Lost City Discovered in the Honduran Rain Forest

In search of legendary “City of the Monkey God,” the NAT GEO Explorers find the untouched ruins of a vanished culture.

 ****Lost City in the Honduran Rain Forest****

 The most striking object emerging from the ground is the head of what Fisher speculated might be “a were-jaguar,”(seen above in the picture) possibly depicting a shaman in a transformed, spirit state. Alternatively, the artifact might be related to ritualized ball games that were a feature of pre-Columbian life in Mesoamerica.

“The figure seems to be wearing a helmet,” said Christopher Fisher, a Mesoamerican archaeologist on the team from Colorado State University, Team member Oscar Neil Cruz, head archaeologist at the Honduran Institute of Anthropology and History (IHAH), believes the artifacts date to A.D. 1000 to 1400.

Since the 1920s, several expeditions had searched for the White City, or Ciudad Blanca. The eccentric explorer Theodore Morde mounted the most famous of these in 1940, under the aegis of the Museum of the American Indian.

 

Theodore Morde

 According to Morde, the indigenous people there said it contained a giant, buried statue of a monkey god. He refused to divulge the location out of fear, he said, that the site would be looted. He later committed suicide and his site—if it existed at all—was never identified.   

The explorers were first unable to trace the exact location. But later with the help of LiDAR, they found the exact location.They identified a crater-shaped valley, encircled by steep mountains, as a possible location.

Lidar is able to map the ground even through dense rain forest, delineating any archaeological features that might be present.When the images were processed, they revealed unnatural features stretching for more than a mile through the valley. When Fisher analyzed the images, he found that the terrain along the river had been almost entirely reshaped by human hands.

 The region also is gravely threatened. Deforestation for ranching has checkerboarded the jungle to within a dozen miles of the valley. 

Huge swaths of virgin rain forest are being cut illegally and burned to make way for cattle. The region has become one of the biggest beef-producing areas in Central America, supplying meat to fast-food franchises in the United States.

The expedition was launched after aerial light detection scanning — known as LIDAR — uncovered what appeared to be man-made structures below the rainforest. - See more at: http://ancientexplorers.com/blog/national-geographic-news-lost-city-discovered-in-the-honduran-rain-forest/#sthash.yYFr6gnd.dpuf

The expedition was launched after aerial light detection scanning — known as LIDAR — uncovered what appeared to be man-made structures below the rainforest. - See more at: http://ancientexplorers.com/blog/national-geographic-news-lost-city-discovered-in-the-honduran-rain-forest/#sthash.yYFr6gnd.dpuf

Living Root Bridge- Route from Root

****Live Root Bridges aren't built, they are grown-Living Root Bridge(Meghalaya)*******

"Deep in the dense tropical forest of Meghalaya, and shrouded in cloud and rain for much of the year, are some astonishing man-made natural wonders. Known as living root bridges"

 In Meghalaya, (meaning Abode of Clouds) one of the seven sisters of the North Eastern states of India, bridges are grown or made to grow. 

The original architects of this natural bridge building technology are the forefathers of the Khasi tribe, one of the three major tribes in this hill state. The other two tribes are the Garos and Jaitias. Though this ancient technology appears to be theoretically simple, practically it is very difficult as it takes a long time to grow a root bridge.

 Living root bridges are unique in the world, Meghalaya's double-decker and single-decker root bridges are found in Cherrapunjee (Sohra) & Mawlynnong.

The bridges are tangles of massive thick roots, which have been intermingled to form a bridge that can hold several people at a time. Khasi people have been trained to grow these bridges across the raised banks of streams to form a solid bridge, made from roots.

The living bridges are made from the roots of the Ficus elastica tree, which produces a series of secondary roots that are perched atop huge boulders along the streams or the riverbanks to form bridges.

Located around 56 kms from Shillong, the capital of Meghalaya, Cherrapunjee is a must visit destination known for its numerous waterfalls and a trek to the single and double decker root bridges. The trek from Cherrapunjee to the living root bridges is not for the faint hearted as it requires lot of stamina and grit to trek down to these natural wonders of the nature.

