We have other sites, but this has the advantage of independent dating from carbon 14. We know the time horizon.
What it does mean is that emergent agricultural man was moving large blocks of crudely shaped rock for some reason around 9000 years ago but still 2600 years after Gobekli Tepe. Rather obviously, this also means that some form of seamanship was very much in use.
Megalith building then had a time horizon from this date through even Stonehenge at 4500 BP at least. Then the Atlantean world developed metal cutting tools which changed the approach.
.
Another Megalith Rewrites History
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352409X15300535
https://www.facebook.com/GrahamHancockDotCom/posts/1093096510718840:0
\
CRASH! BANG! RUMBLE! Do you hear those sounds? Faintly? In the
distance? Just audible over outraged yells and howls of protest? Those
are the sounds of the house of history collapsing and the furious yells
and howls are from the archaeological establishment trying to drown out
the truth with their noise.
The latest hint that archaeologists
have completely misled us about the origins of civilization – and that
their ‘house of history’ is built on foundations of sand -- comes from a
team of marine scientists and geologists diving in the Sicily Channel
in the Mediterranean. You can read the full report, and get a clearer
view of the sea-floor scans and photographic record, here: http://www.sciencedirect.com/…/article/pii/S2352409X15300535
Embarrassingly, the scientific team’s report has been published in a
mainstream, peer-reviewed archaeological journal, but predictably
archaeologists are already up in arms describing and seeking to dismiss
the discovery as ‘whimsical and void of scientific meaning’. I’m not
surprised that the establishment that has misled us for so long is doing
its utmost to shout-down this extraordinary discovery which, in brief,
includes the remnant of a giant megalithic site at a depth of 40 meters,
including one 12 meter long menhir (now broken into two parts – see
photographs), that is conservatively estimated to weigh 15 tons and to
have been submerged by rising sea levels more than 9,000 years ago. How
many thousands of years it was standing on the spot before the seas rose
has not yet been established but the possibility must be seriously
contemplated that it is the work of the same mysterious culture that
created the giant stone circles of Gobekli Tepe in Turkey more than
11,600 years ago. It also raises increasingly disturbing questions about
the age of other known megalithic sites around the Mediterranean – the
oldest of which, such as Gigantija in Malta – have long been believed
not to exceed 6,000 years in age. Yet all the known sites have been
exposed to the presence and intrusions of later cultures that left their
organic materials on-site and thus skewed the radio-carbon record to
give falsely young dates. Where we have intact, undisturbed sites with
no wriggle room for archaeologists to rest their case on carbon-dating
of falsely-young, intrusive organic materials, then the picture of our
past suddenly becomes very different and much, MUCH, older. Thus we can
be sure of Gobekli Tepe’s age because it was deliberately buried by its
makers more than 10,000 years ago and then left undiscovered and
untouched until excavations began in the 1990’s. Likewise this newly
discovered megalithic site off Sicily has been under water for more than
9,000 years and is therefore, undisputably at least that old.
I
suggest that these discoveries, and parallel work at Gunung Padang in
far-off Indonesia (that I have reported on extensively here over the
past couple of years) require us to look again at the so-called
“established” ages of megalithic sites everywhere. More than that, these
discoveries require us to consider seriously the possibility attested
to by myths and traditions from all around the world that we are indeed
-- as I have been saying for 20 years -- a species with amnesia and that
a lost civilization of the last Ice Age lies hidden in our collective
past. This is the possibility that I explore in the greatest depth in my
forthcoming book “Magicians of the Gods” that will be published in the
UK on 10 September and in the US on 10 November. Further information
about the book, and links through which you may pre-order your copy, can
be found here: http://grahamhancock.com/magicians/
I will be on tour in the UK in September/October, and in the US in
November/December giving presentations about Magicians of the Gods. The
schedule of US events is still being worked out, but you can find
details of most of the UK events here: http://grahamhancock.com/events/
A submerged monolith in the Sicilian Channel (central Mediterranean Sea): Evidence for Mesolithic human activity
Highlights
- •
- A submerged, 12 m long monolith has been discovered at a water depth of 40 m, in a shallow bank of the Sicilian Channel.
