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[music playing]
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>>We can only see as far
forward as we remember back.
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>>I don't know what the
future's going to be.
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And there may not be a future.
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There may not be one.
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It may all end in disaster
of one kind or another.
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>>The Greek historian
Plato believed
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that there had been many
great civilizations that
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had disappeared in a
variety of catastrophes.
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Today, humanity has
forgotten the past.
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In the human unconscious, there
is an extremely powerful force
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that acts on an
individual, keeping him
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from seeing with clarity
the obvious symptoms
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of his next death.
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Only in the last moments are
the eyes of the soul opened,
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and man understands his
situation and accepts it.
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The landslide of all the empires
and all the human institutions
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is evident as soon as
one studied the past.
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Why do we believe in a
progress without end?
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Everything dies around us.
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High atop a vast plateau
in the wild Carpathian
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Mountains of old
Europe, there is
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an unknown enigmatic sculpture
that strikingly resembles
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the Great Sphinx of Egypt.
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For that reason, he was
named the Carpathian Sphinx.
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Could there be a link
between the Carpathian Sphinx
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and the Great Sphinx of Egypt?
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Could the Carpathian
Sphinx be the result
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of a lost civilization?
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While living in Boston, I go
and I check all the libraries
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sources I can find.
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I'm convinced by
why what I find.
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I decide to leave
the United States.
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And I return to Eastern
Europe, to the homeland
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I left 15 years before.
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The Sphinx was calling me
to unravel its hidden story.
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I had to solve the mystery.
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Could the Carpathian
Mountains and the Sphinx
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have a central
yet forgotten role
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in the history of the world?
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>>I'm probably best
known in certain circles
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for my work on the Sphinx.
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I'm only going to mention
that very briefly, because I
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sort of feel like I have to.
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Because in many ways, it does
set the stage for what we're
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here about at this conference,
conference on procession,
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ancient knowledge, and really
pushing things way back.
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And this work that goes
back almost two decades
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now for myself personally really
set the stage for much of what
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has come later.
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And I'm not claiming
any credit here.
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I'm giving credit to the Sphinx.
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And it's also changed my life.
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Sometimes I think-- usually
I think for the better.
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Sometimes I wonder
what I got myself into.
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So I really started
on the Sphinx work
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when I was very young.
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This is me about 20 years ago.
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And what it really
is indicated doing,
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at least for some
people-- and this
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was part of the controversy,
and part of why we're here now--
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is talking about if you push
the date the Sphinx back,
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does it mean that we have
to view history differently?
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Do we have to rewrite history?
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>>Dr. Robert Schoch, a geologist
from Boston University,
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is an expert in ancient stone.
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He had studied the Egyptian
Sphinx for many decades,
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and he believes that
the Egyptian Sphinx
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is much older than traditionally
believed, dating back
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many thousands of years before
the rise of Egyptian culture.
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>>The head was re-carved
into the human form
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that it takes now.
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Parts of the Sphinx itself,
if you look at to this day,
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it's been heavily repaired.
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Some of those repairs go
back 4,000 and more years,
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because it was a much
more ancient statue.
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Thousands of years earlier,
things were happening in Egypt
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at a much earlier period than
conventional archaeologists,
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conventional historians have
ever admitted or suspected.
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>>Dr. Schoch believes
that the fundamental ideas
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and the great
knowledge of Egyptians
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to be more ancient than the
Egyptian civilization itself.
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Dan Braneanu, a
researcher from Bucharest,
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has spent the last 40 years
investigating what he believes
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is the legacy of a
lost civilization.
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All around the Carpathian
Mountains and the plateau
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where the Sphinx is
located, Dan Braneanu
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sees great evidence of
a lost civilization.
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[speaking foreign language]
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Daniel Ruzo, a
Peruvian archaeologist
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and protohistorian
from Peru, has
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come to believe
that there once had
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been a great worldwide
civilization that had
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been destroyed in a cataclysm.
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This civilization left
marks all over the world,
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in all the continents.
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Ruzo found proof in
England in such monuments
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as the Stonehenge, in
France in Fontainebleau.
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Wherever he looked,
he found proof.
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He became aware that the
civilization was especially
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a mountain
civilization that lived
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on the high peak
of the mountains
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in all the continents.
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In 1954, Ruzo discovered
Marcahuasi, a small plateau
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high atop the Andes
mountains in Peru.
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Marcahuasi, up to this
date, remains a mystery.
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There are faces here of women.
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He called this one the
Monument to Humanity.
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Ruzo believed that the
Monument to Humanity
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was one of the most important
sculptures ever made.
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In 1968, Ruzo came to
the Carpathian Mountains
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in Romania.
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Here, Ruzo found the proof
that he was searching for.
