Unearthing Ancient America

A collection of articles from Ancient American magazine.

In Discovering the Mysteries of Ancient America, the author of The Atlantis Encyclopedia turns his sextant towards this hemisphere. Here is a collection of the most controversial articles selected from seventy issues of the infamous Ancient American magazine. They range from the discovery of Roman relics in Arizona and California's Chinese treasure, to Viking rune-stones in Minnesota and Oklahoma and the mysterious religions of ancient Americans.

The Lost History of Ancient America presents new evidence of transoceanic visitors to America, hundreds, even thousands, of years before Christopher Columbus was born. Its 20 eminent contributors are experts in a variety of fields, from botany, biology, and prehistoric engineering to underwater archaeology, archaeo-astronomy, and Bronze Age warfare. In ancient times, the sea was not an impassable barrier separating our ancestors from the outside world, but a highway taking them to every corner of it. Never before and nowhere else has so much evidence proving the impact made on America by overseas visitors been assembled. You will learn about: A chain of stonewalls across southern Illinois that has stood for the last two millennia. A profusion of plants flourishing throughout the United States and Canada that originated more than 20 centuries ago. Underwater ruins recently found off the coast of Oregon. Bronze Age oil wells in Pennsylvania. And much, much more. The Lost History of Ancient America ends the debate between cultural diffusionists--who have always known that our ancient ancestors did not consider the sea an impassable barrier--and cultural isolationists, who have been equally certain that humans lacked the know-how and courage for global navigation until a little more than 500 years ago.

While digging out a new basement near Los Angeles, homeowners accidentally unearth a 3,000-year-old Phoenician altar.A treasure-hunter in Ohio finds more than he expected, when his metal detector locates an Eastern Mediterranean pendant from 1000 bc.Two caches of coins minted in Imperial Rome surface along the Ohio River.A Smithsonian Institution archaeologist excavating a Native American burial mound in Tennessee removes a stone emblazoned with a second century Hebrew inscription.These are just a few of the dramatic finds described in The Lost Worlds of Ancient America. They confirm that our continent was visited and influenced by visitors from Europe and the Near East hundreds, even thousands of years before its “official” discovery in 1492. As such, this startling, fresh proof of their powerful impact on the pre-Columbian New World offers us a different view of American origins that threatens to re-write mainstream textbooks.More than two dozen noted academics, researchers, and writers have contributed to this myth-shattering volume, including:Scott Wolter, a university-trained geologist, construction analysis company president, and author of The Hooked X, showcased on The History Channel;Dr. John J. White, editor emeritus of the Midwestern Epigraphic Society’s quarterly Journal;J.M. Allen, a former air-photo interpreter for Britain’s Royal Air Force;Bruce Scofield, PhD, a world-class authority on Aztec astrology;Dr. Arlan Andrews, Sr., a registered professional engineer with a 40-year career at White Sands Missile Range, AT&T Bell Labs, and the White House Science Office;Wayne May, founder and publisher of Ancient American magazine.

In Discovering the Mysteries of Ancient America, the author of The Atlantis Encyclopedia turns his sextant towards this hemisphere. Here is a collection of the most controversial articles selected from seventy issues of the infamous Ancient American magazine. They range from the discovery of Roman relics in Arizona and California's Chinese treasure, to Viking rune-stones in Minnesota and Oklahoma and the mysterious religions of ancient Americans.

"The question is no longer 'Who discovered America?' Thanks to Frank Joseph, the question is now, 'Who didn't discover America?'" --David Goudsward, author, Ancient Stone Sites of New England and the Debate Over Early European Exploration "Here is the history of ancient America you were never taught at school. Frank Joseph, drawing on decades of meticulous research and exploration, has uncovered the evidence that rewrites the history books. A vital addition to the library of anyone seeking knowledge of America's forgotten past." --David Jones, editor, New Dawn Magazine The Original Visitors to the New World Revealed Was America truly unknown to the outside world until Christopher Columbus "discovered" it in 1492? Could a people gifted enough to raise the Great Pyramid more than 4,000 years ago have lacked the skills necessary to build a ship capable of crossing the Atlantic? Did the Phoenicians, who circumnavigated the African continent in 600 bc, never consider sailing farther? Were the Vikings, the most fearless warriors and seafarers of all time, terrified at the prospect of a transoceanic voyage? If so, how are we to account for an Egyptian temple accidentally unearthed by Tennessee Valley Authority workers in 1935? What is a beautifully crafted metal plate with the image of a Phoenician woman doing in the Utah desert? And who can explain the discovery of Viking houses and wharves excavated outside of Boston? These enigmas are but a tiny fraction of the abundant physical proof for Old World visitors to our continent hundreds and thousands of years ago. In addition, Sumerians, Minoans, Romans, Celts, ancient Hebrews, Indonesians, Africans, Chinese, Japanese, Welsh, Irish, and the Knights Templar all made their indelible, if neglected, mark on our land.

