Ancient World Review

Was There A Real King Arthur?

"It seems that there was a war leader, whose name we do not know, who defeated the Saxons, checking their advance temporarily ... Eventually the name Arthur adhered to this folk memory, and his list of accomplishments grew. Arthur is in many ways greater because we do not know the truth ..." Source: Britain Express.

"The real Arthur may have been a man named Ambrosius Aurelianus, or perhaps his war leader, who defeated the Saxons in a major battle we know as Mount Badon ... halting their advance for as long as forty years. In the end, however, the superior might and numbers of the Saxons and their allies were too much for the islanders, and Arthur's efforts became little more than a historical footnote. A terrifically romantic and exciting footnote though, for Arthur and his deeds were woven like a silk thread into the fabric of myth and legend in which Celtic storytellers delight."

Did a King Arthur actually exist? As mentioned above, various attempts have been made to connect the legendary king with actual historical figures. For instance, according to a 1998 Archaeology story, "possible evidence of the existence of Arthur, the legendary warrior king, has been found at Tintagel in Cornwall. A Cornish slate with sixth-century engravings was found in July on the eastern terraces of Tintagel on the edge of a cliff overlooking the place traditionally known as Merlin's Cave [see next video for more on Merlin]. It was discovered under broken pottery and glass from the late sixth or seventh centuries during the re-excavations of an area last dug in the 1930s." The evidence here consists of a Latin inscription which may refer to Arthur.

This next video shows the ruins of Tintagel Castle: King Arthur's birthplace, according to Geoffrey of Monmouth.

Tintagel is only one of the Arthurian locations proposed over the years. Historic UK has a list of places that have been associated with Camelot, though the consensus is that the legends are entirely fictional. That could be true, but these stories must have come from somewhere. "The King Arthur we know is one of romance, ephemera and myth," according to the Independent (2010). "But is he real? Arthur has been in and out of fashion more than denim: one year his veracity is being argued by every archaeologist in Britain, the next he's ignored or derided."

Video from 2016.

Maybe I'm just a hopeless Romantic, but I like to think that King Arthur actually existed. Despite its implausibility there's a fair amount of documentary evidence to support the idea:

"One school of thought, citing entries in the Historia Brittonum (History of the Britons) and Annales Cambriae (Welsh Annals), sees Arthur as a genuine historical figure, a Romano-British leader who fought against the invading Anglo-Saxons some time in the late 5th to early 6th century." (Wikipedia)

Librovox recording of the History of the Britons by Nennius, read by various.

"The Historia Brittonum, a 9th-century Latin historical compilation attributed in some late manuscripts to a Welsh cleric called Nennius, contains the first datable mention of King Arthur, listing twelve battles that Arthur fought. These culminate in the Battle of Badon [next video], where he is said to have single-handedly killed 960 men. Recent studies, however, question the reliability of the Historia Brittonum."

I really doubt if King Arthur killed 960 men in battle, but it would be interesting to know how Nennius came up with that specific number, assuming, that is, that the 9th century Welsh monk actually wrote the Historia Brittonum. Some authorities believe he compiled the book from various older sources.

"The other text that seems to support the case for Arthur's historical existence is the 10th-century Annales Cambriae, which also link Arthur with the Battle of Badon. The Annales date this battle to 516–518, and also mention the Battle of Camlann, in which Arthur and Medraut (Mordred) were both killed, dated to 537–539. These details have often been used to bolster confidence in the Historia's account and to confirm that Arthur really did fight at Badon."

The most well-known account of the Arthurian legend is Le Morte d'Arthur, first published in 1485 and written by Sir Thomas Malory, whoever he was. Several candidates with the same name exist, but he was most likely Thomas Malory of Newbold Revel, a  soldier, former MP and possible "thief, bandit, kidnapper, and rapist," said to have written the book using French and English sources while he was being held prisoner during the Wars of the Roses.

Related: Arthurian Timeline

The Kingdom of Mercia, Medieval Wales and King Arthur

The Yonaguni Monument: Japan's "Lost Atlantis" Or Natural Formation?

Video from 2017. Note the mention of artwork discovered on the formations.

"The Yonaguni-jima Kaitei Chikei, literally translated as 'Yonaguni Island Submarine Topography,' is an underwater mystery off the coast of the Ryukyu Islands, Japan. The massive underwater rock formation is speculated to have existed for more than 10,000 years, but whether the formation is completely man-made, entirely natural, or has been altered by human hands is still up for debate." Source: Atlas Obscura.

