Submerged City May Be Older Than Mesopotamia

Hindustan Times ^ | 12-3-2003 | Utpal Parashar

[blam]

Submerged city may be older than Mesopotamia

Utpal Parashar
Dehra Dun, December 3

A submerged coastal city near Poompuhar in Nagapattinam, Tamil Nadu, is the focus of a major expedition being conducted jointly by the Indian Naval Hydrographic Department (INHD) and the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI).

Both the organisations are trying to piece together the city's past, which some noted marine archaeologists consider to be the birthplace of modern civilisation. The once flourishing port city is located about one mile off the Nagapattinam coast.

"We have been able to locate a section of the city at a depth of 7 m and will soon start operations to recover objects that will help ascertain its past," said Rear Admiral K.R. Srinivasan, chief hydrographer to the Indian government.

English marine archaeologist Graham Hancock, who conducted an underwater exploration in the area in 2001, believes that the Poompuhar site could be older than Sumeria in Mesopotamia, where modern civilisation is believed to have originated nearly 5,000 years ago.

The 2001 expedition was funded by Channel Four of Britain and Learning Channel of the US in association with the National Institute of Oceanography (NIO), Goa.

It led Hancock to surmise that the city could have been submerged by a tidal wave as high as 400 ft somewhere between 17,000 and 7,000 years ago.

Other experts like Glenne Milne, a geologist at the University of Durham, UK, agree with Hancock. Video footage of the site shows that the submerged city near Poompuhar was far superior to constructions found in Harappan sites.

Although NIO had conducted similar offshore expeditions in the area in the late 1980s and early 1990s — and discovered objects like ring wells, brick structures and megalithic wares — it did not evince much interest till Hancock revealed his findings.

The new venture by the INHD and ASI may put an end to the debate on the submerged city. It could also rekindle a new interest in locating other such submerged towns and shipwrecks along India's coastline.

[blam]

"Just curious. Have you ever read Written in Stone by Chet Raymo? It's a little book that addresses geology through the millenia. Fascinating."

No, I've not read Written In Stone

[blam]

Here we are at 40+ posts and no-one has mentioned Atlantis yet.

Go here for the latest update on the underwater site off the coast of Cuba.

[Lady Jag]

Oh, you found it. Being only around 140 pages it gives the reader a wonderful instant global look at the US northeast over millions of years and makes one wonder what moving continents might have left behind.

[B Knotts]

Fascinating. Anyone catch the Discovery Channel (I think) program on mega-tsunamis the other day? They mentioned a distaster of just this sort on the coast of India.

[Amelia]

Fascinating!

[blam]

"Fascinating. Anyone catch the Discovery Channel (I think) program on mega-tsunamis the other day? They mentioned a distaster of just this sort on the coast of India."

Yup. I saw that for the second time.

I read an interesting article sometime back that speculates about the prehistoric South Americans making moves from the coastal areas to inland regions just to get away from tsunamis. I may have something in the GGG files on this, I'll go look. (something about meteorite impacts in the Pacific Ocean)

BTW, just read last night that meteorite impacts into water causes the climate to get warm and wet while those on land causes cold and dry conditions.

[blam]

Found it. Go to post #36 on the thread linked below and read it.

Evidence Of Tunguska-Type Impacts Over The Pacific Basin Around The Year 1178AD

[blam]

"Oh, you found it. Being only around 140 pages it gives the reader a wonderful instant global look at the US northeast over millions of years and makes one wonder what moving continents might have left behind."

I like this by Chet RaymoThe Real Story Of Ireland's Snakes

[blam]

I found something that may have caused a 400 foot tidal wave. This is from a book I'm presently reading.

"Alexander and Edith Tollmann, geologists at the University of Virginia, have argued that a series of large ocean impacts, coupled with smaller land collisions, in the middle of the eighth millennium BC is the cause of Noah's Flood... Greenland ice-core data and tree-rings show that something major did happen right at the time the Tollmanns propose. A very strong acid layer has been dated to 7630BC (+-170 years)"

They go on to propose: "...the Tollmanns argue that a comet with seven large fragments struck the world's oceans more or less simultaneously in the Tasman Sea southeast of Australia, in the South China Sea, in the west-central Indian Ocean, in the North Atlantic, in the central Atlantic south of the Azores, in the Pacific off Central America, and farther south in the Pacific just west of Tierra del Fuego. The impacts set up giant tsunamis...."

Looks like this could be a possible source of a giant tsunami in the correct time frame, huh.

[farmfriend]

Gods, Graves, Glyphs
List for articles regarding early civilizations , life of all forms, - dinosaurs - etc.

Let me know if you wish to be added or removed from this ping list.

[farmfriend]

Consider yourself added. If you ever change your mind, or I get you on the wrong list, just let me know.

[farmfriend]

I tried for a long time to get blam to do a ping list and I knew others had to. I gave up and did it myself.

[farmfriend]

Consider yourself added. If you ever change your mind, or I get you on the wrong list, just let me know.

[blam]

"I tried for a long time to get blam to do a ping list and I knew others had to. I gave up and did it myself."

...and you're doing a wonderful job too.

[farmfriend]

Thanks.

[Lady Jag]

Interesting story about Ireland's snakes. I've only read two of his lesser known books but I understand he's written a number of them and one was made into a movie.

Thanks for finding his site, I'm going to check it out.

[Lady Jag]

Thanks a million for the ping list!

[aristeides]

The Quest for the Origins of Vedic Culture: The Indo-Aryan Migration Debate.

[Eaker]

farmfriend, you ought to give blam a good punch!!

blam finds the best stuff!!!

[EggsAckley]

THANKS!!!