The Mystery of the Piri Reis Map

Several existing theories about unknown ancient civilizations are often largely based on  speculation and not on physical evidence, which is why many of them are greatly discredited by conventional academics and In order to shake the basis of our knowledge of history, most would require hard evidence such as artifacts.

An example of such an artifact is the Piri Reis map. This special, historical map is only one of several anomalous maps drawn during and prior to the 16th century, and is argued by some people to represent better information about the shape of the planet’s continents than what should have been known at the time.

This claim led to even more extraordinary allegations that the geographical information provided by the Piri Reis map may have been obtained at a very distant time in the past and was based on information drawn by an advanced yet still-unknown ancient civilization.

Discovery of the Piri Reis Map

source: abebooks

The Piri Reis map was discovered on October 9, 1929 by a German theologian named Gustav Adolf Deissmann while he was cataloguing items in the Topkapi Palace Library in Istanbul. He happened upon a curious parchment and on its gazelle skin, he found a map that was drawn and signed by Turkish cartographer Hagji Ahmen Muhiddin Piri, who was also known as Piri Reis.

Aside from being a cartographer, Reis was also an experienced sailor and served as an admiral in the Turkish navy. The map bears the date of 919 in the Moslem calendar, which correspond to 1513 CE in the Western calendar. In constructing the map, Reis claimed to have used as many as 20 source maps and charts, including 8 Ptolemaic (TOLO MAY IC)maps, 4 Portuguese maps, an Arabic map, and a map supposedly constructed by Christopher Columbus.

Aside from its significant historical value, the Piri Reis map has been alleged to contain details no European could have known in the 16th century, and therefore is believed by some to be a tangible evidence which proves the existence of ancient technological civilizations, extraterrestrial visits, or even both.

Controversy Surrounding the Piri Reis Map

source: wikipedia

The Piri Reis map has been the subject of much controversy in academic as well as non-academic circles, sparking a long and intense debate regarding the attribution of its source materials, and the significance of the map’s extraordinary detail of the coastal outlines.

The great debate was sparked by Dr. Charles Hapgood when he published his theory on the Piri Reis map in his 1966 book “Maps of the Ancient Sea Kings.”  Dr. Hapgood was a Harvard-educated historian whose theories about geological shifts earned the admiration of the likes of Albert Einstein.

Dr. Hapgood along with a team of students at the University of New Hampshire studied the Piri Reis map and claims to have found many anomalies, one of which is the alleged representation of the continent Antarctica on the map. The inclusion of the continent’s Queen Maud Land area on this map is particularly interesting because Antarctica was supposedly first discovered in the 19th century, hundreds of years after the construction of the Piri Reis map.

The controversy surrounding the Piri Reis map is not just about how the 16th century Turkish cartographer managed to draw an accurate map of the Antarctic region 300 years prior to its supposed discovery, but also on how the map shows the land mass and coastline of the Antarctic region before it was covered in ice, over 6000 years ago.

In 1961, Captain Lorenzo W. Burroughs, a U.S. Air Force captain working in the cartographic section, wrote a letter to Dr. Hapgood and stated that the “Antarctica” depicted on the Piri Reis map seems to accurately depict the coastline of Antarctica as it is under the ice. The captain based his evaluation on the seismic profile of the Queen Maud Land area made by the Norweigan-British-Swedish Expedition of 1949.

Because of this alleged anomaly, Hapgood proposed that the Piri Reis map was actually based on source materials that pre-date 4000 BCE, thousands of years before the earliest known progressive civilizations with developed languages are known to have existed.

With Hapgood’s extraordinary theory, one glaring and compelling question is raised: “Which unknown civilization had the technology and the need to map the Antarctic region 6000 years ago?”

Hapgood’s theory implies that a prehistoric civilization possessed the technology to navigate major seaways and chart the globe with some level of accuracy. He also suggested that the topographic depiction of the interior of the continents required aerial capabilities. This implies that a prehistoric “super” civilization with aerial and nautical capabilities was the origin of the Piri Reis map’s geographic information on the pre-ice Antarctica.