- •
- Morphological evidence, underwater observations, and results of petrographic analysis testify that the monolith is man-made.
- •
- This monolith suggests a significant human activity in the Pantelleria Vecchia Bank, a former island of the Sicilian Channel.
- •
- Seawater inundated the Pantelleria Vecchia Bank at 9350 ± 200 yr B.P., presumably forcing inhabitants to migrate.
Abstract
The
ancient geography of the Mediterranean Basin was profoundly changed by
the increase in sea level following the Last Glacial Maximum. This
global event has led to the retreat of the coastlines, especially in
lowland areas and shallow shelves, such as the Sicilian Channel. The NW
sector of this shelf, known as Adventure Plateau, is studded by isolated
shoals mostly composed of Late Miocene carbonate rocks and by some
volcanic edifices. These shoals, until at least the Early Holocene,
formed an archipelago of several islands separated by stretches of
extremely shallow sea. One of these submerged features – the Pantelleria
Vecchia Bank – located 60 km south of Sicily, has been extensively
surveyed using geophysical and geological methods. It is composed of two
main shoals, connected seaward by a rectilinear ridge which encloses an
embayment. Here we present morphological evidence, underwater
observations, and results of petrographic analysis of a man-made, 12 m
long monolith resting on the sea-floor of the embayment at a water depth
of 40 m. It is broken into two parts, and has three regular holes: one
at its end which passes through from part to part, the others in two of
its sides. The monolith is composed of calcirudites of Late Pleistocene
age, as determined from radiocarbon measurements conducted on several
shell fragments extracted from the rock samples. The same age and
composition characterize the metre-size blocks forming the rectilinear
ridge. The rest of the rocks composing the shoals are mostly Tortonian
limestones–sandstones, as revealed by their fossil content.
Extrapolating ages from the local sea level curve, we infer that
seawater inundated the inner lands at 9350 ± 200 year B.P., the upper
limit which can be reasonably taken for the site abandonment. This
discovery provides evidence for a significant Mesolithic human activity
in the Sicilian Channel region.
Keywords
- Sicilian Channel;
- Shallow banks;
- High-resolution bathymetry;
- Underwater surveys;
- Petrographic analysis;
- Radiometric ages;
- Submerged monolith;
- Mesolithic human activity
1. Introduction
An
abundant number of archaeological and geological data acquired in
several coastal areas of the Mediterranean Basin represent the evidence
that it has undergone major changes in sea level during the
glacial-interglacial cycles (e.g., Lambeck and Chappell, 2001, Lambeck and Purcell, 2005, Antonioli et al., 2009 and Auriemma and Solinas, 2009).
After the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), around 19,000 year B.P., when the
land area of Europe was ~ 40% larger than it is now, a relatively
abrupt global rise in sea-level took place, estimated to be of
125 ± 5 m, as determined by correcting observed sea-level changes for
glacio-hydro-isostatic contributions (e.g., Fleming et al., 1998, Mix et al., 2001, Siddall et al., 2003, Lambeck et al., 2004 and Clark et al., 2009).
The
Sicilian Channel is one of the shallow shelves of the central
Mediterranean region where the consequences of changing sea-level were
most dramatic and intense, as also occurred in part of the Aegean Sea,
the northern Adriatic, and the Tunisia and Malta platforms. The Sicilian
Channel is geologically part of the northern African continental shelf (Fig. 1)
and lies mostly under shallow water, with the exception of three
NW-trending, relatively deep troughs (the Pantelleria, Malta and Linosa
grabens) produced since the Early Pliocene by rift-related processes
(e.g., Reuther and Eisbacher, 1985, Boccaletti et al., 1987, Cello, 1987 and Civile et al., 2010).
This tectonic extension was also responsible of the formation of the
two volcanic islands of Pantelleria and Linosa, and other submerged
volcanic edifices lying along the eastern margin of the Adventure
Plateau (Calanchi et al., 1989, Rotolo et al., 2006 and Lodolo et al., 2012).
It occupies the north-western sector of the Sicilian Channel, where
available oil exploratory wells have shown that the sedimentary sequence
ranges from Triassic to Plio-Quaternary, with various hiatuses
associated with long periods of aerial exposition and/or erosion (Civile et al., 2014).
