And if the oldest civilization in the history of mankind would not have been on the ground, but on the bottom of the ocean?
A scientific expedition off the coasts of India has discovered mysterious structures that could become a sensation in archeology – they are older than Harappa civilization and lead us to an era that we know very little about, reports Oxu.
Stone contours hidden under the depths
A team of the National Institute of Oceanography of India (NIO) has identified, at a depth of about 40 meters in the Arabian Sea, traces of complex stone constructions. Located near the Gujarat state, these submarine abnormalities have amazed the researchers through their regular forms: rectangular and circular platforms, lines and spaces reminiscent of streets, foundations or even markets.
“We have registered clear geometric contours, too ordered to be natural formations. They are not natural rocks – they are the result of a human activity,” the members of the expedition stressed.
The images captured by the underwater drones and sonars have shown that some of the objects have a symmetrical planning, similar to that of the old human settlements. The question remains: Who and when they built them-and what happened to those people?
A city submerged before the Harappa civilization
The most surprising discovery is about the age of the structures. The geological studies of the sediment layers, as well as the analysis of the organic remains found nearby, suggest that these constructions would have been made at least 12,000 years ago. This makes them considerably older than the monuments of the Harappa civilization, which flourished in the third millennium BC.
“If this dating is confirmed, we could be in front of the oldest coastal city known on Earth. It existed long before the Sumerians, Egyptians and Harappians,” said one of the geologists involved in research.
The researchers believe that the city was sunk after the level of sea level after the last glaciation – a phenomenon that would have started about 11,000 years ago and led to the significant lifting of the waters of the oceans.
Where is the border between myth and reality?
It is interesting that these discoveries resonate with the myths and legends of ancient India. In the epic “Mahabharata” and other sacred texts are mentioned mysterious coastal cities, destroyed by the waters, including the legendary Dvaraka – the city of the god Krishna, which is said to have been swallowed.
“It is not for the first time that underwater research from the offshore makes us reconsider the idea that ancient myths are just fantasy. It may contain more historical truth than we believed,” says Dr. Rajiv Menon.
However, scientists are cautious: confirmation of the civilization character of structures requires years of research, analysis of artifacts and carbon dating. However, the discovery already arouses a major interest among the international scientific community.
A civilization that should not have existed?
If the submarine structure is truly artificial, its existence overturns the generally accepted chronology of the development of human culture. Modern science argues that the first big cities have appeared about 6,000 years ago – but in this case we are talking about construction almost twice as old.
This chronology contradicts the idea that pre-agricultural societies were “primitive” and questions that only with the appearance of agriculture, the complex forms of social and architectural organization became possible. Moreover, leave the essential question unanswered: where did those people and their knowledge disappear?
Underwater hides more than we believe
This case is not singular. In recent decades, submarine archeology has discovered more and more evidence of the existence of submerged megalitis, ruins or even roads. Among them: the mysterious lines near the coast of Japan (Yonaguni), the traces of underwater streets near Bimini (Bahamas) and now – the Enigmatic Complex of the Indian Ocean.
