And the discoveries never cease to amaze both the researchers themselves and people far from scientific research. Sometimes they are so fantastic that they become the subject of many years of debate among pundits from all over the world.
Swiss watch in an ancient burial
In 2008, when filming was underway in the Chinese province of Guangxi documentary film The opening of an ancient tomb belonging to the Ming Dynasty revealed unusual findings. However, the most amazing of them turned out to be... Swiss watches! The amazement of journalists and archaeologists themselves knew no bounds. According to Jian Yan, a former curator at a local museum who also participated in the excavations, a small piece of rock bounced off the surface of the coffin after the soil was removed. He fell to the floor, making a characteristic metallic sound.
When the item was picked up, it was discovered that it was a ring. After thoroughly cleaning it from the soil, it turned out that there was a miniature dial on it. On the inside of the ring there was an engraved inscription Swiss, i.e. “Switzerland”. And as you know, the Chinese ruled the country until 1644, so it was simply impossible to create such a small mechanism in those days, and Switzerland as such did not yet exist. But local experts assured everyone present that this tomb had never been opened in almost 400 years.
Crystal Skull
Sometimes archaeologists discover unusual finds even in the most impenetrable jungles. An example of this is a certain artifact discovered in Belize in 1927. It is a life-size human skull skillfully crafted from the purest rock crystal, weighing about 5 kg. The Indians living in the surrounding villages immediately learned about this find. They turned out to be descendants of that same Mayan tribe. The Indians said that, according to ancient legend, this is one of thirteen crystal skulls in existence. If you find and collect them in one place, you can comprehend all the secrets of the universe.
The Crystal Skull was carefully examined in laboratory conditions. As a result, scientists concluded that the artifact was made using a technology unknown to them, which does not fit into any of the laws of physics or chemistry. In other words, this item cannot be created even with the most modern high-tech equipment, let alone by the ancient Mayans.
Prehistoric bird paw
Perhaps the most unusual finds are the remains of creatures that once lived on Earth, the sight of which would be very frightening modern people. In 1986, a scientific expedition examined a cave system located in Mount Owen (New Zealand). Suddenly, one of the researchers came across a rather large and well-preserved part of a paw with huge claws. It seemed as if its owner had recently died.
A little later, scientists determined that the remains belonged to the prehistoric She was truly huge and could not fly. Presumably, it became extinct between 1300 and 1450 AD. e. The reason for its disappearance may be the Maori hunters who lived on this island at the end of the 14th century.
Mass burial of infants in Ashkilon
Perhaps the most terrible and unusual finds of archeology are associated with mass graves of infants. In 1988, regular excavations were carried out on the territory of the ancient city of Ashkelon (Israel), located on the Mediterranean coast. In one of the ancient sewers located under the Roman baths, a large number of small bones were discovered, which were initially mistaken for chicken bones.
It later turned out that archaeologist Ross Voss had made a terrible discovery. It turned out that all these bones belonged to more than a hundred babies. This burial remains the largest children's cemetery in history.
Forensic anthropologist Patricia Smith examined the remains of the babies, after which she stated that she did not find any signs of illness, much less any diseases. Using special forensic techniques, she determined that the deceased children were no more than a week old.
However, if we look at history, then during the Roman Empire, killing newborns was not considered a crime. This ritual was a form of birth control. It is possible that the burial site served as some kind of institution where unwanted babies were disposed of. According to the laws of that time, a child who was not recognized by his father was allowed to be killed, but only on the condition that the child was not yet two years old. The most striking example of this is the legend of Romulus and Remus - the founders Eternal City. These newborn sons of Mars (the god of war), left by people in the forest to die, were nursed and raised by a she-wolf.
Tomb of the Headless Vikings
In the summer of 2010, a mass grave of soldiers was found in Dorset (Britain). Workers who were laying the railway discovered unusual finds in the ground - piles of human skeletons without heads. Soon, skulls were also found, stacked a little further away. At first, archaeologists thought that the surviving inhabitants of the village, which was subjected to a brutal Viking raid, thus decided to take revenge on the offenders. But the further they analyzed this situation, the more doubts their version raised.
The fact is that the beheading itself was carried out too carefully and clearly, so a hypothesis arose that it was either some kind of ritual murder, or public execution. But no matter what happened, one thing is clear: the morals of the 8th-9th centuries were extremely cruel, and the Anglo-Saxons had to suffer quite often from the predatory raids of the Scandinavians.
