Posted on 10/06/2015 6:17:04 AM PDT by Red Badger
Bronze Age rock carving depicts a Mediterranean style boat.
Above: A graphic representation of the Auga dos Cebros petroglyph, showing the obvious boat feature at the bottom. This image is a screenshot of the same as depicted in the YouTube video (see below).
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A unique petroglyph discovered near the Atlantic coast of northern Spain has provided evidence that contacts between ancient Atlantic cultures and contemporaneous cultures of the Mediterranean were earlier and perhaps more intense than previously thought.
The rock art panel, located in the Costa dos Castros region and known as Auga dos Cebros, depicts a boat with a structure, including a combination of oars and sails, that match the general design and concept of seafaring vessels of Mediterranean cultures roughly 4,000 years ago. The typical Atlantic equivalent boats of the time were known to feature primarily oar-propelled boats without sails, with a different overall form.
When first encountered, the petroglyph piqued the interest of researcher Javier Costas Goberna, who first began searching for comparable evidence and renderings in the archaeological record throughout Europe. Coming up empty, he turned his attention to researching the Mediterranean regions. His search here proved fruitful, discovering evidence of very similarly designed vessels as evidenced by a variety of archaeological finds. In fact, fellow researcher María Ruiz-Gálvez Priego identified the Auga dos Cebros boat as being remarkably similar to Aegean model vessels of approximately 2000 B.C., particularly as they were depicted on ancient Cretan stamps. Like the Auga dos Cebros boat, those vessels featured outwardly-opened bows and sterns, masts and rigging that held sails as the primary means of propulsion, and lines that are interpreted to represent oars and/or oarsmen for secondary, additional propulsion.
Combined with the fact that the Auga dos Cebros petroglyph represents the only such depiction of this type of seafaring vessel in the Atlantic/European region characteristic to the Bronze Age time period, the researchers posit that the Auga dos Cebros boat likely traveled from a Mediterranean point of origin, suggesting contact or trade with Atlantic cultures as much as 4,000 years ago.
More about this important discovery, including images, can be found in the Dig Ventures article by Maiya Pina-Dacier.
They may serve the same purpose as ship silhouettes.....................
http://www.amazon.com/Baltic-Origins-Homers-Epic-Tales/dp/1594770522
I don’t know enough about ancient and pre-history to agree or disagree with the theory put forward in the book at the link above, but it does seem to answer a whole lot of the questions about the earliest Med civilizations.
And, it’s a fun read even if just for the cognitive dissonance it causes.
I tend to agree.
It is best if those who are charged with defending their people from an enemy can discern friend from foe at the greatest possible distance.
And the hunters of a tribe were also that tribe’s defenders.
It’s probably best not to take any of my theories on pre-history too seriously, though.
After all, I believe cannabis was responsible for the beginnings of civilization.
Who would think to plant food in fields right near where they lived and gather up baby animals to pen up for quick food other than a bunch of lazy arsed stoners who had to deal with the overwhelming need for munchies on a regular basis?
Source(s)?
Alternately, the paintings were used as instructional illustration for the kids, which would be why the animals were very detailed ("THIS is what an elk looks like!") while the humans would be just stick figures.
You would think that the men would teach the boys a bit about the animals they hunted, and how to approach them, BEFORE taking the boys out into the field.
I don't know about the beginning of it, but it may be responsible for the ENDING of it....................
Yep, aliens it was!....................
Click on the red lettering I left you, that is a link to the article in the European Union Times.
One reason for thinking the older cave paintings in France were “religious” and done by men is that they were frequently deep in the caves and hard to reach. They were not where the women were hanging out with the children, cooking, sewing, and sharing stories. Also, once the big hunts were done, the women had a lot more of the work to do, cutting, drying, curing and sewing skins, cooking, caring for kids, etc. The men just sat around making arrows and spear points, sleeping, telling stories, and inventing religions, until another hunt was needed.
So far as that boat is concerned, I see lines going from a mast to the front and back ends of the boat. This looks like what was done with the papyrus/reed boats that were used early on the Nile. It was necessary to pull up each end so it did not sag down into the water.
But that is most likely exactly where the women and children would be found, deep in the back of the cave, safe from predators and other human enemies. Plus, the temperature in the back of the caves stays fairly constant year round, and that would be very important during winter months when hunting for fuel for fires would be difficult and dangerous. Also during winter months, they would not be out gathering berries and plants for sustenance, they would be huddled in their warm dens awaiting the arrival of spring, taking care of the children, making clothes from animal hides and educating them and telling stories of good times to keep their spirits up. They would be taking care of the family, decorating their homes and waiting for the men to come home from work, i.e. the hunt, just as any modern woman would be doing today................
The boat appears to have its sails furled, with only the lines from the mast to the bow, deck and stern showing. That would indicate that the 'artist' painted what he/she saw, a boat that was hauled up on shore landing, either for repairs or to take on food and water.
The sailors may have met the artist and their 'tribe' for trading purposes or may have been hostile enemies looking for slaves, we'll never know. The animals around the boat may indicate that they were looking for animals for food or trade to take back home.
Or it may have been another Noah's Ark story.................
For decades I have been reading reports on the discovery of cave paintings in various locations. I don’t remember ever reading about any evidence of daily living being found on the floors of caves near the paintings. I also seem to recall that several were found deep within the caves. Families could likely have found sufficient shelter and temperature stability far closer to the mouth of the cave. In addition, there would have been extensive soot staining of the ceilings of living areas, and perhaps even soot damage to the cave paintings. The problem of lighting far back in a cave is also an issue. I am sticking with my impressions. By all means do some research on just where in caves the more famous paintings were found.
Decided to look into this more. Here is a Wiki article on the reed boats of Egypt and Lake Titicaca, Bolivia:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reed_boat
In addition, here are a lot of images of reed boats. A number also have lines as shown in the rock carving. You say bow and stern, I say front and back ends, what is the argument???
Good catch — Heyerdahl used papyrus from Lake Chad (it had gone extinct south of the Aswan Dam) and used boat weavers from the Andes to build both of his Ra Expedition craft.
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