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Chauvet Cave Through the Mind of a Sculptor
Visit to the Chauvet Cave in 2001 by John Robinson
Orkney Islands
At the other ends of the earth, on the Orkney Islands off the northern coast of Scotland, the same practice was being used at the Eagle Tomb. The tomb is situated on the top of a high cliff overlooking the sea and consists of a small ossuary chamber with a platform beside it. The archaeologists say that bodies were exposed on the platform so the Sea Eagles could strip them of flesh before the long bones and skulls were collected and stored in the chamber. Found with the human bones were the beaks and claws of Sea Eagles.
Malta
The same thing happened on the island of Malta, home of the oldest buildings in Europe. The Temples of Malta, which pre-date the Pyramids, are mainly above ground and built on a basic plan that resembles the outline of a Fertility Goddess. Two underground Temples have been discovered. They are mined out of the native limestone and follow the same design. Discovered within these underground temples were thousands of long bones and skulls, the men in one section and the women in another.
Stonehenge
When the West Kennet burial chamber near Stonehenge was opened again long bones and skulls were found. The same thing occurred in Ireland. I wonder if this was a universal practice that has been in existence for tens of thousands of years. It seems very unlikely to me that the meme of revering long bones and skulls started in Australia and moved to Europe?
Himalayas
In the Himalayas only a few years ago a friend of mine witnessed the practice of a ritual dissection of a corpse, before exposure so the vultures could devour it.
Sahara Desert
What was the purpose of the Dabous Giraffe carvings in Niger? Obviously the site was sacred and must have been visited by many people over a great number of years. Jean Clottes and his team recorded 828 smaller carvings surrounding the Giraffe carvings. Near the site are several tumuli and I wonder what is hidden within them? Could it be human skulls and long bones? When I slept beside the Giraffe carvings in 1999 I had the worst nightmares I have ever experienced. People were being killed left right and centre and blood was flowed everywhere. If my dreams were any indication of the Spirit of the Place, the purpose of the Dabous Rocks was very much attached to death. Could it have been used for the exposure of the dead?
Arakua in the Sahara
In the dead volcanic crater of Arakua, east of the Air Mountains and on the edge of the Sahara Desert, is a vast tumulus. It covers the area of two tennis courts and is over six feet high. What is it for? Could it be hiding the skulls and long bones of people that died when the Tenere was the home of thousands of Hunter Gathers? The only purpose I can think of is that the tumuli was slowly built up over a great many years as the skulls and bones of the dead were buried around it. Thousands of man-hours must have gone into building this giant stone heap.
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