When last I left the world of archaeoporn, I discussed the popular ideas of lost Israelite tribes and the belief that the Ark of the Covenant remains today in Aksum Ethiopia. Both of these offer a semi-divine explanation for the origins or for the greatness of specific societies, but both also ignore the actual history of ancient Israel.
Quite similar to this is the popular belief that ancient civilizations were visited, created, or altered by ancient space-fairing astronauts. In many ways this is a modern day deus ex machina explanation which offers the slight veneer of science in its rejection of a divine origin. It is also an explanation that appears to be equally well applied to emic an etic perspectives, as it does not necessarily hold the positive or powerful connotations of a divine derivation.
Pseudoarchaeologists are often fascinated by images they perceive as representing ancient understandings of aliens or astronauts. These have been noted across almost all ancient cultures, including the Israelites, Mayans, Aztecs, Incas, Mesopotamians, Egyptians, Australian Aborigines, Native Americans, and many more recent ones. Supporters of this position often create a junk category to contain all unexplainable or non-natural representations, behavior, or data concerning cultures.
Of prime example of this can be found in the following image, said to represent a carving found in the site of Toprakkale.
Obviously, there is a significant part of the reconstruction that is of potentially subjective origin. Similar interpretations have been made concerning items from the Americas and Egypt. However, at no point in the contemporary historic record was any such description or reasoning given behind the subject matter.
Additionally, modern UFO believers posit that the similarities between modern UFO beliefs and ancient religions and folk beliefs means that these older ideas were simply the ancient interpretations of actual UFOs and aliens. What is of course lacking here, is the understanding that modern UFO beliefs may not mirror fact any more than ancient beliefs in fairy circles, so often sites in the ET community. Instead, what should be taken from these comparisons is that the ET explanation lacks just as much likelihood of validity as the alligator-headed god or the dancing wee folk.
Believers also make a point of artifacts which they believe humans could not have created without the help of UFOs or would not have been made except in response to UFOs. On the first point, it is very difficult to prove something, such as building Stone Henge or the Giza Pyramids was beyond the abilities of a group of individuals, and thus required assistance. (perhaps instead of writing books on UFOs, believers would better spend their time in figuring out how people built these items, but I guess that doesn’t pay as well) How exactly does one prove the necessity of alien intervention? This is a good, and quite difficult question, and one that cannot be answered easily. However, the simple and frequent statement that something was difficult and required skill certainly is not enough, especially in cultures like that of ancient Egypt where records and remains indicate a clear human hand and mind.
A good example of building for aliens, as it is proposed, can be seen in the Nazca Lines, a favorite of UFO fans. These constructions take the form of huge drawings in the sands of Nazca Peru, which UFO supporters claim could not be seen or appreciated except from above. This, they believe would require flying machines in the hands of aliens.
However, as the image bellow makes clear, one could see these lines from the varied terrain found in the region. Additionally, a number of theories concerning their ritual use, such as paths of specific importance, may negate the necessity of viewing for their importance.
The Nazca Lines, Stone Henge, the pyramids, and the art attributed to interstellar travelers are no mystery. They were created by the fertile imagination of humans utilizing the work of their own hands and tools, often through shear force of numbers. The proposition of extra terrestrial aid often ignores important and clear evidence to the contrary, such as the maker marks or the construction villages found in conjunction with Egyptian buildings, not to mention the various failed attempts at constructing pyramids still visible to this day. If UFOs built the structure bellow, it’s a wonder they made it to earth:
Similarly, many of the modern interpretations of UFOs in art fall into this same field of origin. It takes a truly fertile mind to believe that the Urartians were building a UFO.
Up next is the final installment of my series on impossible knowledge, where I will look at claims of divine creation behind archaeological remains, and discuss their use by modern scholars.
Filed under: Archaeology, Archaeoporn, Know Your Archaeoporn | Tagged: Know Your Archaeoporn, Nazca Lines, Pyramids, Toprakkale, UFOs, Urartu
Great posts on impossible archaeology and great blog!!! thanks much!
Best,
Alex
[...] it a rocket? Is it a Pseudoarchaeologists hypothesis? – No! - Yes! - Archaeoporn is discussing the popular belief that ancient civilizations were visited, created, or altered by [...]
So… what is that carving that looks like an aircraft or spaceship? What are those things on the back of it?
Having grown up with modern technology, it does look like a little rocketship, or aircraft, with the exhaust coming out the back.
What did that carving look like in the society it came from?
Great article. As a humanist I get very riled up when ignorant people suggest that we needed alien assistance to stack rocks.
I just found yuour work, b
An interesting article. I understand your stance on the whole ‘Aliens built the pyramids’ scenario. I think we merely under estimate the skill and precision the Egyptian builders possessed, not to mention the shear size of the workforce to ensure the job was completed in time! The Nazca lines are a different matter however, I have had the pleasure of seeing some of these amazing drawings in the flesh and certainly from our location there was nothing but flat terrain for many miles around which leads me to think they must have had other ways of viewing their creations….