Ancient Greek mechanics: antique computer
Often archaeological unusual finds at the bottom of seas and oceans are so amazing that even scientists cannot explain their existence. In 1900, sponge catchers fishing in the sea off the coast of the island of Antikythera (Greece) discovered the wreckage of an ancient Roman trading ship. Scientists have suggested that the sunken ship was traveling from Rhodes to Rome and sank around the 1st century BC. e. It turned out that it lies at a depth of no more than 60 meters. From there, a large amount of gold and silver jewelry, amphorae and ceramics, bronze and marble figurines, as well as many other antique objects were brought to the surface. Among them were parts of some strange mechanism.
At first no one paid attention to them, until in 1902 archaeologist Valerios Stais noticed that some bronze objects looked like clock gears. The scientist immediately suggested that they could be parts of some astronomical instrument, but his colleagues only laughed at him. They recalled that these unusual finds dated back to the 1st century BC. e., while gears were invented only 14 centuries later.
Stais's theory was forgotten, but in the late 50s it was remembered by the British historian D. D. de Solla Price, who carefully studied ancient artifacts from Antikythera. He was able to prove that several bronze objects once made up one mechanism, placed in a wooden box, which fell apart over time. Soon he even drew up an approximate, and later a more detailed diagram of this amazing machine. In 1971, the British watchmaker D. Gleave assembled a working copy of it, which could simulate the movement of the Moon, the Sun, as well as the other planets known at that time: Jupiter, Venus, Saturn, Mercury and Mars.
In 2005, using a special X-ray technique, artifact researchers were able to examine Greek symbols on the gears. In addition, the missing parts of this mysterious mechanism were also recreated. It turned out that this device can perform operations such as division, addition and subtraction. Therefore, it is not surprising that such a truly unusual find was called an antique computer.
Mummy of a monk inside a Buddha statue
It happens that the most unusual finds on the planet are literally right before our eyes. This is what happened with the 1000-year-old statue put on public display in the museum of the province of Drenthe (China). The fact is that just a few years ago, Dutch scientists made another shocking discovery. They discovered a human mummy inside a Chinese Buddha statue. From this, scientists concluded that it was created not just as a sculpture, but as a sarcophagus. Presumably, the ancient remains belong to Li Kwan, a Chinese meditation master.
Typically, such finds always cause not only surprise, but also a lot of questions. Some modern practicing Buddhists believe that the monk could deliberately enter some stage of meditation known only to him, during which his body seemed to self-mummify.
Ancient city of Heraklion
Unusual finds on the ocean floor are not uncommon for archaeologists. But the fact that under the water column was discovered ancient city, which disappeared as a result of a powerful earthquake for more than 1200 years, surprised even scientists who were ready for anything. Its history is akin to the legendary Atlantis. Heraklion was once located at the mouth of the Nile and, as it turned out, was a small prosperous town.
A strong earthquake occurred around the 1st century BC. e. It destroyed houses, sank a large number of ships, and also killed many people. Those who were lucky enough to survive fled, leaving all their property behind. Archaeologist Frank Godiot, who discovered the ruins of the city, realized that this was ancient Heraklion when they found a black granite slab on which this name was carved.
Terracotta Army
In 1974, Chinese farmer Yan Ji Wang was digging a well on his plot of land and at a depth of about 5 meters he discovered an ancient statue of a warrior made in full height. When archaeologists continued excavations, it turned out that there was not just one, but thousands of similar figures. It turned out that these unusual finds have been deep underground for more than two thousand years. It is believed that this clay “army” belonged to the legendary emperor Qin Shi Huang, the unifier of Chinese lands.
Now, on the site where excavations are still underway, a whole city has appeared. The work has not stopped for several decades in a row, but no one knows when it will end. Art historians have suggested that it took about 700 thousand craftsmen who worked for at least thirty years to create such a number of clay figures.
Roman dodecahedron
Sometimes you come across such unusual archaeological finds that it is difficult to understand why these objects were originally created. In the territory of Northern and Central Europe, the lands of which were once considered the outskirts of the majestic Roman Empire, unusual-looking artifacts are often found.
