La Venta Man - The giant from Mexico

This photo shows a giant Olmec stone head from La Venta, Mexico. During the excavations in the 1940s and 1950s, 17 such heads were found, which, as expected, generated a lot of questions.

Archaeologists are still wondering how the people of that time managed to create such large and heavy statues, what tools they used and how they were able to transport the materials.

The Olmec civilization (older than the Maya) is one of the greatest enigmas in history.

Certainly the most famous of the La Venta monumental artifacts are the four colossal heads. Seventeen colossal heads have been unearthed in the Olmec area, four of them at La Venta, officially named Monuments 1 through 4.

Three of the heads—Monuments 2, 3, and 4—were found roughly 150 meters north of Complex A, which is itself just north of the Great Pyramid. These heads were in a slightly irregular row, facing north. The other colossal head—Monument 1 (shown at left) – is a few dozen meters south of the Great Pyramid.

The La Venta heads are thought to have been carved by 700 BCE, but possibly as early as 850 BCE, while the San Lorenzo heads are credited to an earlier period. The colossal heads can measure up to 9 feet 4 inches (2.84 m) in height and weigh several tons. The sheer size of the stones causes a great deal of speculation on how the Olmec were able to move them. The major basalt quarry for the colossal heads at La Venta was found at Cerro Cintepec in the Tuxtla Mountains, over 80 km away.

Each of the heads wears headgear reminiscent of 1920s-style American football helmets, although each is unique in its decoration. The consensus is that the heads likely represent mighty Olmec rulers.

New informations about the Dead Sea Scrolls

The famous Dead Sea Scrolls continue to generate riddles, decades after their discovery. A recent study concluded that at least one different technique was used to obtain one of them than the rest, an unknown technique, unheard of to this day. The parchment that attracted the attention of researchers, one of the most important in the collection, is one with an age of almost 2.000 years, which has been remarkably well preserved, despite the conditions in which it was kept and despite its size. of the largest. Found by the Bedouins in 1956, north of the Dead Sea, it was sold to an antique dealer. He did not keep it in the best conditions, but still wrapped it in cellophane and stored it in a shoe box, hidden under the floor, according to Science Alert. The "Temple Parchment", as he is known, has survived, but is currently the thinnest of the parchments (a collection of about 900 pieces). It is only one tenth of a millimeter thick. However, it was preserved, and the material ...

Final resting place of Alexander the Great

One of the versions regarding the location of the tomb of Alexander the Great mentions that the body of the great conqueror was deposited in a golden coffin, which was sent to Memphis, Egypt, and from there to Alexandria (city founded by Alexandru), where he lost track. It was thought for a time that the sarcophagus of Alexander the Great was found in Sidon (Lebanon), because the warrior with a lion's helmet carved on one side looked very much like Alexander the Great. It was later discovered that this was, in fact, the coffin of the king of Sidon. However, the search did not stop there. In 2014, the tomb of a military commander allegedly contemporary with Alexander the Great was discovered in central Macedonia. Although some historians are convinced that these are the remains of Alexander, his place of rest is still sought.

Tomb of the Red Queen, Mexico

In 1994, archaeologists discovered a mortuary in Palenque (a Mayan city). They found here a coffin with the remains of a woman, covered in red dust. Several collections of pearls were also found inside, and a diadem had been placed around the skull. Pieces of what had once been a funeral mask were also found at the scene. According to researchers, the Red Queen was around 60 at the time of her death. This was an interesting finding, as power was usually inherited only by men. As far as was known until the date of this discovery, women were not honored to such an extent that they were buried with treasures such as those found in the Red Queen's coffin. Who was this woman and how much power was concentrated in her hands? It is unknown at this time ...

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