In his book titled “Maps of the Ancient Sea Kings,” Dr. Hapgood said this about the possibility of ancient voyagers exploring the Antarctic:

“It becomes clear that the ancient voyagers travelled from pole to pole. Unbelievable as it may appear, the evidence nevertheless indicates that some ancient people explored Antarctic when its coasts were free of ice. It is clear too, that they had an instrument of navigation for accurately determining the longitudes that was far superior to anything possessed by the peoples of ancient, medieval or modern times until the second half of the 18th century.”

In short, for Hapgood and his supporters, the Piri Reis map could indicate advanced knowledge passed down from a prehistoric sea-faring civilization which could either Atlantean or alien.

Standpoint of Mainstream Science

source: wikimedia commons

While mainstream scientists are equally intrigued by the mysteries of the Piri Reis map, many of them have vehemently refuted Hapgood’s implication that the map’s accuracy is the handiwork of mythical Atlanteans or out-of-this-world aliens.

To the skeptics, for a map that was constructed in 1513, the Piri Reis map shows an astonishing amount of detail. While it is clearly an impressive map for its time, it is not without flaws. More than anything, the map is a top-notch example of naval intelligence gathering and cartography, containing very specific details which were possibly derived from tightly-guarded secrets of enemy maps.

Some of the critics’ of Hapgood’s theory claim that the Piri Reis map is a representation of the South American coastline based on the modern physical features of the coast and the interior featured on the 16th century map.

On the other hand, Gregory C. McIntosh - another leading expert on the Piri Reis map - claimed that the southern continent depicted in the map is one produced by imagination. According to him, the idea of a southern continent had already been discussed as early as the time of the ancient Greeks, and many old maps have since shown a southern continent in various forms. Hence, it should not be so surprising that a southern continent also appears on the Piri Reis map.

Is the southern landmass depicted in the Piri Reis Map by a 16th century cartographer only a misguided depiction of South America? Or is it just an imagined representation of a mythical southern continent? Or, is it possible that this map is an astoundingly ancient depiction of Antarctica’s coast, hinting at the existence of an advanced sea-faring civilization several millennia ago?

In the end, we may never really know the truth for certain. After all, extraordinary claims require extraordinary proof. But if we’re lucky, only time and perhaps several extensive research efforts on the subject matter would be able to tell. And should that time come, all evidences that have been brought forward in the past and shall be discovered in the future should all be re-examined with an open mind.

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Sources:

http://www.ancient-origins.net/antarctica-ancient-technology/piri-reis-map-evidence-ancient-technology-00276
http://old.world-mysteries.com/steven_dutch1.htm
http://www.atlasobscura.com/places/piri-reis-map-at-topkapi-palace
https://books.google.com.ph/books?id=O1TJmqti-TsC&printsec=frontcover&hl=fil
http://www.theepochtimes.com/n3/1165572-piri-reis-map-evidence-of-a-very-advanced-prehistoric-civilization/
http://sacred-texts.com/piri/index.htm
https://www.uwgb.edu/dutchs/PSEUDOSC/PiriRies.HTM

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The Legendary Sword in the Stone of Galgano

The story of King Arthur and the Sword in the Stone is one of the most famous British legends. For centuries, this Arthurian story has been passed down from one generation to another through various literary works of authors and poets.

The Sword in the Stone - which some believe to be the same as the world-famous Excalibur - essentially tells the tale of an embedded sword that could only be pulled out from the stone by the one true king of England. The retrieval of the sword was deemed unlikely to be accomplished by any other man until the future King Arthur managed to do the impossible, proving his divine appointment as king and true heir of Uther Pendragon.

However, the story of a mystical sword stuck in a stone is not entirely unique to the well-known Arthurian legend. In fact, a similar yet lesser known story can be found in the Italian region of Tuscany, which some experts have suggested to be the real inspiration behind the British legend. This is the Sword in the Stone of Saint Galgano. And unlike King Arthur’s Excalibur, an actual 12th-century sword believed to be the very same sword that Saint Galgano thrust into the bedrock still exists today.