These are the so-called Roman dodecahedrons - bronze products with 12 faces, each of which has a round hole, and 20 small “knobs” are located in the corners. All of them date back to the 2nd-4th centuries AD. e. Scientists have put forward more than two dozen versions regarding their scope of application, but none of them have been proven.
The profession of an archaeologist first of all requires nerves of iron and endurance. While conducting research, scientists sometimes pull things out of the ground that make your heart skip a beat. In addition to ancient dishes, clothing and writings, they find the remains of animals and people. We invite you to learn about the most terrible archaeological excavations.
Screaming mummies
Egypt is full of mysteries and secrets, many of which have already been solved. While studying the tombs in 1886, researcher Gaston Maspero came across an unusual mummy. Unlike the other bodies found earlier, she was simply wrapped in sheep's clothing. And her face was twisted in a terrible grimace, while the creepy mummy’s mouth was open. Scientists put forward different versions, including poisoning and burying the Egyptian alive. In fact, everything turned out to be quite simple. When wrapping the body, the mouth was also tied with a rope. Apparently poor fastening led to the rope falling off, and the jaw, unheld by anything, fell down. As a result, the body took on such a terrible appearance. To this day, archaeologists find mummies that are still called screaming.
Headless Vikings
In 2010, the list of the most terrible archaeological excavations was supplemented by scientists who carried out work in Dorset. The group hoped to find household equipment of their ancestors, their clothing, and working tools in order to supplement historical data about their life. But what they stumbled upon horrified them. Scientists have discovered the remains of human bodies, but without heads. The skulls were located not far from the grave. Having carefully studied them, archaeologists came to the conclusion that these were the remains of Vikings. However, there were not enough skulls. Therefore, we can conclude that the punitive forces took several heads as a trophy. The burial of 54 Vikings took place in the 8th-9th century.
Unknown creature
Amateur scientists taking a walk around National Park in New Zealand, we came across a karst cave. The young archaeologists decided to visit it. Walking along the corridors of the cave, the group saw a skeleton that was well preserved, but presented an eerie sight. The rather large body had rough skin, a beak, and huge claws. I don’t understand at all where this monster came from; the guys urgently left the cave. Further research showed that these were the remains ancient bird moa. Some scientists are sure that she still lives on the planet, just hiding from people.
Crystal Skull
Archaeologist Frederick Mitchell Hedges made a stunning discovery while walking through the jungles of Belize. They found a skull made of rock crystal. The weight of the find increased by 5 kg. Tribes living nearby claim that the skull is a Mayan heritage. There are 13 of them scattered around the world, and whoever collects the entire collection will gain access to the secrets of the universe. Whether this is true or not is unknown, but the mystery of the skull has not been solved to this day. What’s surprising is that it was made using a technology that contradicts the chemical and physical laws known to mankind.
Archaeology may not be the most exciting profession, but it definitely has its exciting moments. Of course, it's not every day that archaeologists find valuable mummies, but every now and then you can stumble upon something truly amazing, be it ancient computers, huge underground armies or mysterious remains. We present to your attention 25 of the most amazing archaeological finds in human history.
1. Venetian vampire
Today every schoolchild knows that in order to kill a vampire, you need to drive an aspen stake through his heart, but hundreds of years ago this was not considered the only method. Let me introduce you to an ancient alternative - a brick in the mouth. Think for yourself. What's the best way to stop a vampire from drinking blood? Of course, fill his mouth with cement to capacity. The skull you are looking at in this photo was found by archaeologists in a mass grave on the outskirts of Venice.
2. Dump of children
By the end of this post, you will probably realize that throughout history, humans (at least in the past) have been proponents of cannibalism, sacrifice, and torture. For example, not long ago, several archaeologists were excavating in the sewer canals under a Roman/Byzantine bath in Israel and came across something truly horrifying... the bones of children. And there were a lot of them. For some reason, someone upstairs decided to get rid of a lot of the children's remains by simply throwing them down the drain.
3. Aztec sacrifices
Although historians have long known that the Aztecs held many bloody festivals with sacrifices, in 2004, near the modern city of Mexico, a terrible thing was found - many dismembered and mutilated bodies of both people and animals, shedding light on the terrible rituals that were practiced here by several hundreds of years ago.
4. Terracotta Army
This huge terracotta army was buried along with the body of Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor of China. Apparently, the soldiers were supposed to protect their earthly ruler in the afterlife.
