This special issue from National Geographic (2013): 124 pages intents to demystifies science, physics, and engineering and examines the cultural forces that created the most mysterious natural and manmade wonders of the world, but does it really reveal the big secrets as the magazine promise on the front page?
According information on National Geographic`s website about the special issue, it`s 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.
It`s really fascinating reading supported by breathtaking photos and illustrations. Some old questions are answered, other are given plausible explanations' and many are still open. Perhaps we would never be able to reveal these secrets? How interesting would the world be if we knew everything? Now we can still use our imagination. I wouldn`t like to live in a world where everything is explained.
The word "mysteries" is derived from the Greek "mysterion, which means secret or secret learning. As National Geographic writes in the introduction in the magazine: "Dig deep into history, peer closely at science, and you realize how little we know of the world. We meet mysteries at every turn." It`s not mentioned how National Geographic has selected the so called 100 Greatest Mysteries, but these are probably the most famous.
What National Geographic covers in my opinion is just the tip of the iceberg. For the first there are not so many revelations in this magazine, and for the second there are plenty of other big unsolved mysteries in the world with same topics. Here are examples of some other big mysteries waiting to be solved related to ancient history:
- What`s underground on Oak Island, Halifax, Canada?
- Cart Ruts in Malta
- What happened before and after Noah sailed out with his ark?
- Who and how build the amazing stone structures in American Samoa?
- How and why did the Indians transport the enormous stone block up to the top of the mountain in Peru?
- Mysterious stone statues in San Augustine in Columbia
- Thousands of mounds, called the Mounds by the locals, located in eastern part of the USA - from the Lake Michigan and Lake Erike and down to the Mexico gulf Related to this National Geographic has publish one page in the magazine about the following ancient monument: The Great Serpent Mound is a 1,348-foot (411 m)-long, three-foot-high prehistoric effigy mound located on a plateau of the Serpent Mound crater along Ohio Brush Creek in Adams County, Ohio.
- The Ggantija temple on Gozo in Malta
- What happened to the Vikings on Greenland. Last known event was a wedding in Hvalsø Church, but after this they disappeared literally out of the saga
- On Mousa in Shetland and Oknøyene there are many strange towers, so called "Brocher". What was their purpose and who built them=
- Temple ruins in Meroe in Sudan? Why was these temples built, who built them and how do the people vanish?
- Rock carvings in Arli, Africa, located in eastern Mali ca 600 kilometres north for Niamey in Niger
- The minar monument in New Dehli in India, 7 metres tall and without rust since it was built for over 1600 years ago. Why is the minar so well preserved so well?
- The Plain of Jars is a megalithic archaeological landscape in Laos. Scattered in the landscape of the Xieng Khouang plateau, Xieng Khouang, Lao PDR, are thousands of megalithic jars. These stone jars appear in clusters, ranging from a single or a few to several hundred jars at lower foothills surrounding the central plain and upland valleys.
- Nan Madol, Pohnpei, Micronesia, the Venice of Pacific Ocean. Nan Madol is a ruined city adjacent to the eastern shore of the island of Pohnpei that was the capital of the Saudeleur dynasty until about 1628. The city, constructed in a lagoon, consists of a series of small artificial islands linked by a network of canals. The site core with its stone walls encloses an area approximately 1.5 km long by 0.5 km wide and it contains nearly 100 artificial islets—stone and coral fill platforms—bordered by tidal canals.
- Great Zimbabwe is a ruined city in the southeastern hills of Zimbabwe near Lake Mutirikwe and the town of Masvingo, close to the Chimanimani Mountains and the Chipinge District.
- Are there pyramids or treasures in the dense jungle in Mato Grosso in Brazil? The British adventurer, Colonel Percy Fawcett and other adventurers have disappeared in the area. This is also a mystery.
- 17 pyramids in China near Mao Ling, ca. 45 kilometres from Xian. How old are they, function and who built them?
- Strange lights in Hessdalen, Norway
- The Sacred Valley of the Incas or the Urubamba Valley is a valley in the Andes of Peru, close to the Inca capital of Cusco and the ancient city of Machu Picchu. It is located in the present-day Peruvian region of Cusco. In colonial documents it is referred to as the "Valley of Yucay." How did people in the past manage to pull the huge stones up from the deep valley whole the way to the top of the mountains? And how did they shape the stones to fit together?
- The whole Peru is filled with ancient wonders and mysteries.
- What is hidden by the Aboriginals inside the caves in Ayers Rock, especially one cave is believed to hide something unique that only the Aboriginals know about.
It`s impossible to give a complete answer on these enigmas. The list of ancient mysteries increase continuously. For each question answered, new questions rise. The long list of mysteries indicate how comprehensive, spread in time and geographical, these really are, and why it`s such big challenge to solve them. I will say that these mysteries first and foremost are wonders that witness of people amazing achievements in the past. Many wonders are so incredible made that some people are convinced that they have been constructed by extraterrestrials.
Humans dreams about huge discoveries and solving great mysteries, but the paradox is that the day we find them, we have achieved our goals. In a way we really lose something in the moment we find something. The mystery is gone. We remove our big dreams and become a dimension poorer. We get empty. What else can we dream about now? We will lack something to fill our emptiness with. Let us still have our dreams and fantasy.
The world is fortunately still full of unknown history, unrevealed mysteries and wonders, and I wonder what will be the next big discovery. We will never be in the position to know everything in this world.
Stein Morten Lund, 21st January 2014
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