Ancient World Review

Did The Chinese Reach Ancient America?

Video from 2016.

"Petroglyphs found across North America have suggested that ancient Chinese explorers made contact with Native Americans. Yaoliang Song, a professor at the East China Normal University in Shanghai who has studied petroglyphs as a visiting scholar at Harvard University, recently announced that he supports the interpretation that the petroglyphs are of ancient Chinese origin." Source: Ancient Origins. (This is the 2016 article reviewed in the video.)

"John A. Ruskamp Jr., Ed.D., has led the  research on the petroglyphs  over the past few years, enlisting the help of experts such as David N. Keightley, Ph.D., who is considered by many to be the leading analyst in America of early Chinese oracle-bone writings."

I have no idea what to make of this. The theory is controversial, naturally, and I'm not sure where it stands as of 2020. If prehistoric Chinese mariners did reach the Americas it would have required a long, dangerous voyage, but we know that ancient Austronesians were island-hopping across the Pacific back then so I suppose it's possible. The similarity of the petroglyphs found in Arizona and New Mexico with the written characters in China is a matter of interpretation, but they do look similar even if they're not exactly the same:

"These ancient scripts were not 100 percent uniform, some variance was employed by each artist. But Ruskamp has determined that the glyphs are close enough to known examples of ancient Chinese script that it is more than 95 percent likely the similarity is due to direct contact with the Chinese and not due to chance."

The petroglyphs in question here are a couple thousand years old. I'm not sure if anyone has dated them more precisely than that, but Ruskamp has said (according to Ancient Origins) that the Chinese oracle-bone writings they supposedly match are from the Shang Dynasty ( app. 1600-1050 BC).

Note: This theory shouldn't be confused with the 1421 Theory, which argues that a Chinese fleet reached the Americas around 70 years before Columbus. This idea, proposed by British author Gavin Menzies, has been widely dismissed as pseudo-history, but I can't comment on it because I haven't read Menzies' book.

The Mysterious Ancient Monoliths Of Asuka Nara

"Asuka (飛鳥) was the Imperial capital of Japan during the Asuka period (538 – 710 AD), which takes its name from this place. It is located in the present-day village of Asuka, Nara Prefecture." (Wikipedia)

Ancient shrines, tombs, temples (some still in use) and other buildings can be found in Asuka. Archaeologists "continue to uncover relics from these ruins. Recent discoveries in the area include Wado coins, believed to be some of the oldest coins in Japan, and paintings in the Kitora [next video] and Takamatsuzuka Kofun, or tombs.

"The Ishibutai Kofun is also located in Asuka. On March 12, 2004, the discovery of the remains of a residence's main building adjacent to the kofun was announced. It is likely that the residence belonged to Soga no Umako [551? - 626 AD], who is believed to have been entombed in the kofun."

Japan's Mysterious Keyhole Tombs

"The Mozu Tombs ... are a group of megalithic tombs [kofun] in Sakai, Osaka Prefecture, Japan. Originally consisting of more than 100 tombs, only less than 50% of the key-hole, round and rectangular tombs remain." (Wikipedia)

^"The Daisenryo Kofun ..., the largest kofun in Japan, are believed to have been constructed over a period of 20 years in the mid 5th century during the Kofun Period. While it cannot be accurately confirmed, it is commonly accepted that the tomb was built for the late Emperor Nintoku."

"In the Japanese archipelago, there are tumuli (kofuns), which are mounds of earth and stones erected over graves of the ruling class. More than 20,000 were built as monuments between the later part of the 3rd century and the 6th century. It was the peak period of building such mounds. They represent a cultural tradition which is an expression of 'forms, and design of the kofun' of the sociopolitical hierarchical order and the link that was prevalent during that period between regions. This period is termed as the Kofun Period. The most prominent imperial mausolea in this cluster of tumulus are those of emperor Nintoku and emperor Richu." (Wikipedia)

Related: Mozu-Furuichi Kofun (UNESCO). Overview of Japan's tumulus culture of the Kofun Period.

