Psience Quest

Mysterious Human-Like Statue Found In Siberia Is Twice As Old As The Pyramids

Quote:At the end of the last Ice Age, as mammoths were roaming the plains and cave lions prowled in the shadows, a group of people in Siberia felled a tree and began to carve it into a human-like form. What this statute was for is still shrouded in mystery, but new research has revealed that the wooden idol is twice as old as the Great Pyramids of Giza.

The latest study, published the journal Antiquity, has not only refined just how old we think the eerie idol is, but could also hint at what they may have been using the statue for.

The idol was actually first uncovered in 1894, buried under 4 meters (13 feet) of peat in the bog of Shigir, which gives the statute its common name: the Shigir Idol. Uncovered in sections, it was finally pieced together in 1914, revealing that it would once have stood an impressive 5.3 meters (17 feet) tall, although not all of the pieces of the statue survived.

"Twice As Old As The Pyramids" is a wonderfully vague expression - particularly as the age of the pyramids is sometimes disputed.

Actually, the article states:

Quote:Using modern techniques, they have revealed that the idol was carved from a single larch wood log some 11,600 years ago.

which is indeed old for something made from wood.

By comparison, a wooden hafted neolithic axe was dated to 5,500 years old.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-30197084

(Much older artefacts, for example of ivory exist, but organic materials such as wood rarely survive as long).

Another quote from the original article,

Quote:This suggests that the culture of producing these huge, symbolic and presumably ritualistic pieces of artwork did not originate in one place as the Ice Age receded, but sprung up at multiple centers around the same time.

If that remark is substantiated, it raises interesting possibilities, such as Sheldrake's field theory, or other non-conventional means of disseminating information.

Is carbon dating giving us the age of the wood, or when it was carved?

(2018-04-27, 10:06 AM)malf Wrote: [ -> ]Is carbon dating giving us the age of the wood, or when it was carved?

I believe the carving was done much earlier.

(2018-04-27, 10:15 AM)Typoz Wrote: [ -> ]I believe the carving was done much earlier.

He is trying to imply that the wood was found many years later and then carved.

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Regardless of age, I find an odd kind of beauty in its simple design.

(2018-04-27, 10:53 AM)E. Flowers Wrote: [ -> ]He is trying to imply that the wood was found many years later and then carved.

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Regardless of age, I find an odd kind of beauty in its simple design.

Yes.

My reply was initially intended as tongue-in-cheek.

But on reflection, I think it makes sense. One is unlikely to chop down a tree, and then invent a brand-new never-before-seen design to use. Much more likely the design was already tried and tested on many previous objects, which didn't survive.

The report does say that the people were skilled woodworkers. It doesn't say they were skilled in working ancient wood preserved in a bog, pulled out, carved, and then put back in.