How come we never talked about this TV show that mentions Track Rock Gap within its first few moments? Seeing them get excited about stone walls is slightly comic for a New England-er but, on the other hand, I don't have a problem with the "Mayans in Georgia" hypothesis.
Four minutes in, we are already looking at rock piles. I never saw them before on TV.
Then mounds at Ocmulgee are spectacular.
In episode 2, in the Mustang Mountains of AZ, at a pass, here is a state archeologist stepping on a rock pile without noticing it.
And here were some underwater rock piles from Wisconsin in Episode 3
Unfortunately the reasoning was such schlock I had to stop watching after that.
I had heard about this and finally watched it too - as much as I could take. It's "Sensationalized Pseudoscience" with an ignorant "Anyone but Indians" prejudice thrown in-except for the Maya in Georgia. Indigenous People are casually dismissed in a sentence or two before trotting in the Phoenicians, Egyptians and Lost Tribes etc. Google Jason Colvito & Scott Wolter for a critique of the show episode by episode...
ReplyDeleteThorton's map of the so called "Mayan constructions" is not the same as the map I commisioned to be made with a Total Station, not even close. The America Unearthed crew rented a helicopter with side scan radar, but you notice they never showed their mao of the area. It too, probably did not correspond with the Thornton map, and therefore, would not fit the narrative of the show. Scott Wolter also said the Forest Service would not let him visit the area, as if to say, "What are they hiding?" It is a public area and anyone can go there. And finally, if there were Mayans, or even their influence in North Georgia, I would be most interested, but I need more evidence.
ReplyDeleteThey skipped showing the data over and over during the show. And, I could not see what Wolter thought was to be proved by matching one map against another.
ReplyDeleteOn the other hand, the supposed number of Mayan words in the local Indian languages might be considered evidence - if it is true. Similarly if the "Mayan Blue" trace analysis is true, it would be good evidence.
Maya Blue was made by mixing indigo, a dark blue dye, with dehydroindigo and palygorskite, a clay mineral. Palygorskite is found at locations in the Yucatan. There was no need for them to travel to Georgia for the clay mineral. Plus, trace elements in the Maya Blue can pinpoint sources of Palygorskite in the Yucatan.
ReplyDeleteAt issue is the trace element data which Wolter showed. He seems untrustworthy, given the other exaggerations and mis-directions, but the question remains open and answerable - one of the few pieces of actual scientific information that is available for testing.
ReplyDeleteOn a separate thread: can you imagine a state archeological official (if he is one, not sure) stepping on a man-made rock pile and not realizing it?
ReplyDeleteNorman: if you are saying the Mayan Blue has already been traced to somewhere in the Yucatan, then you are right.
ReplyDeleteYes it has.
ReplyDeleteFor those interested in a study of palygorskite, here is a link to its use in Maya Blue:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.academia.edu/348146/Sourcing_the_Palygorskite_Used_in_Maya_Blue_A_Pilot_Study_Comparing_the_Results_of_INAA_and_LA-ICP-MS