The Life of Saint Galgano Guidotti

Saint Galgano is considered to be the first saint whose canonization was conducted to a formal process by the Roman Church. Much of his life is known through the documents from the processing of his canonization in 1185, which is just a few years after his demise. There are also a number of written works by later authors that covered the saint’s life.

Galgano Guidotti was born in 1148 in Chiusdino, in the modern province of Siena, Italy. Being the son of a minor noble, he had spent his youth as a wealthy knight, solely concerned with the worldly pleasures that life had to offer. Trained in the art of war, Galgano was both arrogant and violent. However, all of that changed and he later renounced the ideologies of warfare and subsequently chose the path of a hermit.

The Story Behind Galgano’s Legendary Sword in the Stone

source: holiday in tuscany

Saint Galgano’s path to holiness began with a vision of the Archangel Michael - who, incidentally, is often depicted as a warrior saint. According to one version of the legend, the Archangel Michael appeared before Saint Galgano and showed him the path to salvation, with the angel providing him directions to the place where he should go to achieve this.

On the following day, Saint Galgano declared his intention of becoming a hermit and took up residence in a nearby cave, which was met with ridicule from his family and his friends. Dionisia, Galgano’s mother, managed to convince her son to a pay a visit to his fiancee one last time before he completely renounces all worldly pleasures. And so, wearing his expensive nobleman’s clothing, he rode a horse and set out to visit his fiancee. However, on his way there, his horse suddenly reared, throwing him off its back.

Suddenly, Galgano felt an invisible force lift him to his feet, and an irresistible seraphic voice led him to Montesiepi, a hill nearby his home town of Chiusdino. When he reached the foot of the hill, the voice bade Galgano to be still and to look at the top of Montesiepi. There, he saw a vision of a round temple, with the Twelve Apostles surrounding Jesus and Mary. The voice instructed him to climb the hill, and while he was doing so, the vision he saw faded.

Once he reached the top of the hill, he heard the voice speak again, and this time, it commanded him to renounce all of his worldly desires. Saint Galgano, however, objected since the task was easier said than done. He went on to say that to accomplish such a feat was as easy as splitting a rock with a sword - it simply cannot be done.

In order to prove his point, Saint Galgano drew his sword and attempted to thrust it into the rocky ground. To his surprise and amazement, his blade went through the stone with as much ease as a hot knife slicing through butter. Having understood the divine message loud and clear, Galgano permanently resided on Montesiepi as a humble hermit, leading a life in poverty.

While he led a simple and humble life far different from the extravagant lifestyle he once had as a nobleman, Saint Galgano was visited occasionally by peasants, looking for his blessing. He also made friends with the wild animals he lived with.

According to one legend, the Devil once sent an assassin in the guise of a monk to kill Galgano. However, the saint managed to survive the ordeal because the wild wolves he was living with attacked the killer and “gnawed on his bones.”

At the age of 33, Galgano Guidotti met his demise in 1181, and was canonized four years later. His funeral was considered a major event at the time, and was attended by bishops as well as three Cistercian abbots, including one who had lost his way while headed for Rome.

The following year, the Bishop of Volterra placed Montesiepi under the care of Cistercian monks, knowing that they would erect a shrine in Galgano’s memory. They began the construction of a round chapel in 1185, and this became known as the Cappella di Montesiepi. The chapel is located just above the main abbey and houses the legendary sword of Saint Galgano up to this day.

Authenticity of the Sword in the Cappella di Montesiepi

source: delightfully italy

For centuries, the sword in the stone in Montesiepi was widely believed to be a fake except by the most devout. However, research in the 21st century revealed that based on the composition of its metal as well as its style, the sword is indeed from the 12th century.

The sword has a basic design - its pommel is flat and slightly egg-shaped with a truncated form, while its guard is a straight bar of steel - and its style is typically associated to the known weapons of the 12th century.

