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UnravellingAncient
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TableofContents
Gods Gate and the Sun Temple: La Puerta de Hayu Marca y
Koricancha....................................................................................5
WeretheLostTenTribesofIsraelEverLost?.............................18
TheHiddenMessageinKhafresPyramid..................................36
TheMysteryoftheMayanRedQueen.......................................52
ElongatedSkullsofStonehenge:AForgottenGoddessCult.......68
A Mysterious Mummy in Cairo: The Surprising True Identity of
PatriarchJosephoftheCoatofManyColors.............................87
PlumedSerpent:AncientBeardedGodsoftheAmericas........104
Marriage:SocialEvolutionorDeliberateDesign?...................120
WastheDevilsDykeinCambridgeshireoncepartofTroy?....133
LongLostGoldenAgeJustaMyth?........................................152
InSearchofKingAlcinous:WhoweretheLegendaryPhaeacians?
..................................................................................................166
TheStrangeDeathandAfterlifeofKingEdmund:Didamartyred
saintrisefromthegravetokillaVikingking?..........................178

GodsGateandtheSunTemple:LaPuertade
HayuMarcayKoricancha
ByKenJeremiah
Peru has a rich andmysterious history. With extant indigenous
groupssuchastheUros,Quechua,Aymara,andtheJivaro,which
are known for their headshrinking techniques, and historical
populations like the Wari and the Chancay, known for their
amazing maskmaking skills, Peru is an anthropologists dream.
Some of the ancient Peruvians were wiped out when the Inca
invaded, and others moved out into Lake Titicaca, the worlds
highestnavigablelake,nevertoreturn.TheIncabuilt(oratleast
addedtopreexisting)large,enigmaticstructures,suchasMachu
Picchu, an amazing city perched on an 8,000foothigh
mountaintop;approximatelyfivesquaremilesinsize,ithouseda
populationofabout1,000peoplewhoenjoyedrunningwaterand
crops grown on site. Besides the nearly 140 houses at this
mountain retreat, there were storage buildings, baths, and
amazingtemples.MachuPicchuislocatedjustoutsideofCusco,
theaxismundioftheInca.

MachuPicchu

Cusco,Peru

OutsideofCuscoareotheramazingsites,suchasTambomachay:
a huaca (holy building) perched upon a sacred, natural spring,
which the Inca likely used for ritual ablutions, and the Incan
fortressofSacsayhuaman.Builtofenormouslimestone,andesite,
anddioritestoneblocks,thelargestis361tons,anditisunknown
how they were able to transport such blocks from the quarry
nearly five miles away to their present resting place. I had
specificallytraveledtoseesuchsites,andwhenIarrivedinCusco,
whichhasanaltitudeofnearly12,000feet,Icamedownwiththe
worstcaseofaltitudesicknessIhadeverhadinmytravels.To
combat this, I chewed some coca leaves. A secondary effect of
these leaves is that it curbs the appetite. Nevertheless, before
retiringfortheevening,IrealizedthatIhadnoteateninmorethan
12hours,anddecidedtobuysomeskeweredchickenfromastreet
vendor. It turned out that it had not been cooked properly, so
halfwaythroughthenight,foodsicknessmadeitsarrivalknown.

Sacsayhuaman
6

Flashing fevers dispersed intermittingly by chills that shook my

wholebodydidnotchangemyplans,asIcouldnotspareevena
singledayofrest.Ihadascheduletokeep.Itwasinthiscondition
thatIsawSacsayhuaman.Climbingupanarrow,windingdirtroad
togettothesitewastorturous,andheadingouttotheruinsof
Machu Picchu the next day was even worse. With nothing but
waterinmysystemformorethanadayandahalf,thingsbecame
betterwhileIwasstillinAguasCalientes,thetownthatsurrounds
themountainruins,andwhenIreturnedtoCuscothefollowing
afternoon, I was healthy again. It was then that I visited the
amazingTempleoftheSun,Koricancha(alsospelledQoricancha),
whichmeansgoldencourtyardinQuechua.InitiallycalledInti
Wasi,theIncadedicatedittothesungodInti,andasisthecase
withmanytemplesdedicatedtosundeitiesthroughouttheworld,
theyadorneditwithgold.

Koricancha,originallycalledIntaWasi

At the height of their power, this temple was one of the most
importantintheentireempire.TheIncausedlargestones,similar
to those used in the construction of Machu Picchu and
Sacsayhuaman, to create the walls. Then, they inserted golden
plates,anddecoratedthetemplewithgoldenvasesandstatues.
ThemummifiedbodiesofdeceasedIncankingswerealsoplaced
inside, and the Inca likewise honored them with royal clothing,
headdresses, and golden ritual objects. These mummies, while
certainlynotalive,werenotconsidereddead,andtheAcllaCuna
(VirginsoftheSun)caredforthem.Otherimportantartifactswere
in Koricancha. Lifesized golden statues of deities and deified
ancestorswereinthecourtyard,andgoldenaltarswerethestage
upon which the Aclla Cuna prepared ritual foods and offerings.
Amongallofthesacredartifacts,however,oneinparticularwas
revered:asundiskmadeofpuregold.
According to legend, this disk was more than an ornamental or
evenritualobject.ItwasthekeytoasacreddoorwaycalledLa
PuertadeHayuMarca,ortheGateoftheGods.Itissaidthatthe
firstIncanpriestkingAramuMurutookthisgoldendisktothesite
of an ancient, spiritual city in which the inhabitants could
communewithgods.Readersmayfindthisideastrange,buteven
in modern times, legends from worldwide cultures relate that
ancient,evenantediluviancivilizationswereincontactwithgods.
IntheChristiantradition,Godbecameangryanddecidedtokillall
humanssaveNoahandhisfamilyandfriends,andHetaskshim
with saving two of each species. The Sumerian, Akkadian, and
morethan500othertraditionshavesimilaraccountsofagreat
flood and divine beings reaching out to assist a select group of
sentient beings. Even in modern times, Mahayana Buddhists
meditateuponBodhisattvas,saviordeitieswhosupposedlyassist
humans.CatholicandOrthodoxChristianslikewisepraytosaints,
8

deifiedhumanbeingswhoareclosertodivinity.Whilesuchsaints
are alive, they are similarly thought to have the ability to
communewithGod.Therefore,whenIncanlegendsspeakabout
anancientcityinwhichitsinhabitantswereclosertoInti,thisis
universalandunceasingnomenclature,andthetaleshouldnotbe
dismissedoutrightbecauseofit.
Worldwide myths and legends generally spring from something,
somefractionoftruththatstorytellerselaborateuponthroughout
thecenturies.Goodquestionstokeepinmindare,Whatisthe
realtruth?andWhatistherealhistory?
According to the Incan legend, Aramu Muru headed out to this
sacred city (that archaeologists have not discovered), which
supposedly existed near Lake Titicaca. He approached a giant
doorway cut into an artificially flattened mountainside. In the
centerofthisstoneindentationwasahollowintowhichheplaced
the sun disk. When he did so, the stone door shimmered and
became bright. Aramu stepped through the portal and it
thereafterreturnedtostone.Hewasneverseenagain,andthe
doorneverchangedagain.Thesolardiskwasallegedlyreturned
toKoricanchainCusco,wheretheSpaniardslaterlikelylootedit
alongwiththetemplesothergoldenobjects.Thislegendwould
havelikelybeendismissedasanoutrightfairytaleifitwerenot
fortwofacts:thenativepopulationscontinuetopassalongthis
story as a historical occurrence, and the described doorway
actually exists near Lake Titicaca, approximately an hours drive
fromPuno,whichsomeclaimtobethecountrysmostdangerous
city.


LaPuertadeHayuMarca:TheGateoftheGods
IdecidedtovisittheGateoftheGods.SincePunois12,500feet
high and I did not want a repeat of what occurred in Cusco, I
decidedtotakeaneighthourbusrideratherthananextremely
shortflight.Uponarrival,Itriedanalpacasteak,hadapiscosour,
andthencheckedintothehotel.Inthemorning,Iarrangedfora
driverwhocouldtranslatefromQuechuatoSpanishtomeetme
thefollowingday;IhiredhimtotakemetotheGateoftheGods
and obviously to help me to speak with the locals. I can
communicateinSpanishwithoutdifficulty,butIdontknowmore
thanawordortwoinQuechua.Inthemeantime,Iheadedout
into Titicaca to visit the manmade Uros islands, and then
continuedontoTaquile,oneofthelargerislandsinthehugelake.
Althoughitwassunny,itwascoldoutside.Forgettinghowmuch
closer I was to the sun, I spent the entire day outside without
thinkingofusingsunscreen,andwhenIreturnedtoPunolaterthat

10

evening,Ihadtheworstsunburnofmylife.Itwasinthisstate
thatIheadedouttoseelaPuertadeHayuMarcainthemorning.
WeheadedthroughJayllihuayaandChucuitotowardJuli.After
aboutanhour,thedriverturnedandsaid,Wearelost.
Driving through a remote village, some locals were carrying
supplies along the edge of a tree line. He stopped to ask for
directions,andtheyresponded.Iaskedwhattheyhadsaid.He
replied,Idontknow.TheyspeakAymara,notQuechua.Then,
he pulledout a large map, searched it with his finger, and then
stated,IthinkIknowhowtogetthere.

11


LaPuertadeHayuMarcafromadistance
He was successful, and within a halfhour, we arrived. I began
takingpicturesofthesitefromadistance,andasweapproached,
Irealizedtherewasagroupoftouristsvisitingit.Afterspeaking
with some of them later, most of them were either from the
UnitedStatesorAustralia.Theyfollowedanunusualprocedure.
An indigenous man was burning coca leaves in front of the
doorway,anofferingtothegods.Eachvisitorplacedafewleaves
into the burning bowl and then proceeded to stand in a tall
recessedshafttotheleftsideoftheportal.Theretheycrossed
theirarmsinamannerreminiscentofEgyptiansarcophagi.When
it was their turn, they stood in front of the doorway with
outstretched arms before kneeling down in front of it. They
bowed, then stood up, continued walking to the next recessed
shaftthatflankedthedoorsrightside,andcopiedtheprevious
actions. My driver turned to me and asked, What are these
peopledoing?
12


VisitorsatGodsGate
HedidntspeakEnglish.ItoldhimIwouldaskthevisitorsandthen
lethimknow.Afterquestioningseveralpeoplewhofollowedthis
bizarrepattern,itbecameclearthatnooneknewwhytheywere
doingwhattheyweredoing.Severalclaimedthattheycouldfeel
energyemanatingfromtherock,butwhenIputmyhandsonit
later, I concluded that such visitors were (possibly) delusional.
They didnt know much about its history, and one of them
probablydidntevenknowwhatcountryshewasin,sinceshetold
me that the Mayan gods use the doorway. I considered
explaining that this is an Incan, not Mayan site, and that there
were no Mayans in Peru, but then decided she would be likely
happiertoremainignorantandIletitgo.WhenIconveyedmy
findingstomytranslator,helaughedaloud.Nowitwashisturn.
Wewalkedpastthemonumentforquitesometimeuntilwecame
uponsomenativeinhabitants(whocouldspeakQuechua),andwe
askedthemaboutthedoorway.
13

It is 23 feet tall, and the small circular indentation in its center,

whereAramuMuruallegedlyplacedthesundisk,isapproximately
sixfeetofftheground.Nooneknowswhobuiltit,whenitwas
built, or its purpose,but NativeAmerican legends hold that the
godsliveinadifferentdimension,andthiscarvingisadoorwayto
thatrealm.Supposedly,Incanheroeshadpassedthroughthegate
andattainedimmortality.Onewomancommentedthatsomeof
themhadevencomebackforshortperiodstoassisthumans,after
whichtheyreturnedtothelandofthegods.Theyclaimedthat
thedoorwaywasopenedwithaspecialdisk,likelythesameone
thatwasonceatKoricancha.However,theydidnotknowmuch
morethanthat.
Laterthatevening,IscouredtheInternetforinformationabout
thesite,andcameacrossoutlandishtheories,includingsomethat
traced Aramu Muru (also called Amaru Meru) to the missing
continentofMu,claiminghewasanenlightenedrulerwhojoined
the Americas together, hence the name Amaruca, Ameruca,
America (Land of the Serpent). Other theories were even
stranger.Thetruthis,thereisnohistoricalevidencethatAramu
Muruevenexisted.Thenameonlyshowsupinunsubstantiated
tales.Also,thereisnoevidencethatexplainswhatthedoorwas
actuallyusedfor,butitislikelythattheindigenoustalesofaman
placingasolardiskinthecentralindentationisreal.
Early religions all over the world, including the Americas, were
animistic.Spiritsresidedinnaturalobjects.Gold,symbolicofthe
sun,wasconsideredespeciallyholy,andcarvingitintoshapesthat
represented their deities more fully would have made them
objectsofveneration.LaPuertadeHayuMarcawaslikelycarved
specifically to hold such a golden, venerated object, so people
from surrounding villages could visit it and make offerings.
Shamanpriestsmayhaveevenstoodinfrontofitandperformed
14

ceremonies,justlikeCatholicpriestsstandinfrontofthecrossor
crucifixandholdmass.Thecrossishigh,sothepriestdoesnot
blockit.Theindentationwhichheldthesundiskisalsohigh(six
feet)whenconsideringtheaverageheightofthelocalindigenous
population(fivefeet).

GateoftheGods
Inaddition,aworndownstepinfrontofthemonument,which
todaylookslikearamp,makesthisevenmorelikely.Thismost
likelyusageofthestonecarvinghascertainlybeenexaggerated
and expanded upon throughout the centuries, and people used
theirimaginationstoaddfancifulandsupernaturalelementstoa
realhistoricalphenomenon.Suchtaleshavemadethissiteoneof
themostfamousintheworld,andpeoplefromdiversecountries
continuetovisitit,bringingmoneytothelocalpopulations,which
definitely need it. No matter what, the Gate of the Gods is
symbolicofthegreatunknown,anditcausespeopletoconsider

15

otherworldlypossibilities.Nomatterhowmysterioussuchtales
maybe,therealtruthisembeddedwithin,waitingtobeextracted.
CopyrightKenJeremiah
References
Jeremiah,K.EternalRemains.FirstEditionDesigns,2014
AbouttheAuthor

DR.KENJEREMIAHisawriterandtranslator.
More information about his work is at www.kenjeremiah.com,
andhecanbefollowedonTwitter@drkenjeremiah.
HisFacebookauthorpageisBooksofKenJeremiah.

16

17

WeretheLostTenTribesofIsraelEverLost?
ByCamRea
WhenexaminingthemysteriesoftheeighthcenturyBCE,allone
hastodoislookintheBibleoranancienthistorybooktorealize
that Assyria had no outside threats. The Hittites and Egyptians
wereashelloftheirformergloryandimposednothreattothe
Assyrianborders.TheoncemightyUnitedKingdomofIsrael,under
thereignofKingDavid,andlaterhissonSolomon,dividedintotwo
separatekingdomsafterSolomonsdeath.ThegreatkingsofIsrael
were too busy fighting amongst themselves. Syria, to the
northwestofAssyriawasnotevenathreattoAssyrianexpansion
either.AsforPhoenicia,theywereunstableonlandandhadno
realstandingarmyotherthanthosetheyreliedontovolunteer.
Therestofthesmallertribalgroupsweremereprincipalitiesor
citystates similar to Phoenicia. From the view that the ancient
biblicalhistoricaltexts1&2Kingsand1&2Chroniclesgivesus,
onecouldsaythereasontheMiddleEastwassoeasytotakewas
because it was so fragmented and thus no single nation
surroundingAssyriawhetheritbeacitystateoracommunityof
tribesposednorealthreattoAssyria.

18


Assyrianattackonatownwitharchersandawheeledbattering
ram,865860BC.(PublicDomain)
SohowdidAssyriaandtheNorthernKingdomofIsraelcometo
blows?AndwhathappenedtothetentribesofancientIsraelthat
weresaidtobelostintimeafterbeingconqueredbytheAssyrian
Empire?
In738BCEKingTiglathpilesermadehiswaywesttocollecttribute
and to expand the ever growing Assyrian Empire. He began his
regionaltourstartingwithwhatwasleftofthefracturedkingdoms
oftheformerHittiteempire.TurningbacksouthtoSyriaandthen
heading west to the citystates of Phoenicia, he subdued the
citizens without a fight, collecting just about anything and
everythingtheindividualkingdomscouldoffer.ThiskeptAssyria
outoftheirlandsbyturningthemintoAssyria'svassals.

19


TiglathPileserIII:Detailfromastelafromthewallsofhis
palace.(PublicDomain)
NextonthelistforAssyriawasthekingdomofIsrael.Menahem
wasthekingofIsraelatthetimewhenTiglathpileserIIIarrivedat
their border. For a long time before the Assyrian threat, the
Hebrew prophets Hosea, Amos, and Joel foretold the coming
destructionofIsraeliftheydidnotrepentoftheirsinsandcome
backtothegodYahweh:
AndPulthekingofAssyriacameagainsttheland:andMenahem
gavePulathousandtalentsofsilver,thathishandmightbewith
himtoconfirmthekingdominhishand.AndMenahemexacted
20

themoneyofIsrael,evenofallthemightymenofwealth,ofeach
manfiftyshekelsofsilver,togivetothekingofAssyria.Sotheking
ofAssyriaturnedback,andstayednotthereintheland.

IllustrationofKingMenahem, ofthenorthernIsraeliteKingdom
ofIsrael.(PublicDomain)
Thestormwasonthehorizonanditwastimetopayfinancially,
for King Menahem gave a thousand talents of silver to Tiglath
pileser by extracting 50 shekels from each wealthy man. An
enormous60,000citizensofwealthgaveuptheirmoneytothe
Assyriancoffers.After getting his tribute,Tiglathpileser left the
21

outskirtsofIsrael,leavingthekingdomintactandstillinthehands
ofMenahem.Onecanonlyspeculateifthiswasaonetimetribute
deal,ormultipletimesyearafteryear.Ineithercase,Menahem
had just made his kingdom look impotent before the king of
Assyria.Nevertheless,whatcouldKingMenahemhavedone?All
onehastodoisreadIIKings15:16,andrealizethatmostofhis
peoplewouldnotfightforhimanyway.
KingMenahemremainedonthethronesixmoreyearsbeforehe
died.HissonPekahiahtookthethroneandreignedforonlytwo
yearsbeforehewasmurderedinsidethepalacebyPekahand50
GileaditesinSamaria(IIKings15:2326).ItseemsPekahmurdered
Pekahiah because Pekahiah continued to let Assyria dominate
Israel.ThismadethepeopleofIsraelmad,andtheresultwasa
murderedkingbyamanofthemilitary.
King Pekah made an alliance with King Rezin of Damascus. This
indicated that Pekah was cutting the Assyrian yoke off Israel's
neck.PekahwouldalsogototheEdomitesandthePhilistinesfor
theirsupportofajointcoalitionoralliancetostoptheAssyrian
warmachinefromexpandingfartherwestorsouth.Thisalliance
wasreallyanattempttocounterbalancetheAssyrianpowerto
theeast,andonceAssyriagotwordofwhatwasgoingon,their
king,TiglathpileserIII,tookaction.
TheFirstCaptivity
WhentheAssyriansmarcheddownthecoast,itismostlikelythat
thesecondwaveofinvasionwasheldbackforsometimebefore
theforcecontinueditsmarchfromthenorth,advancinginlandas
describedinIIKings15:29.ThissecondwaveofattackthatTiglath
pilesersentwasthetipofthesword.Whilethecoastalinvasion
was pushing South, one can speculate that parts of the army
turned inland from the coast, pushing towards the east and
22

flanking the population therein, while the larger northern army

beganitsdescentsouthintothetriballandsofDanandNaphtali
andbeyond.

MapshowingTiglath'sconquests(green)anddeportationof
Israelites.TiglathPileserIIIdiscouragedrevoltsagainstAssyrian
rulewiththeuseofforceddeportationsofthousandsofpeople
allovertheempire.(CCBYSA3.0)
TiglathpilesermentionsconqueringNaphtali,andhisconquestof
thecoastinhisinscription:
on theborder of theLand of Omri [viz. Israel]...thewideland of
Naphtaliinitsentirety,IbroughtwithintheborderofAssyria.My
official(tartan)Isetoverthemasgovernor.HannoofGazafled
beforemyweapons.
This inscription shows two different events at the same time.
Notice that Tiglathpileser III mentions taking Naphtali in its
23

entirety,andthathebroughtthemintoAssyria.Noticewhathe
hastosayattheend.HannoofGazafledbeforemyweapons.
This inscription may show that, at the same time as Tiglath
pilesersarmyhadjustcompletedthetakeoverofNaphtali,itmay
have also completed the final phase of conquering Gaza, which
hadbeenaPhilistinecity.Thisinscriptionseemstoshowusthat
before taking Naphtali, Tiglathpilesers army had been
conqueringthecoastalregionsoftheLevantuntilitreachedthe
borderofEgypt.
But TiglathPileser mentions more in his annals and sometimes
repeatinghimselfbutaddingnewinformation:
xcaptivesfromthecityof[]bara;625captivesfromthecityof
[]
[captivesfromthecityof]Hannathon;650captivesfromthecity
ofQa[
Captives from the city of Jo]bath; 656 captives from the city of
Ir[]
peopletogetherwiththeirpossessions[]thecitiesofAruma
andMerum[]
districts of Bit Humri I leveled to the ground. The land of Bit
Humri(Israel),all[ofwhose]citiesIleveled[totheground]inmy
former campaigns...I plundered its livestock, and I spared only
(isolated)Samaria.[I/TheyoverthrewPek]ahtheirking.
TheLandofOmri(Israel)
allitspeopletogetherwiththeirgoods
IcarriedofftoAssyria.
Pekah,theirkingtheydeposed,
24

andIplacedHosheaoverthemasking.
10talentsofgold,10talentsofsilver,
astheirtributeIreceivedfromthem,
andtoAssyriaIcarriedthem.
[BitKhumria](Israel)allofthosecities,onmyformercampaignsI
hadadded[tomyterritory]...intocaptivityhadcarried,[and]had
leftforhimSamariaalone,Pekahtheirking[theyhadcastaway].

IllustrationofAssyrianreliefofTiglathPileserIIIbesieginga
town.(PublicDomain)

25

WhileTiglathpilesertookmanypeopleintocaptivity,hedidnot
take them all. However, of those taken into captivity, he also
mentionstakingIsraeliteforcesinhismilitaryannuals:
carried off [to] Assyria the land of BitHumria (Israel). [...its]
'auxiliary[army,'][...]allofitspeople.
Fromthissmallfragment,TiglathpileserIIInotonlytellsusthat
he deported a large amount of Israel's people, but that he also
tooktheIsraelitearmyandincorporatedthemintotheAssyrian
armyasauxiliaries.
TheSecondCaptivity
This was the beginning of a nineyear rule for King Hoshea in II
Kings17:1.
HosheahadtopaytributetoTiglathpileserforputtinghimonthe
throneandmakingthekingdomofIsraelvassalstoAssyriaagain.
WhenTiglathpileserdiedaround727BCE,wecanspeculatethat
Hoshea probably stopped paying the annual tribute. This would
have meant that the new King, Shalmaneser V, tried to extract
tributefromHosheaaswell(IIKings17:3).FromtheevidenceinII
Kings 17:3, it can be said that either King Shalmaneser V or an
Assyrianofficialhadstartedpayingvisitsatthistime,notonlyto
Israel,buttoallthevassalsofAssyria.Byshowingupwithhisarmy,
hewasmakingsurethatthosewhohadswornallegiancetohimin
the past would continue honoring that allegiance to Assyria. It
mightalsobepossibletosaythathewassimplymakinghisrounds,
collectinggifts,ashewasthenewkingintown.However,thisdid
not last long, for we read in II Kings 17:4 that Hoshea stopped
payingtributeandpulledhissupportfrommightyAssyria.

26


IllustrationofHoshea,thelastkingoftheIsraeliteKingdomof
Israel.(PublicDomain)
KingShalmaneserinvadedwhatwasleftofIsrael.Hesackedand
destroyed the city of Shechem and the old Israelite capital of
Tirzah.HealsohitHazor,tearingdownthewallsofthecitybefore
hebesiegedSamaria,thecapitalofIsrael,forthreeyears.Some
say he died shortly before or after the fall of Samaria, though
ShalmaneserisrecordedtohavetakenSamariaOnthe27thof
TebetShalmaneserascendedthethroneinAssyriaandBabylonia.
HeshatteredSamaria.