5. Screaming mummies
Sometimes the Egyptians did not take into account the fact that if the jaw was not tied to the skull, it would end up opening as if the person was screaming before death. Although this phenomenon is observed in many mummies, it does not make it any less creepy. From time to time, archaeologists find mummies that seem to actually scream before dying for some (most likely, not the most pleasant) reasons. The photo shows a mummy called "Unknown Man E." It was found by Gaston Masparo in 1886.
Leprosy (leprosy), also called Hansen's disease, is not contagious, but people who suffered from it often lived outside of society because of their physical deformity. Since Hindu traditions cremate corpses, the skeleton in the photo, which is called the first leper, was buried outside the city.
In 1933, archaeologist Robert do Mesnil do Busson was excavating beneath the remains of an ancient Roman-Persian battlefield when he came across some siege tunnels dug under the city. In the tunnels he found the bodies of 19 Roman soldiers who had died desperately trying to escape something, as well as one Persian soldier clinging to his chest. Most likely, when the Romans heard that the Persians were digging a tunnel under their city, they decided to dig their own to counterattack them. The problem was that the Persians found out about this and set a trap. As soon as the Roman soldiers descended into the tunnel, they were greeted by burning sulfur and bitumen, and this hellish mixture, is known to turn into a poison in human lungs.
Discovered in 1799 by a French soldier digging in Egyptian sand, the Rosetta Stone has become one of the greatest archaeological finds to date and the main source of modern understanding of Egyptian hieroglyphs. The stone is a fragment of a larger stone on which is written a decree of King Ptolemy V (circa 200 BC), translated into three languages - Egyptian hieroglyphs, demotic script and ancient Greek.
They are also called Costa Rican stone balls. Scientists believe that these petrospheres, almost perfect spheres that now sit at the mouth of the Diquis River, were carved around the turn of the millennium. But no one can say for sure what they were used for and for what purpose they were created. It can be assumed that these were symbols of heavenly bodies or designations of boundaries between the lands of different tribes. Parascientific authors often claim that these “ideal” spheres could not have been made by the hands of ancient people, and associate them with the activities of space aliens.
Mummified bodies found in swamps are not that uncommon in archaeology, but this body, called the Groball Man, is unique. Not only was he perfectly preserved with his hair and nails intact, but scientists were also able to determine the cause of his death from findings collected on and around his body. Judging by the large wound on his neck from ear to ear, it appears he was sacrificed to ask the gods for a good harvest.
At the turn of the 20th century, pilots discovered a series of low rock walls in Israel's Negev desert, and they have baffled scientists ever since. The walls could be more than 64 km long and were nicknamed "kites" as they looked very reptile-like from the air. But scientists have recently concluded that the walls were used by hunters to drive large animals into enclosures or throw them off cliffs, where they could easily be killed several at a time.
Troy is a city well known for its history and legends (as well as valuable archaeological finds). It was located in the north-west of Anatolia in the territory of modern Turkey. In 1865, English archaeologist Frank Calvert found a trench in a field he had purchased from a local farmer in Hisarlik, and in 1868, wealthy German businessman and archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann also began excavating in the area after meeting Calvert in Çanakkale. As a result, they found the ruins of this ancient city, the existence of which was considered a legend for many centuries.
This is a collection of more than 33 thousand miniature clay figurines that were discovered in 1945 in the ground near Acambaro, Mexico. The find includes many small figurines resembling both humans and dinosaurs. Although much of the scientific community now agrees that the figurines were part of an elaborate scam, their discovery initially caused a sensation.
Found on a shipwreck off the Greek island of Antikythera at the turn of the 20th century. This 2,000-year-old device is considered the world's first scientific calculator. Using dozens of gears, it can accurately determine the location of the sun, moon and planets with simple data input. While debate continues over its exact application, it certainly proves that even 2,000 years ago, civilization was already making great strides toward mechanical engineering.
Known as Easter Island, this place is one of the most isolated places in the world. It is located thousands of kilometers from the Chilean coast. But the most amazing thing about this place is not even that people managed to get to it and inhabit it at all, but that they managed to erect huge stone heads all over the island.
While excavating a dry lake bed in Motala, Swedish archaeologists came across several skulls with sticks sticking out of them. But this, apparently, was not enough: in one skull, scientists found pieces of other skulls. Whatever happened to these people 8,000 years ago was terrible.