In 2001, a metal analysis conducted by Luigi Garlaschelli of the University of Pavia revealed that the sword is indeed very old, with no clear proof to support the claims that the sword is a recent fake.

Ground-penetrating radar analysis also revealed a two-meter by 1-meter cavity beneath the sword believed to be a burial recess, which possibly contains Saint Galgano’s body. Meanwhile, carbon-dating confirmed that the two mummified arms housed in the same chapel at Montesiepi were also indeed from the 12th century. This incidentally supports that legend that anyone who attempted to remove the sword from the stone had their arms ripped out from their bodies.

The recent scientific research and evidence proving that the sword as well as the mummified arms in Cappella di Montesiepi have existed around the 12th century may not be full-proof evidence that the sword in the stone is indeed Saint Galgano’s blade, but it does paint a shade of truth to the story.

Saint Galgano’s Sword vs. King Arthur’s Excalibur

source: wikia

There are those who argue that the “Sword in the Stone” legend of King Arthur did not originate from the Celtic fringes of Britain or France but in Italy. The story of Saint Galgano and the sword embedded in a rock in Tuscany bears similar details to the Arthurian legend of Sir Percival, the finder of the Holy Grail.

It is also interesting to note that the the first story mentioning King Arthur pulling a sword from an anvil on top of a stone appeared in one of the poems written by 13th century French poet Robert de Boron, and that these poems were written several decades after Galgano’s canonization by the Roman Church. By that time, word of Saint Galgano’s life may have already travelled across Europe, with the legend of King Arthur and his sword likely to have been inspired by the story of the reformed Italian knight.

Though the two stories share very similar elements, each convey a different message and fulfills a different purpose. The Arthurian legend of the Sword and the Stone is a story that displays the might, glory and mythical qualities of King Arthur to do the impossible, demonstrated by the unlikely retrieval of a sword.  The story of Saint Galgano’s sword, on the other hand, speaks of faith, humility and the path to holiness by doing the opposite - which is thrusting a blade into a rock-solid ground.

Though Saint Galgano Guidotti’s story may just be a curious legend much like the story of King Arthur and the Excalibur, its legacy is far from forgotten. The round temple in Montesiepi is still standing, and is still safekeeping the sword believed to have belonged to Galgano as well as the mummified forearms that supposedly belonged to a man who dared to pull out that very same sword. The walls of the Abbey of San Galgano on Montesiepi are also still standing tall, and has since become a tourist spot for its haunting beauty, history and architecture.  

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Sources:

http://www.ancient-origins.net/artifacts-other-artifacts/legendary-sword-stone-san-galgano-002968?nopaging=1
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2001/sep/16/rorycarroll.theobserver
http://www.atlasobscura.com/places/the-sword-in-the-stone-at-montesiepi-chapel
http://myarmoury.com/feature_stone.html
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/2999894.stm

The Immortal Count of Saint Germain

Is it possible for men to live forever? Throughout the eighteenth century, there was an unusual character who carried with him an air of mystique which none during his lifetime had arguably ever matched or neared. He was a man of apparent wealth, influence and prosperity, who was known to have come and gone in various royal courts in Europe. He was considered as a person of great interest and influence, and whose heritage was often attributed to Transylvanian royalty. This man is known as the Count of Saint Germain. And some have said that apart from advising the elite governing bodies by day, and dining with the rich aristocracies by night, he was also an immortal who had somehow managed to uncover the secrets to eternal youth.

Aside from allegations that he could live forever, Saint Germain was also known to be a man of obvious wealth. This led some people to believe that he also mastered alchemy and learned the secrets of transmutation, which gave him unlimited access to untold wealth. Throughout his life, he was also lauded for his many abilities and praised for his seemingly endless amounts of knowledge. His involvement with secret organizations further prompted his reputation as some sort of almost-divine esotericist.

Who was this mysterious man? Are the stories that speak of his immortality mere legend? Or could it be possible that he really did discover the path to perpetually evading aging and death?