The Adventure Plateau is the shallowest part of the entire Sicilian
Channel, and is punctuated by several isolated banks, some of them
rising up to less than 10 m below sea level (Colantoni et al., 1985).
During the LGM, the Adventure Plateau was part of the former Sicily
mainland, forming a peninsula (the Adventure Peninsula) bulging towards
south into the Sicilian Channel, and separated from the North African
coastline by less than 50 km. The gradual increase of the sea level
caused the flooding of most of the peninsula, with the exception of some
morphological highs that, until at least the Early Holocene, formed an
archipelago of several islands separated by stretches of extremely
shallow sea, as shown by the analysis of swath bathymetric mapping and
high-resolution seismic profiles (Lodolo, 2012 and Civile et al., 2015).
Today, the Adventure Plateau is morphologically separated from Sicily
by the Mazara del Vallo Channel (depth of about 120 m), and from Tunisia
by the Pantelleria graben (depth of about 1300 m).
- Fig. 1.
(a) Morpho-bathymetric map of the Sicilian Channel and surrounding regions. Bathymetric data are taken from the International Bathymetric Chart of the Mediterranean (http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/mgg/ibcm/ibcm.html), and from the CIESM/IFREMER map of the Mediterranean sea-floor (http://www.ciesm.org/marine/morphomap.htm), integrated with data taken from Civile et al. (2010), whereas topographic elevations are taken from the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (http://www2.jpl.nasa.gov/srtm). Box in the upper left corner locates the study area (SC: Sicilian Channel). AP: Adventure Plateau; MVC: Mazara del Vallo Channel; (b) Reconstruction of the Sicilian and Tunisian palaeo-shorelines at two different stages: (1) when sea level was ~ 120 m lower than the present-day (brown contour), corresponding to the Last Glacial Maximum, the Adventure Plateau was connected to Sicily, forming a broad peninsula; (2) when sea level was ~ 50 m lower than the present-day (dark grey contour), the formerly emerged islands (indicated in the map as small black areas) constituted a wide archipelago between Sicily and the Pantelleria Island (~ 10,500 year B.P.). (c) 3-D shaded-relief map of the Pantelleria Vecchia Bank obtained from high-resolution swath bathymetric soundings performed by the R/V OGS-Explora.
It
is well known that the Mediterranean Sea is a unique basin from a
historical and archaeological perspective, since it was an important
means of communication among human communities living on its shores.
These ancient civilizations have left numerous imprints along the former
coasts, such as production and town structures, landing places, and
ports. Some structures that are today submerged can provide fundamental
information to support the reconstruction of the ancient coastlines (Auriemma and Solinas, 2009).
Conversely, in shallow water areas distant from the coastline, the
information on possible ancient permanent human settlements are scarce,
and there are no traces to date found in the Mediterranean Basin mainly
because the lack of detailed and extensive bathymetric mapping, and the
presence of a variably thick sedimentary cover masking any submerged
structure.
Here
we present the results of high-resolution bathymetric surveys performed
on the Pantelleria Vecchia Bank (PVB), a submerged shallow relief of
the Adventure Plateau, located 40 km north of the volcanic island of
Pantelleria, as well as underwater visual observations by divers,
analyses of some rock samples collected in several locations of the
bank, and radiocarbon dating. These data provide evidence for an unique
and significant structure of anthropogenic origin.
2. Methods
Detailed sea-floor surveys were conducted in November 2012 using a hull-mounted multi-beam sonar system with the R/V OGS-Explora.
Subsequently, in December 2012, a high-resolution survey was focused on
a specific area of the PVB, which was mapped with a portable multi-beam
sonar system. These surveys provided a context for direct sea-floor
observation made by divers, who recorded high-definition video (for a
total of approximately 8 h of registration) and photos, and collected
several rock samples. In addition, radiocarbon measurements were made on
small, intact shells extracted from 4 different rock samples, applying
the Talma and Vogel (1993) calibration method. Because the obtained ages are close to the limit for 14C
dating, the measurements were performed in two different laboratories
in USA (Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, and Beta Analytic Inc.,
Miami) to verify the goodness of the data.