• Ummunoi Root Bridge. Starting point: Laitkynsew village. Location: Ummunoi river near Siej village, Nongkroh, via Sohsarat village. Duration: 2 kilometers one way. 3-4 hours return. Descent: 1,400 feet. This 17 meter (54 foot) root bridge is one of the oldest known root bridges in the region, and is perhaps the most popular with tourists due to its combination of accessibility and impressiveness.

• Umkar Root Bridge. Starting point and location: Siej village. Duration: 0.5 kilometers one way. 30 minutes return. The best option for those who are lacking in fitness or mobility, this root bridge was partly washed away by flash floods. The villagers in the process of regrowing it, which is interesting to see. There's a waterfall alongside the bridge during the monsoon season.

• Ritymmen Root Bridge (can be visited on the way to the Double Decker root bridge). Starting point: Tyrna village. Location: Nongthymmai village.  Duration: 1.5-2 hours return. This 30 meter (100 foot) root bridge is the longest known living root bridge.

• Umshiang Double Decker Root Bridge. Starting point: Tyrna village. Location: Umshiang river at Nongriat village. Duration: 3 kilometers one way. 4-5 hours return. Descent: 2,400 feet.  The "holy grail" of root bridges, the unique 20 meter (65 foot) double decker root bridge requires determination to reach but it's worth it. Not everyone can go there though. It's imperative that physical condition be taken into account.

• Mawsaw Root Bridge. If you're not too exhausted and have the time, continue to walk around 20-30 minutes past the Double Decker root bridge. The natural swimming pools near this root bridge are a highlight (they're unsafe during the monsoon season though).

  

 

Sergeant Stubby-The Most Decorated Dog of World War I

****Sergeant Stubby-Prince of Freedom****

In 1917, Private Robert J. Conroy was undergoing military training in the area of Yale University found a puppy  wandering around the fields of Yale University with a short tail who he decided to name Stubby.

 Conroy brought Stubby back to camp, and although pets were not allowed, Stubby proved good for the soldiers’ morale and was able to stay. While living with the soldiers, clever young Stubby trained as well. 

He learned how to salute with his paw and became familiar with bugle calls and marching routines.

When Stubby emerged, most of the soldiers were ecstatic. However, when the commanding officer discovered the dog, he was less than pleased. Perhaps sensing he was in trouble, Stubby gave the CO a salute, which impressed the CO so much that he allowed Stubby to stay on. The 102^nd division would later be grateful for the addition of Stubby to their lines, as you’ll soon see.

The 102^nd reached the front lines in France on February 5, 1918.  They were under constant fire, and Stubby became used to the gunshots and explosions that were now part of his everyday life. All too soon, Stubby sustained his first injury: inhaling toxic gas landed Stubby in the hospital, where he was treated alongside his two-legged comrades.

He made a full recover, but the encounter with the dangerous gas left Stubby sensitive to the smell. This came in very useful during a German gas attack a while later, which happened in the morning while most of the soldiers were asleep. When Stubby smelled the offending gas, he started barking and roused most of the soldiers before they inhaled too much, saving many lives.

In one incident, Stubby captured a German spy. The man was mapping out the Allied trenches when he spotted Stubby and called out to him in German. Stubby, recognizing it as the language of the enemy, charged the man down and attacked him, keeping him in one place until United States soldiers arrived to cart the new prisoner off. 

Stubby was promoted to the rank of sergeant for capturing this spy, becoming the first dog to achieve such a rank in the United States Army—not to mention surpassing his owner’s rank (now a corporal) in the process! 

In 1926, at the age of 9 or 10, Stubby passed away. His body was donated to the Smithsonian Institute where it was preserved and put on display, along with his medals.

Stubby’s medals included:

• 3 Service Stripes
• Yankee Division YD Patch
• French Medal
• 1st Annual American Legion Convention Medal
• New Haven WW1 Veterans Medal
• Republic of France Grande War Medal
• St Mihiel Campaign Medal
• Purple Heart
• Chateau Thierry Campaign Medal.