This map dates back to the early 1500s. It shows the outlines with amazing accuracy South America, Europe and Africa. Apparently, it was compiled by general and cartographer Piri Reis (hence the name of the map) from fragments of dozens of other maps.
For hundreds of years, these lines were practically under the feet of archaeologists, but they were discovered only in the early 1900s for the simple reason that they were impossible to see unless viewed from a bird's eye view. There were many explanations - from UFOs to a technically advanced civilization. The most plausible explanation is that the Nazcas were prodigious surveyors, although the reason they drew such huge geoglyphs is still unknown.
Like the Rosetta Stone, the Dead Sea Scrolls are one of the most important archaeological finds. last century. They contain the earliest copies of biblical texts (150 BC).
In 1986, an expedition was delving deeper into the cave system of Mount Owen in New Zealand when they suddenly came across the huge piece of paw that you are looking at now. It was so well preserved that it seemed as if its owner had died quite recently. But it later turned out that the paw belonged to a moa - a huge prehistoric bird with an eerie set of sharp claws.
It is called the most mysterious manuscript in the world. The manuscript was created in the early 15th century in Italy. Most of the pages are occupied by recipes for herbal infusions, but none of the plants presented coincide with those currently known, and the language in which the manuscript is written is generally impossible to decipher.
At first it seems that these are just stones, but in fact this is an ancient settlement discovered in 1994. It was created approximately 9,000 years ago, and is now one of the oldest examples of complex and monumental architecture in the world, which predates the pyramids.
This walled complex near the city of Cusco in Peru is part of the so-called capital of the Inca Empire. The most incredible thing is in the details of the construction of this wall. The stone slabs lie so tightly together that it is impossible to put even a hair between them. This shows how accurate the ancient Inca architecture was.
In the mid-1930s. Several simple-looking jars were found near Baghdad, Iraq. Nobody gave them special significance, until the curator of a German museum published a document in which he stated that these jars were used as voltaic cells, or, in other words, in simple language, batteries. Although this opinion was criticized, even MythBusters got involved and soon came to the conclusion that such a possibility existed.
Paving railway V English city Dorset, workers came across a small group of Vikings buried in the ground. They were all headless. At first, archaeologists thought that perhaps one of the villagers had survived the Viking raids and decided to take revenge, but after careful analysis, everything became even murkier and more confusing. The decapitation looked too clear and neat, which means it was carried out only from behind. But scientists still cannot say with certainty what really happened.
Despite the level of technological progress and all the accumulated knowledge about the history of our planet and the civilizations that inhabited it, we still cannot understand some mysterious discoveries.
Most finds allow scientists to learn something new about the past, but there are also artifacts that contradict all logic and challenge generally accepted knowledge about the capabilities of ancient peoples. For example, how exactly was Stonehenge built? Why were the Nazca geoglyphs drawn? Who wrote the Devil's Bible?
However, if we do not understand something, this does not mean that we still cannot try to learn something new thanks to mysterious findings. As a result, researchers will definitely find all the answers. For now, let's just find out what kind of puzzles modern archaeologists are struggling with. Here is a selection of 25 such secrets of the past!
25. Roman dodecahedrons
Roman dodecahedrons date back to the 2nd and 3rd centuries AD and still remain a real mystery to the scientific community. The diameter of these artifacts usually ranges from 3 to 11 centimeters, they are most often made of bronze and are a polyhedron of 12 regular pentagons with round holes and balls at the top of each corner. According to some versions, dodecahedrons were used either for ritual purposes or as a measuring device. These were very valuable objects, and throughout Europe archaeologists have already found several hundred of these mysterious artifacts.
24. Giant circles
Photo: Rei-artur blog
In Jordan and Syria, 8 huge circles were discovered using satellite imagery. The diameter of the figures ranges from 220 to 455 meters, and no one knows exactly when they appeared here, or why they were drawn. Archaeologists are still excavating the site where the mysterious formations were discovered, but they are already suggesting that these objects date back to the period from the beginning of the Bronze Age to the times of the Roman Empire.