Who Is the Count of Saint Germain?

source: wikimedia commons

The Count of Saint Germain was a mysterious gentleman who appeared among the European royal families in the eighteenth century, and was known as “Der Wundermann” or “The Miracle Man.” He was reportedly a man of many talent and skills, particularly in fields like chemistry, music, alchemy and magic. While he had no visible means of support, he did not lack in resources either. Depending on which historical and personal accounts you refer to, he has been considered, at one point or another, as a prophet, a charlatan, a healer, a spy and a visionary.

Myths and speculations about the Count of Saint Germain started to become more widespread around the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. He is often referenced in Theosophy – which is a collection of mystical and occultist philosophies concerning the presumed mysteries of life and nature, particularly the nature of divinity as well as the origin and purpose of the universe. There are also those who claim that he is the founder of Freemasonry and inspired several of the American Founding Fathers. Some also believe that he had once hid behind the identity and scientific genius of Francis Bacon, and that he was the real writer of most literary works attributed to Shakespeare.

However, in several New Age movements, the Count of Saint Germain is heralded as the Avatar of the Age of Aquarius, and is deemed to be an Ascended Master that is on the same level as history’s greatest spiritual leaders.

Origins

There are a variety of versions regarding the origin, lineage and life of the Count of Saint Germain. His exact date of birth is also unknown but most accounts claim that he was born in the 1690s.

One version regarding his origin and lineage describes him as the son of Francis II Rákóczi, the Prince of Transylvania, by Rákóczi's first wife. There are also claims that he was the illegitimate son of Maria Anna of Pfalz-Neuburg, who was the widow of Charles II of Spain. Another version alleges that he is the illegitimate son of the king of Portugal – presumed to be John V -  by a Jewish mother.

According to some sources, especially those who believe that he is of Transylvanian nobility, Saint Germain was not his real last name. It was reportedly invented by him as a French version of the Latin term “Sanctus Germanus,” which translates to “Holy Brother.”

Life

Saint Germain first came into prominence in the high society of Europe in 1742, when he would have been a man in his forties. Little is known about his life before this time. A dossier on the mysterious Count was created by order of French Emperor Napoleon III in the 19th century but all the documents about Saint Germain were destroyed in a fire, resulting to the loss of irreplaceable information about him. Also, the Count’s own secretiveness has not helped in uncovering the mystery surrounding his life either.

From 1737 until 1742, the Count of Saint Germain was supposedly in Persia studying alchemy. He arrived in Versailles in 1742 before reaching England in 1743 for the Jacobite Revolution. He also went to Vienne to visit Frederick the Great before heading to Edinburgh in 1745. The Count also went to India in the 1750s and when he returned, he earned the favor of King Louis XV and was invited to stay in the Royal Chateau of Chambord in Touraine. He also supposedly spent some time in Russia, Germany and Bavaria.

The Count of Saint Germain reportedly rubbed elbows with the likes of Voltaire, Marie Antoinette, Casanova, Madame de Pampadour, and Catherine the Great. He beguiled royalty and the wealthy with his vast knowledge of science and history, his musical ability, his charm and his quick wit. He was a renowned conversationalist who could flawlessly converse in Swedish, Portuguese, French, Italian, German, Spanish and Russian, and was even familiar with Chinese, Latin, Arabic, ancient Greek and Sanskrit. Because of his talents, he was said to have served as a backchannel diplomat between England and France, and is thought to have played some role in Freemasonry.

Despite his many merits, the Count was also said to possess several habits that most people would find odd. According to some accounts, he never ate in public, but he would often be seen drinking a special tea frequently. He also reportedly dropped hints that he was centuries old and that he often made unusual comments about his age. He also spoke of times which have long passed as if he had been there. There were also claims that he could grow diamonds and fix flawed ones.

Death

In 1779, he travelled to Hamburg, Germany, where he befriended Prince Charles of Hesse-Cassel. For the next five years, he lived as a guest in the prince's castle at Eckernförde, and, according to local records, that is where Saint Germain died on February 27, 1784.