Many sources matter-of-factly describe the formations of the Yonaguni Monument as the ruins of an advanced prehistoric city which sank beneath the waves thousands of years ago. For instance, see the book Underworld by Graham Hancock, author of the classic work of alternate history "Fingerprints Of The Gods." This theory was first put forward by the Japanese professor and marine geologist Masaaki Kimura who began studying the monument in 1992 (the formation was first discovered by local divers in the 1980s).

Video from 2015.

After exploring the monument for around twenty years, Kimura "remains convinced that the site was carved thousands of years ago, when the land mass was above water. According to Kimura the Yonaguni’s numerous right angles, strategically placed holes and aesthetic triangles are signs of human alteration. He also claims that carvings exist on the monuments, resembling Kaida script. He believes that a pyramid, castles, roads, monuments and a stadium can be identified within the structure – which for him is evidence that the monument is what remains of the Lost Continent of Mu, the Japanese equivalent to Atlantis." (Atlas Obscura)

Note: Mu was also the home of the dreaded Ghatanothoa, an elder god so hideous that anyone who saw him (or an image of him, no matter how small) was instantly petrified, their skin turned to leather and bone while their brains remained alive and conscious forever. For more information on Ghatanothoa, see Out of the Aeons by H.P. Lovecraft and Hazel Heald.

The Yonaguni Monument could be part of a prehistoric city, I guess. It doesn't look natural to me -- there are two many straight lines and right angles and structures that definitely resemble loose blocks, stairs and what could be terraces or plazas -- but Kimura loses me when he claims that the monument originally stood on the Lost Continent of Mu. I'd like to believe in Mu and I suppose it's possible that lost continents once existed, but it would be nice to have some evidence other than ambiguous formations on the bottom of the sea.

Even if the monument is artificial, there are no signs (as far as I know) that it was ever inhabited. The top video mentions that artwork was discovered in the submerged "ruins," and Kimura claims in the next video that "tools and engraved stones" were discovered there, but I haven't been able to verify that these tools and engravings actually exist. The engravings may just be scratches in the rocks. To the best of my knowledge, no artifacts of any kind have ever been discovered in the Yonaguni Monument. In contrast, divers exploring the very real sunken town of Baiae off the coast of Italy have found all sorts of Roman statuary, mosaics, etc., lying around on the bottom of the Gulf of Naples.  There doesn't seem to be anything like that in this enigmatic site off the coast of Japan.

Mainstream archaeologists and other experts call Kimura's "sunken city" pseudoarchaeology, and they're probably right. If you believe the geologists, anyway,  this bizarre formation may not be all that bizarre after all:

"Some of those who have studied the formation, such as geologist Robert Schoch of Boston University, state that it is most likely natural. Schoch observed the sandstones that make up the Yonaguni formation to 'contain numerous well-defined, parallel bedding planes along which the layers easily separate. The rocks of this group are also criss-crossed by numerous sets of parallel, vertically oriented joints in the rock. These joints are natural, parallel fractures by which the rectangular formations seen in the area likely formed. Yonaguni lies in an earthquake-prone region; such earthquakes tend to fracture the rocks in a regular manner.' He also observes that there are similar formations on the northeast coast of Yonaguni. John Anthony West also reaches the same conclusion. Schoch also believes that the 'drawings' identified by Kimura are natural scratches on the rocks, and suggests that the 'walls' are simply natural horizontal platforms which fell into a vertical position when rock below them eroded, and the alleged roads are simply channels in the rock." (Wikipedia)

Ancient Greek Ritual Animal Sacrifice

According to the Oxford Classical Dictionary, there were three stages in an ancient Greek sacrifice: the preparatory stage, the kill and the treatment of the meat:

Preparatory: An animal was led to the altar, usually in a procession. The participants assembled in a circle, rinsed their hands in lustral [purifying] water, and took a handful of barley grain from a basket. Water was sprinkled on the victim to force it to 'nod' agreement to its own sacrifice. The main sacrificer (not necessarily a priest) then cut hair from the victim, put it on the altar fire, and uttered a prayer which defined the return that was desired [...] for the offering. The other participants threw forwards their barley grains.

"The kill. The victim's throat was cut with a knife; larger victims had been stunned with a blow from an axe first. Women participants raised the cry known as ololyge [shrill cry]. In Attic practice, it was important to 'bloody the altar;' small animals were held over it to be killed, the blood from larger ones was caught in a bowl and poured over it."