These activities, carried out in various phases from August 2013 to September 2014, were supported by the Italian Arma dei Carabinieri, who made available their boat and a group of divers. Francesco Spaggiari and Fabio Leonardi (Global Underwater Explorers)
contributed with rock samplings and underwater videos. More details on
acquisition parameters and processing of high-resolution bathymetric
data can be found in the Supplementary Material.
3. Results
3.1. High-resolution bathymetric maps and underwater surveys
The bathymetric map (Fig. 1)
reveals that the PVB is made up of two main shoals, intersected by
fractures and steep valleys, and a number of smaller isolated
bathymetric highs, covering a total area of 5.2 km2, with
little or no sedimentary cover. The present depth of the two main shoals
varies from 16 to 24 m, while the surrounding areas are located at
depths ranging from 46 to 60 m. Here, the unconsolidated sedimentary
cover of the bedrock is composed of coarse organogenic sands with
thickness ranging from a few decimetres to a few metres (Stanley et al., 1975 and Colantoni et al., 1985).
This bank is located in a sector of the Adventure Plateau dominated by
NW-trending, high-angle normal faults related to the continental rifting
phase that produced the Pantelleria graben (Civile et al., 2010). Compressional structures, generated by a Late Miocene compressional phase (Argnani et al., 1986 and Lentini et al., 1996), have been also recognized in this sector.
The high-resolution map focussing on the area between the two shoals (Fig. 2)
shows that the most evident morphological feature is an 820 m long,
rectilinear ridge connecting the two shoals and enclosing an embayment.
The base of this ridge lies at water depths ranging from 43.1 to 44.4 m
while its summit lies between 35.1 and 36.8 m below sea level. The ridge
is characterized by a flat top and a regular slope ranging from 16° to
20°. A parallel, but less continuous, segment of ridge is located 80 m
inward of the main outer one and rises about 2 m above the surrounding
sea-floor. Underwater surveys were made throughout the entire length of
the outer ridge and part of the inner one, in order to obtain
photographs and video images, and to collect rock samples. The slopes of
the ridge are devoid of sedimentation due to a relatively strong and
constant bottom current with velocity varying between 2 and 3 knots. The
entire ridge is composed of rock blocks generally with a rectangular
shape in plain view lying in close contact to each other. Such a
geometric arrangement is particularly evident in the central part of the
ridge. About 100 m seawards from the southern termination of the outer
ridge, an elongated rectangular flat top ridge extends 82 m towards the
open sea and rises ~ 2 m from the surrounding sea-floor. To the north of
the rectilinear ridge, other important morphological elements seen on
the map are at least three concentric, semi-circular ridges, and
regularly spaced by 60 m. Between the two southern ridges the almost
flat sea-floor lies at 36÷38 m below sea level. The water depth of the
annular areas between the northern semi-circular ridges ranges from 32
to 34 m. At ~ 15 m from the base of the southern semi-circular ridge, an
important morphological element, easily recognizable from the
bathymetric maps (Fig. 3),
is an elongated monolith laying on the sea-floor, isolated from the
rest of the outcrops, and broken in half, as appears from inspections
carried out by divers (Fig. 4).
The good match between the two adjacent parts suggests that it was
originally a single block. Its length is 12 m, with a recognizable
squared section of about 2 m, particularly regular in its southern half.
The longitudinal axis of the monolith is oriented N50°E. A rounded hole
with a diameter of about 60 cm passes right through the monolith, at
50 cm from one end. Another hole of the same diameter, but not crossing
the whole monolith, is present in one of its sides. It is about 40 cm
deep and is located midway in the monolith, at a right angle with
respect to the first hole. Another hole, but less regular, with a
diameter of about 50 cm, is found along the other side of the monolith.
Also this hole is located midway in the monolith.
- Fig. 2.
High-resolution bathymetric map of part of the PVB. The 820 m long rectilinear ridge, as well as a parallel, but less continuous ridge, are seen on the map. To the north of these ridges, at least three semi-circular morphological ridges (concentric rings) are visible: the monolith is located within this area. Areas surrounded by black dashed segments are those where underwater surveys by divers were conducted. Numbers indicate the locations of rock samples collected in the PVB, some of them presented in Fig. 5. Black numbers refer to the Late Pleistocene calcirudites; white numbers refer to the Tortonian calcareous mudstones-sandstones.