27

The first inscription is more about his military campaigns

throughouthisrule,foundonaprismknownasMS2368,inwhich
Sargon mentions conquering Israel, and thus refers to them as
BitHumriya(HouseofOmri).Thesecondinscriptionistheone
mostarefamiliarwithwhendealingwiththefallofSamaria:
IbesiegedandconqueredSamerina.
27,290people,wholivedinitsmidst,Icarriedaway.
50chariotsIgatheredfromtheirmidst.
ThebereavedItaughtproperbehavior.
Iappointedmycommissioneroverthem.
Thelevyoftheformerking
Ilaiduponthem.
When reading the inscription mentioned above, many fail to
noticeormaybeunderstand,thatittookthreeyearstocapture
thecity.ThatsuggeststhatSamariawaseitherheavilydefended
withlargenumbersofforcesorthatAssyriaonlybroughtasmall
tomediumsizedforcetobesiegethecity.
Aftermanyyears,themeninsideSamariagrewtired,hungry,and
mostofallinsanetoadegree.Thepsychologicalimpactonthese
men,livingwiththedead,decayingforthreeyears,andhavingto
smellitoveracoldmeal,madethemprefertodiethangivein.
Finally,afterthreeyearsandanewAssyrianking,thecityfellto
thebesiegers.Insteadofslaughteringthedefenders,KingSargon
IIhadsomethingbetterforthem.

28


SargonII[right]anddignitary.Lowrelieffromthewallofthe
palaceofSargonIIatDurSharrukininAssyria(nowKhorsabad
inIraq),c.716713BC.(PublicDomain)
ItisinterestingtonotethatSargonusedthepeoplehecaptured
from Samaria to drive the captured chariots. Onehundred men
weretherequirementforthe50chariots.Theremaining27,190
most likely became an auxiliary unit for the Assyrian army. In
addition, the same inscription found on the Nimrud Prism, says
that Sargon captured 200 chariots and equipped them with the
capturedmen:

29

[The inhabitants of Sa]merina, who agreed [and plotted] with a

king[hostileto]me,nottodoserviceandnottobringtribute[to
Ashshur]andwhodidbattle,Ifoughtagainstthemwiththepower
of the great gods, my lords. I counted as spoil 27,280 people,
together with their chariots, and gods, in which they trusted. I
formed a unit with 200 of [their] chariots for my royal force. I
settled the rest of them in the midst of Assyria. I repopulated
Samerinamorethanbefore.Ibroughtintoitpeoplefromcountries
conqueredbymyhands.Iappointedmyeunuchasgovernorover
them.AndIcountedthemasAssyrians.
Nevertheless, what is interesting, (and something Stephanie
Dalley points out in her article regarding the Assyrian tablets,
ForeignChariotryandCavalryintheArmiesofTiglathPileserIII
andSargonII)isthatSargonseemedtohaveallowedtheIsraelite
charioteers to retain their identity! This Israelite charioteer unit
was possibly the only foreign unit to keep its national name in
Assyria'smainroyalarmy,anditseemsthatthisuniteitherwasat
CalahorstationedjustoutsideCalah.Sargonmusthaverespected
themverymuchtogivethemsuchaposition.Belowisthechariot
listthatbaresthenamesoftheIsraelitesthatSargonIIcaptured
andincorporatedintohisroyalarmy.
16Ibbadalaa

DalaPAP

17Jaugaa

Atamru

18PAP?idri

Abdimilku

19ENBAD

Naarmenaa

20Gabbie

Sama?a

21PAPidri

Bahie

22PAPiu

AP(gimir)13uruSAmirini

30

23

SUpdPA.U.GINin

The author Bob Becking suggests, The Samaritan cohorts

according to line 23 are under the control of "Nebubeluukin,
andcanbeseenastheremnantofthechariotbrigadescaptured
by Sargon. According to the editors, all personal names in this
fragment are West Semitic. This view must be modified. The
interestingpartinthislististhenameSama.Samaisspeculated
tobeaformofthewordornameforSamaria,whohappenedto
be an Israelite who was the commander of teams for the royal
Assyrianarmy.HehadsignificantinfluencewithSargonidfamily
forhisnameappearsonadministrativeandeconomicinscriptions.
StephanieDalleyhasthistosayaboutSama:
From this evidence it is reasonable to suggest that Sama' the
SamariancommanderofteamswhoservedSargonasareliable,
professionalsoldierintheroyalarmyofAssyria,wasaclosefriend
ofthekingandhadaccesstoandperhapsinfluenceovermembers
of the royal family. As such he would have had opportunities to
become closely acquainted with Sargon's vizier Nabubeluukin
whoprobablyactedasthefirstcommanderoftheSamarianunit.
Whether or not Sama' actually played a part in negotiating
preferentialtreatmentforSamaria,theevidenceforhiscareeris
anindicationoftheimportantroleplayedbySamariansinNimrud
andNinevehinthelateeighthandearlyseventhcenturies.

31


ScenefromAshurbanipal(668627BC)campaignagainstthe
ElamitecityHamaru,showsanAssyrianchariotwithcharioteer
andarcherprotectedfromenemyattackbyshieldbearers.
AssyrianrelieffromNineveh.Alabasterrelief,madeabout650
BC.(CCBYSA3.0)
Nevertheless,thenamesofthemenwhooccupiedthechariotsfor
the Samaritan cohort are in question, but not entirely. In the
SamaritancohortlistwefindthenameJaugaa.ThisisHebrew
andmeansYHWH(orYahweh)isexalted.Inaddition,wecome
across the name Addimilku, which seems to be of Canaanite
background.ThenamealsoseemstohaveaHebrewelement.The
restofthenamesinthelistfallintwocategories,someareWest
Semitic,whileothersappeartobeAssyrianorBabylonian.

32

ThemysteryofthelosttentribesofIsraelenduresinlegendtoday,
but the provided evidence does show that those who had a
militaryoccupationandservedtheAssyrianarmyasauxiliaryunits
seemedtohaveretainedtheiridentity.AsfortheoverallIsraelite
population, they too can be found, but by an individual basis,
basedonwhohelddifferentjobsofanonmilitarynature.
ItappearsthatthesocalledLostTenTribesofIsraelwerenever
lost.Instead,theyserved,andoveragenerationortwo,integrated
within the local Assyrian populations, eventually losing their
identity.
CopyrightCamRea
References
Becking,Bob.TheFallofSamaria:AnHistoricalandArchaeological
study.NewYork:E.J.Brill,1992.
Caiger, Stephen L. Bible and Spade: An Introduction to Biblical
Archaeology.Oxford:UniversityPress;HumphreyMilford,1938.
Chavalas,MarkW.,andK.LawsonYounger.Mesopotamiaandthe
Bible:ComparativeExplorations.GrandRapids:BakerAcademic,
2002.
Dalley,Stephanie."ForeignChariotryandCavalryintheArmiesof
TiglathPileserIIIandSargonII."BritishInstitutefortheStudyof
Iraq,Vol.47,1985:3148.
Gordon,CyrusH.TheAncientNearEast.NewYork:W.W.Norton
&Company,1965.
Hallo, William W., and K. Lawson Younger. The Context of
Scripture:CanonicalCompositions,MonumentalInscriptionsand

33

ArchivalDocumentsfromtheBiblicalWorld,Vol2.Leiden:Brill,
2000.
Johnson,Paul.AHistoryoftheJews.NewYork:HarperPerennia,
1988
Rogers, Robert William. A History of Babylonia and Assyria,
Volume2,6thed.NewYork:TheAbingdonPress,1915.
Walton, John H. 1 & 2 Kings, 1 & 2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah,
Esther.GrandRapids,Mich:Zondervan,2009.

AbouttheAuthor

CAMREAlivesinIndiana.HeisaMilitaryHistorian.
Mr. Rea has written several books and numerous articles for
Classical
Wisdom
Weekly.HehasalsocontributedtoAncientWarfareMagazineand
isAssociateEditorandWriteratStrategy&TacticsPress.
Hispublicationsinclude:

34


HebrewWars:AMilitaryHistoryofAncientIsraelfrom
AbrahamtoJudges(2015)
Leviathanvs.Behemoth:TheRomanParthianWars66BC217
AD(2014)
TheRiseofParthiaintheEast(2013)
MarchoftheScythians(2013)

Forthcomingpublication:
TheWarsofIsrael:AMilitaryandPoliticalHistoryfromJudgesto
Solomon(2016)

35

TheHiddenMessageinKhafresPyramid
ByArmandoMei
InEgypt,inthemiddleof2013,Iwasonaveryimportantjob:the
Giza Pyramids investigation through mathematical proportional
applications. I focused all my attention on the three mysterious
andmajesticpyramids,withoutexception.

TheSphinxandGreatPyramidsofEgypt.(BigStockPhoto)
Atthattime,Ibelievedinmyheartthatthebuildingswerekeepers
of scientific information, communicating the history of the
pyramidsbuilders.
Now,Iknowitforsure!
MysteriousMessages
In the last two centuries, scholars and alternative researchers
found many of the secrets of the Great Pyramid, following
discoveriesoftheinsidechambers.Theybroughtustothecoreof
36

the monument, by revealing its architecture and engineering

complexity.

GreatPyramidofGizaatnight.(Flickr/CCBYND2.0)
Thebuildingsexternalfeaturesarewellknown,particularly,the
piGreekrelationshipbetweenbaseandheight,ortherelationship
withplanetsgeophysicalproperties,evenitsconnectionwiththe
starsoftheBeltofOrion.
TheGreatPyramidisalmostanopenbook,whiletheothertwo
pyramidsarestillamystery.
That is why I focused on the socalled Khafre and Menkaures
pyramids too; I believe they still preserved ancient mysteries to
discover.
TheGreatPyramid,throughitsscientificrelationships,revealedto
theworldonlypartofitsenigmas,soIhadtofollowupallscientific
clues to discover the hidden messages coming from the Second
andThirdPyramidsofGiza.
37

ThinkinglikeaPyramidBuilder
It was not easy to decide on a survey methodology to get a
scientificresult.
Thefirststepwastoprovidethetwopyramidsgeometricaldata
to process. Thatprocedure would allow me to demonstratethe
existence of a scientific relationship that might unlock many
unknownmysteries.

Gizapyramidcomplex"PyramidofKhufu"(orKheops)refers
totheGreatPyramid.(CCBYSA3.0)
38

I spent a long period gathering the external buildings

measurements,subsequentlyfurtherprocessedinEgyptianroyal
cubits. I needed to start thinking as the pyramid builders, if I
wantedtofindthetruth.
The relationship between meter and royal cubit is 52,3
centimeters,andsothefollowingtableisgiven:

KheopsPyramid

Meter

EgyptianRoyalCubits

(a)

(b)

(c)

Base

230,33

440,40

Height

146,60

280,31

Meter

EgyptianRoyalCubits

Base

215,25

411,00

Height

143,50

274,00

Meter

EgyptianRoyalCubits

Base

103,55

197,99

Height

65,50

125,24

KhafrePyramid

MenkauraPyramid

Table1
Asshownintableabove,thereferencegiveninthefirstcolumn
(a) indicates the three major pyramids of Giza, that is: Kheops,
Khafre and Menkaura monuments. The reference given in the
second column (b) indicating measurements of base and height
areexpressedinmeters,foreachofthem.Thereferencegivenin
thethirdcolumn(c)indicatesresultsofmeasurementsprocessed
inEgyptianroyalcubits.
The results took me another large step along the road to being
abletodiscoverthemessagecomingfromthepyramids.Iwassure
39

tofindthecluethatwouldleadmeonthevergeofamillenary
secret.
I also knew that it was like looking for a needle in a haystack!
Moreover, even worse, I did not know either its form nor its
content.
KheopsTheGreatPyramid

TheenigmaticGreatPyramid,attributedtoPharaohKhufu.(CC
BY2.5)
The second step was to elaborate results through a very easy
arithmeticsimplificationbetweenbaseandheight,foranalyzing
theirrelationshipconsequences.
JeanPaulBauvalsresearchontheGreatPyramidarchitectureare
veryinteresting,asarehisanalyticmodelsofinvestigation.Hehas
shown that base and height relationship expresses two prime
numbers:thenumber11forthebaseand7fortheheight.
ThatiswhyIlookedathisresultsasareferencepoint.

40

Thefollowingtableexpressestheprimenumbersasaresultofthe
arithmetic simplification process. The applied model refers to
GreatPyramidvaluesinEgyptianroyalcubits.
KheopsGreat
Pyramid

EgyptiansRoyal
Cubits

Arithmeticsimplification
results

Base

440

11

Height

280

Table2
Pyramids builders planned the monuments according to a
scientificpattern,theaimofwhichwastoconveyamessageabout
theirknowledge.Thenumberwasusedasauniversallanguage,
anditwasappliedinitssimplestformsoitcouldbeknowninthe
future.
Itsproposalwasscientificand,aswewillseelater,esoterictoo.
IdecidedtoapplythesameanalysispatterntotheThirdPyramid,
orMenkauraPyramid,goingovertheSecond,orKhafrePyramid.
Itwasarandomchoice,maybedrivenbythesubconscious.
MenkauraTheThirdPyramid

Menkaurapyramid,thesmallestofthethreegreatpyramidsof
Giza(CCBYSA2.0)
41

MenkauraPyramidisoneofthemostinterestingmonumentsof
Giza,dueitsshapesandthebuildingmaterialsthebuildersused
for its construction. In addition, it is different from the other
pyramids of Giza because of its size: the third pyramid is the
smallest.
ByapplyingthesameanalysisprocedureaswhenIscrutinizedthe
KheopsPyramiddimensions,thefollowingtableisgiven:
Menkaurathird
Pyramid

EgyptiansRoyal
Cubits

Arithmeticsimplification
results

Base

198

11

Height

125

Table3
The table results are very fascinating; firstly, because the Great
Pyramid(Kheops)andThirdPyramid(Menkaura)havethesame
base relationship: the prime number 11. Second, the Third
Pyramidheightrelationshipexpressesadifferentdata:theprime
number5.
Onceagain,aprimenumberpossessedadeepesotericmeaning
asresultofmyinvestigation.
KhafreTheSecondPyramid

42


ThePyramidofKhafreandtheGreatSphinxofGiza.(CCBYSA
3.0)
ItwastimetostudytheSecondPyramid(Khafre).Itisamajestic
building, such as the Great Pyramid. It is also keeper of very
interestingstructuralelements,makingitfamousacrosstime.The
maincharacteristic,wellknownaroundtheworld,isthelimestone
rockcovering its apex. Probably, that monument, ofabout 143
metershigh(470feet),stillcontainshiddenchambersintheupper
partyettobediscovered.
The last step was to analyze the Second Pyramid through the
arithmetic relationship. Results would allow me to compare the
dataandcheckfortheexistenceofscientificevidence.
Resultsareexpressedasfollows:
KhafreSecond
Pyramid

EgyptiansRoyal
Cubits

Arithmeticsimplification
results

Base

411

137

Height

274

137

43

Table4
ImustsaythatIwasastonished,whenIlookedatthedata.The
number137,thusobtained,wasverydifferentincomparisonwith
thepreviousdatasets.Itisstillaprimenumber,butthistime,its
meaninghasnothingtodowiththeprimenumber11,7and5at
leastthatishowitappeared.
Was it a scientific message? What was the Second Pyramids
purpose?
Ihadtofindtheanswerwithinthefieldsofmathematics.
MathematicsandtheRiddleofPrimeNumbers
TheformulaforprimenumbersorpiGreekfunctionofpositive
numbersis a formula generating the prime numbers,
determining the amount of prime numbers preceding a
consideredvalue.
Forinstance,howmanyprimenumbersprecedethenumber137?
Iusedthemathematicalformulatodiscoverthehiddenmessage,
based on the number 137, coming from the Second Pyramid.
WhileKheopsandMenkauraPyramidgeneratedlogicalnumeric
values,closedtothefirstfourprimenumbers,theKhafrePyramid
gave, apparently, illogical results with no scientific connection
withtheothers.
Itlookedlikenonsense.
Byapplyingtheprimenumbersfunctiontothenumber137,Igot
thefollowingresult:thenumber33,(i.e.thenumbers11and3).
Onceagaintwoprimenumbers.Onceagainthenumber11asa
proportional number for the base, and the number 3 for the
height.
44

ThepyramidsofGizagavethefollowingsequence:35711.
The first four prime numbers were enclosed in the pyramid
proportions;thenumber11asnumericconstantforthebaseand
then different values for the height (3 Khafre Pyramid, 5
MenkauraPyramid,7KheopsPyramid).
In addition, the Khafre Pyramid expressed a value, at the same
time,proportionalandinverselyproportionaltoitself!
Resultsalsoconfirmedthatthebuildinghadatwofoldfunction:
from the bottomup and from the top down, as above so
below.
Gizareallywasthemirrorofthesky?Andwhatwasthenumber
137purpose?
Thenumber137hasaveryamazingmeaninganditcanrangefrom
modern science to Kabbalah, from archetypes numerology to
Easternphilosophy,fromsmallerparticlestothelawofUniversal
Balance.
Leon Max Lederman is an American experimental physicist who
receivedtheNobelPrizeforPhysicsin1988.Inhisbook,TheGod
Particle,hewrites:
Onehundredthirtysevenistheinverseofsomethingcalledthe
finestructureconstant.Thisnumberisrelatedtotheprobability
thatanelectronwillemitorabsorbaphoton.Thefinestructure
constantalsoanswerstothenamealpha,anditcanbearrivedat
bytakingthesquareofthechargeoftheelectrondividedbythe
speed of light times Planck's constant. What all that verbiage
means is that this one number, 137, contains the crux of
electromagnetism (the electron), relativity (the velocity of light),
andquantumtheory(Planck'sconstant).Itwouldbelessunsettling
45

iftherelationshipbetweenalltheseimportantconceptsturnedout
tobeoneorthreeormaybeamultipleofpi.[]
ThismeansthatscientistsonMars,oronthefourteenthplanetof
the star Sirius, using whatever godawful units they have for
charge,speed,andtheirversionofPlanck'sconstant,willalsoget
137.Itisapurenumber.()
Didthebuilderswanttoconveytheirscientificknowledgethrough
thePyramidsproportions?Whobuiltthem?Andwhy?Wastheir
functionconnectedtothenumber137?
TheGodNumber
Maybe, the last question can have a constructive answer in the
esotericandKabbalisticmeaningoftheGodNumber.
InKabbalahthenumber137hasthefollowingnumericsequence:
-

100orletterQuforKaf

2orletterBeitorBeth

30orletterLamed

5orletterHeyorH

Now,letuscheckthesignificanceofeachletter:
-

Quf or Kaf is the Hebrew letter having the archetypal

meaningoftogointo,toenter,tocross;

Beit or Beth is the Hebrew letter having the archetypal

meaningoftheGodHouse;

LamedistheHebrewletterhavingthearchetypalmeaning
ofDimension,Measure;

46

Hey or H is the Hebrew letter having the archetypal

meaningofLife.

Thus,theKabalisticmeaningofthenumber137isTogointothe
GodHouseofdimensionofLife.
Here is one of the messages that the lost Civilization of the
Pyramidswanttoconvey.ThemessageiswrittenintheSecond
Pyramidsproportions.

TheaboveimagereferstotheHebrewletterstowriteKabbalah,
but137too.ThatmeansthatKabballahand137havethesame
meaning.ItisthenumberoftheRevelation,i.e.toreceivethe
AncientTraditionoftheTreeofLife,fromAdamtous.
It is time to investigate the letters with corresponding numbers
accordingtotheesotericmeaning.
-

The number 100 is the square of 10. It has a particularly

importantconsiderationinthePythagoreanculture.Itwas
considered a divine number because its connection with
the number 10. It is completeness, the esoteric
correlation between one and zero, i.e. the Universe
Unity.

Thenumber2meansduality,theunityofopposite,which
generates the triad. The Hebrew letter Beit is the God
House,theuniversalmatrixcontainingtheCupofSalvation.
ItistheHolyGrailcontainingtheBloodofChrist.
47

Thenumber30isthe3,followingthenumber2.Itspurpose
istheLifeCyclerenewed:birthdeathrebirth.Number3is
the geometrical number for tetrahedron, the base
molecularstructure,whichisrelatedtotheGodName.

Thenumber5isthelastofthesequence.Asanarchetype
it is the Letter E, symbolizing Life, handed down as the
TreefromwhichAdamgottheKnowledgeSecret.Itisthe
numberofthePentacle,oftheHolyGeometry,formingthe
fivepointed Star. Originally, it was expression of Love,
Femininity,andalsomatrixofthefivebasalelementsofour
dimension:Earth,Water,Fire,AirandSpirit,makingupour
life. It is also the letter V, connected to the Taurus
ConstellationastheGoddessIsisRevelationasHator.

Asshortlyshown,number137hasmanyscientific,Kabalisticand
archetypal meanings. Nevertheless, what are the other prime
numberspurpose?Whatistheimplicationofthenumbers7and
11?
-

Number7propertiesarewellknown.InKabbalahitisthe
letter Zain. Its purpose is eternity, transcending time. Do
you remember the ancient Arab utterance concerning
Pyramids and Time relationship? Time is afraid of
Pyramids. Does the Pyramids function has a correlation
withthathypothesis?AretheGreatPyramidChambersthe
remains of ancient scientific process? Was the Second
Pyramid, containing the number 137, part of the lost
scientific process? Number 7 represents the Man in his
Spiritualevolution,asKeter,thetopmostoftheSephirot,
thecrownoftheSpiritualDimension.

Number11isaveryexhaustiveesotericnumber.Itisthe
one following number 10, the Aleph following Tau, the
48

BeginningfollowingtheFulfillment.Thenumber11isKaf,
the Hebrew letter indicating the new Cosmic Cycle, the
EntranceintotheEternity.
Our Ancestors told their history through particular numbers, by
combining them with scientific functions. Over time, from their
union,hermeticphilosophiesgeneratedallaroundtheworld.
TheFinalResults
WhatistheresultofmyinvestigationintothePyramids?
Inmyopinion,theGizaPlateau,withitsmysteriousandmajestic
buildings,seemstoleadmankindtoitsorigins,basedonempirical
correlation between science and faith, earth and heaven. We
cannotyetassumethatthepyramidswerebuiltbythePharaohs
workersaroundthefourthdynasty.Thediscoveryof137,hidden
among the Second Pyramids proportions, is the evidence of
complexscientificorganizationdevelopedduringthesocalledZep
Tepi,themythologicalAgeoftheGods.
Thenumber137isanewtileinmycompositeHistoricalTimethe
Zep Tepi Theory. This is another extremely significant step
towards the aim of unveiling the origins of mankind. The next
phase is going to begin. The new project of research has the
Second Pyramid as target. The goal is to discover the possible
existenceofhiddenandunexploredchambersintheupperregion.
Theirpossibleexistencemaygivemoresensetothenumber137.
Itisaverydifficultchallenge,butthetimehascome.
CopyrightArmandoMei
AbouttheAuthor

49


ARMANDOMEIisaninvestigativejournalistborninTurinin1967,
and member of the Scientific Committee of For Afterlife
Foundation.HehasworkedwithprominentItaliannewspapers.A
selftrained Egyptologist, he has worked on many research
projectsthatweretheseedforhisbook(Italianversion):"36.420
B.CLePiramidiSatelliteedilCodiceSegreto"withaPrefaceby
Ph.D. Lloyd Knutson (EntomologistScientist). In scientific terms,
the book describes a revolutionary discovery about one of the
possiblefunctionsofthePyramidsofGiza.
Armando Mei was speaker at the International Conference on
AncientStudies,ZayedUniversity,Dubaiin2010.Hewroteseveral
articlesaboutthequestsofAncientCivilizations.
In2011,hepublishedhissecondbook(Italianversion):"Oltrele
Nebbie del Tempo" in which he explains the discovery of the
monumentconnectedtoSirius;andin2013,histhirdbook(Italian
version):"LaPortadelCielo",hedescribesthealchemicalprocess
originatinginthechambersoftheGreatPyramid,inscribedinan
ancientbookRosariumPhilosophorum.
In 2012, he published two studies on the Pyramids of Visoko
(Bosnia):
50

1)AstronomicalcorrelationbetweenmonumentsandtheArchof
Orion,fixedin36,420BC;
2) Investigation on enigmatic stone found in Ravne Tunnel,
reproducing an ancient astronomical map much older than
100,000yearsago.
In October 2013, Mei coauthored with
Semir Osmanagich, the book (Italian
version):"Visoko:LaScienzaoccultadelle
Piramidi". The book tells about latest
discoveries in the Bosnian Valley. In his
latestbookpublishedin2014,IlSegreto
degliDi,hetalksabouttheuncovering
ofthePrimaryPlanningofGiza.
Since 2015, Armando Mei has been
GuestAuthorforAncientOrigins.
Contact:dott.armandomei@gmail.com
Officialwebsite:www.armandomei.com
Facebook:www.facebook.com/armandomeiofficialpage/?ref=hl

51

TheMysteryoftheMayanRedQueen
ByLeonideMartin

TheMayanRedQueenSkull.Image:INAH
An unexpected discovery of a royal burial inside a previously
unknownsubstructureofTempleXIIIinPalenque,Mexico,setoff
adecadeslongarcheologicalmystery.In1994,ayoungMexican
archeologistnamedFannyLopezJimenezwasperformingroutine
52

stabilizationworkonthetemplestairs,whenshenoticedasmall
crackpartlycoveredbyweedsandmasonry.Shedirectedlightinto
thecrackusingmirrorsandaflashlight,andpeeredintoanarrow
passage,sixmeterslongandcompletelyclearofdebris.Attheend
of the passage, she saw another passage at right angles, and a
largesealeddoorwheretheymet.Thenextdayherteamchipped
awaystonesmakinganopeningthroughwhichtheyenteredthe
passage,findingtwoemptychambersoneachsideofthesealed
door which had signs of rituals being performed in front. They
sensedthatthesealedchamberheldsomethingimportant.
Temple XIII is a smaller pyramid structure adjoining the soaring
TempleoftheInscriptions,burialpyramidoffamousMayanruler
K'inich Janaab Pakal I. Pakal's tomb was excavated in 1942 by
AlbertoRuzLhuillier,revealingthefirstroyalMayanburialfound
inapyramid,andcomparedinitsrichnessofjade,ceramicsand
jewelrytothetombofEgypt'sKingTut.Theteammadeasmallcut
above the sealed door, threaded a longneck lamp through and
sawaclosedsarcophagusnearlyfillingthechamber,coveredwith
redcinnabar.

