Archaeology by Prau123 - Main Forum

RE: Archaeology by Prau123

Prau123 — Tue, 19 May 2026 06:42:52 +0000

Jupiter Has 101 Moons… But These 4 Are Bigger Than Pluto

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https://youtu.be/9NKCbpmg1pE

How Is the Sun Burning Without Oxygen?

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RE: Archaeology by Prau123

Prau123 — Mon, 18 May 2026 19:07:37 +0000

Pirate Treasure Found Hidden In Cave!

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/Aos6MghS88s?feature=share

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/oyomt7VNXCE?feature=share

RE: Archaeology by Prau123

Prau123 — Sun, 17 May 2026 20:02:24 +0000

New DNA analysis of Christopher Columbus reveals truth about explorer's origins that rewrites history

By STACY LIBERATORE, US SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY EDITOR

Published: 09:19 EDT, 14 May 2026 | Updated: 17:16 EDT, 14 May 2026

A new DNA analysis of remains belonging to several direct descendants of Christopher Columbus may have uncovered a history-changing truth about the explorer's origins.

For centuries, historians have believed the explorer was born in Genoa, Italy, rising from humble beginnings to persuade the Catholic Monarchs to finance what many considered an impossible voyage across the Atlantic.

Now, researchers at the Citogen laboratory and the Complutense University of Madrid have released a preprint study suggesting Columbus may instead have descended from Galician nobility in Spain, with genetic links pointing to the powerful Sotomayor lineage.

The Sotomayors were one of medieval Galicia's most influential noble families, wielding political and military power across northwestern Spain during the 15th century, a background that sharply contrasts with the long-accepted belief that Columbus came from a modest Italian household.

The researchers said the DNA evidence pointed to Pedro Alvarez de Sotomayor, a powerful 15th-century Galician nobleman known as Pedro Madruga, as a possible ancestor in Columbus' family line.

The discovery emerged after scientists analyzed DNA from 12 people buried in the Counts of Gelves family crypt in Spain.

The theory that Columbus may have had Galician roots is not new, as it dates back more than a century.

However, the study claimed to provide the strongest genetic evidence yet supporting the idea.

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For centuries, historians have believed Christopher Columbus was born in Genoa, Italy, rising from humble beginnings to persuade the Catholic Monarchs to finance what many considered an impossible voyage across the Atlantic.

'To scientifically address the ancestral identity of Christopher Columbus, this study targeted the primary burial site of his direct lineage: the Santa Maria de Gracia church in Gelves,' the team said in the study.

'The site serves as the pantheon for the Counts of Gelves, housing the largest concentration of Columbus' direct descendants, at least seven, including his granddaughter.'

The breakthrough came after researchers identified two individuals among the 12 exhumed from the crypt who shared genetic material despite no known historical connection between them.

One was Jorge Alberto de Portugal, the third Count of Gelves and a documented descendant of Columbus.

The other was Maria de Castro Giron de Portugal, a Galician noblewoman tied to one of Spain's most influential aristocratic families.

Researchers said the unexpected DNA link led them to Pedro Madruga.

Using more than 10,000 genetic markers and a computer model tracing 16 generations of family history, the team concluded Pedro Madruga was the most likely shared ancestor.

Researchers said removing him from the reconstructed family tree caused the genetic link to disappear, suggesting he was a crucial ancestral connection within Columbus's family line.

A new study has suggested that Columbus may instead have descended from Galician nobility in Spain, with genetic links pointing to the powerful Sotomayor lineage

They called the process a 'Virtual Knock-out' test, in which Pedro Madruga was digitally removed from the family tree model.

Once removed, the genetic relationship between the descendants vanished entirely.

Researchers also pointed to several historical clues they believe support the theory: Pedro Madruga vanished from records around 1486, the same time Columbus suddenly appeared at the court of the Catholic Monarchs.

Pedro Madruga was one of the most powerful feudal lords of 15th-century Galicia, controlling an extensive territory from the castle of Sotomayor, on the banks of the river Verdugo in the province of Pontevedra.