- Fig. 3.
3-D perspective view of the high-resolution bathymetric map where the monolith has been discovered. No vertical exaggeration. Numbers indicate the locations of the corresponding rock samples.
- Fig. 4.
Underwater composite photographs taken from divers, showing the discovered monolith and some details.
3.2. Macroscopic and microscopic analyses on rock samples
Here we present analyses of rock samples recovered in some locations of the PVB (Fig. 5).
Samples 1, 2, 3, 1A, 2A, 4A, 5A, 6A and 7A have been grouped together
because these all correspond to a bioclastic calcirudite. Samples 1, 2,
3, 4A and 6A have been taken by divers at various water depths from the
blocks composing the outer rectilinear ridge, and sample 7A was taken at
the top of the inner ridge. Samples 1A, 2A and 5A have been taken by
divers from the monolith described above. The macroscopic analysis shows
that about 95% of the clasts consist of fragments of shells, red algae
and corals, with rare, well rounded lithoclasts (generally between
0.5–4 mm in size), embedded in a thin layer of calcite. A
photomicrograph of a thin section (transmitted light) shows that the
coarse-grained, rounded bioclasts (red algae) are surrounded by an
isopachous fringe of calcite, indicative of precipitation in marine
phreatic zones where all pores are filled with water (typical feature of
low-intertidal and sub-tidal cements). In this case, bridging cements
(e.g., meniscus cement) crossing pores and connecting grains, indicative
of vadose-zone precipitation (as occurs in high-intertidal, supra-tidal
and shallow-subsurface meteoric environment), are absent (Flügel, 2009).
The microscopic features of these rocks are not those of a typical
beach-rock, and further analyses are in progress to recognize the
depositional environment and the sedimentation processes.
Fig. 5.
Photographs of some of the rock samples collected. (a) Sample 1 (calcirudite) and its cut (b). (c) Photomicrograph of a thin section (transmitted light). Open parts of the void filled with resin appear white. See text for further details. (d) Photomicrograph (thin section) of a rounded quartz-arenite fragment wrapped by isopachous marine calcite cement. Within the clast are visible quartz crystals, echinoid spines, and planktonic foraminifera. (e) Sample 2 (calcirudite). (f) Sample 2A (calcirudite) taken from the monolith. (g) Sample 4 and its cut (h). (i) Sample 5 and its cut (j). (k) Sample 8A and disaggregated sediment (l), with two individuals of foraminifera Borelis melo melo (a and b). The genera of the benthic foraminifera identified in the samples has been determined following the taxonomic order of Loeblich and Tappan (1988).
Samples
4 and 7 are mudstones taken at the top of the western shoal of the PVB
at a 27 m water depth and at the top of the eastern shoal of the PVB at a
22 m water depth, respectively. These samples contain calcareous
sponges, bryozoans and fragments of molluscs, planktonic and benthic
foraminifera, indicating a patch-reef depositional environment. Rock
samples 5, 3A, 8A, and 9A have been taken in the embayment area from the
top of the semi-circular ridges. Sample 5 was taken at a water depth of
35 m; samples 3A, 8A and 9A were taken at water depth of 34 m. All of
the rocks are bioclastic limestones containing cemented little clasts
(size generally between 0.5 and 2 mm) and bioclasts, comprising some
well-preserved benthic foraminifera. In addition, there are abundant
fragments of gastropods, corals and molluscs. Sample 6 was taken by the
divers at 42 m water depth from the elongated rectangular flat top ridge
that extends 82 m perpendicular to the rectilinear outer ridge. It is a
calcarenite containing a rich micro-fauna, with 11 genera of benthic
foraminifera identified. In addition, ostracods and gastropods are also
found, as well as rare bivalves, spines of echinoids and fish teeth.