53


Cinnabarwasusedasapreservativeinancientburials.(CCBY
SA3.0)
Mercuric oxide (cinnabar) was used by ancient Mayas as a
preservativeinroyalburials.Twoweekslater,theymadealarger
entranceintothechamberandfoundmanyartifacts,includinga
spindle whorl used by women to weave, figurine whistles, and
ceramicbowlsdatingtheburialto600700CE.

54


ArcheologistsArnoldoGonzalezCruzandFannyLopezJimenez
invaultofRedQueen'scryptandopeningsarcophaguslid.
Image:INAH
These findings caused Fanny Lopez to suspect the sarcophagus
heldtheremainsofaroyalwomanwhowaslinkedtoPakal.Ifso,
this would be the first Mayan queen's burial discovered. It took
another two months for the team to remove the monolithic
limestonelidoffthesarcophagus,usingacustombuilthydraulic
lift.Theybeheldaroyalskeletonnotseenforfourteencenturies,
lying on its back with bones completely permeated with red
cinnabar.
It was a rich burial; a diadem of jade beads adorned the skull,
hundreds of bright green fragments framed the cranium from a
brokenmask,andmorejade,pearls,shells,obsidianblades,axes
andboneneedlessurroundedandcoveredtheskeleton.Itwasthe
biggestdiscoveryinMayanarcheologyinfortyyears.

55


SkeletonofMayanRedQueeninsarcophagus,permeatedwith
cinnabar.Image:INAH
Three months later, Mexican physical anthropologist Arturo
Romano Pacheco was sent by INAH (National Institute of
AnthropologyandHistoryofMexico)toexaminetheskeleton.He
determinedfromtheshapeofthepelvicbonesandstructureof
jawandskullthatitwasawoman.FannyLopezwasthrilled;she
had found the first burial of a Mayan queen. But who was the
woman?Thecryptwallsandsarcophaguswereentirelydevoidof
hieroglyphs and paintings. This surprised archeologists, because
Pakal's burial had numerous portraits of ancestors and glyphs
detailinghisentirelineage.Therewasnoinformationtoidentify
thewoman,althoughseveralcluespointedtoarelationshipwith
Pakal.Herburialpyramidwasadjacenttohis,andtheybothhada
monolithicliddedsarcophagus,jademasks,diademsandjewelry.
Both their skeletons were permeated with cinnabar, and they
were buried duringthe same time period.Though archeologists
searchedforatunnelbetweenthepyramids,onehasnotyetbeen
found.
56

Archeologist Arnoldo Gonzalez Cruz, Project Director of the

Palenque work for INAH, gave the unknown royal woman the
nickname,"TheRedQueen."Therewerefourcandidatesforher
identity, drawn from depictions of Pakal's family in his tomb;
extensive hieroglyphic panels in the temple on top his burial
pyramid,andreliefcarvingsinotherstructuresmadebyhissons.
Thecandidateswere:
YohlIk'nal,Pakal'sgrandmotherHeartofWindPlace
SakK'uk,Pakal'smotherResplendentWhiteQuetzal
Tz'aakb'uAhau(Ajaw),Pakal'swifeAccumulatorofLords
K'inuuw Mat, Pakal's daughterinlaw SunPossessed
Cormorant
YohlIk'nal,thegrandmotherofPakal,wasthe
first Mayan woman to rule in her own right.
She probably inherited rulership from her
father Kan Bahlam I. Her birth date is
unknown, but glyphs on the Temple of the
Inscriptions East Panel record that she
ascended to the throne in 583 CE, ruled for nearly twentytwo
years,anddiedin604CE.Sheisportrayedtwiceonthewallsof
Pakal's sarcophagus, and her name glyph is included in the
dynasticlistingrunningaroundtheedgesofthelid.Anothersetof
glyphs on the K'an Tok Tablet, Temple XVI, records that she
supervisedtheaccessionofasubsidiarylordlateinherreign.Her
successful rule fended off attacks from Kalakmul, led to new
construction and increased Palenque's prosperity. Mayanists
disagree about dynastic succession after her rule. The
interpretationIuseholdsthathersonAjNeOhlMatsucceeded
andruledfrom605612CE,thenhissisterSakK'ukbecameruler
57

from612615CE.EarlyinthesearchfortheRedQueen'sidentity,
Yohl Ik'nal was eliminated because she died more than seventy
yearsbeforethetombwasbuilt.Archeologistshaddeterminedit
wasnotasecondaryburial,inwhichthebonesofsomeonewho
diedearlierareentombedinalatercrypt.
SakK'uk,Pakal'smother,wasbornaround578
CE and became the second women ruler of
Palenque. On the edge of Pakal's sarcophagus
lid, she is listed as a legitimate ruler, her reign
continuingalongsidePakal'sformanyyears.The
Oval Palace Tablet portrays only Sak K'uk and
Pakal,depictingherhandingtheroyalheaddress
toherson.OntheTempleoftheInscriptionsEastTablet,however,
therulerprecedingPakalisnamed"MuwaanMat."Controversy
among Mayanists continues about whether she actually was a
ruler of Palenque. Initially the Muwaan Mat glyph was thought
anothernameforSakK'uk,butitalsoisthenameofthePrimordial
MotherGoddesswhogavebirthtothePalenqueTriadGods,from
whomtherulingdynastydescended.Myinterpretation,following
theworkofGerardoAldana,isthatSakK'ukinvokedthepresence
oftheGoddessto"corule"withherduringdifficulttimeswhen
shecouldnotperformrequiredceremonies.In611CE,Palenque
sufferedadevastatingdefeatbyKalakmul,inwhichherbrother,
AjNeOhlMat,wascapturedandlaterkilled,andthesacredshrine
that served as a spiritual portal to the Gods and ancestors was
destroyed.Thecitywaswithoutleadershipandinspiritualcrisis;
SakK'uksteppedintoguideitthroughchaos.Sheheldthethrone
until her son Pakal acceded at twelve, most likely continuing to
provide leadership for several more years. She died in 640 CE,
withinthetimeframefortheRedQueen'sburial.

58


Tz'aakb'uAhau(Ajaw)wasPakal'swife,coming
fromaneighboringcitytomarryhimin626CE.
The Temple of the Inscriptions West Tablet
recordshermarriageanddeathdates,andsheis
depictedincarvingsontwoothertablets.Onthe
PalaceTablet,sheandPakalsitoneithersideoftheirsecondson,
K'inich Kan Joy Chitam II, offering him symbols of rulership and
divineancestry.TheDumbartonOaksTabletdepictsthissameson
dancingastheraingod,flankedbyhismotherandfather.From
theTempleoftheInscriptionstablets,archeologistshavededuced
thatsheborePakalthreeorpossiblyfoursons.Twoofthesesons
became subsequent rulers of Palenque, but left no heirs. The
youngestson,whodiedbeforeattainingthethrone,continuedthe
dynasty through his own son. During Pakal's long life, he vastly
expanded the city, creating a new central plaza complex and
palacethatareconsideredthemostelegantofMayaarchitecture.
Over a period of about 60 years, herestored the city's religious
charter,builtanewsacredshrine,andresurrectedthecollapsed
portal,possiblyassistedbyhiswife.Tz'aakb'uAhaudiedin672CE,
eleven years before Pakal's death in 683 CE. Pakal could have
personallyoverseenherroyalburialandtheconstructionofher
pyramidadjacenttohisown.Manyarcheologistsbelievedshewas
themostlikelycandidateforTheRedQueen.

K'inuuw Mat was Pakal's daughterinlaw,

marrying his youngest son Tiwol Chan Mat
who never acceded to the throne. Little is
known about this woman, who came from
another city, possibly Uxte'kuh on the
59

Tabascoplains.Herhusbandwasbornin647CEanddiedin680
CE at age thirtythree. The marriage was probably a political
alliance.Iftheymarriedintheirtwenties,thentheirunionwould
have occurred around 670 CE. Their son who continued the
dynasty,K'inichAhkalMo'NabIII,wasbornin678CEandacceded
in721CE.K'inuuwMatisdepictedinacarvingontheTabletofthe
Slaves in Temple XIX. She and her husband are shown offering
theirsonsymbolsofrulershipanddivineancestry,andbothare
namedintheglyphsabovethem.Thereisnorecordofwhenshe
died.SheisalesslikelycandidateforTheRedQueen,sinceboth
Pakal'soldersonswerelivingwhenhediedandhehadnoreason
tosingleheroutforspecialtreatment.Pakalhadanunusuallylong
life,rulinguntilhewas80yearsofage.Hisoldestson,K'inichKan
BahlamII,accededin684CEatage49,andK'inichKanJoyChitam
IIaccededin702CEatage58.ThenextrulerwasK'inuuwMat's
son,Pakal'sgrandson.
NarrowingtheCandidatesfortheMysteriousRedSkeleton
Using archeological evidence, epigraphic data for dates, and a
processofdeduction,thecandidatesforTheRedQueencanbe
narroweddown toSakK'uk, the mother of Pakal, and Tz'aakb'u
Ahau,thewifeofPakal.Bothwomenplayedimportantrolesinhis
life,andheacknowledgedtheminportraitsandglyphichistories.
But, such records were absent from the walls of her crypt and
sarcophagus, so scientific studies were conducted on the Red
Queen's and Pakal's bones. Cinnabar, mercuric oxide used for
preservation,hadpenetratedintothebonematrixandcoloredthe
bones bright red throughout. For the Mayas, red symbolized
sacredenergiesofblood,calleditz,andwasthecoloroftheeast,
the rising sun, the renewal of life eternal. Between the red
colorationoftheboneanddeteriorationofbonematrixovertime,
itwasverydifficulttoperformmicroscopicexaminations.
60


Thefirststudieswereofstrontiumisotopes,foundinbedrockand
varyingwithageandtypeofrock.Isotopesmovefromrockinto
soilandgroundwater,areabsorbedintoplantsandthroughthe
food chain. In humans, strontium isotopes in skeletal bones
indicatedietduringlateryearsoflife,whilethoseintoothenamel
indicatedietduringchildhood.Geologicallydifferentregionshave
varyingisotoperatios.Between1999and2003,anINAHproject
extractedsamplesofboneandteethfrombothPakalandTheRed
Queen. Analyses were conducted by Dr. Vera Tiesler and Dr.
Andrea Cucina, of the Universidad Autonoma de Yucatan. The
strontiumisotopesprofileofPakal'sbonesandteethshowedhe
wasbornandresidedinlaterlifeinthePalenqueregion.TheRed
Queen's tooth enamel had isotope ratios for a different
geographicregion,typicalforthewesternpartofVeracruz.This
indicated that she grew up in a different city, most likely
TortugueroorPomona.Thestrontiumisotopesstudiesindicated
61

that the Red Queen probably was not Pakal's mother, who was
bornandlivedherlifeinPalenque.
Question remained about confirming The Red Queen's
relationship to Pakal, since experts considered the strontium
isotopesanalysistobecircumstantialevidence.Somethingmore
definitivewasneeded.Furtherbonestudieshadtowaitanother
decade, however, for techniques of DNA analysis to advance.
InitialattemptstoextractDNAfrombonesofPakalandTheRed
Queen had been unsuccessful, due to the cinnabar and
deteriorated matrix. A group of scientists had been working on
techniques to analyze ancient biological remains. Dr. Carney
Matheson at Lakehead University in Canada and his group
specializedinstudyingtheancientbiomoleculesandprocessesof
degradation, and developed new techniques for DNA extraction
and recovery. They analyzed several bone samples taken from
Pakal,TheRedQueen,andthreeotherskeletonsfromPalenque.
TheirsamplingandDNAanalysistechniquesweresuccessful.
InJune2012,INAHreleasedastatementabouttheDNAanalysis
resultsofDr.Matheson'sgroup.Theresults"confirmedthatthere
was no relationship between The Red Queen and Pakal." Since
PakalandTheRedQueendidnotsharecommonDNA,shecould
notbeabloodrelative.Thiseliminateshismother,SakK'uk,asthe
queen in the mysterious redpermeated burial. Most Mayanists
nowacceptthatTheRedQueenisTz'aakb'uAhau,Pakal'swife.

62


Butthemysteryisnotcompletelyanddefinitivelysolved.Thereis
somechancethattheskeletonmaybethatofhisdaughterinlaw
K'inuuw Mat, or another unrelated royal woman as yet
undiscovered. Archeologists hope that a future excavation will
discoverthetombofoneofPakal'ssons.Specialistswouldthen
studytheson'sDNAandcompareitwiththatofTheRedQueen.
If they shared common DNA this would confirm that she was
Pakal'swife.

63


TempleoftheInscriptions(Pakal'sburialpyramid,left),with
TempleXIIIadjacent(TheRedQueen'sburialpyramid).
Palenque,Chiapas,Mexico.Image:INAH
CopyrightLeonideMartin
References
Gerardo Aldana. The Apotheosis of Janaab' Pakal: Science,
History,andReligionatClassicMayaPalenque.UniversityPressof
Colorado,Boulder.(2007)
Cultura,SecretaradeCultura.NuevosEstudiosalaReinaRoja.
INAHInstitutoNacionaldeAntropologaeHistoria,MexicoCity.
(2012)
www.inah.gob.mx/es/boletines/1791nuevosestudiosala
reinaroja
Arnoldo Gonzalez Cruz. The Red Queen. Report for INAH.
http://www.mesoweb.com/palenque/features/red_queen/text.h
tml(1999)
64

Arnoldo Gonzalez Cruz. La Reina Roja: Una Tumba Real en

Palenque.Turner,Madrid.(2011)
StanleyGuenter.TheTombofK'inichJanaabPakal:TheTempleof
the Inscriptions at Palenque. Mesoweb Articles.
www.mesoweb.com/articles/guenter/TI.pdf(2007)
Adriana Malvido. La Reina Roja: El Secreto de los Mayas en
Palenque.ConacultaINAH,RandomHouse,MexicoCity.(2006)
Carney Matheson. Palenque Research Report. Unpublished
manuscript on file, Lakehead University, Thunder Bay, Canada.
(2005)
Joel Skidmore. The Rulers of Palenque. Fifth Edition. Mesoweb
Publications.
www.mesoweb.com/palenque/resources/rulers/rulers.html
(2010)
DavidStuart&GeorgeStuart.Palenque:EternalCityoftheMaya.
Thames&Hudson,London.(2008)
VeraTieslerandAndreaCucina.(Eds)Janaab'PakalofPalenque:
Reconstructing the Life and Death of a Maya Ruler. Chapter 7.
GeographicOriginofJanaab'Pakalandthe"RedQueen":Evidence
from Strontium Isotopes. University of Arizona Press, Tucson.
(2006)

AbouttheAuthor

65

LEONIDE(LENNIE)MARTIN,DPH
Retired California State University
professor, former
Family
Nurse
Practitioner,
currently author
and
Maya
researcher. My
booksbringancient
Maya culture and
civilizationtolifeinstoriesaboutbothrealhistoricalMayasand
fictional characters. For historical accuracy, I researched Maya
archeology, anthropology and history from the scientific
perspective. For indigenous viewpoints, I studied with Maya
teachers including Aum Rak Sapper, Guatemalan Priestess
DaykeeperandHunbatzMen,ItzMayaElderDaykeeper.Ilived
in Mrida, Yucatn, Mexico for five years to apprentice with
HunbatzMen,becomingaSolarInitiateandMayaFireWomanin
the Itz Maya tradition. The ancient Mayas created the most
highlyadvancedcivilizationintheWesternhemisphere,andmy
work is dedicated to their wisdom, spirituality, scientific and
culturalaccomplishmentsthroughcompellinghistoricalnovels.
I'vereceivedawardsfromWriters'DigestforshortfictionandThe
VisionaryMayanQueen,whichattainedAmazonKindle#1ranking
inApril2015.TheControversialMayanQueenattainedAmazon
Kindle #4 ranking in August 2015. The Mayan Red Queen is a
nomineefortheDanPoynterGlobalEbookAwards,2015.

66

Author of Mists of Palenque

seriesaboutfourgreatMayan
queens. These were among
the most powerful women in

the Americas, but few have

heardofthem.Twowererulersintheirownrightandtwowere
influentialwivesofrulers,allinthedynastyofthemostfamous
Mayanruler,K'inichJanaabPakalofPalenque.Thediscoveryof
hisrichtombin1952iscomparedtothatofEgypt'sKingTut.In
four compelling works of wellresearched historical fiction, the
storiesofPakal'sgrandmother,mother,wifeanddaughterinlaw
bring the complex culture, exotic royal courts, and amazing
scientific accomplishments of Classic Period Mayan civilization
vividlytolife.
Threebooksinthe4bookserieshavebeenpublished.Eachbook
can be read as a complete story, although the full richness of
historic events and dynastic relationships will be better
appreciatedbyreadingthemsequentially.
TheVisionaryMayanQueen:YohlIk'nalofPalenque(Book1)
TheControversialMayanQueen:SakK'ukofPalenque(Book2)
TheMayanRedQueen:Tz'aakb'uAhauofPalenque(Book3)
ThePropheticMayanQueen:K'inuuwMatofPalenque(Book4,
summer2016)
FormoreinformationaboutmywritingandtheMayas,visit:

Website:www.mistsofpalenque.com
Blog:http://leonidemartinblog.wordpress.com/
Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/leonide.martin
Twitter:@lenniem07
67

ElongatedSkullsofStonehenge:AForgotten
GoddessCult
ByMariaWheatley

Stonehenge,NeolithicandBronzeAgemonument.(CCBY2.5)
Stonehenge overlooks the windswept Salisbury Plain. Salisbury
Plainisadramaticlandscapeofextremes,containingthelargest
remainingareaofnaturalchalkgrasslandinnorthwestEuropeand
alsothelargestmilitarytrainingareaonBritishsoil.Stonehengeis
surroundedbymilitaryestablishmentssuchasLarkhill,Boscombe
Down,PortonDownNuclearBiologicalCentre,andBulfordCamp
tonamebutafew.
EquivalenttoArea51intheUSA,theMinistryofDefence(MoD)
managesthePlain,whichisapproximately26milesby20miles(32

68

by32kilometers)andwithinthemilitaryRedFlagDangerZone
publicaccessisdenied.

However, certain parts of the Plain are accessible and it has a

seductivebeauty;thechalkgrasslandischarmingandwhenyou
visit the Plain there is a special something that makes you feel
alive.WithnomainroadsjustsmalltrackwaysthePlainisquiet,
swiftlytakingyoubacktoatimethatwas.
Hidden from public view, numerous ancient sites are located
withinthePlainsprohibitedzoneandtheiruntoldhistorywillcast
newlightuponprehistoricmysteriesandmoreimportantlyonthe
peoplethatconstructedthem.

69

I am a professional dowser and using

dowsing alongside other esoteric
disciplines I discovered one of
Stonehenges best kept secrets I found
the Elongated People of Stonehenge and
theirNeolithicHighQueen.
IamtheonlyUKdowsertohavefoundan
archaeologicalfindofsuchmeritwhichled
tofurtherresearch.Myfindingshavenot
gone by unnoticed in the lofty halls of
academia.My book The Elongated Skulls
ofStonehengewasrequestedbytheBodleianLibraryofOxford
University,TheCambridgeUniversityLibrary,NationalLibraryof
Scotland, National Library of Wales and Trinity College Dublin.
ThatseverysinglelargeuniversityintheUK!
Burials
IdiscoveredthatthelongbarrowsofSalisburyPlaincontainedthe
elongated dolichocephalic skulls of the people that once lived
closetoStonehengeandtheirhistoryhasgonebyunnoticedfor
over5000years.
Thelargestlongbarroweverconstructed
LocatedontheedgeofthePlain,anunassumingtrackleadstoa
forgotten processional way, which silently guides you to the
largest Neolithic long barrow in the United Kingdom and to the
memory of a long gone Neolithic woman. Her forgotten history
readsasifitcamefromanAgathaChristienovel.
Whilst excavating long barrows, the early archaeologists
repeatedly noted that the long mounds contained numerous
communalburialssometimesasmanyas50individuals.Whenfirst
70

excavateditwasthoughtthatthecolossaloversizedmegalong
barrowonSalisburyPlainwouldcontainhundredsofskeletons,
likeagiganticgraveyard,fullofNeolithicpeoplewhooncelived
andworkedonthePlain.Itdidnt.
Without doubt, it came as a shock to the early excavators that
beneath the massive mound there was only a single burial.
Instantly, it was realized that this was highly unusual and an
extraordinary find. Generally, it was anticipated that the finds
from a smallish long barrow would yield around 15 to 20
individuals. Whoever these people were, they must have been
considered especially important, as a single burial within a long
moundwasexceptionallyrare.Asecondrevelationfollowedthat
stunnedtheVictorianarchaeologistsitwasawoman.Werarely
hearofBritainsprehistoricfemales,exceptforBoudiccathebrave
IronAgeIceniQueen.Wepresumetheleadingfigures,rulersand
thearchitectsofprehistoryweremale.
DuringtheBronzeAge,ornateandbeautifullycraftedgravegoods
wereinvariablyfoundalongsidemaleburials.However,thelargest
barrowinBritaineverraisedwasthefinalrestingplaceofahigh
profile woman. Not everyone in prehistory had a lavish burial.
There were Neolithic flat graves (similar to todays burial
practices),afarcryfromthewelldesignedlongbarrows,someof
which housed the burial deposits of the elite. Considered
importantenoughtobeasingleburial,thisladymusthavebeen
royalty, a priestess, or a highstatus member of the early
Stonehengecommunity.ShewasspecialpossiblyaNeolithicHigh
Queen. Yet another shock followed. She had been violently
murdered.