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Everywhere he looked
on the Bucegi Massif
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in the Carpathian
Mountains, he found proof
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of a very ancient culture.
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He believed here was the door to
the treasure of a lost people.
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Ruzo believed that the
treasure is not a material
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one, but a spiritual treasure.
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Ruzo investigated the area
around the Carpathian Sphinx,
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and he found tantalizing proof
of this lost civilization
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here as well.
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"The Carpathian Sphinx
is an ancient monument
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sculpted before the flood,
destroyed in the face,
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and being very corroded
by wind and rain."
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Ruzo concluded that the
Carpathian Sphinx, just as
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the Monument of
Humanity in Marcahuasi,
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was the important
legacy of a lost people.
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When he returned to
Peru, Ruzo published
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a book called "The Fantastic
History of a Discovery."
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And in that book, he wrote
about a trip to Romania.
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He dedicated a chapter to
what he saw in the Carpathian
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Mountains, and he said, "the
Romanian Carpathian Mountains
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were at the center of the oldest
European civilization known
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today."
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His conclusions were made after
he saw the Carpathian Sphinx.
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Ruzo died in 1991 before
he was able to find
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this worldwide
vanished civilization.
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But his work paved the
road for later research.
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Ruzo was confident
that he was right,
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and that one day, someone
will clarify the mystery
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and fill the empty
question marks.
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Who were these vanished people
that left their imprints
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in these monuments?
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"It is in these
sacred mountains where
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people found their
salvation after the flood,
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and where they
will be saved when
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the next catastrophe occurs.
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It is vital today to find
these sacred mountains
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and sacred caves.
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Here we are in front of an
original sculpture, known
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all over the world,
that has not been
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reproduced in historical times.
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Being so used to a
three-dimensional landscape
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starting in Sumerian times,
we had failed until today
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to see the sculptures
considered made by nature."
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"The strangest
apparition on the plateau
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is the Sphinx, a huge rock
with an enigmatic profile
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around which a protohistorical
legend had been formed.
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The legend says that a
sphinx is a statue made
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in times long forgotten by the
people of a lost civilization."
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>>Sort of U shape.
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You can't tell this from down
at the base of the mountains.
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It's really like a
fortress up there.
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>>From a distance, it looks
very abrupt, uninviting,
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with steep rocky areas that
are very hard to climb.
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But the reality of the
mountain is actually
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something different.
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>>Interestingly, once you get up
there, you get the unexpected.
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It opens up into a huge plateau.
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>>The Sphinx is at a central
point on the plateau.
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Going south directly
from the Sphinx,
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there is a group
of enigmatic rocks
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called The Peaks of Longing.
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From here, in direct line to the
north, one can see the Sphinx
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and then the highest
peak called Omu,
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the Peak of the Human Being.
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>>Something that's
very interesting
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looking at the
Sphinx in Romania,
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looking at the plateau,
looking at the surrounding area
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is at high elevation, you have
these incredible structures.
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They can be seen before
from a very great distance.
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00:14:17,157 --> 00:14:20,793
They certainly seem like markers
or signposts, or something that
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might attract ancient peoples.
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00:14:23,897 --> 00:14:26,766
And I think this is something
we have to take very seriously.
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>>Many of the rocks on the
plateau have feminine names.
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This one is called
the Big Old Lady Rock.
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These ones are the old
ladies of Cocora Mountain.
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This is the Mountain
of the Old Lady.
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The Ialomita Valley hides the
mountain called the Goddesses
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00:14:50,223 --> 00:14:52,659
Mountain.
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The highest peak in Bucegi,
facing the north direction,
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the Peak of the Human Being.
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This mountain is called
the Origin or the Beginning
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Mountain.
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The main river flowing
down the valley
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below the Goddesses
Mountain was called Naparis,
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which means "Heavenly One."
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00:15:12,812 --> 00:15:17,017
So the question is,
why are all these women
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names in this mountain,
and the sacred names,
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00:15:21,521 --> 00:15:25,492
such as the Mountain of the
Goddesses and the mountain
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called Human Being?
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00:15:27,961 --> 00:15:32,332
Could there have been here a
religious matriarchal society
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at one point in time?
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Could there have been a very
ancient feminine worship?
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00:15:43,476 --> 00:15:47,147
"The origin of these
names must be discovered
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as the myths as well
as the sculptures
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00:15:50,283 --> 00:15:54,554
are before the
time of the flood."
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The Sphinx has
multiple profiles, best
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seen in the changing light.
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Where do the orbits of
the Sphinx point to?
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Why are there all these figures,
especially the ones looking
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00:16:13,906 --> 00:16:18,745
west towards the setting sun?
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00:16:18,845 --> 00:16:22,515
The profile that resembles
the Egyptian Sphinx
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00:16:22,615 --> 00:16:23,550
is looking north.