23. Copper scroll
Photo: Wikipedia Commons.com
Among the other scrolls found in the Dead Sea area, there is one manuscript that is different from all the others. The discovery was made in 1952, and unlike parchment or papyrus artifacts, this scroll is made of a metal alloy (mostly copper). The manuscript contains approximately the following text: “In the large cistern, which is located in the courtyard of the pillared hall, in the recess opposite the door, in the corner, nine hundred talents are hidden. In the cistern under the wall on the east side there are six hundred silver bars. In the southern corner of the columned hall at the tomb of Zadok and under the column in the meeting hall there is a spruce vessel for incense and the same vessel made of cassia wood.” Yes, this is a real treasure map. Historians and ordinary treasure hunters have been trying in vain to find this treasure for many years. Some experts even began to suggest that the text is of a metaphorical nature or is more of a kind of recommendation rather than a description of an already completed hiding place.
22. Letters rongo-rongo
Photo: Wikipedia Commons.com
Rongorongo writing was found on Easter Island in the 19th century. They are a collection of wooden tablets covered with mysterious hieroglyphs of unknown origin. No one has ever been able to decipher the meaning of these ancient letters, but some scientists believe that deciphering these texts could help shed light on the mysterious disappearance ancient civilization, who once inhabited Easter Island.
21. Scottish pyramids of Clava
Photo: Elliott Simpson
These mysterious stone structures are almost 4,000 years old and were discovered on the south bank of the River Nairn in Scotland. Piles of stones are diluted with vertically standing megaliths (stone blocks), and most of all scientists are puzzled by the question of how exactly the people of those years managed to collect all these heavy boulders in one place and install them in the form of a ring monument. In addition, researchers do not quite understand why this ancient complex was built in the first place. Among most theories, the most common ones involve burial rituals, solstice sightings, and even aliens.
20. Pot-bellied Hill or Gobekli Tepe
Photo: Teomancimit
Göbekli Tepe is a huge archaeological complex discovered in Turkey, whose age is approximately 11,000 years old, that is, it is 6,000 years older than even the legendary Stonehenge. In the temple complex, many pillars decorated with carved silhouettes of animals and other mystical creatures, as well as many other religious buildings, were discovered. Initially hidden under a 15-meter hill, the complex was mistaken for an ancient cemetery, but archaeologists later realized that they were faced with something more grandiose. Most likely, it was a temple, but research is still ongoing.
19. American Stonehenge
Photo: (WT-shared) Jtesla16 at wts wikivoyage
American Stonehenge was discovered in the town of Salem, New Hampshire (Salem, New Hampshire). This amazing monument is a system of caves and stone structures, and its origin is still unclear and causes a lot of controversy among experienced archaeologists. The territory on which the complex is located belonged to the Pattees family, but the site remained unnoticed until William Goodwin bought the land in 1937. Since then, archaeological excavations have begun here. Radiocarbon dating showed that they worked on the creation of this mysterious place as early as 2000 BC. But who exactly lived in this American Stonehenge is still unknown to science.
18. Stone balls of Costa Rica Las Bolas
Photo: Shutterstock
Locals call them Las Bolas (balls). These spherical artifacts are scattered along the coast of the Diquis River Delta, on the Nicoya Peninsula and on Caño Island in southern Costa Rica. The giant stone spheres date back to around 600 AD and are composed primarily of gabbro (igneous rock). The purpose of the stone balls is still a mystery, but scientists speculate that they were either used as wayfinders or for the purpose of studying the stars.
17. Treasures and the mysterious disappearance of the Sanxingdui people
Photo: Nishanshaman
This archaeological mystery lies not so much in the artifacts themselves, but in the creators of the finds. In 1929 and again in 1986, a pit containing jade items was discovered in the Chinese province of Sichuan. A simple peasant was the first to find it, and several decades later, a full-fledged excavation was finally carried out here. The treasury contained bronze and stone artifacts, elephant tusks and other amazing finds. Apparently, the Sanxingdui culture lived in these lands on the banks of the Minjing River about 3,000 years ago, but suddenly it literally disappeared from the face of the Earth, and scientists are still wondering why. Among the probable causes are war and famine. One of the most recent speculations involves a strong earthquake. Perhaps, during the next powerful shock, a serious landslide occurred, blocking the river bed and changing its course, which forced the ancient settlement to hastily change its place of residence in search of a new source of water.