71


ThelargestlongmoundinBritain.Priortoearlyexcavationsthe
moundstoodunmolestedformorethan5000years.Kindly
reproducedwithpermission.Photograph2014BustyTaylor
HighQueenofStonehenge
During my research, I noted that this section of the Plain is
differenttoanywhereelseinNeolithicBritain,whichwasgenerally
consideredtohavebeenapeacefulutopia.Indeed,manyplaces
were peaceful, as signs of warfare are few, but not in the
Stonehenge environs. Here certain people were despised, as
murdersweremorefrequentinthisregionthananywhereelsein
prehistoricEngland.Evenmoreperplexingandaddingintrigueto
ourenquiryisthatthemajorityofmurdervictimswereburiedin
relativelycloseproximitytooneanother.Allofthelongmounds
close to the Neolithic Queens long grave contained murder
victims.
These people, probably the ruling class, had another thing in
common: They had elongated skulls compared to the rounder
skullsoftheotherpeopleoftheNeolithicperiod.
In one long barrow that is situated high on the Plain, a large
proportion of the local male population, around 25 men all of
whomwereintheirprime,aswellassomesmallmalechildren,
appeartohavebeenroundedupandslaughteredinagenocide
72

attacktoeradicatetheprehistoriceliteofdolichocephalicskulled
people that were possibly holding positions of power in the
Stonehengeenvirons.
Otherlongbarrowstellasimilarstoryastherearesignsofmurder
inmostoftheearthenmoundsthatadornthemysticalPlain.
Slowlyandsurely,theseenigmaticpeoplewerekilled.Infact,very
old antiquarians called the long mounds of Neolithic Wessex
BattleorWarriorBarrowsastheyrecognizedthemurdersvictims
thereinandthoughttheywerewarriorlords.
My research led to another startling conclusion about the
ElongatedpeopleofNeolithicStonehenge.Themonumentsthat
theyconstructedwerealsoelongatedinshape.Thisisastaggering
new find that reveals the similarities between skull and
monument.
TheStonehengeGreaterCursus

Cursus monuments were the largest monuments to be

constructed on prehistoric British soil. They were gigantic. The
StonehengeGreaterCursushasbeendatedtocirca3800BCwhich
73

formedalargeenclosurelocatedhalfamile(800meters)northof
Stonehenge.Consistingoftworoughlyparallelbanksandditches
around 310 feet (100 meters) apart the monument coursed for
nearly1.75miles(3km).
TherearemanyothercursusesinBritain,thelargestofwhichis
foundinDorsetwhichisoversevenmiles(tenkm)long.Theytake
theirnamefromthe18thcenturyantiquarian,WilliamStukeley,
who believed them to be Roman racetracks. Cursus is Latin for
runningandmovement.Today,nothingexistsoftheoncegigantic
monumentwhichwasalignedroughlyeastwestgazingtowards
the equinox sunrise. The western end was drawn by Stukeley
whichisshownintheillustration,butitwaslessroundandmore
squarelikethantheillustrationdepicts.Attheeasternend,there
isalongbarrowwhichisnowbadlydamaged.Thewesternend
was ploughed out in the late 1940s and has since been
reconstructed(poorly).
Everobsessedwithdeath,thearchaeologicalexplanationisthat
thelongCursuswasusedasaprocessionalwayforfuneralritesor
rituals. Odd then that the Stonehenge expert and top
archaeologist,MichaelParkerPearson,pointsoutthemonument
didnothaveanentrance.Perhaps,withitslargechalkwallsitwas
more like a machine than a monument. I have shown that the
nearcenterofthismonumentisassociatedwithradiationlevels
and that the nearby round barrows release strange frequencies
showingourancestorstobeprehistoricphysicists.Today,thearea
is bombarded by military electronic signals making civilian
research difficult. Military frequencies change their bandwidth
andsignature;iftheydidnottheirintelligenceoperationswould
suffer. Thankfully, my research covers 20 years of serious data
collection.

74

Halfamile(800meters)northwestoftheStonehengeCursuswas
once the Lesser Cursus, now sadly plowed out, which ran for a
quarterofamile(400meters).Theelongatedskulledpeoplewere
designinganderectingthelargestmonumentseverconstructedin
prehistoricBritain,whichwereelongatedinshape.
AnothermoundwheretheElongatedOneswereburiedwasBelas
KnapinGloucestershire.Thefrontendhasafalseentrancewhich
was designed to look like an entrance however; it was also
designed to be blocked. Inside of the blocked wall section
archaeologistsfoundalongskulledpersonplacednexttoaround
skulled person. The Edwardian archaeological explanation of
prehistoricpeopleswasthattheancientBritonshadlongskulls,
these were found in long barrows, and the much later round
skulled people were immigrants of the Beaker Culture. Recent
carbon dating of the two different shaped skulls blew that old
theory out of the water, as the skulls were contemporary. In
prehistorictimes,thesepeoplewerelivingsidebyside.

75

BelasKnaplongmoundshowingthefalseentrance.Aside
chambercontainedseveralelongatedskulls.Reproducedwith
kindpermission.Photo2010BustyTaylor

BelasKnapsidechambershowingitselongatedshape.

Lanhillelongatedlongmound,nearChippenham,Wiltshire.
Elongatedskullswereunearthedinthechamber,likenedatthe

76

timetotheFirstNationsNativeAmericanculture.Opentothe
public.ST:87774.Photo2010MariaWheatley
ThecultoftheGoddess
During the Neolithic period at an unknown date, which was
probably around 3000 to 2500 BC, the Elongated Ones were
murdered. I think that these people were a part of a leading
GoddessculturecontemporarytotheMalteseculture.Afleeting
glimpseoftheMaltesedolichocephalicskullsbearsaresemblance
totheStonehengepeople.

Photo2015MariaWheatley
Is there any evidence of a Goddess Cult in the Stonehenge
environs? It is interesting to note that the orientation of the
Salisbury Plain long barrows, as well as Phase I Stonehenge, is
lunar. The sun once rose at 50 at midsummer and 130 at
77

midwinter.Only20percentoftheStonehengelongbarrowsare
eithernorthorsouthofthisarc.Whereasthemoonroseat42at
itsmostnortheasterlyto144atitsmostsoutheasterlyandnine
intenlongbarrowsareorientatedwithinthelunardegreerange.
OnlyonelongbarrowcalledWilsfordSouth13faces37degrees
northeastjustnorthofit.
Seventeen out of the total number of surviving long barrows
surveyedfacedeast.Onecouldarguethatthisisthedirectionof
theEquinoxsunrise,andofcourse,thisiscorrect.However,during
itsintricatecycle,therisingfullmoonsharesthiscardinalpointon
thehorizon.Dawnsequinoxsunrayslightupthedarkchambers
oftheeasternalignedbarrowswithsplendidlight.But,sodoesthe
fullmoonssilverlight.Perhapsbothsolarandlunaralignments
were intended. However, upon closer inspection the lunar
alignmentsappearfarmoreaccurate.
The moon has long been associated with the Goddess and a
matriarchal culture. Stonehenge Phase 1, which was a Neolithic
hengemonumentthatcontained56magnificentbluestones,and
theHeelStonewerealignedtotheMoon.Neolithicpotteryshards
foundinassociationwiththeHeelStoneshowthatitwaserected
atthesametimeasthenearbybluestonecircle.Yet,weareallfar
morefamiliarwiththeHeelStonesworldfamousalignmentwith
the sun which is actually less accurate than its earlier lunar
orientation.Infact,itisadegreeandnearlytwometers(6.5feet)
from the correct position if intended as a solar alignment.
However,thelunaralignment,whichwasathousandyearsearlier,
wasprecise.Astestimonytothepowerofthemoonasasymbol
ofthegoddesscult,theHeelStonewasraisedtomarkthemid
swingpositionofthemoon'snorthernmostmoonrise.Duringthe
moon's complex Metonic cycle of 18.61 years, at the exact

78

midpoint,thefullmoonroseoverthehorizonandappearedabove
thetaperingcrestoftheHeelStone.
In the 1920's, Colonel Hawley uncovered six lines of postholes
across the causeway, which were interpreted by the amateur
astronomer,C.A.'Peter'Newham,astemporarysightingdevices
used by Neolithic man to plot and record the moon's intricate
cycle.Atthewintersolstice2010,thefullmoonroseabovethe
HeelStonemarkingthemidwaycycle,andyetthatmajorevent
went by unnoticed. In contrast, 30,000 people gathered for the
lessaccuratesolarsunrisethatyear!TheHeelStonewas,andstill
is,alunarmarkerstone.ItistemptingtothinkthattheNeolithic
High Queen of dolichocephalic skulled people saw this majestic
event.

TheHeelStoneandtheMoon'sMetonicCycle.Maria
Wheatley.

79

Fromthemidswingposition,themoonrisesgraduallymoveto
therightuntilitreaches'standstill'position,whichtakesaround
4.65years,beforereturningtotheHeelStoneinthesametime
period.Thesamecycleoccursinthemoonrisetransitstothe
HeelStone'sleft,givingthe18.61yearsMetoniccycle.
TotalcontrolaNewWorldOrder
Everything changed in the Bronze Age. The maleorientated
Bronze Age Solar Cult dominated the communities of ancient
Britain.AtStonehenge,thenarrowlunarentrancethatpoetically
alignedtothemoonspale,silverylightwaswidenedsothatthe
sunatMidsummerwouldbecomethefocus.Itstillis.TheBronze
Age people redesigned the existing megalithic features of
Stonehenge. Additionally, as an act of supreme control and
dominance,theysystematicallycloseddownandeternallysealed
all of the Neolithic long barrows in the UK. Any remaining
elongatedskullswereplacedinsideofthemoundsasaneweraof
control was dawning. The once moonlit chambers and
passagewaysofthelongmoundswereinfilledwithtonsofearth
makingthemimpenetrable,andfinallythemoundswereeternally
sealed by placing a large blocking stone or tightly packed earth
acrosstheentrance.Theywouldneverbeenteredagain.Notone
longbarrowescapedthisfate.
It was not until the 1950s that the impacted earth from long
barrowssuchasWestKennetlongmound,nearAvebury,wasdug
out by archaeologists. It is my opinion that the reason the long
barrowsweresealedaround2500BCwastoerasethememoryof
the Elongated Ones and their lunar goddess worship. The solar
Bronze Age cult bore weapons and land ownership prevailed.
Materialistic attitudes dominated the new group mindset and
lavishjewelsandgoldwereburiedinthenewlydesignedround
80

barrows; round like their skulls and the suns blazing disc. The
memoryoftheElongatedpeoplefaded.Theywereeradicatedand
forgottenuntiladowsingrodfoundthemandtheirstorybeganto
remergefromthesacredsitethatheldthem.
To some, Britain is often seen as a backwater of prehistoric
culture, outshone by the later cultures of Egypt and South
America.YetitisclearfromtheevidencewhichIhavepresented
that the Stonehenge Elongated Ones were the original Western
spiritualleadersthatcreatedthelargestmonumentsinprehistoric
Europe.
It is not beyond the realms of possibility that some of the
Stonehenge Elongated people escaped persecution or simply
traveledoverseas.TheCeltsarefamousfortheirthick,flowingand
beautifulredhair.Didtheyescapetoinspirethedawningofanew
culture in warmer climes? Or were they a part of a recognized
globalpriesthood,andtheStonehengepeoplesimplyfledtothe
safetyoftheirextendedspiritualfamily?
Letusnotforget,thattheseenigmaticanddistantpeopleselected
theesotericlocationofEnglandsspiritualcapitalStonehenge
which would later become the ionic megalithic temple of
Stonehenge.

81

BronzeAgeroundbarrow.Skeletonswithbroadandroundskull
shapesbrachycephalicwereburiedwithinroundbarrowsand
thehyperdolichocephalicskullshapeswereburiedinthelong
elongatedmounds.Photo2009MariaWheatley
Comparisonofelongatedskulls

ComparingtheskullsoftheStonehengepeopletothatoftheAlans
showsasimilarity.TheAlansorHalaniwereanIranianpeopleof
antiquitywhoweredocumentedbytheChineseduringthefirst
centuryBC.TheylivedneartheAralSeaunderthenameofYancai.
Skullremainsshowhowthesepeoplepracticedskullmodification.
TheillustrationshowstwocentralAlansskullswhichareondisplay
at Yverdon History Museum. The sketched skulls are from the
Stonehenge environs, and the outer skull examples are the
remainsoftheNeolithicHighQueenpreviouslymentioned.
Admittedly, the North African and South American elongated
skullsaremuchlargerandmorepronouncedthanthesurvivingUK
examples. Nefertitis famous stone sculpture shows her long
elongated skull and neck, which may have been artistically
exaggerated. Certainly, Tutankhamens skull, (Akhenatons son),
was identified, as a dolichocephalous cranium is additional
evidence for a ruling elite status and is probably closer to the
BritishNeolithicskulltypewhichwassaidtobedolichocephalous
and also hyperdolichocephalous, more pronounced than
Tutankhamensskull.
ItisahistoricalfactthattheBritishNeolithiceraoftheElongated
OnespredatestheEgyptianroyalexamplesthatIhavequotedby
82

circa2700yearsandtheParacasculturebyover4000years,which
makes the hyperdolichocephalous Stonehenge skulls amongst
the oldest elongated examples in the world. Other comparison
examples tell a similar story. For instance, the craniums of the
Stonehenge people and the cranium samples from Malta are
similar;althoughacloserinspectionisrequiredtofullyanalyzethe
skulltypes.Suchcontemporarycomparisonsmayhintataglobal
priesthood.Thesepeoplewerealsotheintellectualdesignersof
prehistoricmonumentsandgeomancersthatnotedtheenergetic
quality of the land and the astronomerpriests who studied the
movementofcelestialbodies.

FacialprofilesofNefertitiandanobleEuropeanwoman

83


TheskullofTutankhamenandtheStonehengeHighQueen
Photo2015MariaWheatley
Based on Tutankhamens professionally reconstructed facial
features,weappliedhisdolichocephalicskullfeaturestothatofa
NeolithicwomanofancientBriton.Insteadofmakingherhairlong
andloose,wedecidedtopresentherwithabraidtoshowherskull
profile. She may have resembled our noble Stonehenge High
Queen as the skull shape would have looked similar; although
obviouslynotidentical.Certainly,ourreconstructiongivesyoua
visual impression of what the Stonehenge Elongated Ones may
havelookedlike.

84

ThefamousreconstructionofTutankhamenandour
reconstructionofaStonehengeNeolithicwomanaHighQueen
2015NedWheatley
CopyrightMariaWheatley
AbouttheAuthor
MARIAWHEATLEYisawriter,dowser
and researcher of earth mysteries
specializing inthe geodetic system of
earthenergiesandleylines.
TheElongatedskullsofStonehenge:
AForgottenGoddessCultisasmall
extract from Marias forthcoming
book From Stonehenge to Serpent
Mound.
The
book
reveals
extraordinary new finds that help
solveancientmysteries.
Please support our research, buy the book or
feelfreetodonateorcontributetoourworkby
usingourdonationbuttononthehomepage.
www.theaveburyexperience.co.uk
In the book, Maria reveals several new and
fascinatingdiscoveriesandshealsoexploresa
profound global ley network which was
engineeredbytheElongatedOnes.Later,this
complex network was recognized by the Mediaeval Masons,
VictorianMysterySchoolsandNaziGermany.Mariawillalsoshow
you a long lost feature of the ancient British and Early Native
Americanlandscapethatwillchangeyouroptionofancienthenge
andmoundsitesandtheprehistoricculturethatdesignedthem.
85

THE AVEBURY EXPERIENCE AND THE AVEBURY SCHOOL OF

ESOTERICSTUDIES
Maria gives group and private tours of ancient sites and is the
founderofTheAveburySchoolofEsotericStudies,affiliatedtothe
Association of British Correspondence Colleges which offers
certificatedcoursesindowsing,pastliferegressionandastrology.
www.theaveburyexperience.co.uk
esotericcollege.comisMariaWheatleysnewandexcitingonline
college which offers
professional
full
certificated
courses.
Maria is a second
generation dowser who
was trained by European
MasterDowsersaswellas
Chinese geomants. Maria
combines eastern Feng
ShuipracticeswithherWesterndowsingknowledge.Lookupthe
newMasterDowsingandCelticFengShuicourses.
Emailmariawheatley@aol.com

86

AMysteriousMummyinCairo:The
SurprisingTrueIdentityofPatriarchJoseph
oftheCoatofManyColors
ByAhmedOsman

GoldensarcophagusfromtheancientEgyptianYuyaandTuya
collection.(Flickr/CCBYNCSA2.0)
WhowasthekingwhoappointedJoseph,ofthelegendarycoatof
manycolors,ashisminister?AndduringwhichperiodofEgyptian
historydidhelive?
Since the start of archaeological digging in Egypt more than a
hundredandfiftyyearsago,scholarshavebeentryingtoanswer
thesequestions.ThesewerequestionstowhichIdevotedtwenty
fiveyearsofmyownadultlife.
PatriarchJosephissaidintheBibleandtheQuran,tohavebeen
soldasaslaveintoEgypt.Itwashisownbrotherswhohandedhim
87

overtoatradecaravan,astheybecamejealouswhenJacob,their
father, gave him a coat with many colors. An Egyptian official
bought the young Hebrew boy and made him overseer over his
house,butwhentheofficialsmistressfalselyaccusedJosephof
tryingtoseduceher,hewassenttoprison.Twoyearslater,Joseph
wassetfreebythePharaoh,whoalsoappointedhimasoneofhis
ministers,whenhewasabletointerpretthekingsdream.

PaintingdepictingasceneintheBiblicalmythofJosephandthe
CoatofManyColors.(PublicDomain)
FathertoPharaoh
88

Later,asaresultofafamineinthelandofCanaan,thestorygoes
that Josephs brothers went down to Egypt to buy corn there.
Joseph recognized Jacobs sons when they arrived, but they did
not recognize him in his Egyptian costume; he kept his identity
secret.
The famine in Canaan persisted, however, and caused Josephs
halfbrotherstoreturntoEgyptonasecondcornbuyingmission.
OnthisoccasionJosephinvitedthemtohaveamealinhishouse
and, in an emotional moment, he revealed his identity to his
brothers.Theywereashamedofwhattheyhaddonetohim,when
theysoldhimasaslave,butheaskedthemnottofeelanysense
ofguilt:ForGoddidsendmebeforeyoutopreservelife,andHe
hasmademeaFathertoPharaoh,hesaid.
FathertoPharaoh!Itwasthistitlethatattractedmyattention.
EgyptianofficialswereusuallygiventhetitleSonofPharaoh,but
FathertoPharaohwasararetitle,andonlyfewpeoplehadit.
ImmediatelythenameofYuyacametomymind.
YuyaservedasaministerandcommanderofthemilitaryChariots
forAmenhotepIII(circa14051367BC)ofthe18thdynasty.Among
hismanytitles,Yuyaboreonethatwasuniquetohim,itntrnnb
tawi, the holy father of the Lord of the Two Lands, Pharaohs
formaltitle.ThereasonforYuyatogetthisuniquetitlewasthe
fact that the king, Amenhotep III, had married Yuyas daughter,
Tiye,andmadeherhisgreatwife,theQueenofEgypt.

89


JosephandHisBrethrenWelcomedbyPharaoh.ByJames
Tissot,circa1903.(PublicDomain)
CouldJosephthePatriarchandYuyabeoneandthesameperson?
YuyasTomb
ThetombofYuyaandhiswifeTuyawasfoundin1905,threeyears
afterTheodoreM.Davishadobtainedaconcessiontoexcavatein
theValleyoftheKings.Thesiteofthetomb,theonlyoneinEgypt
90

tobefoundalmostintactbeforethediscoveryofTutankhamuns
seventeenyearslater,occasionedsomesurprise.

OutercoffinofYuyasmummy.Excavationassistantbeside
2.75meter(9feet)outercoffin,shortlyafterexcavation,circa
1905.(PublicDomain)

91


AnelaborateboxfromYuyaandTjuyu'stombbearing
AmenhotepIII'scartouche.(CCBYSA2.0)
Davisprovidedthemoney,whiletheactualworkwascarriedout
byBritisharchaeologists.ThereisanarrowsidevalleyintheValley
oftheKings,abouthalfamilelong,leadinguptothemountain.
Eight days before Christmas of 1904, James Quibell started the
examination of this side valley. A month later, he decided to
transfer the men back to the mouth of the side valley, and by
February1theyhadexposedthetopofasealeddoorthatblocked
thestairwell.WithinafewdaysDavisandhisgroupwereableto
enterthetomb,inwhichtheyfoundthesarcophagusofYuyaand
ofhiswife,Tuya(orTjuyu,Thuya),includingtheirmummies.

92


ThemummiesofYuya(left),andtotheright,Tuya.(Creative
CommonsFairUse)
AlthoughbothYuyaandhiswifewereknownfromEgyptiantexts,
neither was considered particularly important. Nor, as far as
anyonewasaware,dideitherofthempossessroyalbloodwhich
onewouldexpectwhentheyenjoyedtheprivilegeofburialinthe
ValleyoftheKings.

93


GildedcartonnagemummymaskofTuya,wifeofYuyaand
motherofQueenTiye.(PublicDomain)
YuyaaSemite
OtherthansharingtheuniquetitleofFathertoPharaoh,both
JosephandYuyawereofforeignorigin,andmanyscholarshave
commentedonYuyasforeignappearance.ArthurWeigall,oneof
thearchaeologistsinvolvedinthediscoveryofYuyastomb,wrote:
Hewasapersonofcommandingpresence...Hehasthefaceof
94

an ecclesiastic, and there is something about his mouth that

reminds one of the late Pope, Leo III. Henri Naville, the Swiss
Egyptologist,tooktheviewthatYuyasveryaquilinefacemight
beSemitic.
The difficulties scribes had with his name also point to Yuyas
foreign origin. Eleven different spellings were found on his
sarcophagus,threecoffinsandotherfuneraryfurniture.Egyptian
names usually indicated the name of the god under whose
protectionapersonwasplaced:Ramos,Ptahhotep,Tutankh
amun,andsoon.ItthereforeseemsthatEgyptianscribesmust
havenamedhimafterhisowngod,Yhwh(Jehovah),andthatis
whatthescribesweretryingtowrite,withspellingsthatincluded
Yaa,YiyaandYuyi.
The way Yuya was buried also points to his not having been
Egyptian. His ears were not pierced, unlike those of most royal
mummies of the 18th Dynasty, the time when Yuya saw service
under both Tuthmosis IV and his son, Amenhotep III, and the
positionofhishands,facinghisneckunderthechin,isdifferent
from the usual Osiris form in which the dead mans hands are
crossedoverhischest.