Treatment of the meat. There were three stages to the treatment of the meat after the sacrifice. "First the god's portion, typically the thigh bones wrapped in fat with (in Homer) small portions of meat cut 'from all the limbs' set on top, was burnt on the altar fire. Wine was poured on as it burnt. [...] Then the entrails were roasted on skewers and shared among all the participants. Finally the rest of the meat was boiled and distributed [...]; in contrast to the entrails, this boiled meat was occasionally taken away for consumption at home, though a community feast on the spot was the norm. Omens were often taken both from the burning of the god's portion and from the condition of the entrails."

Comment: Blood sacrifice, especially animal sacrifice, was an integral part of religious practice all over the ancient world. This is something that modern "neopagans" don't seem to grasp. A true pagan revival would necessarily mean a revival of these ancient rituals and it would also mean dropping all of the "belief systems" of modern paganism.

Real pagan religions, especially in the Mediterranean region, were entirely ritualistic. They weren't dogmatic or ideological. For instance, adherents didn't have to subscribe to a particular set of teachings like they do with Christianity. They didn't have to be believers to sacrifice to the gods; that's why Roman aristocrats who thought the gods were just superstitions useful for controlling the masses could serve as priests without being hypocrites.

Modern neopagans will never take the step into real paganism, however. They're too "civilized," whatever that means, so they will never advance beyond the stage of role-playing when they get together at sites like Stonehenge to celebrate the solstices and equinoxes. Whether this is a good thing or not depends on your point of view.

Related: How to make a sacrifice in ancient Rome.

Tomb Of Olympias, Alexander The Great's Mother, Discovered In Macedonia?

"A researcher claims to have identified the long-lost tomb of Olympias, the mother of Alexander the Great. But other scholars are skeptical it's really her burial." Source: Live Science.

"Archaeologists first discovered the tomb in 1850, not far from the Greek archaeological site of Pydna. The tomb has been studied at times by archaeologists since then. Recently, Athanasios Bintas, an emeritus professor of Greek studies at the University of Niš in Serbia, examined the tomb and now says it was used to bury Olympias. Made of stone, the tomb is 72 feet (22 meters) long and contains multiple chambers. The tomb's design has led archaeologists to date it to the late fourth to early third century B.C. As the tomb was robbed in ancient times, no bodies or grave goods have been found inside."

Comment: This would be an amazing discovery if it's for real, but it probably isn't. Bintas' argument doesn't seem to be based on anything more than the tomb's size, age, location and some nearby inscriptions, now lost, which may have mentioned Olympias. Until he comes up with something more substantial, this is just speculation.

Foreign Eggheads: Pointy-Skulled Women In Medieval Bavaria Were Foreign Brides

Video from March 2018.

"The finding indicates that these long-headed brides, who lived in the sixth century A.D., likely traveled great distances from southeastern Europe — an area encompassing the region around modern-day Romania, Bulgaria and Serbia — to what is now the southern part of modern Germany." Source: Live Science (2018).

I'm not sure when these skulls were first unearthed. According to Live Science, "The discovery of the remains of these women perplexed archaeologists for decades. It's only possible to create pointy skulls, scientifically known as artificial cranial deformation (ACD), in early childhood, when the skull is soft and malleable. But archaeologists couldn't find any children with egg-shaped skulls in the cemetery. Moreover, the women were buried with local grave artifacts, rather than foreign ones, suggesting they had adapted to local culture.

"Egg-shaped skulls are perceived as the ideal of beauty in some cultures, and may be a sign of status or nobility, the researchers noted."

Related: Deformed, Pointy Skull From Dark Ages Unearthed In France (2013).

Anchor Church Caves Were The Home Of An Exiled Anglo-Saxon King

"A British cave dwelling has been identified as the refuge for an exiled Anglo-Saxon king, according to archaeologists." Source: Live Science.

"Anchor Church Caves, located by the River Trent in a secluded part of the countryside in central England, was long considered to be an 18th-century 'folly' — an extravagant building made solely for ornamentation or as a joke.

"But a new study has revealed that the cave house is the real deal. The 1,200-year-old structure was built during the tumultuous life of the Northumbrian king Eardwulf, who was hounded from his throne to live as a hermit, and later became a saint."

Video from 2019. If these new findings are correct, this guy is wrong when he says that the church dates back to 1820.