In
summary, samples 4, 5, 6, 7, 3A, 8A and 9A are lithologically similar,
and represent calcarenites and bioclastic limestones and mudstones of
Late Miocene (Tortonian) age, based on the occurrence of the benthic
foraminifera Borelis melo melo, and generally deposited in a
lower shore face environment. This chronostratigraphic attribution is
compatible with coeval successions of the Sicilian Channel region
studied by several authors (e.g., Van der Zwaan, 1982 and Grasso and Pedley, 1988).
The samples taken in correspondence of the rectilinear ridges (samples
1, 2, 3, 4A, 6A and 7A) and the monolith (samples 1A, 2A and 5A),
represent calcirudites deposited in a shallow marine environment.
The
results of these petrographic analyses, combined with the
high-resolution morphological maps and the observations of divers, have
allowed us to realize the geological map of the PVB (Fig. 6).
- Fig. 6.
Geological map of part of the PVB, produced on the basis of petrographic analyses of rock samples, divers inspections and detailed morphological mapping.
3.3. Radiocarbon dating results
Accelerator
mass spectrometry (AMS) radiocarbon age determinations and their
calibrated ages have been performed on 4 samples, and are presented in Table 1.
Overall ages fall within the marine isotope stage MIS-3 (60 to
25 k year B.P.), a period characterized by several sea-level
fluctuations (Siddall et al., 2008),
and where the discrepancies among the sea-level values obtained from
the isotope record of deep-sea cores, and those obtained from oceanic
coral reefs, are more pronounced (e.g., Bailey et al., 2007).
- Table 1. Radiocarbon dating results for the calcirudite samples.
Sample n° Water depth δ13C Fraction modern Error
±D14C Error
±14C calibrated years B.P. (2SD) Error
±1A 38 m 0 0.0039 0.0006 − 996.1 0.6 44,560 1270 2 36 m 0 0.0058 0.0006 − 992.2 0.6 43,895 490 3 41 m 0 0.0100 0.0006 − 990.0 0.6 36,960 500 6A 35 m 0 0.0054 0.0006 − 994.6 0.6 41,970 920
4. Interpretation
From
the data we have here presented and analysed, it can be inferred that
the monolith discovered in the PVB is not a natural feature, but
man-made. The elements that combine to formulate this interpretation can
be listed as follows:
- •
- the monolith has a rather regular shape;
- •
- the monolith has three regular holes of similar diameter: one that crosses it completely on its top, and another two at two sides of the monolith; there are no reasonable known natural processes that may produce these elements;
- •
- the monolith is made from stone other than those which constitute all the neighbouring outcrops, and is quite isolated with respect to them; and
- •
- the lithology and age of the rock that makes up the monolith are similar to those that make up the blocks of the rectilinear ridge closing the embayment.
The
presence of the monolith suggests extensive human activity in the PVB.
It was cut and extracted as a single stone from the outer rectilinear
ridge situated about 300 m to the south, and then transported and
possibly erected. From the size of the monolith, we may presume that it
weights about 15 t. The information so far available does not allow us
however to formulate hypotheses about the specific function of this
monolith. It is however reasonable to assume that the PVB represented an
important line of communication with the interior, because located
midway between Sicily and Tunisia.
In
the absence of finds of datable artefacts in the investigated area, we
used the post-glacial curve of sea-level change for the Italian coasts
to derive the latest date for the monolith and the term of human
activities in the PVB. We are fully aware however, that a considerable
debate has developed on the appropriate use and application of global
curves for regional cases, and an abundant literature was produced in
recent years on the spatial inhomogeneity in sea-level rise in different
physiographic and tectonic context (e.g., Milne and Mitrovica, 2008).
The
curve of change in sea level is the combined result of (a) eustasy, (b)
glacial-hydro-isostasy, and (c) vertical tectonic motion. The first
contribution to the sea-level change curve is global and time-dependent,
while the latter two vary with location. Along the Italian coasts, the
glacio-hydro-isostatic component has been predicted and compared with
field data at several coastal sites (Lambeck and Purcell, 2005).