95


ThegildedcartonnagemaskofYuya,thefatherofQueenTiye.
WasYuyamorethanjustthefatherinlawofpharaoh
AmenhotepIIIcouldhehavebeentheBiblicalPatriarch
Joseph?(PublicDomain)
GraftonElliotSmith,theBritishanatomistwhoexaminedYuyas
mummy in 1905, raised the question of his nonEgyptian
appearance. Smith wrote in his report; His (Yuyas) face is
relativelyshortandelliptical...Hisnoseisprominent,aquiline
96

andhighbridged;...Thelipsappeartobesomewhatfull.Thejaw
ismoderatelysquare...Whenwecometoenquireintotheracial
characterofthebodyofYuya,thereisverylittlewecandefinitely
seizeonasaclearindicationofhisoriginandaffinities...Theform
of the face (and especially the nose) is such as we find more
commonlyinEuropethaninEgypt.
PharaohalsogaveJosephanEgyptianwifeandanEgyptianname,
thefirstelementofwhichissef.Manetho,anEgyptianhistorian
whowrotethehistoryofhiscountrytoPtolemyIduringthethird
centuryBC,mentionsthatAmenhotepIIIhadaministercalledSef.
ItseemsthatthenameJoseforYosefinHebrewandYu
sefinArabic,wascomposedoftwoelements:oneHebrew,Yu,
whichisshortforYahweh,andtheotherEgyptian,sef.
InthebiblicalaccountofJosephthePatriarch,onhisappointment
asminister,hereceivedthreeobjectsfromPharaohasinsigniaof
office,aring,agoldchain,andachariot.Thesethreeobjectswere
alsofoundinYuyastomb.
AlthoughtheroyalringwasnotfoundinYuyastomb,writtentext
wasfoundtoshowthatYuyawasbearerofthekingsring.Thisis
clearfromYuyastitles,bearerofthesealofthekingofLower
EgyptaswellasbeareroftheringofthekingofLowerEgypt.A
significantfindinthetombalsowasagoldchainthathadfallen
insideYuyascoffin,andcometorestbeneathhisheadwhenthe
tombrobberscutthethreadthathelditinplace.Asmallchariot
wasalsodiscoveredinthetomb.
AgeofWisdom
OfJosephsdeathandburial,theBookofGenesissaysthathedied
attheageofahundredandten:Theyembalmedhimandputhim
inacoffininEgypt.Sinceaslongagoas1865,whentheBritish
97

scholar Charles W. Goodwin suggested the age the biblical

narrator assigned to Joseph at the time of his death was a
reflection of the Egyptian tradition, this idea has become
increasinglyacceptedbyEgyptologists.
Sir Grafton Elliott Smith, the anatomist who examined Yuyas
mummy after its discovery, said in his medical report that Yuya
wasnotlessthansixtyatthetimeofhisdeath.Smithwasunable
by facial appearance alone to judge the exact age, but Henri
Naville,whotranslatedYuyascopyofTheBookoftheDead,wrote
inhissubsequentcommentaryonitthat...theartistwishedto
indicate that Iouiya (Yuya) was a very old man when he died:
therefore,hemadehimquiteawhitewig...
Suchapparentdiscrepanciesaboutageareeasilyresolved.Asthe
averageagetowhichpeoplelivedatthetimewasaboutthirty
five,ancientEgyptiansconsideredoldagetobeasignofwisdom,
andthosewhoattainedlonglifewerelookeduponasholyfigures.
BothJosephandYuyawereconsideredwisebyPharaoh.
OfJosephhesaid:Thereisnobodyasdiscreetandwiseasyou.
Yuyaisdescribedonhisfunerarypapyrusastheonlywisewho
loveshisgod.TheageEgyptiansascribedtothosewholivedto
be wise was one hundred and ten, irrespective of how old they
actuallywere.AmenhotepsonofHabu,anEgyptianmagicianin
Yuyas time, was said to have lived one hundred and ten years,
althoughthelastinformationwehaveabouthimputshisageat
eighty.
TheCitywithManyGates
ItisnotonlyacomparisonbetweentheOldTestamentaccountof
JosephthePatriarchandEgyptianhistoricalrecordsthatpointto
bothbeingoneandthesameperson.AccordingtotheQuran,the
98

sacredMuslimbook,beforetheirsecondvisittoEgypt,Josephs
halfbrothersweregivensomeadvicebyJacob,theirfather:
O, my sons! Enter (the city) not all by one gate: enter ye by
differentgates
This advice indicates that the city they visited on their trade
missions,whichhadmanygates,waseitherMemphis,theseatof
theroyalresidencesouthoftheGizaPyramids,orThebes,onthe
eastbankoftheNile.

EgyptTempleofSeti,eastentrance,Thebes.(PublicDomain)
ThesamestoryisfoundinJewishtraditions:Hisbrothers,fearing
the evil eye, entered the city at ten different gates (Midrash
BereshithRabbah89).AsJacobissaidtohavevoicedhisconcern
beforehissonssetoffontheirsecondmissionitisreasonableto
99

assumethatheheardaboutthenatureofThebesontheirreturn
from their first visit. Thebes was known throughout the ancient
worldasthecitywithmanygates,andtheGreekpoetHomer
mentioneditaroundtheeighthcenturyBCasthehundredgated
city.Thesewerenotreferencestogatesthroughaprofusionof
walls,buttoentrancesbelongingtoitsmanytemplesandpalaces.
TheTimeofYuyaandJoseph
AsthenameofPharaohwhoappointedJosephashisministeris
missingintheholybooks,scholarslookedforsomeotherdetails
inthestoryofJoseph,tohelptheminfixinghistime.Theynoticed
that the chariots, were mentioned three times in the Book of
Genesis:
1Whenhewasappointedasaminister,PharaohgaveJosepha
chariot,
2JosephusedachariottogoouttowelcomehisfatherJacob
andtherestofthetribeofIsraelwhentheyarrivedinEgypt,
3WhentheIsraeliteswenttoburytheirfatherJacobinCanaan,
Josephtookwithhimbothchariotsandhorsemen.
The Bible story of Josephs elevation to high office states that
Pharaoh provided him with a second chariot to ride in. This
suggestshisresponsibilityfortheChariotry,aviewsupportedby
thefactthatachariotwasfoundinYuyastomb.Itwasthecustom
in ancient Egypt to place in a tomb objects that had a special
significanceinthelifeofadeadperson.
Early Egyptologists, however, were deceived when they
attemptedtofixJosephstimeinthelightofthisinformation.For
uptoadecadeortwoago,itwasthoughtthattheHyksoskings
who ruled Egypt for about a century and half before the 18th
dynastykickedthemout,werethefirsttointroducethechariot
100

intoEgypt.AstheHyksoswerethemselvesofCanaaniteorigin,it
waseasytoplaceJosephtheHebrewduringtheperiodoftheir
ruleinEgypt.However,allHyksossitesattheeasternNileDelta
havenowbeenexcavated,andnoremainsofchariotshavebeen
foundinanyofthem;neitheranywrittennordrawnreferenceto
chariots.ItisnowgenerallyacceptedthattheEgyptiankingsofthe
18thdynastywerethefirsttointroducethechariot.

AncientEgyptianchariots.(PublicDomain)
Ontheotherhand,ithasalsobeenestablishedthatitwasonlyin
the later 18th Dynasty, the time when Yuya lived, that Chariotry
became separated from the infantry as a military arm, and that
Yuya,aschiefministertoAmenhotepIII,wasthefirstpersonwe
knowoftobearthetitlesDeputyofHisMajestyintheChariotry.
Thus,thesimilaritybetweenYuyaoftheEgyptian18thDynastyand
Joseph of the Bible, indicates that both characters must have
representedoneperson.
CopyrightAhmedOsman
AbouttheAuthor

101

AHMED OSMANis an Egyptianborn

authorwhohasbeentryingtofindthe
link between the stories of the Bible
and ancient Egyptian history. Born in
Cairo in 1934, he studied law in the
university before working as a
journalist.Heisauthorofthebook,The
HebrewPharaohsofEgypt.
HemovedtoLondonin1965,wherehe
joined the Egypt Exploration Society,
and studied the history and language
of ancient Egypt. He also taught himself
biblical Hebrew, and researched the
history of both the Bible and the Quran,
before trying to look for origin of the
biblicalstoriesinEgyptiansources.
His first hypothesis was that Patriarch
Joseph,ofthecoatofmanycolors,wasin
factYuyatheministerofAmenhotepIIIof
Egypts18thDynasty.Thiswasthesubject
of his firstbookStranger in the Valley of
theKings,nowrepublishedinanothertitleTheHebrewPharaohs
ofEgypt.
His second work claimed that Moses of the Bible was the same
person as the monotheistic king Akhenaten, whose maternal
grandfatherwasYuya/Joseph.Thiswasthesubjectofhissecond
book Moses Pharaoh of Egypt, now republished asMoses and
Akhenaten.
HisthirdworksuggestedthatJesusoftheNewTestamentwasthe
samepersonasJoshuathesonofNunandTutankhAmun.This
102

JesuswasnotonlyacontemporaryofMoses,butalsohisson.This
argumentwaspresentedinabookTheHouseoftheMessiah,now
republishedasJesusintheHouseofthePharaohs.
HisfourthworkclaimedthatChristianitycameoutofEgypt,not
Palestine,anditwastheRomanfatherswhoclaimedthatStPeter,
rather than St Paul, was the apostle who spread Christianity to
Gentiles. This was argued in a book calledOut of Egypt,now
republished under the title Christianity: An Ancient Egyptian
Religion.
HisfifthbookwascoauthoredbyRobertBauval,whichexposes
the many cycles of monument destruction and cultural
suppression in Egypt, and gives details of vandalism of Egyptian
antiquitiesandsuppressionofancientknowledge.Itispublished
underthetitleBreakingtheMirrorofHeaven.
Hissixthbookclaimsthathewasabletoidentifythelocationof
the city where Moses led the Israelites in their Exodus, out of
Egypt. After 25 years of Osmans identification, archaeological
findings confirmed his argument. It is titledThe Lost City of the
Exodus.

103

PlumedSerpent:AncientBeardedGodsof
theAmericas
ByBrienFoerster

MoctezumaII,thelastAztecruler,shownwithbeard.
It is claimed by some authors that white missionaries or "gods"
visited America before Christopher Columbus. Authors usually
quote from mythology and legends which discuss ancient gods
such as the Mexican Aztecs Quetzalcoatl to conclude that the
legends were actually based on Caucasians visiting those areas,
andthattheCaucasianswerereallythegods.
Ratherthantryingtoaccountforalloftheoraltraditionsinthe
Americas where accounts of foreign visitors in preColombian
timeswithphysicalcharacteristicsquiteunlikethoseofthelocal
104

populationsoccurandwhere,thisbookwillfocusonarelatively
small geographical area. Due to the authors main area of
expertise being that of the ancient people of what we now call
PeruandBolivia,thestoryofancientvisitationbeginsintheLake
Titicacaarea,whichPeruandBoliviashare.Thesetwonations,and
especiallyPeru,hadlikelythelargestpopulationsofpeopleprior
to the Spanish arrival, and boasted many great civilizations of
which the Inca were the last, and perhaps largest. We will then
travel along a northwestern path through Mexico and into the
southwestUSwheresimilarstoriesofPlumedSerpentcharacters
existedinthepast.
Itisinnoway,shapeorformthepurposeofmybooktosupport
racist concepts that Caucasians specifically arrived prior to the
savage conquests of Columbus, Cortes, Pizarro and others and
supposedly educated the local populations that were
encountered.Thewhitegodandwhiteskintermsmayrefer
topeoplethatarrivedfromdistantlandsandhadskintoneslighter
than the resident populations, but the idea that they were
necessarily Caucasians has presumably no foundation in actual
history.
What is intriguing is that there are so many oral traditions,
especiallythoseofSouthandCentralAmerica,aswellasMexico
(whichistechnicallypartofNorthAmerica)thatdescribeforeign
visitors arriving bearing light skin, often reddish or even blonde
hair,andbeards.ThelatteriscuriousbecausemostNativemenof
the Americas genetically have little to no facial hair, and many
accountsoftheseforeignvisitorsstressthemhavingfullbeards.
ControversialWhiteGods
Spanishchroniclersfromthe16thcenturyclaimedthatwhenthe
conquistadorsledbyFranciscoPizarrofirstencounteredtheInca
105

in what is now Peru they were greeted as gods, "Viracochas",

becausetheirlighterskinresembledapossibledescriptionoftheir
God Viracocha. This story was first reported by Pedro Cieza de
Len (1553) and later by Pedro Sarmiento de Gamboa. Similar
accountsbySpanishchroniclers(e.g.JuandeBetanzos)describe
Viracocha as a "White God", often with a beard. However,
whether the Inca in fact believed this, or the story was simply
madeupbytheSpanishthemselvesisuncertain.

Mocheceramicvesselsdepictingbeardedmen.(Pattych/CCBY
SA3.0)
BritishwriterHaroldT.Wilkinstooktheconceptofthewhitegods
thefurthest,writingthatavanishedwhiteracehadoccupiedthe
wholeofSouthAmericainancienttimes.Wilkinsalsoclaimedthat
QuetzalcoatlwasfromAtlantis.AndtheoccultistJamesH.Madole
influencedbyAryanismandHinduismwrotethattheAryanrace
was of great antiquity and had been worshipped worldwide by
lowerracesas"whitegods".MadolealsowrotethattheAryans
originatedintheGardenofEdenlocatedinNorthAmerica.

106

SomeMormonsbelievethattheAztecdeityQuetzalcoatl,afigure
sometimesdescribedaswhiteandbearded,whotheysaycame
fromtheskyandpromisedtoreturn,waslikelyJesus.According
tothescripturalaccountrecordedintheBookofMormon,Jesus
visited and taught natives of the Americas following his
resurrection, and regarded them as the "other sheep," he had
referencedduringhismortalministry.TheBookofMormonalso
claimsthatJesusappearedtoothers,followinghisresurrection,
even to the inhabitants on the "isles of the sea." This latter
reference, may offer additional consideration of certain
Polynesianaccounts.
ThePlumedSerpent
ThePlumedorFeatheredSerpentwasaprominentsupernatural
entityordeity,foundinmanyMesoamericanreligions.Itorhewas
calledViracochaorTunupaintheIncaandearlierculturesofPeru
and Bolivia, Quetzalcoatl among the Aztecs, Kukulkan by the
YucatecMaya,andGucumatzandTohilamongtheK'iche'Maya,
forexample.Thedoublesymbolismusedinitsnameisconsidered
allegorictothedualnatureofthedeityorperson,wherebeing
featheredrepresentsitsdivinenatureorabilitytoflytoreachthe
skiesandbeingaserpentrepresentsitshumannatureorabilityto
creeponthegroundamongotheranimalsoftheEarth,adualism
verycommoninMesoamericandeities.

107


ViracochaisthegreatcreatordeityinIncamythology.(Public
Domain)
The earliest conventionally dated representations of feathered
serpentsappearintheOlmeccultureofpresentdayMexico(circa
1400400BC).MostsurvivingrepresentationsinOlmecart,such
asMonument19atLaVentaandapaintingintheJuxtlahuacacave
showitasacrestedrattlesnake,sometimeswithfeatherscovering
the body,and often in close proximity to humans. It is believed
that Olmec supernatural entities such as the feathered serpent
were the forerunners of many later Mesoamerican deities,
although some western experts disagree on the feathered
108

serpent'simportancetotheOlmec.Oraltraditionsareunknown
astheOlmecapparentlydiedoutorwereabsorbedintotheMaya
cultureatsomepoint.

TheauthoratTiwanakuinBoliviawithSunGatedepicting
Viracocha
ThepantheonofthepeopleofTeotihuacan(200BCE700AD)
near present day Mexico City who were supposedly the Nahua,
Otomi, and or Totonac ethnic groups also featured a feathered
serpent,shownmostprominentlyontheTempleoftheFeathered
Serpent (dated 150200 AD). Several feathered serpent
representations appear on the building, including fullbody
profiles and feathered serpentheads. And buildingsin Tula, the
capitalofthelaterToltecs(9501150AD),alsofeaturedprofilesof
featheredserpents.TheAztec(approximately1250to1521AD)
featheredserpentgodQuetzalcoatlisknownfromseveralAztec

109

codicessuchastheFlorentinecodex,aswellasfromtherecords
of the Spanish conquistadors. Quetzalcoatl was a bringer of
knowledge,theinventorofbooks,andassociatedwiththeplanet
Venus. And the corresponding Mayan god Kukulkan was rare in
theClassiceraMayacivilization.However,inthePopolVuh,the
K'iche' feathered serpent god Tepeu Gucumatz is the creator of
thecosmos.
CortesasQuetzalcoatl

ThestoneheadofQuetzalcoatlatChichenItza.
Inhisvariousincarnations,thefeatheredserpentwasworshipped
asthegodofwind,thegodofwaterandthemorningstargod.In
1519,theSpanishexplorerHernanCortesarrivedinMexicoabout
thesametimetheAztechadpredictedthereturnofQuetzalcoatl.
ThisiscommoninthestoryoftheFeatheredorPlumedSerpentin
manycultures;thathearrived,taught,leftandthendeclaredthat
hewouldreturn.MoctezumaII,theAztecruler,allegedlybelieved
that Cortes was the "reincarnation" of the Feathered Serpent.

110

MoctezumathoughtthatQuetzalcoatlhadreturnedtopunishhis
peopleformisdeedsandthushedidnotdefendhiscityagainst
theinvaders.However,whetherMoctezumaeversaidorinfact
believedthisisunknown.

VeryearlydrawingofQuetzelcoatl
Asisoftenthecasewhereoraltraditionsofindigenouspeopleare
recorded by and then rewritten by those that have conquered
them, the original meaning is either skewed or in fact made up
111

altogether as a propaganda tool to belittle the descendants of

thoseconquered.
A case in point of this is the false belief that the Inca of South
Americamadehumansacrificesofhundredsifnotthousandsof
theirownpeople,orthosethatlivedwithintheirIncaFederation
inordertoappeasetheirsocalledgodsordeities.Suchanidea
wasinfactacrueltoolinventedbytheearlyCatholicJesuitpriests
inordertopsychologicallyconquerthepeopleofthearea.Very
few,asinlessthan10Incasacrificialvictims,haveeverbeenfound
byarchaeologistsasfarastheauthorknows.Andthesamecan
likelybesaidabouttheMayaandAztecpeople,aswellasmany
others.
ThreeSymbolsandThreeWorlds
WhatdoesthetermFeatheredorPlumedSerpentactuallymean?
Whatisittryingtodescribe?Asisoftenthecase,oraltraditionsof
indigenous people cannot be interpreted in a literal sense, nor
should they be dismissed, as they often are as being made up
storiesorfolklore.
Ithasbeenandisoftenthecasethatwesterntrainedacademics,
especiallythoseinthefieldsofarchaeologyandanthropology,do
not consult with indigenous people as regards how to properly
interpret oral traditions, and the concept of the Feathered or
PlumedSerpentislikelysuchacase.
FortheIncapeopleandotherculturesofthehighlandsofPeruand
Bolivia, as well as the Peruvian coast, there were three animal
figuresthatloomedprominentintheirartisticandoralknowledge;
the snake, puma and condor. Usually all three would be found
togetherandthreewastheirsacrednumberwhereasfourwas
oftenthesacrednumberofotherNativeAmericanpeople.Asis

112

usually the case, the true meaning of what these animals

represented and why there were three rather than another
numberisfarmorecomplexthanwhatmostacademicbooksand
tourguideswilltellyou.
Basically, and what you will often hear is that the snake
represented, and still represents to some people wisdom, while
thepumaisasymbolofstrengthandcondorthatofspirituality.
On another level they represent what are known as the lower,
middleandupperworlds,aswellaspast,presentandfuture.Ina
deeper way they also mean snake=subconscious mind, puma=
consciousmindandcondor=superconscious.

Bronzerepresentationofsnake,pumaandcondornearMachu
Picchu

113

Asthesnakeinmanytraditionsisknowntobeanancientanimal
and crawls on the ground, it bestrepresentsthe wisdom of the
earth, and overwhelmingly and in various cultures, deals with
primordiallifeforce.ForthePumathesenoblecatsaresymbolsof
courageandpower,andwereinterpretedbytheIncaandothers
tobethebestsymbolofthealertandconsciousmind.
Asregardsthecondor,theAndeancondorisanationalsymbolof
Argentina,Bolivia,Chile,Colombia,Ecuador,PeruandVenezuelan
Andesstates.ItisthenationalbirdofBolivia,Chile,Colombia,and
Ecuador.Itplaysanimportantroleinthefolkloreandmythology
oftheSouthAmericanAndeanregions,andhasbeenrepresented
inAndeanartfromcirca2500BConward.InAndeanmythology,
the Andean condor was associated with the sun deity, and was
believed to be the ruler of the upper world, thus, the spiritual
realm.
TheEagleandtheSerpent
InCentralAmericaandMexico,thesnakesymbolisveryprevalent,
as is the puma (or jaguar depending on the location) and the
condor is replaced by the eagle. The current coat of arms of
Mexico has been an important symbol of Mexican politics and
cultureforcenturies.ThecoatofarmsdepictsaMexicangolden
eagleperchedonapricklypearcactusdevouringasnake.Tothe
peopleofTenochtitlan(MexicoCitytoday)thiswouldhavestrong
religious connotations, but to the Europeans, it would come to
symbolize the triumph of good over evil (with the snake
sometimesrepresentativeoftheserpentintheGardenofEden).
ThecoatofarmsrecallsthefoundingofMexicoCity,whichagain
wasoriginallycalledTenochtitlan.ThelegendofTenochtitlanas
shown in the original Mexica codices, paintings, and post
Cortesiancodices,doesnotincludeasnake.WhiletheFejrvry
114

Mayer codex depicts an eagle attacking a snake, other Mexica

illustrations,suchastheCodexMendoza,showonlyaneagle.In
thetextoftheRamrezCodex,however,Huitzilopochtli(sunand
wardeityaswellasthepatronofthecityofTenochtitlan)asked
the Tenochtitlan people to look for an eagle devouring a snake,
perchedonapricklypearcactus.

TheCoatofArmsofMexico.(PublicDomain)
In the text by Chimalpahin Cuauhtlehuanitzin, the eagle is
devouringsomething,butitisnotmentionedwhatitis.Stillother
versions(suchasthebacksideoftheTeocallioftheSacredWar)
show the eagle clutching the Aztec symbol of war, the Atl
Tlachinolliglyph,or"burningwater".
Moreover,theoriginalmeaningsofthesymbolsweredifferentin
numerousaspects.Theeaglewasarepresentationofthesungod
Huitzilopochtli,whowasveryimportant,astheMexicasreferred
to themselves as the "People of the Sun". The cactus (Opuntia
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ficusindica),fullofitsfruits,called"nochtli"inNahuatl(theAztec
language),representtheislandofTenochtitlan.TotheMexicans,
the snake represented wisdom, and it had strong connotations
withthegodQuetzalcoatl.Thestoryofthesnakewasderivedfrom
an incorrect translation of the Crnica mexicyotl by Fernando
AlvaradoTezozmoc.Inthestory,theNahuatltextihuancohuatl
izomocayan,"thesnakehisses",wasmistranslatedas"thesnake
is torn". Based on this, Father Diego Durn reinterpreted the
legendsothattheeaglerepresentsallthatisgoodandright,while
thesnakerepresentsevilandsin.Despiteitsinaccuracy,thenew
legendwasadoptedbecauseitconformedwithEuropeanheraldic
tradition. To the Europeans it would represent the struggle
between good and evil. Although this interpretation does not
conformtopreColumbiantraditions,itwasanelementthatcould
beusedbythefirstmissionariesforthepurposesofevangelism
andtheconversionofthenativepeoples.
The actual interpretation by the author, if we remove all of the
twistsandturnsofSpanishcolonialpollutedideasisthattheeagle
andsnakesymbolcouldinfactrepresenttheunityofthesnake
and condor, as in the merger of the subconscious and super
conscious.TenochissaidtohavebeenanAztecwarrior/rulerwho,
accordingtolegend,wasgivenavisioninwhichhesawaneagle
atopacactusplantwithasnakeinitsmouthandthusnamedthe
newAzteccapitalTenochtitlan.
However,theauthorlearnedduringatripthroughancientsitesin
MexicoinFebruaryof2015fromalocalNativeguidethatTenoch
in fact means prophecy or prophet. Thus, Tenochtitlan would
morecorrectlymeantheplaceoftheprophesyorplaceofthe
prophets. The act of prophesy is often best achieved through
meditation where the conscious mind is cleared so that the
subconscious and superconscious aspects of the mind may
116

interact freely. Therefore, using a symbol such as a snake and

eagle intertwined could in fact represent a high state of being,
rather than the worn out and erroneous good versus evil
paradigm.
So,itcouldbethatthePlumed/FeatheredSerpentconceptisone
thatrepresentsabeing,personorpeopleofaveryhighstateof
mental consciousness. That the Plumed and Feathered Serpent
storyisfoundinvariouspartsofSouthandCentralAmericaaswell
as Mexico and into the United States is of course intriguing,
especiallyifthevariedgroupsinvolvedwerenotincontactwith
eachother.
CopyrightBrienFoerster

AbouttheAuthor

Author Brien Foersters newest book Plumed Serpent: Ancient

BeardedGodsoftheAmericaswillbeoutin2016.