16. Nazca geoglyphs
Photo: Unukorno
Lines and geometric images in the Nazca Desert (Peru) is one of the greatest archaeological mysteries in the world. Scattered throughout the Peruvian plateau are a great many of these mysterious designs, which appeared between 500 AD and 500 BC. The unusual size, huge number, plot and structure of these geoglyphs have puzzled the most prominent scientists. The main version says that these lines and drawings are associated with some ancient rituals or were used by ancient scientists to observe the starry sky.
15. Baghdad battery
Photo: Boynton/flickr
This artifact is almost 2000 years old. A Baghdad battery was found in a suburb of the Iraqi capital. In front of you is a clay vessel with a bitumen stopper and an iron rod passed through the stopper into the vase itself, inside of which there is also a copper cylinder. When filled with vinegar, this battery is capable of producing an electrical voltage of 1.1 volts. However, no written evidence has been found that these vessels were used in this manner. Scientists have not discovered any other devices that would work using these ancient galvanic elements. Skeptics believe that these were ordinary vessels for storing manuscripts.
14. Underground city of Derinkuyu
Photo: Nevit Dilmen
In the Turkish province of Nevsehir, a real city was hidden right underground for many years. There are many similar dungeons in Turkey, but Derinkuyu is the largest of them. The shelter consists of 8 levels and descends to a depth of 80 meters. The cave kingdom was built around the 8th century BC, and the first inhabitants were the ancient Phrygians, and then the early Christians, who hid here from persecution. However, the original purpose of such a grandiose underground structure still remains unknown.
13. Shroud of Turin
Photo: Dianelos Georgoudis
The Shroud of Turin is a 4-meter linen cloth with an imprint of the body of a man executed on the cross. The Shroud is kept in the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist in Turin and is recognized as one of the most important Christian relics, since believers believe that it was the body of Jesus Christ that was wrapped in it when he was buried in the tomb of a Jewish elder. Scientific research have not yet shed light on the age of the canvas, since some experts believe that the fabric was produced during the Middle Ages, while other scientists attribute it to the time of Jesus Christ. The Catholic Church does not recognize the shroud as authentic, and the Orthodox Church has so far refused to take an official position on this matter.
12. Underwater cairn
Photo: Nemo
In Lake Tiberias, using the echolocation method, scientists recently discovered an entire underwater pyramid. The pile of stones stretches approximately 70 meters in diameter, but archaeologists have not yet been able to determine its age or purpose. There are a lot of tilapia swimming in this lake, which has led some experts to believe that this structure was once used for fishing.
11. Stonehenge
Photo: garethwiscombe
Stonehenge is a very famous archaeological complex, which has long been considered a real mystery. The largest stone blocks weigh approximately 25 tons and rise 9 meters above the ground. Some of these giant boulders were brought from West Wales, meaning they were dragged as far as 225 kilometers. How exactly the ancient inhabitants of these places managed to transport such heavy stones is still unknown. Carrying them probably required the coordinated work of several thousand people at once. If this was all true, then the creation of this complex should have marked the real unification of England in those years, because the construction required very serious resources and the involvement large quantity working hands.
10. Sound effects in the hypogeum (sanctuary) of Hal Saflieni
Photo: Wikipedia Commons.com
The Hal Saflieni Temple is located in Malta, and this prehistoric complex is almost 5,000 years old. In addition, it is one of the very few underground sanctuaries dating back to the Bronze Age. No one knows exactly why this hypogeum was built, but the main version is that it served as a refuge for the prophet, and subsequently a burial ground was organized here. This place becomes even more mysterious due to its unusual properties, due to which sounds here are perceived in an unusual way. There is a special room in the dungeon where all the lowest sounds resonate as loudly as if you were in the center of a giant bell, but outside of this room you can hardly hear anything. Was this what ancient people intended during the construction of the complex, or was this an unforeseen effect?
9. Khatt Shebib
Photo: Pixabay.com
Sir Alec Kirkbride discovered the Hutt Shebib in 1948. This is an ancient wall that stretches 150 kilometers across almost the entire Jordan. Since its opening, the structure has been shrouded in mystery and has captivated the minds of prominent archaeologists. No one still knows how ancient the Hutt Shebib is, or what it was intended for. Today, only modest ruins remain of the wall, although previously it was supposedly not too high, which means that the wall was certainly not designed for defensive purposes. It is possible that it was used by ancient farmers, or that it was some kind of symbol borders.