Rich Celtic Iron Age tomb discovered

                        ****A rich Celtic Iron Age tomb discovered with stunning artifacts****

Archaeologists from French national agency INRAP made the find under a 40m (131 feet) tumulus on the edge of a business park at Lavau.

Archaeologists in France are excavating the huge funerary chamber of what they believe was a rich 5^th century BC Celtic Prince that held his chariot, a decorated bronze cauldron, a vase depicting the ancient Greek god of wine and ecstasy Dionysus, a giant knife, and other important artifacts.

Covering nearly 7,000 m2 (7,655 square yards) and surrounded by a palisade and ditch, the tomb is larger than the cathedral in nearby Troyes.

Archaeologists have found only parts of a skeleton and have not yet identified the princes’ remains.

They’ve identified other graves and funeral urns, including the body of a woman whom they suspect may have been a relative of the prince. They have dated some of the ashes in the urns to 1400 BC.

INRAP President Dominique Garcia said they thought the tomb was a prince’s because they found a giant knife in it.


Archaeologists consider the biggest find to be the 1 meter-diameter (1 yard) bronze cauldron. It has four handles decorated with the head of Achelous, a horned river god of the ancient Greeks.

World’s Biggest Diamond Mine is located at Mirna, Eastern Siberia, Russia

****Massive diamond mine is is 525m (1,722ft) deep and has a diameter of 1,200m (3,900ft)****

 The mine is so big and giat that the airspace above the mine is closed for helicopters because of a few incidents in which they were sucked in by the downward air flow.

 Gigantic trucks (like the small dot pointed to above) can haul over 200 tons of material out of the mine at a time, winding up and down the frightening spiral path that leads to the center of the mine.

 The mine was discovered on June 13, 1955 by Soviet geologists Yuri Khabardin, Ekaterina Elagina and Viktor Avdeenko during the large Amakinsky Expedition in Yakut ASSR.

The development of the mine had started in 1957 in extremely harsh climate conditions. Seven months of winter per year froze the ground into permafrost, which was hard in winter, but turned into sludge in summer.

This finding was the first success in the search for kimberlite in Russia, after numerous failed expeditions of the 1940s and 1950s. For this discovery, in 1957 Khabardin was given the Lenin Prize, which was one of the highest awards in the Soviet Union.

The town is strictly off limits to outsiders without a special permit and the authorities regard any foreigners with considerable suspicion.

103-year-old cracker or Biscuit from the Titanic just sold for $23,000

***103-year-old cracker or Biscuit from the Titanic just sold for $23,000***

A hard tack biscuit or Cracker that was originally part of a lifeboat survival kit from the Titanic has sold for around $23,000 USD, at an auction in the UK.  

The biscuit was saved by James Fenwick, a passenger on the Carpathia vessel that saved Titanic passengers at sea, and was kept intact in a Kodak film envelope by Fenwick along with the following notation: “Pilot biscuit from Titanic lifeboat April 1912.” 
 

The price was around £5,000 more than the 103-year old snack was expected to fetch.

The last-surviving cracker from the Titanic in 1912 sold to a Greek collector.

It is now being called the “world’s most precious biscuit.”

A 400-year old church in Mexico Emerges as Reservoir Dries

A 400-year old church in Mexico has gloriously resurfaced AFTER 13 YEARS

*****Originally built by Dominican monks, the church was located in Quechula submerged in reservoir waters since 2002****

 This ‘surfacing’ scenario alludes to a special kind of magnificence, given the imposing dimensions of the actual building which pertains to 61 m x 14 m or 854 sq m (200 ft x 43 ft or 8,600 sq ft) of area, along with its bell tower that reaches over 50 ft.

Quechula,  was completely abandoned in the 1770s after a devastating plague ravaged the area.

 The so-named Templo de Quechula was originally constructed in 1564 AD (probable date) by a group of monks headed by Friar Bartolome de la Casas, who accompanied the Spanish colonists to the area in 16th century.

 After more than hundred years of service, the religious building had to be abandoned, possibly due to a outbreak of plague in the region during 1773 – 1776 AD.

 In 1966, the entirety of the facades were wholly submerged by the water from a reservoir, due to the construction of a dam in the Grijalva River.