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BRIEN FOERSTER was born in Rochester, Minnesota, U.S.A. but

grew up on the west coast of Canada. At age 11, he became
fascinated with the Native art of the Haida native people, and
begancarvingtotempoles,andotherrelatedartforms,learning
from Native teachers. After completing an Honours Bachelor of
Sciencedegree,Briendecidedtotakeupcarvingandsculpturefull
time, at the age of 25. This included the creation of 13 full size
totempoles,dugoutcanoes,masks,bowls,boxesandotherNative
styleworks.In1995hemovedtoMaui,Hawaii,andwashiredas
assistant project manager for the
building of the 62foot double hull
sailing canoe (ancestor of the
moderndaycatamaran)MookihaO
Piilani (Sacred Lizard That Pierces
The Heavens.) This project lasted
two years. There, having learned
how to make Hawaiian outrigger
canoe paddles from master carver
KeolaSequiera,hestartedanonline
outrigger paddle business, which
flourishedinternationally.
Perubecamehisnextmajorareaofinterest.ThestudyoftheInca
cultureledtohiswritingabook,ABriefHistoryofTheIncas,which
is available on his website,www.hiddenincatours.com. As of
January2016hehaswrittenatotalof16books.
HealsowritesarticlesforGrahamHancock,andisassociatedwith
Lloyd Pye of the Starchild project, who analyzed the DNA of
elongated human skulls of the Peruvian Paracas culture on his
behalf.Thepreliminaryresultsofthishavebeenincludedinthe
published book that Brien coauthored with David Hatcher

118

Childress,TheEnigmaofCranialDeformation:ElongatedSkullsOf
TheAncients.ItisavailablethroughAdventuresUnlimitedPress.
He counts amongst his colleagues Stephen Mehler, author,
archaeologist,ancientEgyptoraltraditionspecialistandexperton
crystalskulls,ChristopherDunn,engineerandauthorofTheGiza
Power Plant,Dr. RobertSchoch,geologistand expertof ancient
Egypt, Hugh Newman of Megalithomania, who he cosponsors
tourswith,andmanyotherwellknownalternativeauthorsand
researchers.
Brienhasbeenon15episodesofAncientAliens,numerousradio
interviews,willbefeaturedonanewUSseriescalledUnsealed,as
wellastheforthcomingTheWatchers,episode6.
He has become an authority on the megalithic works of South
AmericaandtheperplexingancientElongatedHeadedpeopleof
thearea,anddivideshistimebetweenParacasandCusco,Peru.

119

Marriage:SocialEvolutionorDeliberate
Design?
ByDr.RitaLouise

TheMarriageofSt.UrsulaandPrinceConan,1522(JosLuiz
BernardesRibeiro/CCBYSA3.0)
Gettingmarriedisanageoldcelebration,whichcommemorates
thejoiningoftwoindividualstogetherinmatrimony.Formanyin
todays society it represents picking out invitations, dresses,
decorations, food and flowers, and finally tying the knot. Yet
120

getting married is more than just fun and frivolities. It is a

ritualized contract that forms a legal partnership between the
individuals. This contract establishes the rights and obligations
betweenthehappycoupleandthoseofanypotentialoffspring.
Marriageisheavilysteepedinlocalcustomsandreligiousdogma.
Itisbelievedthattheinstitutionofmarriagefounditsorigininthe
ancientworldasameansofpreservingpower,forgingalliances,
acquiringland,andproducinglegitimateheirs.Itisalsoseenasa
wayoforganizingfamilies,andlikemostothersocialinstitutions,
thistimehonoredtraditionhasevolvedoverthecenturies.
Wheredidtheancientrulesofmarriagecomefrom?Whatwas
theirfoundation?
OriginsofMarriage
The earliest evidence supporting marriage, and the marriage
contract, dates back about 4,000 years to Sumerian law, and is
documentedintheCodeofHammurabi.Thisancientlegalcodex
contains33specificedictsthatestablishtherightsandobligations
ofmarriedcouplesandcovertopicsincludingbrideprice,divorce,
maritaldebt,incestandadultery.Thewellthoughtoutconcepts
contained within this early text make it clear that the rules and
regulationsassociatedwithmarriagehaveamucholderpast.

121


TheupperpartofthestelaofHammurabis'codeoflaws.(Public
Domain)
Aswedelveintotherootsandhistoryofmarriage,anumberof
interestingfactsquicklyemerge.Earlyexplorers,astheytraveled
theglobetoinvestigateindigenouscultures,unearthedrevealing
information regarding marriage. They discovered that even the

122

mostremote,seeminglyprimitivegroupstheyinteractedwithhad
welldefinedsystemsthatregulatedmarriageaswell.
If we look at our nearest relative in the animal kingdom, the
chimpanzee,theconceptofmonogamouspairingdoesnotexist.
Itisnotpartoftheirgeneticmakeup.Theydonotpossessaninner
drivethatpropelsmaleandfemalechimpanzeestobondwithone
another. Instead of creating a loose marital bond, their
predispositionistorandomlymatewithmultiplepartners.
Ifthecompulsiontobondwithourmateisnotpartofourgenetic
makeup,didwe,aspartofhumansocialevolution,createsocietal
rules to regulate marriage? If we did, one would expect the
conventions, rules, requirements and obligations surrounding
marriage to fluctuate from place to place and community to
community.

SarcophagusofaHusbandandWife,withHymenaios,thegod
ofmarriageandceremonies.(CCBYND2.0)
123

Dr. Ashley Montague, a noted BritishAmerican anthropologist,

stated,Therearenosocietiesinwhichmarriagedoesnotexist.
He goes on to state, If marriage developed in a random,
haphazard,evolutionaryfashion,onemightexpectthatmarriage
wouldbefoundinsomeculturesbutnotinothers.Theevidence,
however,simplydidnotsupportthatview.Theearlysystemsof
maritallawsheuncoveredwereremarkablyconsistentaroundthe
globe, so consistent that early pioneers in the world of
anthropology stated that this tradition bears the stamp of
deliberatedesign.
SocialControlsandTaboos
The indigenous groups that were surveyed, in these early
explorations, revealed a system of social control, which they
believed,existedpriortoourmodernlawsandothergovernment
impliedsanctions.Theybelievedthattheseprimordialrules,or
taboos, evolved until they were codified into religious
commandments and secular laws, many of which have survived
untiltoday.

124


ToiletryandWedding.(CCBY2.0)
Taboo(tabu/tapu)isaPolynesianwordthatisassociatedwitha
person, place or thing that is prohibited or banned. These
prohibitionswereimpresseduponindividualsatanearlyageand
were maintained generation after generation. A vastnumber of
thingshaveahistoryofbeinguniversallyprohibited.Someinclude
touchingorbeingexposedtoacorpseormenstruatingwoman.
Thesewereperceivedasbeinguncleanandcontactwiththemwas
forbidden.Twooftheoldest,longestlastingandmostconsistent
taboosfoundaroundtheworldrevolvearoundhavingsexwitha
married woman (adultery) and having sexual relations with
someonefromyourownclan.Bothwereexpresslyforbidden.
Adultery,aForbiddenAct
Manyculturesconsideradulteryaseriouscrime.TheUnitedStates
military still has strict rules of conduct, which include infidelity.
125

Surprisingly,intheU.S.,overonehalfofthestatesintheunion
stillhaveadulterylawsonthebooks.Offendersoftheseseemly
outdatedcrimescanbepunishedbyafineorevenjailsentence.
Adultery was a much more serious offence in antiquity. In the
Bible, for example, the sixth commandment states, Thou shalt
not commit adultery and goes on to inform in the eighth
commandmentthatitisforbiddentocovetyourneighborswife.
Individualscaughtinthesecompromisingsituationswouldbeput
todeath.IntheancientCodeofHammurabi,ifamarriedwoman
wasaccusedoflyingwithanothermanshewasprosecutedand
drownedaspunishment.

DetailoftheCodeofHammurabi.(CCBYSA2.0)
Wefindsimilarlawsandpunishmentsinindigenouscultures.In
Polynesia, it is death to touch the wife of another man. In
Zimbabwe,thepenaltyforadulteryisdeath.InRome,adulterers
were banished to an island. In Native American cultures, an
126

unfaithfulwifewouldhaveherbodymutilated,whileamongstthe
Aztecs,theywereoftenstonedtodeath.Onecommon,although
brutal form of punishment for doing the dirty deed was
rhinotomy,theamputationofthenose.Thisdisfiguringprocedure
waspracticedamongsttheGreeksandRomans,inArabnations,
inIndia,EgyptandNativeAmericanspopulations.
Interestingly,inmanycultures,theprescribedlawsandassociated
punishmentsweredictatedforwomanandlessso,ifnotatall,for
the man. Men, in many of these cultures, were often given the
libertytohavesexwithaslaveoranunmarriedwoman.Oncethe
womanmarried,shebecametabooandwasofflimits.

BabylonianMarriageMarket,byEdwinLong,1875.(Public
Domain)
The second part of the marriage proscriptions was to marry or
havesexualrelationswithmembersofyourownclan.Thispractice
wasespeciallyprohibited.
ClansandTotemicRelationships
Theconceptofclansandlinesofdescentcomedowntousfrom
antiquity. Each clan was associated with a specific animal, the
127

groupstotem.Itwasbelievedthatthegroupstotemanimalwas
the embodiment of god on earth. Believers contend that it was
fromthesesacreddivineanimalsthattheyowetheirdescent.It
wasthroughtheuseoftotemanimalsthatindividualsrecognized
theirrelationshiptooneanother,whichhelpedthemtonotbreak
thismostsacredofrules.Nooneknowshoworwhytheinstitution
of totems, clans, and their associated regulations came into
existence, yet the set of laws that are derived from this early
practicearerichandcomplex.

AnimaltotempolesinBritishColumbia,Canada.(CCBYSA2.0)
Regardless of where you look, the laws, rules, regulations and
taboosofaculturearealwaysdescribedascomingfromthesame
source.Biblicaltextsinferthatgodordainedthelawsbywhichwe
live.Wefindasimilarcelestialreferencewhenreviewingancient
legal systems like the Code of Hammurabi. Indigenous cultures
fearedthewrathofgodordivineretributioniftheybrokeoneof
theirprescribedordinances.

128

IfGodprescribedmarriageandmoralitylaws,asearlytextsand
customssuggest,whatwashisunderlyingmotive?
AncientEngineering
In recent years, theories have come forward proposing that a
group of extraterrestrials came to the earth in our distant past.
Proponents of this theory state that these otherworldly beings
interfered with the evolution life on earth. Many contend that
they,throughtheuseofgeneticengineering,createdus.Thisline
ofthought,oftendismissedorviewedasnonsense,hasanongoing
growingbodyofevidencetosupportclaims.Iftheirassertionsare
correct,whataretheimplicationsofthisbreedingprocess?
First off, if modifications were made to the human genetic
makeup, it implies that a group of genetically modified hybrid
humans was introduced into existing indigenous populations. If
this newly created species was allowed to mate randomly, the
chances of spreading their updated genetic material could be
limited. Did these early extraterrestrial engineers foresee a
potentialproblem?Didtheyestablishasystemofrulesthatwould
ensuregeneticvariation?
Ancient marriage laws forced individuals to mate with men and
women from different groups. This practice would naturally
increasethedistributionoftheirhybridizedgeneticmaterials.This
method of gene manipulation (gene flow) may have ultimately
altered the genetic makeup of an array of diverse populations,
and,ifgivenenoughtimecouldaffecteveryone.
Wehavenoideahowfarbackintimeregulationsassociatedwith
marriagebegan.Wealsodonothaveaclearunderstandingofwhy
it was created in the first place. Was it formulated to organize

129

family groups, forge alliances, or maintain power? Then again,

wassomethingmoredivineatwork?

EgyptianPharaohAkhenaten,wifeNefertiti,andtheirchildren.
(PublicDomain)
Research suggests the holy, consecrated and commemorated
union between two individuals preceded many of the laws,
customsandtraditionswehavetoday.Italsosuggeststhateven
thougheverycultureonearthpartakesandrelishesthemarriage
vow,wehavenoclearunderstandingofwhyitbegan.Marriage,
like many of the moral codes that underlie society, are not an
inherentpartofthehumancondition.
Didthegodsimposetheconceptofmarriageuponus?Ourancient
texts and mythic history clearly state that our laws and moral
codeswerecompelleduponhumanityfromanoutsidesource
thegods.Wastheirunderlyingmotivedesignedtostimulategene
130

flow and transfer their upgraded genetic materials around the

world?
Whilethisisonlyspeculation,itdoesanswerthequestionofwhy
we, like our ancestors, get married. It also explains the level of
consistency,thestampofdeliberatedesign,weseearoundthe
worldtoday.
Copyright Rita Louise, Inc. www.soulhealer.com 2016. All
rightsreserved.
AbouttheAuthor

Bestselling author, DR. RITA LOUISE is the host of Just Energy

RadioandtheFounderoftheInstituteOfAppliedEnergetics.She
istheauthorofthebooks:

131

TheETChronicles
AvoidingTheCosmic2X4
DarkAngels
andThePowerWithin
as well as hundreds of articles that
havebeenpublishedworldwide.She
is also the producer of the videos
iKon:DeconstructingTheArchetypes
OfTheAncients,TheTruthAboutThe
Nephilim and Deceit, Lies &
Deception:TheReptilianAgenda.Dr.
Rita has appeared on radio and television and has spoken at
conferences covering topics such as health and healing, ghosts,
intuition,ancientmysteriesandtheparanormal.
FormoreinformationaboutDr.Ritapleasevisit
www.soulhealer.comorlistentoherliveat
www.justenergyradio.com.

132

WastheDevilsDykeinCambridgeshireonce
partofTroy?
ByHughNewman
Megalithomaniac Hugh Newman examines gargantuan, linear
megaditchesaroundCambridge,UK

Devil'sDykecirca1853
InasmallvillagenortheastofCambridge,nearthemostnorthern
routeoftheancientIcknieldWay,agreat'dyke'emergessmoothly
fromthegroundandrisestoovertwostorieshigh.Thisincredible
earthworkstretchesfornearlyeightmiles,headingsoutheastto
Wood Ditton. This huge bank and ditch are assumed to be of
AngloSaxon origin and is the most complete of all the dykes in

133

Britain.However,someresearcherssaythatTroywasinfactinthis
area,andtheDevilsDykeisproofofthat.
We visited two parts of the dyke with author David Hatcher
Childress and Jennifer Bolm recently, along with local
archaeologistMichelleBullivant.WestartedoursurveyatReach,
where the earthwork officially starts, however Michelle quickly
corrected what was written on the information board by
explaining that it once continued northwest for a few hundred
moreyards,intothevillagetojoinupwiththeFenedge.

ArchaeologistMichelleBullivantandAuthorHughNewman
Devil's Dyke was built in the 'prehistoric' style, looking like the
builderswerethesameteamwhoconstructedAveburyhengeor
theditchesaroundMaidenCastleinDorset,onlynotcircularor
irregularly shaped, but a deadstraight, megaearthwork that
disappears in to the distance. Whether the dyke was actually
134

constructed around the time of Avebury and Stonehenge, or

whether it was a Saxon defense is still undecided by
archaeologists.
Therehavebeenseveralarchaeologicalexcavationsthroughthe
Dykeinthe20thcentury.In1973,duringtheconstructionofthe
A14,anarchaeologicalsectionwasexcavatedandthishelpedto
revealhowtheDykemayhavebeenconstructed.Itshowedthat
thefirststagewasamarkerbankusingtopsoilfromtheimmediate
area.Materialwasthenquarriedfromtheditchandwashoisted
tothetopofthebankingreattipsonearthhaulingramps.Gangs
ofworkerswereresponsiblefordifferentsections.However,itis
thoughtthatthedefenseswentoutofuseafteronlyafewyears
butitdidconfirmaconstructiondateinthe5thor6thcenturyAD.
However, since then Roman coins have been discovered there,
and under Fleam Dyke. Michelle Bullivant also told me that the
RomansknewabouthowthedykeswerebeingusedbyBoudicas
armyinthefirstcenturyAD.InFleamDyke,someearlyandmiddle
bronzeage pot sherds were discovered, so this could push the
dateevenfurtherbacktoaroundthetimeofTroy(1500BC)or
eventotheeraofAvebury(3000BC).

135


TheDevilsDyke,Cambridgeshire,UK.(CCBY2.0)
WhoMadetheMysteriousCreations,andWhy?
Whencontemplatingtheimmensesizeofthedyke,Ioftenwonder
whatmusthavegonethroughthemindsofthebuilderswhenthe
foremansaid,"Ok,thisdykeisgoingtobeatleast30feethigh,
witharampartof20feetbelowgroundleveland,letssay,make
iteightmileslong?"Thesighsmusthaveechoedthrougheternity.
TheofficiallinethattheSaxonsdiditsuggeststheremusthave
beenratheralotofthem,butwhy?Thatisthebigmysteryofthis
incredibleengineeringmarvel.Itappearstohavebeenputthere
to stop something coming through from the southwest, as the
ditch is on along the inland edge. Whether it was the invading
tribes from the southwest and Queen Boudica was trying to
protectherterritoryinthefirstcenturyAD,orwhetheritmayhave
beenconstructedmuchearlier,willbediscussedshortly,butlike
withmanyearthenhenges(suchasWandlebury,)defensemaynot
havebeenitsprimarypurpose.
136

Suggestions from various researchers propose it was used as a

'toll'fortravelersupontheIcknieldWay,asthisancienttrackhad
multiple pathways along its length, not just a single track. Its
interesting to see on old maps that the different tracks on the
IcknieldWaydotendtostretchaboutaswideasthetotalwidth
ofthedykes,strengtheningthe'toll'theoryforthepurposeofits
construction, to be able to control trade and movement in the
area.

IcknieldWay,Lewknor,Oxfordshire,GreatBritain.(David
Hawgood/CCBYSA2.0)
HistoryoftheDykes
During the Middle Ages it was known as 'St Edmund's Dyke',
becauseitmarkedthelimitofthejurisdictionoftheabbotsofBury
St.Edmunds.FromtheMiddleAgestherearereferencestothe
'GreatDitch'.Duringthe11thcenturysiegeofElybyWilliamthe
137

Conqueror,itwasreferredtoas'ReachDyke'.Devil'sDykeorDitch
isapostmedievalname,probablyderivingfromabeliefthatsuch
landformsmustbeofsupernaturalorigin.
In'LegendsoftheFenlandPeople',ChristopherMarlowedescribes
anoldstoryassociatedwiththedykesayingitwasconstructedby
"a race of giants, renowned alike for cunning, strength and
ferocity".Hereisthesummaryofthelegend:

DevilsDykeAerialShot(CourtesyCCC)
138

"Long,long,ago,whentheareaaroundReachwasaforest,there
lived a chief called Hrothgar. He lived at a time when gods and
demons were thought to control the earth and one demon in
particular was terrifying the fire demon! To the horror of the
chief, it appeared that the fire demon desired his beautiful
daughter,Hayenna.Hrothgartoldhisdaughternottoworry,ashis
verygoodfriend,thewatergod,wastheswornenemyofthefire
god.Heknewthatthewatergodcouldcommunicatebetweenthe
underandoverworldandwouldkeephersafe.
One night Hrothgar had a dream. In his dream, an old man
appearedandtoldhimthatthefiredemonhadanewallyinthe
tempestgod.Youmustprepareforagreatbattle,theoldman
toldhim.Thenextday,Hrothgartoldallthegiantsoftheforesthis
plans.First,theycutdownallthetreestomakeawideclearing.
Duringthenextthreedays,theybuiltagreatditchfromtheriver
toMountDithon(WoodDitton),manyfeetdeepandsevenmiles
long.
Thetempestgodhadwatchedtheirworkwithinterestandscorn.
Just as they were starting to tire from the hard work, he sent a
greatstormtoblowdownthetreesontopofthem.Thestormalso
broughtrain,hailandsnowingreatquantities.Thegiantsofthe
forest rounded on Hrothgar, saying he should not have angered
thegodsandshouldnothavecrossedthepowerfulfiredemon.Do
notbeafraid,Hrothgartoldthem.Mygoodfriend,thewatergod
willprotectus.
At that very moment, the rain ceased. Suddenly, under a great
cloudofsmoke,aterrifyingwalloffirerushedtowardstheditch.
AllbutHrothgarfled.Despitehisfear,hecameoutfromshelter
and,withhisbarehands,dugawaytheremainingstripofearth,
separatingtheRiverCamfromtheditch.Thewaterpouredintothe
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ditchwithamighty,deafeningroar!Thefiredemonwaspowerless
against this mighty wall of water and the fire died down, the
tempest stopped and his daughter was safe. Rejoicing, the local
people placed treasured items in the new stream, to thank the
watergodforhishelp.Theditch,theDevil'sDykeisstillthere.The
firedemonnevertroubledthepopulationofReachagain.
However,thedevilmaystillbearound,fortherehavebeenmany
sightingsofalargeblackghostlydogwithfireinhiseyes.Heissaid
toboundalongDevil'sDyke,hisbloodredeyesasbigassaucers,
guardingthedykeand,somealsosay,protectingtreasureburied
deep beneath it. The legends of Black Shuck have also been
recordednearArburyinCambridgeandthroughoutEastAnglia.
AnotherlegendtellsthattheDevilarrivedataweddingatReach
church,butuninvitedashewas,thegueststurnedhimaway.As
hefledinanger,hishugeflamingtailscoredagrooveintheearth,
formingthedyke.

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ThemythicalBlackShuck,asupernaturaldogthatappearsas
anomenofgreatchange.(CCBY3.0)
LegendsofgiantsaboundintheCambridgeshirearea.AtCherry
Hinton,thesacredspringcalledthe"giantsgrave"stillproduces
cleandrinkingwaterandnineskeletonsofunusuallylargeheight
were discovered in the 1800's in the War Ditches, an ancient
earthworkupontheGogMagogHills.Therearealsothechalkhill
figures, rediscovered by Tom Lethbridge in the 1950's at
Wandlebury,whohadheardaboutgiantsbeingburiedonthehills.
Childrenintheearly1900'sweretoldtonotgoupthehill,incase
theymetthegiants.

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FleamDyke
ThereareseveralothersimilardykesaroundCambridgeshire,that
lieroughlyparallelandallseemtobecenteredontheGogMagog
Hills, where Wandlebury Henge sits upon. Northeast of
Wandlebury is Fleam Dyke that runs for three miles (4.8
kilometers)fromBalshamtoFulbournandhasa20to25feet(6
to7.6meters)highbankwithaditch.
ThemainpartofFleamsurvivestodayasafootpathandparish
boundary,buthistoricallythenorthernpartwasalsotheboundary
between Flendish and Staine Hundreds. The Moot for these
Hundreds was at Mutlow Hill, a Bronze Age barrow which had
clearlybeenanimportantlandmarkformanycenturiesbeforeits
useasanAngloSaxonmeetingplace.Apartfromthe4,000year
old cremated burials for which it was originally built, rare third
centuryBCGreekcoinshavebeenfoundclosetotheburialmound.
ItwasreusedinRomantimesforatemple,anditisnoaccident
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thatFleamDykepassesrightbesideit.Mutlowrestsonthetopof
ahill,andoverlooksthejunctionofseveralrouteways(including
theIcknieldWay)wheretheymeetandcrossFleamDyke.

FourDykesofCambridgeshire
TwosmallerdykesexistsouthwestofWandlebury,theBrentDitch
andBranDitchthatonceagain,lieparalleltotheFleamandDevil's
dyke, and stretch along the width of the Icknield Way. In 1841
CharlesHenryHartshornewroteaboutthefourdykesalongthe
Icknield Way: "For they are one and the same work, though
bearingdifferenttitlesateachextremity.

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TheprofilesoftheCambridgeshiredykes,(basedon
Hartshorne'sSalopiaAntinqua,1841.)(CCBYSA3.0)
CityofTroyinEngland?
Astartlingtheoryregardingwhythedykeswerebuiltispresented
byImanWilkensin'WhereTroyOnceStood'.Hesuggeststhatthey
were built by the Achaean invaders coming in from northeast
coastpreparingtoinvadeTroy.(Itshouldbenotedatthispoint
thathebelievedTroywasnoteverinTurkey,butactuallyonthe
Gog Magog Hills around Cambridge). This deduction was made
becausetheditchwasonthesouthernsideofthedykes,which
was the best place to have it to stop horseriding warriors or
chariotsbreakingthroughthedefense,iftheywerecomingfrom
the southeast. As the Achaeans gradually progressed southeast,
they would build more dykes, until the final battle of Troy
supposedlytookplaceatWandlebury.However,itcouldbethat
QueenBoudicahadthesameidea,andwastakingcontrolofmore

144

land,onedykeatatime,headingfurthersouthalongtheIcknield
Way.