"Local legend said Eardwulf, or St. Hardulph [1] as he was later known, lived inside the cave dwelling after he was deposed and exiled for mysterious reasons in A.D. 806. A fragment from a 16th-century book states that Eardwulf ''has a cell in a cliff a little from the Trent,'' and the banished king was buried in A.D. 830 at a location just 5 miles (8 kilometers) from the cave."

[1] "Eardwulf is identified by historians with the Saint Hardulph or Hardulf, to whom the Mercian royal church of Saint Mary and Saint Hardulph at Breedon on the Hill [next video] is dedicated. The connection, though unproven, has been made by several historians and is uncontroversial. Supporting evidence comes from a twelfth-century list of the burial places of saints compiled at Peterborough. This calls the Saint Hardulph to whom Breedon was dedicated 'Hardulfus rex'—King Eardwulf—and states that he was buried at Breedon." (Wikipedia)

Why Weren't New World Rabbits Domesticated?

"Rabbits were raised for over a thousand years in Mexico without becoming domesticated. A new study finds that their solitary lifestyle and greater species diversity made domestication unlikely." Source: Science Daily.

"...Rabbits were buried at the Sun and Moon Pyramids and are found in the stomach contents of sacrificial carnivores, such as eagles and pumas. Rabbit bones found in the carnivore stomachs contain a type of carbon that indicates a diet unusually rich in corn or cactus, suggesting human-raised rabbits had, in turn, been fed to the carnivores."

New Analysis Reveals More About Tollund Man's Last Meal

"A re-analysis of the stomach contents belonging to a naturally mummified Iron Age man is providing new insights into his surprisingly nutritious final meal and compromised state of health." Source: Gizmodo.

"Tollund Man died around 400 BCE in what is now the Jutland peninsula of Denmark. He died by hanging, in what is believed to be a ritual sacrifice. His body was preserved in a Danish bog for 2,400 years, allowing for an analysis of his stomach contents."

Though not identified, I'm pretty sure the bog body featured here is Tollund Man.

"The new findings, published in Antiquity, suggest Tollund Man ate his final meal some 12 to 24 hours before his death and that it consisted of porridge and fish—both common dishes during the Danish Early Iron Age. It was a nutritious, likely tasty meal, but Tollund Man was not in the best of health, as he was infected with several parasites. The new research was led by archaeologist Nina Nielsen from the Silkeborg Museum in Denmark."

Cashel Man - One Of The Oldest Bog Bodies In The World

I believe this report is from 2011.

Notes: The bog-preserved remains of Cashel Man were discovered in 2011. According to Wikipedia, "Radiocarbon dating places the man as having died around 2000 BC, making him one of the oldest bog bodies in Europe" and the oldest in Ireland. He is also one of the oldest bog bodies in the world and the "oldest known preserved body with the flesh still intact."

According to the National Museum of Ireland, "The remains are those of a young adult male and wounds noted on the body suggest that one is dealing with a victim of human sacrifice ... In Ireland, the ritual killing of young men was previously known to have occurred during the Early Iron Age and the discovery of an Early Bronze Age victim, apparently killed in accordance with the same ritual, brings the practice back in date by at least a millennium and a half."

This ultra-dramatic clip (2013) from a National Geographic documentary describes the discovery of Cashel Man.

According to the BBC (2013), Cashel Man may be the body of an Irish king sacrificed because of his failure to cope with a natural disaster like a crop failure or plague. The evidence for this is missing, however. "It is uncertain whether Cashel Man was one of these unfortunate kings," according to Irish Central (2013). "A milling machine destroyed his chest when he was found and researchers cannot examine his nipples [which are apparently always mutilated in king sacrifices].

The Huldremose Woman - Ritual Sacrifice?

The Huldremose Woman probably didn't die a natural death. According to the National Museum of Denmark, "Her hair was tied up with a long woolen cord, which was also wrapped around her neck several times. However, there are no marks on her throat or elsewhere, which can be interpreted as signs of strangulation. Perhaps instead the cord was of symbolic significance? Strangled people are known from other Danish bog finds. This applies to, amongst others, the bodies from Elling and Borremose, and the famous Tollund Man [who was hung or otherwise strangled in an apparent human sacrifice]."

Note: According to the National Museum of Denmark, one of the Huldremose Woman's arms was almost cut off before she died, but according to Wikipedia "it is thought that the arm was damaged by a shovel during excavation." Nobody knows exactly how she died, but "one possible interpretation is that she was killed and then placed in the bog as a sacrifice." (National Museum of Denmark)

Related: A thread to the past: the Huldremose Woman revisited (PDF).