The tectonic contribution is derived from the elevation of the Marine
Isotope Substage (MIS) 5.5 shoreline-marker, aged at 124.5 k year
(coinciding with the last interglacial), and its geochronology is based
on orbital tuning of high-resolution deep-sea oxygen isotope
stratigraphy (Shackleton et al., 2003). During this last interglacial period, the global sea level rose to a level higher than the modern sea level (Siddall et al., 2003). Along the Italian coasts, the average level attained by the sea during the MIS 5.5 is inferred to be of ~+ 7 m (Lambeck and Purcell, 2005).
Markers attributed to the last interglacial are represented by notches,
marine terraces, beach deposits, speleothem concretions and boreholes
of molluscs living in the rocky cliffs. The MIS 5.5 was used as a
benchmark to assess tectonic stability at individual coastal sites in
Italy (Ferranti et al., 2006).
Analyses
of geomorphological markers indicate that the western sector of Sicily
and Egadi Islands is tectonically stable (the calculated vertical
tectonic rate is ± 0.04 mm/year), at least for the period of the Late
Pleistocene and the Holocene (Ferranti et al., 2006 and Antonioli et al., 2009), as also confirmed by independent measurements derived from semi-permanent GPS stations (Serpelloni et al., 2005).
The lack of MIS 5.5 markers on the south-western shore of Sicily
instead prevents a proper determination of the vertical movement rate in
this sector. Because the Adventure Plateau, where the PVB is rooted, is
part of the same geological province of the western Sicily, the
contribution of the vertical motion which has to be introduced for
deriving age uncertainties should be the same as that calculated for the
western sector of Sicily (± 0.04 mm/year).
The
corresponding age, along with estimated errors, obtained by
intercepting the post-glacial sea-level curve with the present-day water
depths of the outer ridge summit (ranging from 35.1 to 36.8 m) is
9350 ± 200 year B.P. (Fig. 7).
The choice of the depth of the top of the outer ridge is motivated
because this morphological relief may have acted as a natural
containment dam against the progressive flooding of the inner land. We
would have obviously got an older age for the monolith by applying the
present-day depth of the sea-floor on which it lies. The obtained age
falls chronologically within the beginning of the Mesolithic period of
the SE Europe and Middle East.
- Fig. 7.
Predicted sea-level change vs. time, calculated for the median latitude of the Adventure Plateau. Intercepted value along the x axis indicates the age corresponding to the water depth of the outer ridge summit.
Age
errors estimates for sites within the Italian Peninsula are given by
the following function (spatially averaged data), which provides an
estimate of the total prediction uncertainty σpred for each locality and for each epoch (Lambeck et al., 2004):
This would be about ± 3.5 m at ~ 10 k year.
When
the sea level reached the upper threshold of the outer ridge, sea water
would have flooded the inner areas of the PVB, probably forcing the
abandonment of the site (Fig. 8).
- Fig. 8.
Cartoon showing the progressive flooding of the PVB site when (a) sea level was − 40 m (~ 9500 year B.P), and (b) when sea level was − 35 m (~ 9200 year B.P.).
5. Discussion
The
obtained age for the PVB site places it within the beginning of the
Mesolithic. Perhaps the most important archaeological discovery of the
Mesolithic age is the monumental temple complex of Göbekli Tepe,
situated in south-eastern Turkey. Carbon-dated to about
11,600 year B.P., this site is believed to have been a religious centre
or sanctuary (Mann, 2011)
serving a well-organized settlement (or series of settlements), as
evidenced by its diverse range of megalithic art, as well as the large
number of megaliths used in the construction of its shrines. Up until
its excavation in the 1990s (Schmidt, 2000),
archaeologists believed that only properly settled farming communities
were capable of building a monumental complex like Göbekli Tepe. It
contains the oldest art involving stone structures, including numerous
reliefs of animals. Before the discovery of this monumental complex, the
two Neolithic stone temples of Ġgantija in Gozo (Maltese Islands),
unmatched by any other architectural construction in the Mediterranean
region, represented the oldest man-made religious structures in the
world (Trump, 2002).
Regarding the underwater sites known to date, the PVB site is older
than the Neolithic Atlit Yam site off the north coast of Israel, dated
between 6900 and 6300 B.C. (Galili and Nir, 1993)
and now lying between 8 and 12 m beneath the sea surface, and the city
of Pavlopetri, situated 3 ÷ 4 m underwater off the coast of southern
Peloponnese (Greece), until now considered the world oldest (about
5000 years old) submerged archaeological town.