Boudica,leaderoftherebellionagainsttheRomans.(Public
Domain)

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AccordingtoWilkens,theterrain,flora,fauna,climateandplace
names of Troy do not match those of the site in Turkey, but
somewherethathasagreenrollinglandscape,badweather,and
wassurroundedbycircularearthworksandgreatdykes.Through
thirtyyearsofinvestigation,hereplottedthesiteofTroyontothe
Gog Magog Hills near Cambridge, with Wandlebury as its
omphalus,orcenterpoint.
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Three hundred pages of inspired and diligent research put this

theoryintotherealmsofpossibility,butdoesthearchaeological
recordandmythologyoftheareareallysupporttheideathatback
around1200BC,agreatwarinvolvinghundredsofthousandsof
warriorstookplaceinthispartofEastAnglia?Mostacademicsand
historianssneeratsuchanidea,butagrowingnumberofthem
arestartingtotakehistheoryseriouslyforanumberofreasons.
OneofthosereasonsisthefactthatahugenumberofBronzeAge
artifacts,includingarmorandweaponry,havebeenfoundinthe
vicinity.Plus,hundredsofwarwoundedskeletonshavealsobeen
found on what now looks like an ancient battlefield. However,
skeletonsandsomeartifactsarenotenoughtoconfirmhistheory,
but,tantalizingly,thedykesregularlygetmentionedthroughout
HomersancientGreekepic,TheIliad.
Wilkens argues, As these dykes obviously have no hydraulic
functiontheymayhavehadamilitarypurposebyformingabarrier
linkingtheriverCamtothewesttodenseforestsonthehillstothe
east. The plain itself had already been cleared around 2000 BC
according to archaeological research. Although the dykes and
ditchesseemtobemeantasbarrierstohorsedrawnwarchariots,
itwasneverclearforwhichwar.Thedykeswerenotmentionedby
RomanhistoriansastheywereprobablyofnousetotheRoman
army.ButafterthediscoveryofaRomancoinandpotsherdsunder
onepartoftheFleamDyke,theearthworkswerebelievedtodate
fromthetimeofthetribalwarfarebetweentheMerciansandthe
EastAnglesinthesixthandseventhcenturyAD.Althoughthishas
beenconfirmedbyradiocarbondatingofpartsoftheFleamDyke,
elementsofmucholderearthworksseemtohavebeenusedinthe
mosteasternpartofthedykewhereafewpotsherdsoftheearly
andmiddleBronzeAgewerefound.

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TheGogMagoghills,Cambridge,England.(PublicDomain)
OneexamplethatWilkinspointsoutiswhentheTrojansattacked
thecampneartheseawiththeirhorsedrawnchariots,theywere
slaughteredbytheAchaeans,andthefrightenedhorsesranwith
their empty chariots over the wardykes, back to Troy. Literally
translated,therelevantpassagereadsasfollows:
Even beneath Agamemnon, son of Atreus, fell the heads of the
Trojans as they fled, and many horses with higharched necks
rattledemptycarsoverthedykesofbattlelackingtheirpeerless
charioteers, who were lying upon the ground dearer far to the
vulturesthantotheirwives.(XI,158162)
The full theory Wilkens provides sounds farfetched on initial
inspection, but his simple comparison of the East Anglian
landscapetowhatiswritteninTheIlliadisstrikingandconvincing,
yetthearchaeologicalworldwillnotwanttochangethelocation
ofTroy"officially"asitwouldrequirehundredsofhistorybooksto
berewritten.

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TriumphantAchillesdraggingHector'sbodyaroundTroy.
(PublicDomain)
Iamfascinatedbythesimilaritiesand'coincidences'betweenthe
Avebury landscape and the one around Wandlebury. They both
have spectacular crop circles in the surrounding fields, and are
connected by the Mary energy line. Both are large circular
earthworks, both have the Icknield Way nearby (called the
RidgewayinWiltshire,)andbothhaveahugedykewithinafew
miles. In Wiltshire the 25milelong (40 kilometer) Wansdyke
dominates the landscape south of Avebury. On the border of
WalesandEnglandisOffa'sDyke,whichstretchesforanincredible
176miles(283kilometers)coasttocoastandissaidtobeofthe
samehandastheDevil'sDyke.
AncientMystery
Whoever built the Cambridgeshire dykes, whether Saxons,
Boudica, the Achaeans, or the ancient megalith builders, their
mysteryisasprofoundasthemegalithicsitesthatdominatethe
greaterBritishlandscape.Themanhoursandsheersizeofthese
earthworks puts the likes of Stonehenge in the dark. However,
their design and style shows remarkable correspondences with
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Aveburyandothergreatearthworkmonuments,andonedaywe
maydiscoverthetruepurposeoftheseincredibleearthenscars
acrossthemysteriousandmagicallandscapeofEastAnglia.
CopyrightHughNewman
References
Nigel, Helen Strudwick, 2016. What is the Devils Dyke?
DevilsDykeMM.org.uk
[Online]
Available
at:
http://www.devilsdykemm.org.uk/devilsdyke
TimMalim,formerManageroftheCambridgeshireCountyCouncil
ArchaeologicalFieldUnit.2016.RomanRoadandFleamDyke.
FRRFD.org.uk[Online]Availableat:http://frrfd.org.uk/
Charles Henry Hartshorne, Salopia Antiqua. 1841pub. J. W.
Parker
Where Troy Once Stood' by I.Wilkens, revised edition; Part II,
Chapter1;page4of22[Online]Availableat:http://www.troyin
england.co.uk/trojanwar1.htm
AbouttheAuthor

150

HUGHNEWMANwasbroughtupinCambridge,andisanexplorer,
antiquarian,andauthorof
EarthGrids:TheSecretPatternsofGaiasSacredSites(2008),
and coauthor with Jim Vieira of Giants On Record: Americas
HiddenHistory,SecretsintheMoundsandtheSmithsonianFiles
(2015).
HeiscurrentlywritingTheWandleburyEnigma,focussingonthe
sites around Cambridge. He has several articles published on
AncientOriginswebsiteandhasbeenaregularguestonHistory
ChannelsAncientAliensandSearchfortheLostGiants.
He organizes the Megalithomania Conference every May in
Glastonbury, and hosts regular tours to Peru, Mexico, Egypt,
Turkey,Javaandotherlocations.HecurrentlylivesinGlastonbury,
England.

Hiswebsitesare
www.megalithomania.co.ukandwww.hughnewman.co.uk

151

LongLostGoldenAgeJustaMyth?
ModernScienceMayHaveFoundaLink
ByWalterCruttenden

ArtistsdepictionofamysteriousNinthPlanet.(CCBYSA4.0)
Themythandfolkloreofancientculturesspeakofavastcycleof
time with alternating dark and golden ages; Plato called it the
GreatYear.Mostofusweretaughtthatthiscyclewasjustamyth
andthegoldenage,justafairytale.
GiorgiodeSantillana,formerprofessorofthehistoryofscienceat
theMassachusettsInstituteofTechnology(MIT),USA,tellsusthis
ideaofacyclewentfarbeyondGreeceandIndia.Intheirlandmark
work, Hamlets Mill, de Santillana and coauthor Hertha von
Dechend, show that the myth and folklore of more than thirty
ancient cultures mention a cycle of time with long periods of
enlightenmentbrokenbydarkagesofignorance.Moreover,they
show that it seems to be connected to or driven by a known
astronomicalphenomenon,theprecessionoftheequinox.

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Thisiswheremodernsciencemaynowbegivingussomestartling
newevidence.
Weallknowthetwocelestialmotionsthathaveaprofoundeffect
on life and consciousness. Earths rotation on its axis causes
humans to move from a waking state to a sleep state and back
againeverytwentyfourhours.OurbodieshaveadaptedtoEarths
rotation so well that it produces these regular changes in
consciousnesswithoutoureventhinkingtheprocessremarkable.

Precessionoftheequinoxesasseenfrom'outside'thecelestial
dome.(Tauolunga)
The second Copernican motion, the earth revolving around the
sun, has an equally significant effect, prompting trillions of life
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formstospringoutoftheground,tobloom,fruit,andthendecay,
while billions of other species hibernate, spawn, or migrate en
masse. Our visible world literally springs to life, completely
changesitscolorandstride,andthenreverseswitheverywaxing
andwaningofthesecondcelestialmotion.Againwearesoused
toitwehardlythinkitnoteworthy.
The third celestial motion, libration, or the precession of the
equinox, is less understood than the first two, but if we are to
believeancientcultures,itseffectisequallytransformative.What
disguisestheimpactofthismotionisitstimescale.Likethemayfly,
whichlivesbutonedayayearandknowsnothingoftheseasons,
the human being has an average life span that comprises only
1/360thoftheroughly24,000yearprecessionalcycle.Andjustas
the mayfly born on an overcast, windless day has no idea that
thereisanythingassplendidassunshineorabreeze,sodowe,
borninaneraofmaterialisticrationality,havelittleawarenessof
agoldenageorhigherstatesofconsciousnessthoughthatisthe
consistentancestralmessage.
AsGiorgioandHerthapointout,theideaofagreatcyclelinkedto
the slow precession of the equinox was common to numerous
culturesbeforetheChristianera,butthenlost.Nowanincreasing
body of astronomical and archaeological evidence suggests the
cyclemayhaveabasisinfact.Moreimportantly,understanding
itsebbandflowandthecharacterofeachepochprovidesinsight
into civilizations future. So far the Ancients are right on; there
does seem to be evidence of a lost high age in Egypt,
Mesopotamia,AncientIndia,etc.longbeforetheDarkAges.Then
wesunkintoaperiodwhereevenGreeceandthegreatRoman
Empirecollapsed,withfamine,plagueandbrutalinquisitionasa
rule. And finally, a renaissance (rebirth) of scientific knowledge
helpingustoemergefromthedepthsofthedarkages.Sowhat
154

drives these changes and what can we expect in the future?

Understandingthecauseofprecessioniskey.

Cyclesofrisingandfalling:TheburningofRome,andtherebirth
ofknowledge.(PublicDomain)
HeavenlyObservations
TheobservationofEarthsthreemotionsisquitesimple.
Inthefirst,rotation,weseethesunriseintheeastandsetinthe
westeverytwentyfourhours.Andifweweretolookatthestars
justonceaday,wewouldseeasimilarpatternoverayear:the
starsriseintheeastandsetinthewest.Thetwelveconstellations
of the zodiac the ancient markers of time that lie along the
ecliptic,thesunspathpassoverheadattherateofaboutone
per month and return to the starting point of our celestial
observationattheendoftheyear.Andifwelookedjustoncea
year, say on the autumnal equinox, we would notice the stars
moveretrograde(oppositetothefirsttwomotions)attherateof
aboutonedegreeeveryseventyyears.Atthispace,theequinox
falls in a different constellation approximately once every 2,000
years,takingabout24,000yearstocompleteitscyclethroughthe
twelve constellations. This is called precession (the backward
motion)oftheequinoxrelativetothefixedstars.

155

ThestandardtheoryofprecessionsaysitisprincipallytheMoons
gravity acting upon the oblate Earth that must be the cause of
Earths changing orientation to distant space. However, this
theory was developed before astronomers learned the solar
systemcouldmoveandhasnowbeenfoundbytheInternational
Astronomical Union to be inconsistent with dynamical theory.
Ancientorientalastronomyteachesthatanequinoxslowlymoving
or precessing through the zodiacs twelve constellations is
simplyduetothemotionofthesuncurvingthroughspacearound
anotherstar,whichchangesourviewpointofthestarsfromEarth.
Tothisdate,astronomershavenotyetdiscoveredsuchastarso
theydismissthemyth.But,justrecently(January2016),scientists
at theCalifornia Institute of Technology (Caltech) in California,
USA, have publicly stated they have found evidence of a large
gravitationalinfluenceononesideofoursolarsystemforcingthe
minorplanets(likePlutoandSedna)tofallintoelongated,inclined
patterns.Consequently,modernscienceisnowlookingforeither
aninthplanetorastaraffectingoursolarsystem.

156

OrbitalcorrelationsamongsixdistanttransNeptunianobjects
ledtothehypothesisofaNinthPlanet.(CC0)
Beyondthetechnicalconsiderations,alargemasswouldprovide
alogicalreasonwhywemighthaveaGreatYear,tousePlatos
term,withalternatingdarkandgoldenages.Thatis,ifthesolar
systemcarryingtheEarthactuallymovesinahuge~24,000year
orbit around another mass, subjecting Earth to the
electromagnetic (EM) spectrum of another star or EM source
along the way, shaping the subtle electrical and magnetic fields
through which we move, we could expect this to affect our
magnetosphere, ionosphere, and very likely all life in a pattern
commensuratewiththatorbit.So,justasEarthssmallerdiurnal
andannualmotionsproducethecyclesofdayandnightandthe
seasonsoftheyear(bothduetoEarthschangingpositionrelative
to the EM spectrum of the Sun), so might the larger celestial
motion be expected to produce a cycle that affects life and
consciousnessonagrandscale.
Ahypothesisforhowconsciousnessmightbeaffectedbysucha
celestial cycle can be built on the work of Dr. Valerie Hunt, a
formerprofessorofphysiologyattheUniversityofCalifornia,Los
Angeles (UCLA). In a number of studies, she has found that
changesintheambientsubtleelectrical,EMandmagneticfields
(which surround us all the time) can dramatically affect human
cognitionandperformance.Inshort,consciousnessappearstobe
affectedbysubtlefieldsoflight,thatmayhavelongtermeffects
barelyunderstood.

157


Illustrationofthemagneticfieldsinthesolarcorona(CCBYSA
3.0)
Consistentwithmythandfolklore,theconceptbehindtheGreat
Year or cyclical model of history is based on the Suns motion
throughspace,subjectingEarthtowaxingandwaningstellarfields
(all stars are huge generators of EM spectra) resulting in the
legendaryriseandfalloftheagesovergreatepochsoftime.

158


TheTrundholmsunchariot(c.1350BC)pulledbyahorseisa
sculpturebelievedtobeillustratinganimportantpartofNordic
BronzeAgemythology.(PublicDomain)
HistoricalPerspective
Currenttheoriesofhistorygenerallyignoremythandfolkloreand
donotconsideranymacroexternalinfluencesonconsciousness.
For the most part, modern history theory teaches that
consciousness (or history) moves in a linear pattern from the
primitivetothemodern,withfewexceptions,anditincludesthe
ideasthatpeoplewerehuntergatherersuntilabout5,000years
ago,tribesfirstbandedtogetherforprotectionfromotherwarring
parties, and written communication must precede large
engineeredstructuresorpopulouscivilizations.
Theproblemwiththiswidelyacceptedparadigmisthatitisnot
consistentwiththeevolvinginterpretationofrecentlydiscovered
ancientculturesandanomalousartifacts.

159

In the lasthundred years, major discoveries havebeen made in

Mesopotamia,theIndusValley,SouthAmerica,Turkeyandmany
otherregionsthatbreaktherulesofhistorytheoryandpushback
thetimeofadvancedhumandevelopment.Specifically,theyshow
thatancientpeopleswere,inmanyways,farmoreproficientand
civilizednearlyfivethousandyearsagothantheywereduringthe
morerecentdarkagesofjustsixhundredtoathousandyearsago.
InCaral,anancientcomplexofunknownoriginonthewestcoast
ofPeru,wefindsixpyramidsthatarecarbondatedto2700BC,a
datecontemporaneouswithEgyptianpyramidsandthatrivalsthe
timeofthefirstmajorstructuresfoundinthesocalledCradleof
Civilization in Mesopotamia. Caral is an ocean away from the
Cradle.Wefindnoevidenceofwritingorweaponry,twooftheso
callednecessitiesofcivilization,butwedofindbeautifulmusical
instruments, astronomically aligned structures, and evidence of
commerce with distant lands (fabrics, seeds and shells not
indigenoustothearea)allsignsofaprosperousculture.
GobekliTepepresentsanevengreaterchallengetoconventional
accountsofhistory.Datedtoatleast9000BC,thissiteinTurkey
contains dramatic architecture, including huge carved pillars.To
findthatsomethingsolargeandcomplexexistedlongbeforethe
datesacceptedfortheinventionofagricultureandpotteryisan
archaeological enigma. These sites defy the standard historical
paradigm. And what is stranger still is that so many of these
civilizationsseemedtodeclineenmasse.InancientMesopotamia,
Pakistan, Jiroft, and adjacent lands, we find knowledge of
astronomy, geometry, advanced building techniques,
sophisticated plumbing and water systems, incredible art, dyes
andfabrics,surgery,medicine,andmanyotherrefinementsofa
civilizedculturewhichseemtohaveemergedfromnowhereand
werecompletelylostoverthenextfewthousandyears.
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ArchaeologicalsiteofGbekliTepeinTurkey.(CCBYSA3.0)
By the time of the worldwide dark ages, every one of these
civilizations,includingthebigonesinEgyptandtheIndusValley,
hadlargelyturnedtodustornomadicwaysoflife.Nearthedepths
ofthecyclicdownturn,therewereruinsandlittleelse,whilethe
local populace knew nothing of the builders except through
legend. In some areas where larger populations still remained,
suchaspartsofEurope,poverty,plague,anddiseasewereoften
rampant, and the ability to read, write, or duplicate any of the
earlierengineeringorscientificfeatshadessentiallydisappeared.
Whathappened?
While records of this period remain spotty, the archeological
evidence indicates that consciousness, reflected as human
ingenuity and capability, was greatly diminished. Humanity
seemed to have lost the ability to do the things it used to do.

161

Interestingly, this is just what many ancient cultures predicted.

StefanMaul,theworldsforemostAssyrianologist,shedlighton
thisphenomenoninhis1997StanfordPresidentialLecturesseries.
HetellsusthattheAkkadiansknewtheylivedinadecliningera.
Theyreveredthepastasahighertimeandtriedtohangontoit,
butatthesametime,theypredictedandlamentedthedarkages
that would follow. Mauls etymological studies of cuneiform
tabletsshowtheancientwordsforpasthavenowbecomeour
words for future and the ancient words for future have
becomeourwordsforpast.Itisalmostasifhumanityorientsits
motionthroughtimedependingonwhetheritisgoingtowardor
awayfromagoldenage.

AkkadianinscriptionfoundatthecityofMaradinIraq,ca.2260
BCE(CCBYSA2.0FR)
This principle of waxing and waning epochs is depicted in
numerousbasreliefsfoundinancientMithraicmysteryschool
temples. The famed Tauroctony, or bullslaying scene, is usually
surrounded by two boys, Cautes and Cautopetes. One holds a
torchupontheascendingsideofthezodiac,indicatingatimeof
increasing light, and the other holds a torch down on the

162

descendingsideofthezodiac,indicatingatimeofdarkness.These
are further broken into ages, which the Greeks deemed, Iron,
Bronze,SilverandGold,asimplewaytodescribetheepochsof
theGreatYear.

TauroctonysceneonaRomanbasrelief.2ndor3rdcentury.
(PublicDomain)
Understanding that consciousness may indeed rise and fall with
the motions of the heavens gives meaning to ancient myth and
folklore and puts anomalous cultures and artifacts, such as the
Antikythera device and the Babylon battery, into a historical
context that makes sense. For example, the battery was
developed at least 2,000 years ago, lost in the dark ages, then

163

reinventedbyVoltainthepostrenaissanceperiod.Thesamething
goes for prosthetic devices, brain surgery, and knowledge of a
heliocentric system and advanced engineering, etc. They were
discovered,lost,thenrediscovered.Italsospeakstowhysomany
ancientculturesappeartohavebeenfascinatedwiththestarsand
provides us with a workable paradigm in which to understand
history.Itcouldalsohelpusidentifytheforcesthatpropelledthe
Renaissance and that may be accelerating consciousness in our
current era. Myth and folklore, the scientific language of yore,
provideadeeperlookatconsciousnessthroughouttheages.
AstronomicalRace
The recent news out of Caltech is prompting astronomers and
astrophysicists around the world to look for something big out
there. The race is on. It just may be that they finally give us a
reasonforthecycleoftheages.
CopyrightWalterCruttenden
AbouttheAuthor

164

WALTER CRUTTENDEN is the Director of the Binary Research

Institute,anarchaeoastronomythinktankinCalifornia,USA.Heis
the author of Lost Star of Myth and Time, The Great Year
Adventures,andtheawardwinningdocumentary,TheGreatYear,
narratedbyJamesEarlJones.

Cruttendensworkstudiestheastronomyofancientcultures,their
almostuniversalbeliefinacycleoftimewithalternatingDarkand
GoldenAges,andwhatthismeansforhumanitytoday.
For more information, see BinaryResearchInstitute.org or
CycleoftheAges.org

165

InSearchofKingAlcinous:Whowerethe
LegendaryPhaeacians?
ByPetrosKoutoupis
ThemythologicalAlcinousandhiskingdomhaveremainedoneof
themostmysteriousandelusivetopicsofancientGreekliterature.
Notmuchisknownofthisforeignmonarch,oratleastnotmuch
hassurvivedthetestoftime.Detailsoftherulerandhiskingdom
surviveonlyinthejourneysofbothOdysseusandJason,butdo
thosedetailsreflectanowpervertedformofreality?Wasthere
an Alcinous prototype ruling over a foreign nation of master
seafarers?Howmuchevidencecantheancientnarrativesprovide,
and how much of it can be corroborated by archaeology and
geography?
LiteraryEvidence

OdysseusatthecourtofAlcinous(PublicDomain)
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Ineverysource,itissaidAlcinouswasnotanativetoGreecebut
insteadarulerofthepeoplesknownasthePhaeacians,livingin
theoutskirtsofwhatthenwastheknownworld.Hewasawise
and just leader; favored by both gods and man. We are first
introducedtohimintheeighthcenturyBCEepic,theOdyssey.
ItiswrittenthatunderthedirectionoftheOlympians,andafter
twenty years away from Ithaca, his native land, Odysseus was
freedbyCalypso(daughterofAtlastheTitan)fromherisland,and
heeventuallywashedashoreontheislandofScheria.Remember,
tenyearswastakenfromOdysseusfortheTrojanWarwhilethe
remainingtenwereforhisvoyagebackfromthewar.Alcinouswas
thehappyrulerofScheriawithhiswife,Arete,hisfivesonsand
onedaughter,Nausicaa.
...butAthenewenttothelandandcityofthePhaeacians.
These dwelt of old in spacious Hypereia near the
Cyclopes, men overweening in pride who plundered
themcontinuallyandweremightierthanthey.From
thereNausithous,thegodlike,hadremovedthem,and
led and settled them in Scheria far from the bread
eatingmankind.
...Alcinouswasnowking,madewiseincounselbythegods.
Homer,Odyssey,vi.212

167


Inlegend,nakedOdysseussurprisesAlcinousdaughter
Nausicaaandhermaids.(PublicDomain)
Homerspentlittletimeindescribingtheislanditselfandinstead
focused on the palace of Alcinous and the way in which he
received and entertained Odysseus. While Alcinous treated his
guesttothefinestScheriahastooffer,Odysseussharedhiswoeful
andoftenchallengingtalewithhisPhaeacianaudience.
TheonlyclueswearegivenofthePhaeaciansandtheirislandis
thatitwasamountainousislandandtheyweremastersofthesea.
With a description like mountainous, it is no wonder that the
locationofScheriacontinuestoeludeallinsearchofit.
We also find Alcinous and the Phaeacians in the Argonautica.
Written by the third century BCE author and poet Apollonius
Rhodius,weread:

168

There is a fertile, expansive island at the entrance of the

IonianstraitintheCerauniansea,underwhichissaid
toliethesickle
ofthePhaeacianshasbeencalledbythenameDrepane
theArgocame,aidedbythewinds,fromtheThrinaciansea
Alcinousandhispeoplegladlywelcomedthetravelers...
ApolloniusRhodius,Argonautica,iv.982997.
The Ceraunian Sea is located just North of the Ionian straight,
opening up to the island of Kerkyra (or Corfu). Based on the
descriptionprovidedbyApollonius,Drepanewouldbeassociated
withKerkyra.
OntheseventhdaytheyleftDrepane
Already they had left behind the gulf named for the
Ambracians,alreadywithsailsspreadwidetheyhad
passedthelandoftheCuretesandthelineofnarrow
islandsalongwiththeEchinadesthemselves.
ApolloniusRhodius,Argonautica,iv.12231230.
His identification of Kerkyra is further confirmed by the voyage
followingJasonsdepartureoftheisland.