The Immortal Life of the Count of Saint Germain

For any ordinary mortal, death would be the end of their life’s story. However, that was not the case for the Count of Saint Germain. Reports arose suggesting that he was an immortal who had discovered the “Elixir of Life” through alchemy, and a prophet who possessed mystical powers.

It is also believed by many that the Count of Saint Germain was an Ascended Master of Ancient Wisdom, making him the head of a theosophical belief system which believes that the wisdom required to eventually unify the spiritual and material aspects of the universe can be acquired through reincarnation. The Count of Saint Germain, along with other Masters, supposedly have achieved the same kind of ascension as Jesus of Nazareth in the Holy Bible. His followers think that the enigmatic man was actually reincarnated over and over again prior to his birth as Saint Germain as various prominent figures in the historical timeline. These figures were all people of great importance, and all of them left a resounding and lasting effect on the history of the world.

Alter Egos & Incarnations

source: pinterest

The Count of Saint Germaine is believed to have adopted numerous incarnations as well as “alter egos,” which include some of history’s most brilliant minds. The first supposed incarnation of the Count is that of a High Priest of the Violet Flame temple, over fifty thousand years ago. He is recorded next as the prophet Samuel from the Old Testament, and then as Joseph, Mary’s husband and Jesus of Nazareth’s earthly father.

One of his most intriguing alleged incarnations, however, is that of Merlin – a counselor in the court of King Arthur and a possible wizard. He is also considered to have been Saint Alban, the first British martyr for the Christian faith, who existed sometime during the 3rd or 4th century. He is also said to have lived as Roger Bacon, Franciscan and philosopher born in the 13th century. Roger Bacon believed in both the Philosopher Stone and in the Elixir of Life. He also amassed a large group of followers because of his passion and intellect. His final and most powerful form was said to be that of Sir Francis Bacon, a member of Queen Elizabeth I’s court.

However, to many ascension followers, the life of the Count of Saint Germain does not end with his incarnation as Francis Bacon. They believe that he continues to be reincarnated, and is currently still alive and living in Tibet with the same youthful physical body she possessed in the medieval period.

The most recent appearance of a man claiming to be the Count was in 1972 in Paris, France. A man named Richard Chanfray appeared on French television to prove his claim that he was Saint Germain, and he apparently turned lead into gold on a camp stove before the cameras. Chanfray later committed suicide in 1983.

So, who was the Count of Saint Germain? Was he a successful alchemist who found the key to achieving eternal life? Was he a time traveler? Or was he just a highly intelligent individual whose impressive reputation eventually morphed into a fantastic legend?

At this point, it is quite impossible to tell. We may never know the truth behind his story as it has been told so many times, in so many ways, that the truth got lost along the way. Nevertheless, it cannot be denied that the legacy of The Count of Saint Germain endures because of the mystical and esoteric appeal of his life.

And his supposed goal or vision of enshrining the "violet flame" or fleur-de-lis as the threefold flame of God-identity in the hearts of people continues until now to inspire millions of adherents of the New Age religion.

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Sources:

http://www.sacred-texts.com/sro/csg/index.htm
http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Count_of_Saint_Germain#Alter_egos_and_incarnations
https://www.historicmysteries.com/saint-germain/
https://www.thoughtco.com/saint-germain-the-immortal-count-2594421
http://www.alchemylab.com/count_saint_germain.htm
http://mysteriousuniverse.org/2013/11/comte-de-saint-germain-rosicrucian-ascended-master-or-immortal/
http://www.bibliotecapleyades.net/vida_alien/godseden/godseden11.htm
http://www.ancient-origins.net/history-famous-people/immortal-count-saint-germaine-ascended-master-ancient-wisdom-003125?nopaging=1

5 Ancient Legends Based on True Events

Humans, above all else, are excellent storytellers. Myths and legends have ignited the imagination and fed the souls of human beings for thousands of years. The vast majority of these legendary tales are usually just stories people have handed down through the ages. However, as it turns out, there are plenty of old myths and stories that have more than a kernel of truth to them. In fact, a few of them have roots in real geological and astronomical events of the past, providing warning of potential catastrophic dangers that threaten our existence, while also speaking volumes to the awe we hold for the wonders of our planet.