Columbus's writings also contained Galician-Portuguese linguistic traits, and parts of his coat of arms resembled symbols linked to the Sotomayor family.

The researchers also found that the descendants buried in the crypt clustered genetically with populations from northern Spain and showed connections to both the Sotomayor family of Galicia and the Zuniga noble house of Navarre.

However, the team stressed the evidence remains indirect, because it is based on descendants rather than Columbus's own DNA, meaning the findings still require independent verification.

Most historians continue to believe Columbus was born in Genoa, pointing to his 1498 will, which identifies Genoa as his birthplace.

But supporters of the Spanish-origin theory argue that Columbus may have concealed his true background, with the new study offering fresh, though not yet conclusive, evidence tying him to northern Spanish nobility.

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In 2024, the team confirmed Columbus's final resting place. They spent 20 years performing a DNA analysis on human bones found buried in Spain's Seville Cathedral, confirming with 'absolute certainty' they belonged to the explorer who died in 1506

In 2024, the team confirmed Columbus's final resting place.

They spent 20 years performing a DNA analysis on human bones found buried in Spain's Seville Cathedral, confirming with 'absolute certainty' they belonged to the explorer who died in 1506.

The authors ultimately concluded that the research provides the first 'robust genetic support' for the theory that Columbus may have originated from Galicia rather than Italy.

Columbus set sail on August 3, 1492, from the Spanish port of Palos with hopes of finding a route to the fabled riches of Asia.

Along with three ships, the Nina, the Pinta and the Santa Maria, Columbus and roughly 100 men embarked on the journey that took them to the opposite side of the world, far from their original destination.

On October 12, 1492, the ships made landfall in what is now the Bahamas, and later that month, Columbus spotted Cuba and mistook it for mainland China.

On the second voyage in 1493, Columbus intentionally sailed back to the New World and landed in Puerto Rico, where he enslaved many of the Taino people native to the island, some of whom were sent back to Spain.

Many Spanish came over the next four years, resulting in the death of about seven million Taino, 85 percent of the population.

Article

New DNA analysis of Christopher Columbus reveals truth about explorer's origins that rewrites history | Daily Mail Online

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A new DNA study has revived a long‑running theory that Christopher Columbus may not have been Italian at all, but actually Pedro Álvarez de Soutomaior, a Galician nobleman also known as Pedro Madruga. Researchers compared genetic material from remains believed to be linked to Columbus with DNA from documented descendants of Madruga’s family line, finding striking similarities.

This theory argues that Madruga disappeared from historical records after a regional war in Galicia, the same moment Columbus suddenly emerged in Portugal with a new identity, nautical expertise, and connections that would later launch his Atlantic voyages.

Supporters of the theory point to additional clues: Columbus named over 100 places in the Americas after Galician towns, and 80 handwriting experts have concluded that Columbus’s writing style is virtually identical to Madruga’s.

If true, this would radically reshape the accepted biography of one of history’s most famous explorers, suggesting he may have concealed his origins for political survival. While the theory remains debated, the new DNA evidence has pushed it further into mainstream historical discussion.

One of the strangest supporting clues is Columbus’s 'obsessive use of Galician‑Portuguese language patterns', even in private notes. His letters contain idioms, spelling habits, and grammatical structures that do not match Italian dialects of the era but align closely with the writing of nobles from southern Galicia.

Even more intriguing: Columbus repeatedly used Galician nautical terms that were not common in Genoa or broader Italy, but were standard among sailors from the exact region where Pedro Madruga ruled.

Linguists argue this is nearly impossible to fake, especially for someone supposedly born and raised in Italy, and it quietly strengthens the case that Columbus was hiding a past tied to Galicia’s political conflicts.

Besides Christopher Columbus, did several explorers during his time change their names?

Why would he change his name from Pedro Alvarez de Soutomaior or Pedro Madruga to Cristobal Colon (Christopher Columbus)?