169


MapshowingtheroutetakenbytheArgoasdetailedinthe
Argonautica.(CCBYSA4.0)
TheAmbracianGulfwassituatedalongtheIonianSea.ItisSouth
ofKerkyraandNorthoftheislandofLefkada,andontheGreek
mainland.TheCureteswerealegendarypeopleslivingalongand
ontheislandsofAcarnania.Also,situatedalongthewesterncoast
oftheGreekmainlandintheIonianSea.
AfterskirtingtheislandofThrinacia,whichheldthecattle
oftheSun,theycametotheislandofthePhaeacians,
Corcyra,whichwasruledbyAlcinous.
Apollodorus,Library,i.9
Additional clues may come from the etymology of the word
Phaeacian. It is generally accepted that name derives from the
Greekphaios or gray. While the color may somehow describe
thePhaeacianculture,wearestillleftspeculatingitstruesymbolic
purpose.Wasittheirskincolor,eyecolor,thelandscapeoftheir
island,orsomethingentirelydifferent?
170


OdysseusdepartsfromtheLandofthePheacians.(Public
Domain)
HistoricalEvidence

AsatelliteimageoftheIonianSea.

171

TheearliestreferencetoKerkyradatesbacktothe13thcentury
BCE.TheMycenaeanLinearBinscriptionreferstoakorokurai
joormanfromKerkyra.Itisdifficulttosaywhoinhabitedthe
island during the Late Bronze and very Early Iron ages of the
EasternMediterraneanbutwedoknowthatbytheeighthcentury
BCE,CorinthiansandEretrians(fromEuboea)hadmigratedtothe
regionandsettledit.
Ineverynarrative,thelandofthePhaeacianswasreachedafter
passingtheislandofThrinaciaintheWest.WhatwasThrinacia?
Scholars have long debated this but most tend to agree with
ancientsourcesinidentifyingitastheislandofSicily.Wefirstread
ofThrinaciainBookXIIoftheOdyssey.Itisanislandhometothe
cattleofHelios,theGreekgodofthesun.Itisstronglybelieved
thatpartofthename,Thri,resemblestheGreekwordoftriaor
threeandalludestothethreecornersoftheisland.
TheinterestingpartofallofthisisthereactuallyexistsaDrepani
today.MoreappropriatelycalledTrapani,itrestsonthewestern
coast of the island of Sicily. Its name would have likely been a
common one, translating to sickle, and based on the curved
shapeofthecitysharbor.(RefertothefirstexcerptofApollonius
Rhodiushighlightedabove).Thesitewasoriginallyfoundedbythe
ElymiansduringtheClassicalPeriod,thatis,fromthe5thto4th
centuriesBCE.

172


PhotoofmoderndayTrapaniwithitscurved,sickleshaped
harbor.(CCBYSA3.0)
DoesHistoryRevealAnswers?
Homersepicrecallsanagelongforgotten,andonethatpredates
theGreeksofhistime.Itwasatimeofheroesandepicadventures.
Itwasalsoatimehostingbothmiraculousandfearfulmythological
godsandcreatures.Modernscholarsplacethistimeframeinand
around the end of the Late Bronze Age, circa 1200 BCE. What
followedthiserawasabriefDarkAge;literacydisappearedand
legendswereborn.Withthisinmind,canwe,withoutashredof
doubt, place the Phaeacians on the Greek island of Kerkyra?
Unfortunately,theanswerisafirmno.Atleast,notuntiladditional
archaeologicalorliteraryevidenceprovesotherwise.
WehaveyettounderstandtheroleofKerkyraintheworldofthe
Mycenaean Greeks. Were they nonGreekspeaking outsiders?
173

Weretheyexpertsofthesea?Despitewhathasbeenmaintained
throughClassicaltradition,thisconclusiondoesraiseitsfairshare
of doubts. For instance, Kerkyra is to the North of Ithaca in the
same Ionian Sea. When Alcinous received Odysseus into his
palace,theyadmittonotknowingOdysseustheman,butinstead
knewofOdysseustheherooftheTrojanWar,asevidencedbythe
bardictalesofDemodocus.
Howcouldtwoinfluentialkings(i.e.AlcinousandOdysseus)share
dominioninthesameseaandnotpersonallyknowtheother?
DidthePhaeaciansexistbeyondGreeceandfurtherwestcloserto
theItalianmainland?DoestheSicilianTrapaniinanywayrelateto
the Drepani of the Phaeacians? Probably not. As I highlighted
earlier, the name itself would have been representative of the
landscape.ItalsodoesnothelpwhenthePhaeaciansareplaced
onDrepani,asopposedtoScheria,manycenturiesafterHomer.
HavewebeencompletelymisledbyHomer?Iamunderthebelief
thatthePhaeaciansofHomerstalerepresentthedescendantsof
a now lost Minoan population. By the 15th century BCE, the
Mycenaean Greeks had expanded their sphere of influence into
thatwhichwasoriginallyunderMinoancontrolandovertime,the
Minoans either assimilated into the Mycenaean stock or
completelylosttheiroriginalidentities.NowifwerevisitHomers
telling of these foreign peoples, we may start to notice a much
olderstoryburiedwithinverse.
I am reminded of an island in the middle of the Aegean and
attachedtotheCyclades(achainofislands).IspeakofThera(or
Santorini).Inapproximately1628BCE,thevolcanosituatedinthe
centeroftheislanderuptedandburiedthenearbyMinoantown
of Akrotiri under pumice and ash. Discovered by the Greek
archaeologist Spyridon Marinatos in 1967 CE, archaeologists
174

continuetoexcavatethesitetoday.Itisinterestingtonotethatall
excavations have yet to reveal the bodies of the victims which
haveledmany,includingmyself,tospeculatethatamassexodus
of Minoans sought refuge elsewhere before the climax of the
naturaldisaster.

ElaborateandcolorfulfrescorevealedatAkrotiri.(Public
Domain)
If you recall, Homer provided us with a backstory to the
Phaeacians:theyescapedthemaneatingCyclopestoeventually
findtheirnewhomeinScheria.WhatoftheCyclopes?Fromthe
hymnsofCallimachustotheplaysofEuripides,historicalrecords
asearlyasthelatefourthcenturyBCEhavelinkedtheCyclopes
with volcanoes. The name Cyclops (singular form) translates to
"roundeyed"or"circleeyed."Couldthisbearepresentationof
theopeningofavolcano.WasthevolcanoonTheratheCyclopes
the Phaeacians escaped from? Could the gray in their name
representthevolcanicash?

175


Remarkablypreservedartifactsarerevealedfromtheruinsof
ancientAkrotiri,Greece.(BigStockPhoto)
EvenifwecanassociatethePhaeacianswiththedescendantsof
Minoans, we are still left with the same question: where is
Scheria? Unfortunately, archaeology has yielded very little in
identifyingsuchamigration.
CopyrightPetrosKoutoupis
References
Homer.Odyssey.
ApolloniusRhodius.Argonautica.
Apollodorus.Library.
Ventris, Michael and John Chadwick. Documents in Mycenaean
Greek.2nded.NewYork:CambridgeUP,1973:398.[Print].

176

AbouttheAuthor

Byprofession,PETROSKOUTOUPISisasoftwaredeveloperandan
entrepreneur.Whennotoverwhelmedwithbeingagoodhusband
andanexcellentfather(oftwo),andduringthelittlefreetimehe
mayhave,Petrosenjoysimmersinghimselfwithtopicsofancient
historyandtheology.HeisfluentinthelanguageofGreek,andhas
been a selftaught student of Septuagintal Greek and Biblical
Hebrew; with additional knowledge in Aramaic, Ugaritic, and
Akkadiangrammar.Hisrecentworkfocusespredominantlyonthe
LateBronzeandEarlyIronAgesofEasternMediterranean,leading
toaquesttounravelthemysteriesofourhistory.
Authorwebsite:www.PetrosKoutoupis.com
Projectwebsite:www.AnAgeOfHeroes.com
Twitter:www.twitter.com/pkoutoupis
Google+:plus.google.com/+PetrosKoutoupis
Google+Page:plus.google.com/+Anageofheroes
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177

TheStrangeDeathandAfterlifeofKing
Edmund:Didamartyredsaintrisefromthe
gravetokillaVikingking?
ByCharlesChristian

MartrydomofStEdmund.(BrianWhelan/CCBYSA3.0)
Over the past decade, there have been two major public
campaignsintheUKtodrumupsupportforremovingStGeorge
asthepatronsaintofEnglandandreplacinghimwithStEdmund,
themanwhowasthecountrysoriginalheavenlypatronforover
fourhundredyearsfromtheearly10thcentury.Bothcampaigns
failedbuttheydidservetoreigniteinterestinStEdmund.Sowho
washeandwhatwashisstory?
The setting was the Saxon kingdom of the East Angles, which
occupiedmoderndayNorfolk,SuffolkandpartoftheLincolnshire
178

Fens,intheyearAD869.OnthethronewasKingEdmund,ayoung
anddevoutChristianmonarchwhowasonly14yearsoldatthe
timehewascrowned,onChristmasDay855.
For the previous 60 years, Viking raiders from Scandinavia had
been carrying out ever more bloody hitandrun attacks on
England,butin865,thousandsofDanishandNorwegianVikings
describedintheAngloSaxonChronicleastheGreatHeathenArmy
landedintheirlongshipsalongthecoastofSuffolkandlaunched
analloutinvasion.Historysaysthekingscourtiersandealdormen
(nobles)suppliedtheVikingswithhorses,bothasabribetodeter
themfromlootingandpillagingthelocalarea,andalsoashintand
an encouragement that they should move out from East Anglia
andraidotherpartsofthecountry.
Suchapparentlytreacherousdisloyaltyinthefaceofacommon
foesmightseemshockingbymodernstandards,buttherewasno
love lost between the Englands four rival Saxon kingdoms. This
was particularly so in East Anglia where, over the previous two
centuries,severalofitskingsweredeposed,executedorkilledin
battlebyrulersoftheotherkingdoms.
Nevertheless,thebriberystratagemseemstohaveworked,and
forthenextfewyearstheVikingsfoughttheirwayupanddown
England,destroyingtheolddynastiesandeventuallycreatingtheir
ownseparateprovince,knownasTheDanelaw,acrosstheNorth
andEastofthecountry.AmongtheSaxonrulersoverthrownwas
King Ella of Northumbria, who a decade earlier had executed a
Vikingleaderbythrowinghimintoapitofpoisonoussnakes.
TheVikingsoftheGreatHeathenArmy,whohadalongmemory
forgrievances(asKingEdmundwouldlearntohiscost),tooktheir
revengeonEllabysubjectinghimtotheritualoftheBloodEagle

179

aprolongedtortureleadingtodeath,involvingdisemboweling
andevisceration.
Fiveyearslater,afterravagingtherestofthecountry,theVikings
were back in East Anglia, attacking the kingdoms town and
slaughteringitspopulation.Profferedbribesdidnotwork,there
wastobenopeacetreatythistime.InNovemberKingEdmunds
armymettheVikingsinbattlenearthetownofThetford.Sowhat
hadchanged?

AsectionfromtheStoraHammarsIstonefromGotland,
Sweden.Theillustrationdepictsabloodeagleexecution.(CC
BYSA3.0)
TheFateofRagnarLodbrok
AmongtheleadersoftheGreatHeathenArmyweretwowarriors
calledIvartheBoneless(alsoknownasHyngwar)andUbba.They
weretwoofthemanysonsofalegendarychieftain(accordingto
theVikingsagas,heoncekilledadragon)calledRagnarLodbrok
(literally Ragnar HairyBreeches) and they had come looking for
vengeance.
Some years previously Ragnar had been sailing in a small boat,
possiblyonawildfowlingtripalongthewesterncoastofDenmark,
whenastormhadsuddenlyblownupandswepthimfar,faraway
fromthecoastandacrosstheNorthSea.Eventuallyhewashedup
180

onthecoastofEastAnglia,wherehewasrescuedandtakento
Reedham,whichiswhereKingEdmundsroyalcourtwasbasedat
thattime.
PhysiciansnursedRagnarbacktohealthandinduecourseKing
Edmundandhismysteriousforeigngueststruckupafriendship,
as both men loved hunting. Ragnar was soon regularly
accompanyingEdmundonhuntingtrips,muchtotheireofkings
chief huntsman Bern, who became increasingly jealous of the
favortheVikingwasbeingshown.
Tragedystruckasoneday,whenthekingwastravellingelsewhere
inhiskingdom,BernchallengedRagnartoasecretcompetitionto
test their respective hunting skills. Two men left Reedham that
morning but only one returned. Naturally the king and his
courtiers wondered what had happened to Ragnar but Bern
merelyshruggedhisshouldersandsaidhehadntseenhimallday.
Ragnarsfatemighthaveremainedamysteryhadnothishound
Garm,whichhadaccompaniedtheVikingonthevoyageacrossthe
North Sea but had been left behind the morning of that secret
huntingtrip,begunactingaggressivelytowardsBern,snarlingand
snapping whenever he caught sight of him. Eventually Garm
escapedandledsomeofKingEdmundsmentoashallowgravein
small,lonelywoodafewmilesfromReepham.Inthegravethey
foundthebodyofRagnar,withwoundsrevealingthathehadbeen
stabbedtodeath.
It was murder and there was also evidence pointing to the
culprit,forstillgrippedinRagnarscold,deadfingerswasascrap
offabrichedtornfromtheclothingofhisassailantinafinaldeath
struggle.Thefabricwasidentifiedaspartofthetunicofaroyal
huntsman and, when Berns chamber was searched, the kings
menfoundatuniccontainingamatchingripinitssleeve.
181

BernwaspronouncedguiltybyKingEdmundandorderedthathis
punishment was to be cast adrift on an ebbing tide in the very
sameboatthathadcarriedRagnartoEngland.Itwasatthispoint
Fatetookanironicturn,forBerndidnotperishintheboatbutwas
insteadsweptbackacrosstheNorthSea,washinguponthevery
same Danish shore where Ragnar had gone missing several
monthspreviously.
Recognizingtheboatashavingbelongedtotheirfather,Ivarand
UbbawerekeentolearnfromBernwhathadhappenedtotheir
Ragnar.BernstreacherousexplanationwasthatKingEdmundhad
orderedtheirfatherbekilledandhisbodyabandonedinawood
todenyitaproperburial.
TheMartyrdomofaKing
NowbacktoNovember869(somechroniclessuggestitwasthe
year870)andinthewordsoftheAngloSaxonChronicle,theGreat
Heathen Army rode across Mercia into East Anglia, and took
winterquartersatThetford;andthatwinterKingEdmundfought
againstthem,andtheDanishtookthevictoryandconqueredall
thatland.
Intheaftermathofthedefeat,Edmundandsomeofhisretainers
fled east but became separated about 20 miles (32 kilometers)
away,nearasettlementcalledHaegelisdun,whereEdmundwas
capturedbytheVikingswhocaughthimhidingbeneathabridge.
LegendhasitEdmundwascapturedafteraweddingparty,making
their way across the bridge that evening, saw the glint of the
moonlightreflectingoffhisgoldenspursandbetrayedhimtothe
Vikings.Ashewasdraggedaway,Edmundplacedacurseonall
bridalcoupleswhoshouldevercrossthefatefulbridge.

182


Edmundscaptureatthebridge.
OnceinthehandsofIvar,Ubbaandtheirhenchmen,Edmundwas
ropedtoanoaktree,thenbeatenandwhippedinanattemptto
torturehimintorenouncinghisChristianfaithandacceptingIvar
ashisking.WhenEdmundrefusedtosubmit,sayinghewasready
to die for his people and his God, the Vikings responded by
shootingarrowsandthrowingspearsathimasifitwasagame,
untilhewasentirelycoveredwiththeirmissiles,likethebristlesof
ahedgehog.

183


AmedievalilluminationdepictingthedeathofEdmundthe
Martyron20November869bytheVikings.(PublicDomain)
ButstillEdmunddidntdieandstillhecontinuedtopraytoGod,
sotheVikingscuthisheadoff.MindfulofBernstaleofRagnars
fate,theVikingsthrewEdmundsbodyintoacommunalrubbish
pit,todenyitaproperChristianburial,andthenplayedfootball
withhisheaduntilthegrewboredandtosseditawayintoathicket
ofthornsandbrier.
Edmundsdeathoccurredonthe20November(stillobservedas
St Edmunds Day) and a few days later, when the Vikings had
movedon,someofEdmundsfollowersreturnedtothearea.They
184

recoveredhisbodybutatfirstcouldntlocatehishead.However,
astheysearched,callingoutWhereareyoufriend?theyheard
thekingsvoicecallingbackHere,here,here.Theyfollowedthe
source of the sound to where they found the kings head,
protectedfromscavengersandcarrionbyagiantgreywolfthat
cradleditbetweenitspaws.Thewolfimmediatelyyieldedupthe
head,thenfollowedEdmundsmenastheytookthebodybackto
anearbyvillage.Onceitwascertainthekinghadreceivedaproper
burial,thewolfreturnedtotheforestandwasneverseenagain.

DetailofaminiatureofEdmund'sheadcallingout"Here!Here!
Here!"alldaylonguntilthemensearchingforitfoundithidden
inathicket,beingguardedbyawolf.(PublicDomain)
185

There are a number of places that claim to be the location of

HaegelisdunbutthevillageHoxneinSuffolksWaveneyValleyis
theonewiththelongestandfirmestassociation,includingthesite
ofEdmundsoak,whichstoodinafieldjustoutsidethevillageuntil
itfellinastormin1848.Reportsatthetimedescribetheoakas
beingancientwithatrunkover20feetincircumferencewithin
whichwerefoundold,ironarrowheads.

186

CommemorationmarkingthesiteofEdmundsOak.
The village even has a Goldbrook Bridge, said to be the site of
Edmundscaptureandwhich,untilasrecentlyasthe19thcentury,
weddingpartieswouldtakeadetourtoavoidforfearofinvoking
thecurse.

GoldbrookBridge,HoxneVillage.
187


InscriptionatGoldbrookBridge.
Asforthewolf,in1890avicarfoundanold,stonechestinthe
crypt of achurch near BuryStEdmunds inSuffolk.Inside wasa
collectionofboneslateridentifiedasbelongingtoalargewolf.It
188

isalsointerestingtonotethatKingEdmundwasthelastmember
ofaSaxonroyaldynastycalledtheWuffingas,whohadruledEast
Anglia since the sixth century. The family name is derived from
the Kin of the Wolf so perhaps Edmunds wolf knew it was
guardingthelastoftheline?
EdmundsAdventuresintheAfterlife
But,ourstorydoesnotstopwithEdmundsdeathandhisburial
withinasmallandhastilybuiltwoodenchapelnearHoxne.Within
25yearsofhisdeath,miracleswerealreadybeingascribedtothe
latekingsinterventionandeventheVikings,whonowruledthe
area,weremintingcommemorativecoinscarryingtheinscription
StEdmundtheKing.
A few years later, as the late kings cult grew, his remains were
transferred to the city of Beadoriceworth, soon renamed St
EdmundsBury(moderndayBuryStEdmunds)andtheabbeybuilt
tohousehisshrinebecameapopularsiteofpilgrimage.
ThereputationofEdmund,thekingandnowasaintlymartyr,had
received a further boost after the original grave was opened. It
wassaidthatnotonlywasEdmundsbodyfoundtobeincorrupt
(viztherewasnodecomposition)butallthewoundsonhisbody
hadhealed,hisheadwasoncemorejoinedtohisbody,andallthat
waslefttoshowwhereithadbeenseveredwasathinredcrease
ontheneck.(ThelastreportedopeningofEdmundstombwasin
1198,whenthebodywasfoundtostillbeincorrupt.Oneaccount
saysaskepticalmonkactuallytuggedthekingshairtoseeifthe
headreallywasreattachedtothebodyandwaspromptlyslapped
bythesaintforhislackoffaith.)
ThenexttwistinthestorycomesinAD1013duringthechaotic
reignofKingEthelred,foreverknowninEnglishhistoryasEthelred
189

theUnready.TheSaxonsandVikingswerestillatwarand,after
Ethelredhadbeenforcedintoexile,SweynForkbeard,theKingof
Denmark and Norway was also declared King of England on
ChristmasDay,AD1013.

SweynForkbeard,kingofDenmark,England,andpartsof
Norway.(PublicDomain)
FiveweekslaterKingSweynwasdead.Theofficialexplanationwas
hediedinhisbedfrominjuriessustainedafterafallfromhishorse.
However,anotherversionofthestorysaysdivinevengeanceput
astoptohisblasphemy.
ThebackgroundwasSweynandhisVikingswerenotonlyseizing
asmuchDanegeld(whatwednowadayscallprotectionmoney)
from his new English subjects but had also threatened to burn
down the city of Bury St Edmunds and its abbey, as well as
slaughter all its inhabitants, unless they paid over an additional
sumofransommoney.
190

Itwasthendivineinterventionseeminglystruckwhen,intheearly
hoursof3February1014,theghostofStEdmund,mountedona
whitecharger,wassaidtohaveappearedinSweynsbedchamber
andfatallyranhimthroughwithaspear!Accordingtothelegend,
although he was surrounded by his Vikings, he alone saw St
Edmundcomingtowardshim.Terrified,hebeganshoutingHelp,
fellowwarriors, help! St Edmund is coming to kill me! But the
Vikingscouldnotseetheghostwhichranhimthroughfiercely
with a spear, leaving Sweyn tormented with great pain until
twilight,heendedhislifewithawretcheddeath.

191

ThedeathofSweynForkbeardattheendofaghostsspear.
(PublicDomain)
You may scoff at this story but six years later in 1020, when
Sweyns son Cnut (or Canute) was king of England, the new
monarch visited the shrine of St Edmund and bestowed on it
sufficientmoneytoreplacetheoldwoodenabbeyandfundthe
buildinginstoneofagrandnewBenedictinemonastery.Perhaps
Cnutwasfearfulofasimilarhauntingunlessheatonedforthesins
ofhisVikingancestors?
(Sweyn,incidentally,wasneveractuallycrownedkingofEngland
and his reign was the second shortest of any English monarch.
Lady Jane Grey, the nineday queen, holds the record for the
shortestrule.)
EdmundsTravelingBody
Ourstoryishowevernotyetover,forintheyear1217,duringone
ofthemanybaronsrevoltsandrebellionsthatplaguedEnglandin
theMiddleAges,agroupofFrenchknightsaresaidtohavestolen
SaintEdmundsbody(oratleastpartofit)andwhiskeditawayto
the Basilica of SaintSernin in the French city of Toulouse. The
relicsandthesaintsintercessionsarecreditedwithsavingthecity
fromtheplagueinthe17thcentury
The next development came in 1901, when the Archbishop of
Westminster received some of St Edmunds relics from Saint
Sernin that were intended for the high altar of the new Roman
Catholic cathedral, then under construction at Westminster in
London.OntheirarrivalinEngland,therelicswerehousedinthe
Fitzalan Chapel at the Duke of Norfolks castle at Arundel.
However,planswerestalledwhentheantiquarianDr.Montague
RhodesJames(betterknownastheghostandsupernaturalhorror
192

story writerM.R. James)subsequently expressed concernabout

the relicsvalidity.At the timeof writing,115 years later, those
plansarestillstalledandStEdmundsrelicsremaintothisdayat
Arundel.
Or do they? For another version of the story says the monks at
BuryStEdmundsmovedthesaintsstillincorruptbodytoprevent
theFrenchfromstealingit,sowhateverrelicstheymadeoffwith,
theydidnotbelongtoEdmund.

AdepictionofEdmundsshrine.(PublicDomain)
Edmundsshrinewasdestroyedin1539,duringKingHenryVIIIs
Reformation, and in November of that year the abbey was
dissolvedandthemonksexpelled,takingwiththemthesecretof
thelocationofthesaintsfinalrestingplace.Historiansnowthink
the body of St Edmund is still buried in the former monks
graveyardatBuryStEdmunds,whichnowliesbeneaththetennis
courtsinthetownsAbbeyGardens.
193

CopyrightCharlesChristian
AbouttheAuthor

CHARLES CHRISTIAN is a writer, editor, blogger, awardwinning

techjournalist,formerbarrister,andReuterscorrespondent.He
writesaboutmedia,technology,geekstuff,thejustplainweird,
andanythingelsethatintrigueshim.Hismostrecentnonfiction
bookisAtravelguidetoYorkshiresWeirdWolds:TheMysterious
Wold Newton Triangle. He was recently described as an
outstandingwriterwhoperfectlycapturesthehiddenworldsand
forgottencornersofBritain.
ATravelGuidetoYorkshiresWeirdWolds:TheMysterious
WoldNewtonTriangle

194


http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00XE3Z9TW

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00XE3Z9TW

twitter:@ChristianUncut
website:www.urbanfantasist.com
email:urbanfantasist@icloud.com

195

AncientOrigins.net

2016

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