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Humans in Southeast Asia 40,000 Years Ago May Have Been Skilled Seafarers
Archaeology Magazine ^ | February 26, 2025 | editors / unattributed

Posted on 03/04/2025 10:25:24 PM PST by SunkenCiv

According to a statement released by Ateneo de Manila University, new research suggests that prehistoric people living in the Philippines and Island Southeast Asia may have had the capability of building sophisticated seafaring boats far earlier than expected. The study challenges the widely held contention that advances in boatbuilding technology during the Paleolithic era only took place in Europe and Africa. The researchers argue that places such as the Philippines, Indonesia, and Timor-Leste were never connected to the mainland during this period, yet somehow contain evidence of human occupation. Analysis of 40,000-year-old stone tools excavated at sites across these regions has also yielded traces of plant processing, indicating that human inhabitants were able to extract the plant fibers necessary for making ropes and bindings that were essential in the construction of sturdy boats. The skeletal remains of deep ocean fish including sharks and tuna, as well as fishing implements such as hooks and weights, also indicate that these humans had offshore seafaring skills. Therefore, experts speculate that prehistoric migrations across Island Southeast Asia were not undertaken solely by passive drifters in flimsy bamboo rafts, but by highly skilled navigators in technologically advanced vessels.

(Excerpt) Read more at archaeology.org ...


TOPICS: History; Science; Travel
KEYWORDS: ancientnavigation; australia; godsgravesglyphs; wallaceline
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To: GenXPolymath
Plate tectonics have nothing to do with it - the sea level was 300-450 feet lower then today due to the Ice Caps.

41 posted on 03/05/2025 8:39:31 AM PST by PIF (They came for me and mine ... now its your turn)
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To: SunkenCiv

See #41


42 posted on 03/05/2025 8:40:22 AM PST by PIF (They came for me and mine ... now its your turn)
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To: SunkenCiv
I don't know if you have any opinion of History Channel's 'Curse of Oak Island' - Tuesday evenings. I know for some years the show suffered a critical rejection on FR; treasure hunting has been long subject to flim flam almost by nature.

About seven years ago they started employing one or two archaeologists and now have a varying populace of trained observers and have added some sophisticated testing equipment involving metalurgy - composition, dating, source, that kind of thing; also they have traveled to Europe to confirm some data and artifacts plus they have engaged an Archaeoastronomy expert who has dated some of the prominent large stone arrangements to approximately 1200 CE.

I have no idea if there is any treasure there and if so, whether it has been discovered and plundered; the expectation may be holding a substantial audience for all of these years. I have to admit that I have stuck with the show for some years now as I think that they are uncovering very compelling evidence of European visitation as early as the 13th century!

I admit that the evidence is not conclusive. Some folks give little credibility to archaeoastronomy; I can think of alternatives of how some ancient artifacts might have been carried to Oak Island as 'pocket treasures' and lost. Credible proof has been offered as to how the Vikings could have assisted European trans-Atlantic commerce especially by the persecuted Knights Templar.

I agree that conclusive proof has not yet been offered for pre-Columbian European travel but the exposition has been captivating and many viewers are noticing this fascinating historical anomaly.

43 posted on 03/05/2025 8:56:30 AM PST by Bob Ireland (The Democrap Party is the enemy of freedom.They use all the seductions and deceits of the Bolshevics)
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To: SunkenCiv

The auto correct stuff, no coffee, and no glasses just kills me some times.


44 posted on 03/05/2025 9:14:01 AM PST by Vermont Lt
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To: Equine1952

“I don’t wanna be a pirate!”


45 posted on 03/05/2025 9:23:33 AM PST by Cold_Red_Steel
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To: Vermont Lt

I’ve had that problem more and more as I’ve grown retired. :^) It isn’t always the autocorrect, either, I’ve got a built-in auto-screwup capability. :^D


46 posted on 03/05/2025 9:30:35 AM PST by SunkenCiv (Putin should skip ahead to where he kills himself in the bunker.)
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To: PIF
"all the maps I saw showing Asia 40,000 ya show them connected" Yes, this theory is the most popular and feasible for 18k ago at the glacial maximum, which is what your map shows. But the peopling happened much before that. And from 40k back to 124k it was much warmer and warmer going back to the previous interglacial maximum. So much of what your map shows had not been exposed yet because the levels had not dropped that much yet. It did so after they were already there. So if they did use a land bridge it would have had to have been during the previous glacial maximum around 140k ago when it would have been possible.


47 posted on 03/05/2025 10:36:45 AM PST by Openurmind
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To: Vermont Lt

😂🤣👍


48 posted on 03/05/2025 10:45:26 AM PST by SaveFerris (Luke 17:28 ... as it was in the Days of Lot; They did Eat, They Drank, They Bought, They Sold ......)
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To: Openurmind

Man, I tried to reduce that image size but it increased it instead. It reduced it and made it smaller as it should in the preview but increased it even more than the original when posted.

I did width=”70%” but it looks like it ended up +30% over the original width. Did I do it wrong? Or is there a swap of values happening?


49 posted on 03/05/2025 10:49:36 AM PST by Openurmind
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To: PIF

How nice, a map with no date. I’m convinced.


50 posted on 03/05/2025 12:17:31 PM PST by SunkenCiv (Putin should skip ahead to where he kills himself in the bunker.)
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To: PIF; GenXPolymath
"Plate tectonics have nothing to do with it - the sea level was 300-450 feet lower then today due to the Ice Caps."

Sundaland (GGG)

51 posted on 03/07/2025 3:30:31 PM PST by blam
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To: SunkenCiv

Impossible. I’ve had FReepers berate me before for suggesting such.

And of course I’m so stupid. They told me so being geniuses.

/Sarc

Bearing straight my butt. 😁


52 posted on 03/07/2025 3:36:32 PM PST by Fledermaus ("It turns out all we really needed was a new President!")
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To: Fledermaus

There must have been a *raft* of prehistoric seafarers. :^)


53 posted on 03/07/2025 4:56:57 PM PST by SunkenCiv (Putin should skip ahead to where he kills himself in the bunker.)
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To: blam

No one on this thread believes for a minute that such a place existed since there are no artifacts. Its all about the artifacts, and maps, geology etc do not constitute holy proof.😇


54 posted on 03/08/2025 7:47:55 AM PST by PIF (They came for me and mine ... now its your turn)
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