Posted on 09/01/2003 3:00:05 AM PDT by jimtorr
AN EXCITING archaeological discovery has been made at Culmore in Derry by two men who stumbled across a large stone artefact, which pre-dates the Egyptian Pyramids by a few thousand years.
When Frank Gillespie began work on his garden wall in Culmore he had little idea that just below his feet lay a large stone axe estimated to be around 8-9,000 years-old.
Frank's father Hugh Gillespie, of Lone Moor Road, had been digging the foundation for the wall when he unearthed the ancient tool.
"My father found it and left it to one side, paying little notice, but when I spotted it I knew it was some kind of artefact as it was chipped from work," said Frank
"We were in the back garden digging a foundation for a small wall at the time - we weren't looking for anything," added the electronics engineer.
The Clonliffe Park resident said that the future of the axe will now be left in the hands of the local archaeologists, Ian Leitch and Tommy Gallagher, who investigated and verified the find.
"The axe probably dates from the early or late Mesolithic period in Ireland, around eight or nine thousand years ago," Mr. Leitch told the 'Journal'.
The discovery of stone axes has not been uncommon in recent times with a number of artefacts uncovered during field surveying in the Culmore and Ballyamagard areas over the last number of years.
However, the large axe unearthed by the Gillespies was "unique" to the area because of its size, according to the local archaeologists.
And the artefact dates back to when Ireland's earliest settlers were still arriving in Northern Ireland from Scotland.
Mr. Leitch and Mr. Gallagher have confirmed that the artefact is made of "mud stone", and it was probably used by early hunter-gatherers for felling trees. The sharp stone would have been "hafted" onto a piece of timber , most likely oak, using animal hide.
"This particular stone axe may have been brought into the area through local trading, as this stone axe has no similarity, on record, to other stone axes, which have been found in the locality," said Mr. Leitch.
Frank and Hugh Gillespie permitted the axe to be handed over to the Environment and Heritage Services of the Department of the Environment which will observe and record the find.
"The axe will in due course be returned to Mr. Gillespie who may at some stage facilitate the axe being viewed publicly at the Tower Museum in Derry," added Mr. Leitch, who paid tribute to the Gillespies for passing the artefact to the authorities .
In January a find of ancient tools dating from the same period during the building of the Toome bypass yielded one of the most important insights to date into the lifestyles of the first Irish settlers.
That site included a number of flint tools thought also to be around 9,000 years old and yielded over 8,000 pieces of flint including small blades called microliths and larger tools used for hunting, and fishing.
It is believed that the first humans to reach Ireland did so as the remnants of the last Ice Age disappeared. The first immigrants came to the Antrim coast from western Europe via Scotland, with which there may have been temporary dry land connections left behind by the Ice Age.
Didn't you get the memo? The dinosaurs were created by Speilberg about 1990, then sent back in time using Einstein's Time Machine, lifted from Orwell, to various epochs to create the illusion
The fossil record tells us that they died. The Creationist says they were buried in the mud from the Flood. The Evolutionist tells many different tales that take as an article of faith selective uniformitarianism. We have the same evidence, its in the interpretation.
So, explain to use oh sage, how long ago the dinosaurs roamed? 9000 years ago?
Since neither of us were around 9000 years ago, and we don't have an eye witnesses around to interrogate, we must make use of the knowledge that we do have. Evolutionists ignore all personal witness and consider only speculation.
Since dinosaur is an evolutionist's term that refers to a critter found within certain rock layers that are imagined to be of a certain time period, it would be fallacy for me to use contrived definitions, in the same sense it would be for you to speak of the Holy Spirit's power and presence.
I can discuss the large animals that you subjectively call "dinosaurs" as being creatures that have been with man since the beginning of time. There are plenty of secular legends and stories of man's interaction with beasts that you might describe as dinosaur. But since you categorically deny the existance of dinosaurs in the past several thousand years, your self imposed limitations would make the conversation fruitless.
Conversely, what you are implying is that you believe dinosaurs actually existed within the last ten thousand years. Tyrannasaurus Rex, triceratops, pterodactils, etc. Now, I think you need to tell the truth to the good people on this forum and let us know exactly when you think dinosaurs existed. My guess is 60 to 150 million years ago. Now it's your turn.
I'm definitely bringing a shovel!
And why not? What makes allegory, poetry, or myth anything less than True?
No.
Stone artifacts, whether ancient tools, Greek Statues, or the supposed Ossuary of James are dated by the weathering of the surface. We know how fast each type of stone weathers in the open air and burried in different soils. Microscopic examination of the surface can tell how long ago that surface was exposed.
SO9
Everything up to the Genocide of the Caananites is bogus.
Since neither of us was there, we must base our opinions on what we consider the best authority. If no credible authority exists, then it is foolishness to be dogmatic on any possible explanation.
I must, as an issue of faith and to be consistant with what I know to be true, have considered the Bible as the absolute authority on this topic. Fortunately, the evidence supports the Bible's claim. According to lineage, and the reasonable assumption that the lineages are consecutive, Usher's date puts the age of the earth at under seven thousand years. This of course makes 60 to 150 million years ago impossible. What evolutionists call evidence of billions of years of uniform environment, Creationists call evidence of a catastrophic global flood that we are told is only a several thousand years old.
The empirical evidence we have today that "dinosaurs" and man walked together is found in places like GlenRose Texas, granted the human footprints are large and are indicative of a very tall (or giant) people. No problem, the Antediluvians talked about a race of giants we call the Nephilim. (Imagine the NY Giants changing their name...heh,heh,heh). There is also the chinese legends and the south american pottery, and north american and european cave art that features in convincing detail certain large creatures evolutionists would label "dinosaurs" if they were only dead 60 million years previously. Job was reminded of a great Behemoth, that theistic evolutionists have tried to pass off as a hippopotamus (despite the tail described as a mighty cedar, and the "tightly knit" thighs ). John Allen Watson, a geologist here in Austin wrote a paper titled "Behemoth" that describes in detail why this creature was probably a sauropod. According to Dr Look, French Congo tribes today still talk about (and apparently worship) a sauropod like creature that lives in the waters and occasionally capsizes their canoes (with men in it) with its "trunk".
So I base my opinions on Scripture, and also on the empirical observations made by archaeologists, and the numerous claims of disparate cultures around the world to co-exist with these "dinosaurs". There is even certain European lore of "dragon slayers" as recent as the Medieval ages. Nessie within the confines of Loch Ness? Is absence of evidence evidence of absense?
OK, I'll bite. What limits am I putting on G_d? Is it because I take His Word concerning origins literally? For those who feel that G_d can't possibly create the universe within a week's time and therefore declare by fiat that Genesis 1-11 is something other than truth, what is the explanation for Exodus 20 where the basis for establishing a Sabbath Day of rest was modelled off the belief that Gen 1-11 was true? For those who believe the NT (or certain portions of it) as truth, why is it that Jesus Christ Himself can believe in a Genesis 1-11 as literal and true but to those who doubt G_d's power say that G_d had to use death and carnage for hundreds of millions of years before He could actually mutate man into existance?
He is all powerful, not you.
And your point would be...? (who around here is saying that they are as/more powerful that G_d? Are you hearing voices in your head?)
The operative word here is "probably." What do that stake their claim on? The word behind "probably" is "assumption." They give no objective means of dating this axe.
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