So, here are five ancient legends from around the world that are somehow based on true events.

1. The Guest Star

The Ancient Story of “The Guest Star.” In April of the year A.D. 1006, witnesses from Asia, the Middle East, Europe and possibly even in North America, spotted what they described as a “guest star” in the sky. Astronomers digging through ancient texts have found lost records mentioning and describing the cosmic phenomenon. Among them is from the multipart opus “Kitab al-Shifa” or “Book of Healing” by the Persian scientist Ibn Sina, who is also known in the west as Avicenna. In the “Book of Healing,” Avicenna took note of a transient celestial object that changed color and “threw out sparks” as it faded away. What he saw started out as a faint greenish yellow light, which twinkled wildly at its peak brightness. Then, it became a whitish color before ultimately vanishing.

For a long time, the “guest star” was suspected of being a comet, but now, it has since been determined that the celestial wonder was really a supernova – a cosmic explosion that took place 7,200 years ago but whose visible light only reached Earth at the turn of the first millennium. In 1006 A.D., the supernova was far brighter than Venus and was visible during the daytime for weeks. At present, though its visible wavelengths have since dissipated from view, the high-energy remnants of the supernova can still be seen through NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory.

2. The Crater Lake and the Battle of the Gods

The Legend Surrounding the Crater Lake. The most common of the legends centering around the Crater Lake in Oregon involve two powerful mythological beings: Skell, the lord of the Above-world; and Llao, the god of the Under-world. The theme of this legend is essentially “good-versus-evil.”

The Native American Klamath tribe believed that the Crater Lake in Oregon was once a tall mountain named Mazama, which back then was inhabited by Llao. The underworld deity engaged in an epic battle with Skell, the sky god, and fire and brimstone flew across the skies between Mazama and the nearby Mount Shasta. Llao was defeated in the fight, and they had to go back to the underworld. With the intention of imprisoning him forever, Skell collapsed the mountain on top of Llao, before topping off this prison with a beautiful blue lake.

The legend was not exactly far from the truth. However, the crater lake was not the product of a battle between angry gods but Mount Mazama, a volcano that erupted 7,700 years ago. So much molten rock was expelled that the summit area collapsed during the eruption to form a large volcanic depression called caldera. Subsequent smaller eruptions occurred as water started to fill the caldera which eventually formed the deepest lake in the United States.  

3. The Myth of Rama’s Bridge

The Myth of Rama’s Bridge. In the Hindu epic the “Ramayana,” the wife of the god Rama, gets kidnapped and taken to the Demon Kingdom on the island of Lanka. With the help of an army of ape-like men, Rama, along with his brother Lakshman, built a floating bridge between India and Lanka. He led the army in crossing over the bridge, and successfully vanquished Ravana, the demon king, and consequently rescued his wife.

While this elaborate tale is filled with fantastical details, the mythical Rama’s Bridge itself actually exists. Satellite images reveal a 48-kilometer line of submerged limestone shoals and sand that stretches between India and Sri Lanka. The bridge separates the Gulf of Mannar located in the southwest from the Palk Strait, which is in the northeast. Some of the sandbanks are dry and the sea in the area is quite shallow, being only 1 to 10 meters deep in some places. It was reportedly passable on foot up to the 15th century until storms deepened the channel. Temple records seem to tell that the Rama's Bridge was completely above sea level until a cyclone in 1480 brought a huge storm surge into the channel and sunk it beneath the waves.