The Cult Of Cybele: Mother Of The Gods

"A 2,100-year-old marble statue of Cybele, an ancient Phrygian mother goddess, has been unearthed in excavations in northwestern Turkish province of Ordu [Greek Kotyora] located on the Black Sea coast." Source: Archaeology News Network (2016).

Notes: Cybele may have evolved from an even older fertility goddess in the proto-city of Catalhoyuk (7500-5700 BC), also located in ancient Anatolia. According to the Oxford Classical Dictionary (OCD, 3rd ed. revised), Cybele was "the great mother-goddess of Anatolia, associated in myth, and later at least in cult, with her youthful lover Attis. Pessinus in Phrygia was her chief sanctuary, and the cult appears at an early date in Lydia."

According to Theoi Greek Mythology, "Kybele (Cybele) was the ancient Phrygian Mother of the Gods, a primal nature goddess worshiped with orgiastic rites in the mountains of central and western Anatolia. The Greeks identified her with their own mother of the gods--the Titaness Rhea."

The cult of Cybele was apparently introduced fairly early (3rd cent. BC) in Rome. "Thanks to its official status and early naturalization in Rome and in Ostia, the cult spread rapidly through the provinces, especially in Gaul and Africa, and was readily accepted as a municipal cult. Its agrarian character made it more popular with the fixed populations than with the soldiers, and it was especially favored by women." (OCD)

Cybele was also known as the Magna Mater or Great Mother. According to The Ancient Mysteries: A Sourcebook of Ancient Texts, edited by Marvin W. Meyer (p.113), "she was honored as the mother goddess of fertility, but her particular power was evidenced in the wilds of the untamed forests and mountains." After Cybele entered the official Roman pantheon, "she was to function practically as a Roman national goddess" and enjoyed great favor with the emperors starting with Claudius in the first century.

"The most well-known Roman festival in honor of the Anatolian deities [Cybele and her consort Attis] was celebrated in the spring, during March," according to The Ancient Mysteries (p.114). These rites were associated with violent religious frenzy. "March 24 was aptly named The Day of Blood. On this day some of the fanatical celebrants flogged themselves until they bled and sprinkled their blood upon the image and altars in the sanctuary, while others are said to have imitated Attis by castrating themselves." (Ibid) Bulls were also sacrificed in honor of the Great Mother of the Gods.

A scene from the great HBO series Rome. Highly recommended.

Several Roman historians and poets described the cult of Cybele in detail. Livy, for instance, described how the cult was first brought to Rome in his History of Rome (Book 29.10-14):

"About this time a sudden wave of superstition swept over Rome. The Sibylline Books had been consulted because it had rained stones that year more than usual [!], and in the Books a prophecy was found that if ever a foreign enemy should invade Italy, he could be defeated and driven out if Cybele, The Idaean Mother of the Gods, were brought from Pessinus to Rome." (Ibid, p. 121).

Christian writers denounced the cult of Cybele and the church banned it altogether when they gained the secular power required to force their intolerant monotheism on the pagan world, but the tradition of the Great Mother still survives in the figure of the Virgin Mary.

Osaka Castle In Japan

"Osaka Castle was originally completed in 1586 as a display of power and grandeur by the samurai warlord and ruler of Japan, Toyotomi Hideyoshi after accomplishing his goal of unifying Japan. The impressive castle took only three years to complete, thanks to the hard work of around 100,000 workers." Source: Culture Trip.

"The castle became the center of the new unified Japan under Toyotomi rule and brought with it a short period of peace after centuries of civil war."

"In 1614, Osaka Castle was attacked by Tokugawa Ieyasu, victor of the greatest samurai battle in history at Sekigahara [next video] and ruler of Japan. The Toyotomi forces were overwhelmingly outnumbered by approximately two to one, but managed to fight off the 200,000 Tokugawa-led samurai army due to the strength of the castle and the cunning skill of one of its samurai generals, Yukimura Sanada."

"The original castle was unfortunately attacked again and finally destroyed by the forces of Tokugawa Ieyasu in 1615 during the second siege of Osaka Castle. This brought about the end of the powerful Toyotomi clan and led to the undisputed power of the Tokugawa Shogunate, which would rule Japan for the next 250 years.