Streets in Spanish colonies and an entire nation was named after Christopher Columbus such as the South American country of Colombia.

The capital of Sri Lanka is Colombo that the Portuguese named in 1505 after the famous explorer. The naming is debatable since it originally was derived from a leafy mango fruit that grows on harbor/ports called Kola-amba-thota or Colambo. The Portuguese explorers respelled it to Colombo as mentioned in the excerpt below.

In Noth America, a state capital, a famous river, streets, a Canadian Province, a university, plus more was named after him.

Perhaps Christopher Columbus is Galician Spanish with Portuguese ancestry. Some Portuguese historians for several decades believe that he was of Portuguese ancestry.

Galicians rediscovered America twice - first time on 50BC to 10AD in Peru and second time on 1492 in Bahamas. The original discoverers of America are the Native American Indians.

Christopher Columbus origin debate continues whether he's from Genoa (Italy) which he was referred to as Christoforo Colombo or Galicia (Spain) or Catalonia (Spain) or Greece or Portugal. Have geneticist done any sample testing in other provinces and countries? Back in those days European explorers migrated a lot and had families in different places of Europe.

The name 'Colombo', first introduced by the Portuguese in 1505, is believed to be derived from the classical Sinhala name කොලොන් තොට Kolon thota, meaning "port on the river Kelani".

Another belief is that the name is derived from the Sinhala name කොල-අඹ-තොට Kola-amba-thota which means 'Harbour with leafy/green mango trees'. This coincides with Robert Knox's history of the island while he was a prisoner in Kandy. He writes that "On the West, the City of Columbo, so-called from a Tree the Natives call Ambo, (which bears the Mango-fruit) growing in that place; but this never bear fruit, but only leaves, which in their Language is Cola and thence they called the Tree Colambo: which the Christians in honour of Columbus turned to Columbo."

The author of the oldest Sinhala grammar, Sidatsangarava, written in the 13th century wrote about a category of words that exclusively belonged to early Sinhala. It lists naramba (to see) and kolamba (ford or harbour) as deriving from the indigenous Vedda language. Kolamba may also be the source of the name of the commercial capital Colombo.

RE: Archaeology by Prau123

Prau123 — Sun, 17 May 2026 16:48:19 +0000

Deep in a remote mountain cave, prehistoric people were mining a mysterious green mineral

Story by Tom Hale

May 14

• 3 min read

• Updated 3d ago

Key takeaways

High-altitude occupation: Cova 338, located 2,235 meters above sea level, shows continuous human activity for 4,000 years, challenging assumptions that high mountains were only marginally used.

Copper processing: Archaeologists found malachite fragments and evidence of fire-based smelting, suggesting prehistoric people were mining and extracting copper deliberately.

Artifacts and culture: Discoveries include pendants made from seashells and bear teeth, plant remains, ceramics, and charcoal, highlighting the cave as a hub of complex prehistoric activities.

Fragments of malachite, a mineral rich in copper, recovered during the excavations at Cova 338. - Image courtesy of Maria D. Guillén / IPHES-CERCA.© IFL Science

High up in the Pyrenees Mountains, a cave holds the oldest evidence of intense human occupation in the region. But prehistoric people weren't just sheltering here 7,00 years ago; they were working, hunting for and processing a mysterious green mineral.

The discovery was made in Cova 338, a cavern located around 2,235 meters (7,332 feet) above sea level in the Núria Valley in the Catalan Pyrenees Mountains of Spain. In a recent dig, archaeologists from the Autonomous University of Barcelona (UAB) and IPHES-CERCA uncovered how the cave was a hive of human activity for 4,000 years from the 5th millennium BCE to the end of the 1st millennium BCE.

It was long assumed that high-altitude environments above 2,000 meters (6,561 feet), where the air is thin and conditions can be brutal, were only occasionally inhabited, perhaps sought out only in desperate circumstances. However, Cova 338 suggests this wasn't always the case.