8. Giant Codex or Devil's Bible
Photo: Wikipedia Commons.com
Codex Gigas (in Latin) is a medieval parchment manuscript recognized as the most voluminous and heaviest handwritten book throughout Western Europe. The vault is so heavy that only 2 people can move it at a time, because the weight of this block is about 75 kilograms. The Gigantic Codex includes the Old and New Testaments, as well as several other texts - the works of Josephus, Isidore of Seville's "Etymology", Cosmas of Prague's "Czech Chronicle" and other books on Latin. The author of the codex is unknown, but presumably he was a single person - a hermit monk who worked on the creation of the manuscript for several decades in a row. This collection was called the Devil's Bible because it also contains a full-page image of Satan.
7. Puma Punku
Photo: Janikorpi
Puma Punku is a Bolivian complex consisting of huge megaliths, carved from stone with the greatest precision. The most main mystery today - not so much the purpose of some of the local objects, but their age. Expert opinions are divided and very different from each other. So, some scientists believe that the complex appeared around 500-600 BC, while others believe that the artifacts are almost 17,000 years old. Another amazing feature of Puma Punku is the incredible precision with which the stones were processed. The blocks look as if they were cut using a diamond cutter, but such technology is unlikely to have existed in such ancient times.
6. Longyou Caves
Photo: Zhangzhugang
Discovered in 1992 near the village of Longyou, the amazing Longyou Caves are the whole system man-made dungeons that remained in a flooded state for a long time. They were discovered while cleaning local ponds, and in the end it turned out that the height of some of the rooms reaches 30 meters. None of the 24 has communication with the neighboring one, but they all have common walls. The dungeons are simply huge, made with incredible skill and require significant effort to create them, but for some reason not a single historical document mentions their existence. The age of the structures was determined by a number of indirect signs (for example, stalactites) and is approximately 2200 years old.
5. Super-Henge
Photo: anonymous
Not far from the famous Stonehenge, archaeologists have discovered an even larger complex hidden deep underground. It was called Superhenge, and this monument consists of 90 huge stone blocks, reminiscent of the megaliths from Stonehenge. Scientists discovered the complex using ground-penetrating radar, and the monument has still not been excavated. Experts find it difficult to answer the question about the purpose of the object, but they are sure that all these stones were buried here with some special intention.
4. Stone labyrinths of Bolshoi Zayatsky Island
Photo: Vitold Muratov
A small Russian island, lost in the White Sea, no more than 2.5 square kilometers in size, is a practically uninhabited piece of land that keeps many secrets. For example, did you know that stone labyrinths have been decorating this place for almost 32 thousand years? All these piles and strange mounds cover the main part of the island, but archaeologists still have not figured out who exactly built the mysterious labyrinths and for what purpose. Perhaps these were religious altars or other ritual objects.
3. Stone slab Cochno
Photo: University of Glasgow
In Scotland, archaeologists have unearthed a 5,000-year-old stone slab decorated with unusual geometric patterns. The Cochno Stone (from the name of the farm near which the artifact was found) is 13 meters long and 7.9 meters wide, and scientists called the designs carved into its surface “bowls and ring marks.” Similar patterns are found around the world and in other prehistoric locations. The meaning of these drawings remains unknown to this day, as well as who created them. In addition, it is not clear how exactly ancient people managed to leave these marks in places so distant from each other. The Kochnin slab was transported to another place not only for further research, but also to protect it from attacks by vandals.
2Microscopic Copper Finds That Are Nearly 300,000 Years Old
Photo: ugraland
In 1991, on the banks of the Narada, Kozhim and Balbanyu rivers in the area Ural mountains Mysterious artifacts were discovered. The microscopic spiral-shaped copper and tungsten parts are surprising because experts are still arguing about their age. Some scientists suggest that these finds are somehow related to rocket tests at the nearby Baikonur and Plesetsk cosmodromes. However, other researchers argue that the rocks in which these mysterious springs were found are too ancient, and analysis of these layers has shown that the finds may be approximately 300,000 years old.
1. Tomb with skulls from Sanken
Photo: Pixabay.com
In Sweden, archaeologists have discovered a burial site of human remains that are almost 8,000 years old. Researchers found 11 skulls of men, women, children and infants there. Scientists have probably stumbled upon a tomb built here during the Stone Age, when hunters and gatherers strung the heads of the dead on one common pole and buried them in lakes. No one knows exactly how and why the ancient people came up with such a terrible ritual.