"The castle was rebuilt again in a slightly different spot by the new heir to the shogunate, Tokugawa Hidetada in 1620s ..."

The castle has been damaged by lightning, repaired, razed in war and rebuilt again over the years. The turbulent history of medieval Japan is too complex to get into any detail here, but it's similar in many ways to the history of the rest of the medieval world. Osaka Castle itself is a beautiful structure and its stone walls are a marvel of engineering.

China Orders Erasure Of Genghis Khan From Chinese History

Video from Oct. 16, 2020. Closed-captions helpful.

"The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is attempting to erase the Mongol emperor Genghis Khan from Chinese history according to a report this weekend by human rights magazine Bitter Winter." Source: Breitbart (Nov. 10, 2020).

"'...During the past month, fourteen stone tablets summarizing the life story of Genghis Khan and his achievements were painted over or destroyed in Genghis Khan Square in the Hailar district of Hulun Buir prefecture-level city, in Inner Mongolia. Protests of the local population were ignored,' Bitter Winter revealed on Nov. 7.

"'In a middle school in Hexigten Banner under the jurisdiction of the prefecture-level city of Chifen, also in Inner Mongolia, portraits of Genghis Khan and slogans promoting Mongolian culture have been replaced with the portraits of characters of Han Chinese history and slogans promoting Han culture,' the magazine reported.

"The History Museum of Nantes, France abruptly canceled a long-planned Genghis Khan exhibit on October 13 after the Chinese Cultural Affairs Bureau demanded that the museum alter the exhibition’s title, removing the words 'Genghis Khan,' 'empire,' and 'Mongol.'" [see top video]

Note: According to RFI, "Bertrand Guillet, Director of the museum, said in a statement that the Chinese also wanted 'control over all our productions, texts, maps, the catalogue, press releases.'"

How long will it be before the Chinese pull this statue down?

Comment: The censorship of history is all too familiar in the United States and Europe (and to anyone who's ever read Nineteen Eighty-Four). The US federal government hasn't been quite so blatant as China in its attempts to erase "problematic" history, but members of congress have already called for the removal of Confederate statues in Washington D.C. and if the far left gets into power it won't be long before the Taliban-like destruction of statues, monuments and the censorship of textbooks and museum displays becomes national policy. It's already happening on the state and local level, of course. This is an incredibly dangerous trend because the intent isn't just to erase history but to erase the people who made it.

"The most effective way to destroy people is to deny and obliterate their own understanding of their history." -- George Orwell

Ancient Burial Of Child With Missing Arms And Legs Discovered On Indonesian Island

Alor Island, Indonesia.

"Archaeologists have discovered the rare burial of a young child who was laid to rest 8,000 years ago without arm and leg bones, a new study finds." Source: Live Science.

"The child, who was no older than 8, was buried on what is now Alor Island, Indonesia. During the burial ceremony, the long bones in the child's arms and legs were removed and disposed elsewhere, and part of the child's face was painted with red ochre, a pigment often used in burials across the ancient world."

Prehistoric East Asians Were Sluts

"Researchers analyzed the genome of the oldest human fossil found in Mongolia to date and show that the 34,000-year-old woman inherited around 25 percent of her DNA from western Eurasians, demonstrating that people moved across the Eurasian continent shortly after it had first been settled by the ancestors of present-day populations. This individual and a 40,000-year-old individual from China also carried DNA from Denisovans, an extinct form of hominins that inhabited Asia before modern humans arrived." Source: Science Daily.

Comment:  The same thing was going on all over the world, of course, but it sounds like these prehistoric East Asians would bang anything that was even vaguely human. If this new research is accurate they were getting it on not only with Denisovans and Homo Sapiens from the west, but with Neanderthals when they were available to satisfy their primitive lust. I've been trying to think of a modern equivalent for this kind of cross-subspecies breeding, described as "quite cosmopolitan" in the Science Daily article, but the only scenarios I could come up with are unpublishable in the current climate.

