Jim
Willis, author of Lost Civilizations: The Secret Histories and Suppressed
Technologies of the Ancients, published by Visible Ink, was this week’s
guest. Although his book didn’t do more than touch on the idea of Ancient Astronauts,
that was sort of the theme that I explored with him. You can listen to the show
here:
I
did start with something of a snarky comment, asking him what sort of
background he had in anthropology and archaeology. His bio suggested that his
professional education had been in music and theology. He did say that he had
taken some courses in archaeology over the years. I had asked the question
because, in his book, he had suggested that archaeologists didn’t pay much attention
to the myths of the past. Willis thought these myths might provide clues to
archaeological discoveries. I suggested that archaeologists do use those myths as
part of their research when appropriate.
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| Jim Willis |
We
talked about the Clovis people who inhabited an area around Clovis, New Mexico,
some 13,000 years ago. But Willis pointed out that a Clovis site had been found
on the east coast and was dated some what earlier than the original site. There
were suggestions in the material recovered there that connected it to France. Traditional
archaeology hasn’t completely accepted this theory but certainly has its
supporters.
I
wanted to explore the location of Atlantis, being a fan of the Minoan culture
and the destruction of Santorini as model for the Atlantis myth. Willis thought
that the Caribbean, with some of the islands such as Cuba as the remnants of
Atlantis.
We
also took something of a flyer as Willis talked about fossil fuel, or rather
evidence of global warming had been found in ice cores of the world long ago
that suggested a use of fossil fuels in antiquity. He suggested this might be
the result of other civilizations creating a situation not unlike that we have
today. I suggested that the Milankovitch Cycles might be an alternative
explanation for some of this.
During
the conversations, we did discuss how the ancients had moved such big stones in
building their monuments or pyramids with such precision. The point is that
there are some things that we just don’t know for certain, though there are
theories to cover the points.
Next
week I will be talking with Jan Harzan of MUFON fame. If you have questions for
him, append them in the comments section and I’ll get to them.
2 comments:
Excellent interview on a subject that gets a lot of ridicule. I find the Ancient Astronaut idea interesting although it is one with many flaws and little actual physical evidence.
I will definitely read Mr Willis' books on the subject.
I was kind of expecting to hear more about the suppressed technologies. All that was alluded to was some sort of paranormal powers to move blocks or maybe see in the Pyramids. I was not impressed. The guest could have at least mentioned the Antikythera mechanism, model airplanes, glass (including lenses), batteries, ancient metallurgy, electroplating, dentistry, surgery (trepanning), cement, ancient Hindu warfare, ancient chemistry, micro-"work" (working tiny objects the size of particles), working with very hard materials. I also recall some sort of stone softening chemistry developed in South America.
Oh well, just get Corliss' book on Small Artifacts, 2003.
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