4. Atlantis

As first described by Greek philosopher Plato in his writings, this myth tells a tale of a civilization at its peak that tragically sank beneath the waves and got lost for all eternity. This great civilization called Atlantis is supposedly founded by a race of people who were half god and half human, and lived in a utopia where they possessed great naval power. However, while at the pinnacle of their power and influence, their home - which were located on islands that were said to be shaped like a series of concentric circles – was destroyed in a great cataclysm.

Atlantis was probably not a real place that have existed in ancient times, but a real island civilization may have been the source of inspiration for the tale. It remains heavily debated, but several archaeologists are of the opinion that the myth of Atlantis could have been based on the collapse of the Minoan empire.

Santorini in Greece is now an archipelago, but thousands of years ago, it was a single island – a volcano named Thera. Around 3,650 years ago, a volcanic eruption, which is considered to be one of the biggest in human history, rocked the island and led to its destruction. The vast magma chamber of the volcanic island was emptied so catastrophically and so quickly that the core of the island collapsed, setting off tsunamis that flooded much of Thera with the inflowing Aegean Sea. The eruption blew tons of sulfur dioxide into the atmosphere where it lasted for years and potentially caused many cold, wet summers. Such conditions would have ruined harvests in the region, which is believed to be a main contributor to the quick decline of the Minoan civilization and why they were never heard from again.

5. Noah’s Ark

In the famous story told among Christians, Jews and Muslims, God, a long time ago, chose to destroy the Earth with a great flood but spared a man named Noah and his family. On God’s command, Noah built an ark and filled it with a pair of every animal. When God covered the Earth with water, it drowned everyone and everything that once roamed the land. Noah, his family and the other animals managed to survive while on the ark, and they were the ones that repopulated the planet after the disaster.

While a boat full of animals of every kind is hardly believable to some, experts say that the epic biblical flood - as often is the case with apocryphal texts - could have been based on a much earlier tale. One such story that comes to mind is the Epic of Gilgamesh. This ancient epic unfolds similarly to its biblical equivalent. In this Mesopotamian saga that dates back to the 7th century BCE, many gods conspired to create a great flood that will destroy the world. One of the gods, Ea, told a man to make a boat to save himself and the rest of his family, along with a group of animals.

So, with similar flood tales told in many cultures, is there any evidence that the great floods referenced in these stories actually happened? Scholars and scientific experts generally agree that there never was a global deluge as there is not enough water in the Earth system to cover all the land. However, some geologists think that the legend of a great flood may have been influenced by a catastrophic flooding event in the Black Sea around 5,000 B.C.

Geological records show that the Mediterranean Sea overflowed into the Black Sea, which is located north of Turkey. It forced the sediment barrier between the two to open in a very dramatic manner, and anyone nearby who witnessed what happened at the time would have seen the creation of waterfall 200 times the volume of Niagara Falls. In a single day, enough water came through the channel to cover Manhattan, and the roar of the cascading water would have been loud enough to be heard at least 100 miles away. And so, anyone who were living in the fertile farmlands on the northern rim of the sea at the time would have had the harrowing experience of seeing the boundary of the ocean move inland at the rate of a mile a day.

Myths are beautiful, breathtaking narratives and literary treasures of our past. But more than that, these ancient tales we have listed - and many other which were not mentioned - were able to provide important clues to our distant past. And these clues were helpful and crucial in filling in the gaps in our scientific and historical knowledge about geological and astronomical phenomena that took place on Earth in bygone eras. So, with the help of science, we can safely say that some tales are not just made-up stories passed from one generation to another; they could be true as well.

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Sources:

http://www.iflscience.com/environment/six-ancient-legends-that-are-based-on-real-events/all/
http://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/ten-ancient-stories-and-geological-events-may-have-inspired-them-180950347/
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2016/04/160427-lost-supernova-sighting-sn1006-arab-astronomy/
https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/chandra/multimedia/tapestry.html
https://pubs.usgs.gov/fs/2002/fs092-02/
https://www.newscientist.com/blog/space/2007/09/bridge-built-by-monkeys.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adam%27s_Bridge
http://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/evidence-for-a-flood-102813115/?no-ist