Oldest Settlement In Black Sea Region Discovered

"The Kahin Tepe excavations in the northern province of Kastamonu’s Araç district have unearthed findings belonging to the Neolithic period in the the oldest place of worship found in the Black Sea [region]." Source: Archaeology News Network.

According to Ancient Origins, "This could have especially important implications for understanding the prehistory of Anatolia. Moreover, it appears that there may be links between Kahin Tepe and the famed Göbekli Tepe , which has changed our understanding of the evolution of human civilization."

This fantastic discovery (made in 2018, I believe) could reveal a lot of hidden history related to the culture which built Gobekli Tepe, still one of the greatest archaeological mysteries in the world. I think the next video (June 2020) shows the same site, though Megalithomania refers to it as Karahan Tepe, not Kahin Tepe.

The Achaemenid Empire

"The Achaemenid Empire (c. 550–330 BC), also called the (First) Persian Empire, was an empire based in Western Asia, founded by Cyrus the Great. Ranging at its greatest extent from the Balkans and Eastern Europe proper in the west to the Indus Valley in the east, it was one of the largest empires in history, spanning 5.5 million square kilometers, and was larger than any previous empire in history." Source: Wikipedia.

The early history here is very murky and a lot of it seems to be based on one source: The Histories of Herodotus. Basically, Cyrus was a local monarch who revolted against the domination of the Median Empire. "According to the official story, the Achaemenid or Persian empire was founded by Cyrus the Great, who became king of Persis in 559 BCE and defeated his overlord Astyages of Media in 550." (Source: Livius.) Persis, aka Parsa or Persia, was the name of the region Cyrus controlled before he launched his rebellion.

According to the Ancient History Encyclopedia, "We are told that Cyrus was the grandson of Astyages (1) on his mother’s side, but that did not stop him wanting to shake off the Median yoke. By 552 BCE, he had formed the Persian tribes into a federation and begun a series of uprisings. When the inevitable showdown with his grandfather came in 550 BCE, the Medes mutinied and joined Cyrus to march on [the Median capital city of] Ecbatana.

"Cyrus took the title ‘Shah [‘King’] of Persia’ and built a capital on the site of his victory, which he called Pasargadae, after his tribe. Winning the Medes over had landed Cyrus with a vague, sprawling empire of countless different peoples ..." In other words, Cyrus was now in charge of an early multicultural empire which, like all multicultural empires, was highly unstable and could only be held together with force.

(1) Astyages was apparently the son of the Median king Cyaxeres. It's unclear if Astyages ever became king himself, but one way or another Cyrus was directly related to the royal family of the Medes. This is just another example of the old adage that revolutions usually come from the upper strata of society.

Next video is a lecture about the Cyrus Cylinder, written in the name of Cyrus after the conquest of Babylon. Actual lecture begins at app. 6:30.

The Achaemenid empire was only the first in a series of imperial dynasties described collectively as the "Persian Empire." The rise and fall of the Achaemenids was so complex and turbulent that I'm not even going to try to summarize it here. Different rulers came and went, many of them poisoning their previous overlords and rivals only to be poisoned in turn themselves. By the time Alexander the Great invaded Asia Minor around 330 BC, the last Achaemenid king, Darius III, had taken control of the empire and was trying to subdue Egypt (again). "In the ensuing chaos created by Alexander's invasion of Persia, Cyrus's tomb was broken into and most of its luxuries were looted," according to Wikipedia. Alexander was supposedly horrified by this desecration and ordered the tomb to be restored, but this may have been an act of political theater to help establish his control.

Just to put all of this into perspective, the Achaemenid empire, the largest empire in the world up until then, only lasted for around 220 years. That's about the same length of time that the United States -- "the greatest country in the world" -- has been in existence. Two-hundred and twenty years is about 9 generations, assuming 25 years per generation. For most of those people, the Achaemenid empire was their entire world and it probably seemed like it would last forever. And who knows how many brave patriots died for their glorious nation in the service of Cyrus and his successors? Looking back on it now, it's easy to see that the empire -- like all empires and nation states -- was just a transient power coalition based on violence, as ephemeral as the weather.