The Lost Civilizations Of The Stone Age

Examines the history of mankind during the Neolithic Age, and presents evidence that the Stone Age human was more advanced than science originally thought. Includes figures and photographs.

The popular view that Stone Age Man was primitive and ignorant is shattered as the author reveals the remarkable accomplishments made before the dawn of history. The journey begins in ancient Egypt, where excavations at Abydos have unearthed hieroglyphs belonging to an age before the pharaohs. It continues to stone circles and burial chambers in Ireland which carbon dating proves pre-date Stonehenge by two millennia, to the world's first town, 9,000-year-old Catal Huyuk in Turkey, and to startling new research on the Ice Man, the 5,000-year-old mummy found in an Alpine glacier. The author discusses 11,000-year-old writing unearthed on the banks of the Euphrates, awe-inspiring cave paintings of Ice Age France, and the discovery of stone tools in Indonesia that proves that pre-Neanderthal man undertook sea voyages 700,000 years before the Kon Tiki.

In this rich and surprising book, Frances F. Berdan shines fresh light on the enigmatic ancient Aztecs. She casts her net wide, covering topics as diverse as ethnicity, empire-building, palace life, etiquette, origin myths, and human sacrifice. While the Aztecs are often described as “stone age,” their achievements were remarkable. They constructed lofty temples and produced fine arts in precious stones, gold, and shimmering feathers. They crafted beautiful poetry and studied the sciences. They had schools and libraries, entrepreneurs and money, and a bewildering array of deities and dramatic ceremonies. Based on the latest research and lavishly illustrated, this book reveals the Aztecs to have created a civilization of sophistication and finesse.

A bold reassessment of what caused the Late Bronze Age collapse In 1177 B.C., marauding groups known only as the "Sea Peoples" invaded Egypt. The pharaoh's army and navy managed to defeat them, but the victory so weakened Egypt that it soon slid into decline, as did most of the surrounding civilizations. After centuries of brilliance, the civilized world of the Bronze Age came to an abrupt and cataclysmic end. Kingdoms fell like dominoes over the course of just a few decades. No more Minoans or Mycenaeans. No more Trojans, Hittites, or Babylonians. The thriving economy and cultures of the late second millennium B.C., which had stretched from Greece to Egypt and Mesopotamia, suddenly ceased to exist, along with writing systems, technology, and monumental architecture. But the Sea Peoples alone could not have caused such widespread breakdown. How did it happen? In this major new account of the causes of this "First Dark Ages," Eric Cline tells the gripping story of how the end was brought about by multiple interconnected failures, ranging from invasion and revolt to earthquakes, drought, and the cutting of international trade routes. Bringing to life the vibrant multicultural world of these great civilizations, he draws a sweeping panorama of the empires and globalized peoples of the Late Bronze Age and shows that it was their very interdependence that hastened their dramatic collapse and ushered in a dark age that lasted centuries. A compelling combination of narrative and the latest scholarship, 1177 B.C. sheds new light on the complex ties that gave rise to, and ultimately destroyed, the flourishing civilizations of the Late Bronze Age—and that set the stage for the emergence of classical Greece.

Who built megaliths and why? What messages are encoded in the ruins of their spectacular monuments? What light do they throw on our origins and our selves? To answer these questions, Peter Marshal sailed in a small boat from Scotland to Malta and visited all the major megalithic sites on the way. The result is this book. During his epic quest and 4000-mile voyage, Marshall comes up with some starting conclusions and his well-researched book - part adventure story and part historical detective work.

An examination of archaeological controversies, with arguments showing evidence of prehistoric civilizations not recorded as part of human history. Are history books giving us the whole story? Or is civilization far more complex and older than we have been taught? Our school textbooks barely mention the 6,000-year-old Sumerian civilization, yet the latest archaeological findings at sites such as Jericho and, most recently, Gobekli Tepe in Turkey have been dated to 10,000 BC. Civilization goes back at least another 10,000 years, if we are willing to believe what our ancestors themselves claimed. The Lost Civilization Enigma reveals the truth about: Lost magnitudes to known cultures, such as the Bosnian Pyramids and the civilization of “Old Europe.” The fabled lost “golden” cities of South America and the Amazon, which are slowly being rediscovered. Fascinating examples of lost technology, such as the Antikythera Device. Atlantis and the fact that it was a real civilization. Analyzing the historical and archaeological record, best-selling author Philip Coppens demonstrates that there is substantial evidence that civilization is far older, far more advanced, and far more special than is currently accepted. Clearly, our history books have left out a great deal!

Contends that a superior human civilization was responsible for the artifacts of advanced workmanship and technological sophistication discovered among the remains of ancient societies.