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Anthropology
Related: About this forumNASA Adds to Evidence of Mysterious Ancient Earthworks
High in the skies over Kazakhstan, space-age technology has revealed an ancient mystery on the ground.
Satellite pictures of a remote and treeless northern steppe reveal colossal earthworks geometric figures of squares, crosses, lines and rings the size of several football fields, recognizable only from the air and the oldest estimated at 8,000 years old.
The largest, near a Neolithic settlement, is a giant square of 101 raised mounds, its opposite corners connected by a diagonal cross, covering more terrain than the Great Pyramid of Cheops. Another is a kind of three-limbed swastika, its arms ending in zigzags bent counterclockwise.
Described last year at an archaeology conference in Istanbul as unique and previously unstudied, the earthworks, in the Turgai region of northern Kazakhstan, number at least 260 mounds, trenches and ramparts arrayed in five basic shapes.
Spotted on Google Earth in 2007 by a Kazakh economist and archaeology enthusiast, Dmitriy Dey, the so-called Steppe Geoglyphs remain deeply puzzling and largely unknown to the outside world.
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http://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/03/science/nasa-adds-to-evidence-of-mysterious-ancient-earthworks.html
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NASA Adds to Evidence of Mysterious Ancient Earthworks (Original Post)
n2doc
Oct 2015
OP
Judi Lynn
(160,219 posts)1. Spectacular! How much excitement and curiosity can we contain? How wonderful.
Can't even wait to hear more about this, the moment they publish a word.
Thank you.
Ichingcarpenter
(36,988 posts)2. That's not a giant X
that's the layout for a giant pyramid
L. Coyote
(51,129 posts)3. Someone is calling "Bullshit" and it isn't just anyone. Great science writer:
Facebook today: Owen J? to Archaeology Update
To all interested as the reporter who broke the Kazakhstan geoglyph story 1 year ago I have a statement to make. http://bit.ly/ZG0nnE
Much of the story reported by @ralphblu in @nytimes about the Kazakhstan geoglyphs is false. I've been in touch with archaeologists doing the work. They've discredited much of the story published by @ralphblu in @nytimes. I've contacted @ralphblu and @nytimes about this and will be writing a follow-up article on the (real) research taking place next week.
One year ago the archaeologists generously took the time to talk to me about their initial results and share some of their findings. I'm saddened that @ralphblu and @nytimes have treated those same archaeologists so shabbily.
The names of the actual archaeologists are Irina Shevnina, Andrew Logvin and Giedrė Motuzaitė Matuzevičiūtė. Most of the people that @ralphblu and @nytimes reported on are not archaeologists and are not doing the research. I'm linking below to the story I published on the glyphs one year ago. I'm also copying the abstract of the paper presented in Istanbul last year.
(EAA 2014) Steppe Geoglyphs Mark the Ancient Routes of Human Migration Across Central Asia: Introduction to the Research Andrey Logvin (National University of Kostanay, Kostanay), Irina Shevnina (National University of Kostanay, Kostanay), Giedrė Motuzaitė Matuzevičiūtė (Vilnius University/Institute of History of Lithuania, Vilnius), Abai Seitov (National University of Kostanay, Kostanay) Geoglyphs in the Torgai region of Northern Kazakhstan were serendipitously found while analysing satellite images from Google Earth. In a past few years over 20 such geoglyphs have been identified in the Torgai region. These unique objects have not been known in the territory of Kazakhstan before, nor in the neighbouring countries.
The diameter of those geoglyphs ranges from 90m to 400m. According to the construction type, they could be grouped into two groups: the first type of geoglyphs are constructed from the earth mounds which form lines, rings, crosses, squares and squares with crosses. The second group of geoglyphs is constructed from earth trenches and ramparts.
In the past year, the archaeological expedition from the Kostanay University in collaboration with Vilnius University began the investigation of the Torgai geoglyphs. The applied research methodology involved archaeological excavations, GPR work, radiocarbon and OSL dating as well as aerial photography. In this talk we are going to present the recent research results that allowed us to take a closer look at the timing, function and reasoning behind these unique and mysterious constructions.
Much of the story reported by @ralphblu in @nytimes about the Kazakhstan geoglyphs is false. I've been in touch with archaeologists doing the work. They've discredited much of the story published by @ralphblu in @nytimes. I've contacted @ralphblu and @nytimes about this and will be writing a follow-up article on the (real) research taking place next week.
One year ago the archaeologists generously took the time to talk to me about their initial results and share some of their findings. I'm saddened that @ralphblu and @nytimes have treated those same archaeologists so shabbily.
The names of the actual archaeologists are Irina Shevnina, Andrew Logvin and Giedrė Motuzaitė Matuzevičiūtė. Most of the people that @ralphblu and @nytimes reported on are not archaeologists and are not doing the research. I'm linking below to the story I published on the glyphs one year ago. I'm also copying the abstract of the paper presented in Istanbul last year.
(EAA 2014) Steppe Geoglyphs Mark the Ancient Routes of Human Migration Across Central Asia: Introduction to the Research Andrey Logvin (National University of Kostanay, Kostanay), Irina Shevnina (National University of Kostanay, Kostanay), Giedrė Motuzaitė Matuzevičiūtė (Vilnius University/Institute of History of Lithuania, Vilnius), Abai Seitov (National University of Kostanay, Kostanay) Geoglyphs in the Torgai region of Northern Kazakhstan were serendipitously found while analysing satellite images from Google Earth. In a past few years over 20 such geoglyphs have been identified in the Torgai region. These unique objects have not been known in the territory of Kazakhstan before, nor in the neighbouring countries.
The diameter of those geoglyphs ranges from 90m to 400m. According to the construction type, they could be grouped into two groups: the first type of geoglyphs are constructed from the earth mounds which form lines, rings, crosses, squares and squares with crosses. The second group of geoglyphs is constructed from earth trenches and ramparts.
In the past year, the archaeological expedition from the Kostanay University in collaboration with Vilnius University began the investigation of the Torgai geoglyphs. The applied research methodology involved archaeological excavations, GPR work, radiocarbon and OSL dating as well as aerial photography. In this talk we are going to present the recent research results that allowed us to take a closer look at the timing, function and reasoning behind these unique and mysterious constructions.
Nazca Lines of Kazakhstan: More Than 50 Geoglyphs Discovered
By Owen Jarus, Live Science Contributor | September 23, 2014 07:34am ET
Ancient Monument Placemarks
L. Coyote
(51,129 posts)4. " I see that nyt has made a few changes to their kazakhstan geoglyph article, I'm glad to see this"
Owen Jarus ?@ojarus 22 minutes ago
I see that nyt has made a few changes to their kazakhstan geoglyph article, I'm glad to see this