Göbekli
Tepe has revolutionised archaeological and anthropological
understanding of the Middle East Mesolithic. It demonstrates that the
construction of a monumental complex was within the capability of a
hunter-gatherer society, although scientists do not yet understand
exactly how its builders managed to mobilize and feed a force large
enough to complete the project. It's worth noting, for instance, that
during the first two phases of construction, over two hundred large
pillars, each weighing up to 20 t, were erected and topped with huge
limestone slabs. No other hunter-gatherer society has been able to match
this feat.
The discovery of
the submerged site in the Sicilian Channel may significantly expand our
knowledge of the earliest civilizations in the Mediterranean basin and
our views on technological innovation and development achieved by the
Mesolithic inhabitants. The monolith found, made of a single, large
block, required a cutting, extraction, transportation and installation,
which undoubtedly reveals important technical skills and great
engineering. The belief that our ancestors lacked the knowledge, skill
and technology to exploit marine resources or make sea crossings, must
be progressively abandoned. The recent findings of submerged archaeology
have definitively removed the idea of “technological primitivism” often
attributed to hunter-gatherers coastal settlers.
Finally,
some considerations should be made regarding the provenience of these
colonizers. Most likely the ancient inhabitants of the Adventure
Peninsula came from Sicily, with which a direct terrestrial connection
existed throughout the LGM, as indicated by morphological
reconstructions of palaeo-shorelines. The provenance from North Africa
would have been more difficult because of a nearly 50 km wide seaway
between the Peninsula and the former Tunisian shore. The timing of the
arrival of the first modern humans to Sicily remains however largely
unknown (i.e., Tusa, 1999 and Mussi, 2001).
Specimens discovered in some Sicilian caves testify that the island was
permanently colonized by Upper Palaeolithic hunter-gatherers
(approximately 13,500 year B.P.; D'Amore et al., 2009).
The migration from mainland Europe to Sicily took probably place
between 27,000 and 17,000 year B.P., thanks to the emergence of a rocky
continental bridge between the Sicilian coast and the Italian peninsula (Antonioli et al., 2014).
These ancient inhabitants may have also colonized and settled the
various islands of the archipelago, driven by a suitable climate and a
favourable geographical position as a privileged route of communication.
These islands thus have represented not barriers but gateways to human
movement and contact.
The
idea that early human ancestors once lived at the sea-floor of modern
seas easily fascinates and attracts our imagination. What is more
surprising, and until recently poorly recognized, is that an extensive
archaeological record of early settlements still remains on the
sea-floor of our continental shelves. Almost everything that we do know
about prehistoric cultures derives from settlements that are now on
land, and that were tens to hundreds of kilometres distant from the
coastline when they were occupied. The vast majority of marine
geophysicist and archaeologists have now realized that to trace the
origins of civilization in the Mediterranean region, it is necessary to
focus research in the now submerged shelf areas.
Acknowledgements
This research is part of a joint Italian-Israel scientific project financed by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (grant 3697715AF0). The technical and scientific party of the R/V OGS-Explora
contributed in acquiring the data. Daniela Accettella, Andrea Cova,
Emiliano Gordini and Diego Cotterle processed the high-resolution
bathymetric data. Franco Coren has provided the logistical support for
the activities at sea. Special thanks go to the personnel from the Arma dei Carabinieri
who participated in the surveys: F. Sanclemente, M. Masciulli, P.
Stella, N. Giacalone, L. Spagnolo, G. La Cascia (crew of the Mazara del
Vallo boat CC-811 "Pignatelli"); R. Solustri, A. Polito, G.
Giacomone, F. Giosia (CC divers group from Rome). The professional
divers Francesco Spaggiari and Fabio Leonardi (Global Underwater Explorers)
made some of the footage and collected rock samples. Thanks to Mauro
Caffau for the microscopic analyses on the rock samples, and to Angelo
Camerlenghi for his encouragements and suggestions. The Editor, Chris
Hunt, and two anonymous reviewers made valuable comments and suggestions
which have helped to significantly improve the manuscript.
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