army came across the almost hidden entrance to one of the caves while out hunting. Captain Smith, the officer in question, left a remarkable legacy of discovery for future generations.

2. Torun Old City, Poland

Photo: Rene Klein

The medieval town of Torun, in Poland, was where Nicolaus Copernicus was born. Archaeologists date the original settling of this town to 1100 BC, and from the 7th to the 13th centuries, there is evidence of a settlement at a river ford. Teutonic Knights built a castle nearby between 1230 and 1231. Franciscan monks settled in the city some 30 years later, followed by Dominicans, and in 1264 the New Town was founded. In 1280, the city joined the mercantile Hanseatic League and became an important medieval trade centre.

1. Bagan Ancient City, Burma

Photo: Nicholas Kenrick

Mandalay is a part of the Burmese peninsular that contains the incredibly ancient city of Bagan. This place has been called by various names, including ‘Arimaddanapura’, ‘Tambadipa’ and ‘Tassadessa’, as it has been the ancient capital of several Burmese kingdoms. Bagan is the only unrecognized World Heritage Site listed here. The reason is that the ruling military junta has failed to make repairs to the ancient site that are in keeping with the original architectural styles and instead have used modern materials which look very much out of place. All the same, this is still a little known wonder of the world, and well worth a visit.

Sources: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7