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00:16:26,886 --> 00:16:30,623
The profile that resembles
an anthropoid face
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00:16:30,723 --> 00:16:33,326
is looking west.
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00:16:33,426 --> 00:16:37,830
Why does one profile look
towards the north and another
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00:16:37,930 --> 00:16:39,899
towards the west?
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00:16:39,999 --> 00:16:44,137
One to the northern
sky and the other one
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00:16:44,237 --> 00:16:46,206
towards the setting sun?
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00:16:46,306 --> 00:16:47,006
Why?
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00:16:49,742 --> 00:16:51,644
And where is the
door to the treasure?
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Who is this spirited god?
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00:16:57,784 --> 00:17:00,520
Will I ever find out?
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00:17:00,620 --> 00:17:03,723
The enigmatic
faces are only seen
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00:17:03,823 --> 00:17:06,559
from certain points of view.
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00:17:06,659 --> 00:17:11,263
They are best seen with the
changing light, the shadows
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of the moon, and the sun.
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00:17:15,435 --> 00:17:20,373
Will the sun point to
a secret direction?
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00:17:20,473 --> 00:17:23,576
Ruzo believed these
monuments point
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00:17:23,675 --> 00:17:26,479
to the sacred treasure
found in caves.
233
00:17:29,682 --> 00:17:33,052
And what is the mystery
of the gigantic rock
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00:17:33,153 --> 00:17:37,324
resembling very much
a podium, a stage?
235
00:17:37,424 --> 00:17:42,862
Could this place have been used
for some type of performers,
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00:17:42,962 --> 00:17:47,033
from some rituals of
a vanished humanity?
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00:17:47,134 --> 00:17:50,803
A vast crowd could have been
in the valley, looking up
238
00:17:50,903 --> 00:17:56,943
at somebody performing,
singing or dancing on the top.
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00:17:57,043 --> 00:18:00,147
Could this be the
door to the treasure?
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00:18:00,247 --> 00:18:04,884
Could this relate back to
the Sphinx, to the caverns
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00:18:04,984 --> 00:18:07,820
that Daniel Ruzo
was talking about?
242
00:18:07,920 --> 00:18:10,757
Could the spiritual treasure
Daniel Ruzo was talking
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00:18:10,857 --> 00:18:15,662
about be found in these caves?
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00:18:15,762 --> 00:18:19,699
This cave is on the mountain
called Goddesses Mountain.
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00:18:24,003 --> 00:18:27,274
Could there be any
choices here that would
246
00:18:27,374 --> 00:18:29,509
point to a lost civilization?
247
00:18:37,484 --> 00:18:43,423
Daniel Ruzo considered that only
an expert could find this door.
248
00:19:07,647 --> 00:19:11,218
Where do I need to look
to find the answers?
249
00:19:11,318 --> 00:19:14,554
Could this be an ancient
religious center,
250
00:19:14,654 --> 00:19:17,524
as Daniel Ruzo had concluded?
251
00:19:17,624 --> 00:19:19,692
Could there be a
spiritual treasure here?
252
00:19:24,163 --> 00:19:26,132
>>Some people think
the world of long ago
253
00:19:26,233 --> 00:19:28,668
contains a body
of great secrets,
254
00:19:28,768 --> 00:19:31,738
like some treasure trove of
insights that will unlock
255
00:19:31,838 --> 00:19:33,906
the universe's hidden doors.
256
00:19:34,006 --> 00:19:36,576
>>Or new undiscovered
technologies
257
00:19:36,676 --> 00:19:39,246
they will free us
from drudgeries.
258
00:19:39,346 --> 00:19:41,648
I doubt that such is the case.
259
00:19:41,748 --> 00:19:45,017
The gifts of the ancient
world go much deeper.
260
00:19:45,117 --> 00:19:48,087
>>I think when we look for
this lost civilization,
261
00:19:48,187 --> 00:19:50,089
there may have been
lost civilizations,
262
00:19:50,189 --> 00:19:54,427
but they were not
necessarily what we expect
263
00:19:54,527 --> 00:19:56,896
or what many people expect.
264
00:19:56,996 --> 00:19:59,632
That is, they were
not a mirror image
265
00:19:59,732 --> 00:20:01,568
in the past of
what we are today.
266
00:20:04,304 --> 00:20:09,175
>>"They lived around the
mountains and carved into them.
267
00:20:09,276 --> 00:20:12,078
They appreciated
the natural beauty
268
00:20:12,178 --> 00:20:15,114
and had high mental abilities."
269
00:20:15,214 --> 00:20:18,918
Ruzo called them "the guardians
of an ancient wisdom."