Deep In A Remote Mountain Cave, Prehistoric People Were Mining A Mysterious Green Mineral© IFL Science

“Cova 338 forces us to rethink the role of high mountain environments in Pyrenean prehistoric societies,” Carlos Tornero, professor in the Department of Prehistory at the UAB and researcher at IPHES-CERCA, said in a statement. “For a long time, these spaces were assumed to be marginal. What we document here is recurrent occupation, with complex activities and a clear exploitation of mineral resources.”

Inside the cave, the team unearthed plant remains, ceramic fragments, and charcoal, which suggests humans lit fires here many millennia ago. They also recovered two beautiful pendants: one fashioned from a sea shell (Glycymeris) and another from the tooth of a brown bear.

Striking as those objects are, the most intriguing find was what Tornero described as a “remarkable assemblage of green minerals, likely malachite, a copper-rich mineral”.

Nearly 200 rocky fragments containing patches of the green mineral were recovered from the cave floor. They were found alongside nearly 23 fireplaces, many of which contained burned specks of the green substance.

That little detail matters enormously. Malachite is known to be the ore that kick-started the Copper Age, and heating it with flames is how ancient metallurgists coaxed the metal from rock. It seems very likely that people weren't merely sheltering or foraging up here in the cave, they were mining and smelting copper.

“Many of these fragments are thermally altered, while other materials in the cave are not, which clearly suggests that fire played an important role in their processing and that there was a deliberate intention behind it. In other words, they weren’t burned by accident,” co-author Dr Julia Montes-Landa, from the University of Granada, said in another statement.

If that interpretation holds, Cova 338 would rank among the earliest known sites of copper mining and processing in Western Europe.

“For the first time in the Pyrenees, high-mountain prehistoric occupations of significant intensity have been documented, characterized by repeated activities and the direct exploitation of mineral resources within the cave,” added Tornero.

“This site demonstrates that the Pyrenees were not a marginal territory for prehistoric communities, but a space fully integrated into their mobility strategies and territorial exploitation."

Reaching this site is no easy feat, even in the 21st century. It’s only accessed on foot from the Núria Valley, without any motorized vehicles. Everything the researchers collected had to be carried back down the mountain by hand, which makes the scale of ancient activity documented here all the more remarkable.

“The mountain was not a barrier, but an active place within the economic and territorial organization of prehistoric communities,” added co-author Eudald Carbonell.

The study is published in the journal Frontiers in Environmental Archaeology.

Article

Deep in a remote mountain cave, prehistoric people were mining a mysterious green mineral

RE: Archaeology by Prau123

Prau123 — Sun, 17 May 2026 09:20:23 +0000

Polynesian Voyagers, seafaring techniques and genetics, some new info and not-so-new info.

Video

https://youtu.be/vRHR73wpl2s

RE: Archaeology by Prau123

Prau123 — Sat, 16 May 2026 22:51:06 +0000

Meteorite Crystals and Star Diamonds

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https://www.youtube.com/shorts/CVNhRM8d5HE?feature=share

RE: Archaeology by Prau123

Prau123 — Sat, 16 May 2026 22:38:21 +0000

Muzo Colombian Emerald, the Birthstone Month of May.

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RE: Archaeology by Prau123

Prau123 — Sat, 16 May 2026 22:27:47 +0000

I Found Towers of Stone on Google Earth

In the American Southwest, I found a massive structure casting shadows on Google Earth. When I hiked out to it, I realized it can tell a remarkable story about time, and reality.

Video

https://youtu.be/QBQQo4diSqw

RE: Archaeology by Prau123

Prau123 — Sat, 16 May 2026 22:24:09 +0000

Pluto's Towering Mountains, Active Volcanoes, Underground Oceans.

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RE: Archaeology by Prau123

Prau123 — Sat, 16 May 2026 22:15:09 +0000

Lights escape from sun

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https://www.youtube.com/shorts/jEl6u3rMTx4?feature=share