Photo. Illustration photo for ancient discoveries around the world. © Travel Explorations.
Nothing left to be discovered? Everything explored? By reading National Geographic`s magazine 100 Greatest Mysteries Revealed - Special Issue it`s easy to get a impression that most important mysteries are solved, but these "mysteries" are just the tip of the iceberg. In an article in the end of 2015, Owen Jarus, Live Science, writes about six archaeology stories to watch for in 2016: Digging up the Past in 2016: What Archaeologists Expect to Find.
New methods and technology provides today great opportunities for discoveries and exploration of ancient artefacts, sites and monuments. Some discoveries are based on a years of searching inspired by myths and historical accounts. Other might be by coincidents.
2016 was another great year for archaeological and historical research. Amazing discoveries were made all over the world and provided better insight into the lives of our ancestors and big inicidents in the history.
Some of the announced discoveries in 2014 og previous year were traces of a Viking settlement in the USA and Australia, the Biblical “Red Sea Crossing”, the Biblical City of Sodom, an ancient pyramid in the Antarctic, and a 5 meters tall human skeletons in Australia and Iran. These were later revealed as hoaxes, but some announced great discoveries are definitely true.
Nothing will be like the Age of Discovery from the early 15th century into the early 17th century. The world has since then "grown" smaller due to well developed infrastructure, transportation and communication. Much have been explored, but there are still opportunities for great discoveries today. By taking advantage of modern science, we are able to find out much more about our past and explain ancient mysteries. Based on the recent discoveries we have to review our understanding of history, and accept that many myths might be real. Even from the Bible.
Some of the recent discoveries are (reported from several sources):
Unsealing of Christ's reputed tomb turns up new revelations
Researchers have continued their investigation into the site where the body of Jesus Christ is traditionally believed to have been buried, and their preliminary findings appear to confirm that portions of the tomb are still present today, having survived centuries of damage, destruction, and reconstruction of the surrounding Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem's Old City. The earliest accounts of Jesus' burial come from the Canonical Gospels, the first four books of the New Testament, which are believed to have been composed decades after Christ's crucifixion around A.D. 30. While there are variations in the details, the accounts consistently describe how Christ was buried in a rock-cut tomb belonging to Joseph of Arimathea, a wealthy Jewish follower of Jesus.
Read more in the article: In Search of the Historical Jesus (source: Popular Archaeology).
New Dead Sea Scrolls fragments found in Judean Desert
Documents from Iron Age and Roman times surfacing in the black market helped convince archaeologists there was more to be found.
Discovery of Philistine Cemetery may solve Biblical mystery
An unprecedented find in southern Israel may finally reveal the origins of one of the Hebrew Bible's greatest villains.
Neanderthals built mysterious cave structures 175,000 years ago
Constructions discovered deep in a French cave rank among the earliest human building projects ever discovered, but their purpose remains unclear. Mysterious structures found deep inside a French cave are the work of Neanderthal builders who lived in the region more than 100,000 years before modern humans set foot in Europe.
Read more in the article: Early Man Cave - Neanderthals are thought to have made ring-shaped structures out of whole and broken stalagmites deep in a French cave (Archaeology Magazine, a Publication of the Archaeological Institute of America).
Lost cities
Revealed: Cambodia's vast medieval cities hidden beneath the jungle
Egypt unearths 7,000-year-old lost city
Lost Greek city dating back 2,500 years discovered by archaeologists
History made: In an astonishing Bronze Age discovery a 3000-year-old community has been unearthed
Archaeologists unearth tomb of Genghis Khan
Construction workers employed in road building near the Onon River in the Khentii province of Mongolia, have discovered a mass grave containing the remains of many dozens of human corpses lying upon a large rudimentary stone structure. Forensic experts and archaeologists were called on the site, which was revealed to be a Mongolian royal tomb from the 13th century that the scientists believe to be Genghis Khan’s.
Swedish researchers find submerged Mesolithic settlement
A team of researchers headed by Lund University’s Professor Dan Hammarlund has uncovered an exceptionally well-preserved Mesolithic site off the Baltic Sea coast at Haväng in south-eastern Sweden. They believe the location was a lagoon environment where ancient humans lived during parts of the year.
Discovery could rewrite history of Vikings in New World
Guided by ancient Norse sagas and modern satellite images, searchers discover what may be North America's second Viking site: Point Rosee, a narrow, windswept peninsula stretching from southern Newfoundland into the Gulf of St. Lawrence in Canada.
Altar of miracle-making Viking King discovered in Norway
Archaeologists uncovered the foundations of a wooden church where the body of the Viking king Olaf Haraldsson may have been enshrined after he was declared a saint.
Dinosaur footprint among largest on record discovered in Mongolia's Gobi Desert
Scientists have unearthed in Mongolia's Gobi Desert one of the biggest dinosaur footprints ever recorded, measuring over a metre in length. The enormous print, which measures 106cm (42 inches) in length and 77cm in width and dates back more than 70 million years, offers a fresh clue about the giant creatures that roamed the earth millions of years ago, scientists from the Okayama University of Science said.
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Making continuously new discoveries of the ancient past will both surprise and change our understanding. What it would mean for our future, time will show!
Stein Morten Lund, 26th December 2016
Additional information about ancient discoveries, explorations and mysteries:
The 9 Biggest Archaeology Findings of 2016 (LiveScience)
Archaeologica - source for daily archaeological news and information.
Archaeology Magazine, a Publication of the Archaeological Institute of America: Archaeology’s editors reveal the year’s most compelling finds (2016).
National Geographic 100 Greatest Mysteries Revealed - Special Issue
Based on information from National Geographic`s website: "Who made Stonehenge and how? What lies beneath the lost city of Petra? What brought an end to Mayan civilization? How did Utah's celebrated arches form? This revealing special issue from National Geographic demystifies science, physics, and engineering and examines the cultural forces that created the most mysterious natural and manmade wonders of the world. Filled with vivid illustrations and intriguing anecdotes, 100 Greatest Mysteries Revealed peels back the layers of time to illuminate some of the most coveted secrets of all time."
Information about of an amazing ongoing exploration in the Baltic Sea:
On 19th June in 2011, a team of Swedish treasure hunters was exploring the bottom of the Baltic Sea with their sonars when they noticed a bizarre, disc-like structure at a depth of 90 meters. International experts couldn`t explain the sonar images. In 2012, after months of preparation, the Ocean X Team, as they call themselves, went back in order to unveil the mystery. The discovery was by Swedish treasure hunters, the Ocean X Team, led by Peter Lindberg, its captain, and his co-researcher Dennis Asberg. They still don’t know what it is. Dubbed the “Baltic Sea Anomaly”, the structure looks like the Millennium Falcon from Star Wars. What could it be? An "alien" spacecraft’ that lies at the bottom of the Baltic Sea? Read more about the big mystery: The incredible mystery of the ‘alien spacecraft’ that lies at the bottom of the Baltic Sea (26th April 2016, News.com.au). Watch for this exploration in the coming year (in 2017).
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