Almost unimaginably immense, North America stretches from a fewdegrees short of the North Pole to a few degrees shy of theequator. Archaeologists are now racing to unravel the mysteriouspast of the forgotten peoples who once inhabited this sprawlingland. In Search of Ancient North America explores many of thesescientists' most fascinating findings as Heather Pringle chroniclesher journeys among the ancient sites of Canada and the UnitedStates. Her enthralling voyage of discovery uncovers the richnessof now-vanished cultures and illuminates the intriguing world ofarchaeology itself. Journeying from the mosquito-infested forests of the far north tothe bleak deserts of the American Southwest, Pringle accompaniesleading archaeologists and their crews into the field. At theBluefish Caves in the northern Yukon, Jacques Cinq-Mars chases downclues to an Ice Age mystery; at the "immense geometric riddle" thatis Hopeton Earthworks, Mark Lynott scours the countryside forvestiges of ancient village life; in the thorny wilderness of theLower Pecos, Solveig Turpin deciphers the enigmatic rock artpainted more than 3,000 years ago. What emerges from Pringle's accounts are surprising portraits oflong-lost cultures--the rapacious mariners of southern Californiawho nearly wiped out one of the world's most productive ecosystems;the wealthy nobles of British Columbia who wore salmon-skin shoesand counted their wealth in bottles of salmon oil; the powerfullords of the Mississippi River who won the adoration of theirfollowers with a mysterious medicinal tonic. Equally intriguing arethe controversial new theories that the author presents on a hostof subjects, from the origins of art and hallucinogenic drugs tothe rise of private property, the identities of the earliest NewWorld migrants, and the astonishing extent of trade in prehistoricNorth America. Complemented by superb color and black-and-white photographs, InSearch of Ancient North America blends incisive science journalismwith evocative travel writing to bring the latest archaeologicalfindings and interpretations to light. Delving into the previouslyunmined saga of this vast continent's lost and extinct cultures,this captivating book is a thrilling invitation to endlessdiscovery. "Drawing on some of the latest archaeological research, Pringle'sbook is vivid, witty, and responsible in a field too often filledby cranks and bores. All who are curious about life in NorthAmerica before the European invasion will find the book astimulating introduction." -- Ronald Wright author of StolenContinents "In Search of Ancient North America brings the distant past muchcloser and its inhabitants almost become neighbors to us onceagain. A first-rate examination of the mystery and fascination ofmodern archaeological research in North America." -- Farley Mowatauthor of The People of the Deer "Captures the essence of what archaeologists are learning aboutNorth American prehistory. The book is a pleasure to read and willinspire a new awareness of the importance of the history of NorthAmerica prior to European contact." -- Bruce Trigger author of TheChildren of Aataentsic

The examination of four great civilizations that existed before Columbus’s arrival in North America offers evidence of sustained contact between the Old and New Worlds • Describes the cultural splendor, political might, and incredibly advanced technology of these precursors to our modern age • Shows that North America’s first civilization, the Adena, was sparked by ancient Kelts from Western Europe and explores links between Hopewell Mound Builders and prehistoric Japanese seafarers Before Rome ruled the Classical World, gleaming stone pyramids stood amid smoking iron foundries from North America’s Atlantic seaboard to the Mississippi River. On its east bank, across from today’s St. Louis, Missouri, flourished a walled city more populous than London was one thousand years ago, with a pyramid larger--at its base--than Egypt’s Great Pyramid. During the 12th century, hydraulic engineers laid out a massive irrigation network spanning the American Southwest that, if laid end to end, would stretch from Phoenix, Arizona, to the Canadian border. On a scale to match, they built a five-mile-wide dam from ten million cubic yards of rock. While Europe stumbled through the Dark Ages, a metropolis of weirdly shaped, multistory superstructures, precisely aligned to the sun and moon, sprawled across the New Mexico Desert. Who was responsible for such colossal achievements? Where did their mysterious builders come from, and what became of them? These are some of the questions investigated by Frank Joseph in his examination of ancient influences at work on our continent. He reveals that modern civilization is not the first to arise in North America but was preceded instead by four high cultures that rose and fell over the past three thousand years: the Adena, Hopewell, Mississippian, and Anasazi-Hohokam. How they achieved greatness and why they vanished so completely are the intriguing enigmas explored by this unconventional prehistory of our country, Advanced Civilizations of Prehistoric America.