270
00:20:19,018 --> 00:20:23,122
"It was a magical work done
by a culture whose science
271
00:20:23,222 --> 00:20:28,227
and understanding of the world
was different from the present.
272
00:20:28,328 --> 00:20:31,898
It was from these people
that we had inherited
273
00:20:31,998 --> 00:20:37,370
all our ancient wisdom,
our sense of religion
274
00:20:37,470 --> 00:20:39,706
and spirituality.
275
00:20:39,806 --> 00:20:47,179
The world we had today was the
legacy of a lost civilization.
276
00:20:47,280 --> 00:20:52,118
All the symbolic systems,
all the legendary characters,
277
00:20:52,218 --> 00:20:54,687
all the myths and
the legends do not
278
00:20:54,787 --> 00:20:57,424
have the name of the author.
279
00:20:57,524 --> 00:21:04,096
We have inherited them
from a vanished humanity."
280
00:21:04,196 --> 00:21:08,801
>>If Daniel Ruzo was right about
an ancient lost civilization,
281
00:21:08,901 --> 00:21:11,771
was this ancient lost
civilization actually
282
00:21:11,871 --> 00:21:14,607
what we would now
call Neanderthals?
283
00:21:14,707 --> 00:21:18,545
So going back tens of thousands
of years into the last ice age.
284
00:21:21,348 --> 00:21:25,017
>>Could the Neanderthals
be the anonymous authors
285
00:21:25,117 --> 00:21:27,854
of our legends and myths?
286
00:21:27,954 --> 00:21:30,122
Of our ancient wisdom?
287
00:21:30,222 --> 00:21:32,792
Could the lost civilization
that Daniel Ruzo
288
00:21:32,892 --> 00:21:35,261
had been searching
for his entire life
289
00:21:35,362 --> 00:21:41,401
without finding be the extinct
Neanderthal civilization?
290
00:21:41,501 --> 00:21:44,537
Is there any valid
evidence to support
291
00:21:44,637 --> 00:21:46,138
such an original hypothesis?
292
00:21:52,144 --> 00:21:55,014
Born in London to
working class parents
293
00:21:55,114 --> 00:21:58,851
and spending most of his
days in England and Wales,
294
00:21:58,951 --> 00:22:01,220
on the surface,
Stan Gooch's life
295
00:22:01,320 --> 00:22:04,457
may not have seemed
particularly exciting.
296
00:22:04,557 --> 00:22:07,460
But it was his remarkable
intellectual journey
297
00:22:07,560 --> 00:22:09,896
that distinguished
him as a person
298
00:22:09,996 --> 00:22:12,599
and where his legacy lies.
299
00:22:12,699 --> 00:22:14,867
In relative
isolation, Stan Gooch
300
00:22:14,967 --> 00:22:19,806
studied the elements of human
evolution and the human psyche,
301
00:22:19,906 --> 00:22:22,208
and he came to an
astonishing conclusion.
302
00:22:34,353 --> 00:22:36,322
>>We are a hybrid species.
303
00:22:36,423 --> 00:22:39,291
We are a cross-breed between
two very different types
304
00:22:39,392 --> 00:22:42,995
of early man, Neanderthal
and Cro-Magnon.
305
00:22:43,095 --> 00:22:46,433
>>Gooch authored many books,
including "Total Man,"
306
00:22:46,533 --> 00:22:51,003
"Personality and Evolution,"
"The Neanderthal Question,"
307
00:22:51,103 --> 00:22:53,640
"Guardians of the
Ancient Wisdom,"
308
00:22:53,740 --> 00:22:56,909
and "The Double
Helix of the Mind."
309
00:22:57,009 --> 00:23:00,580
However, Gooch never
gained a popular audience,
310
00:23:00,680 --> 00:23:04,116
critical acclaim, or
monetary remuneration
311
00:23:04,216 --> 00:23:06,419
that he had hoped for.
312
00:23:06,519 --> 00:23:10,222
Indeed, Gooch became convinced
that the establishment
313
00:23:10,322 --> 00:23:14,627
was deliberately ignoring him.
314
00:23:14,727 --> 00:23:17,564
By the late 1980s,
he had all but
315
00:23:17,664 --> 00:23:19,966
given up his
studies and writing,
316
00:23:20,066 --> 00:23:23,703
and went almost into
total seclusion.
317
00:23:23,803 --> 00:23:27,039
In the end, Gooch did
entertain the thought
318
00:23:27,139 --> 00:23:31,043
that perhaps after his
death, his contributions
319
00:23:31,143 --> 00:23:32,278
might be widely acknowledged.
320
00:23:35,815 --> 00:23:39,018
Gooch was convinced
that the Neanderthals
321
00:23:39,118 --> 00:23:42,555
had been underestimated.
322
00:23:42,655 --> 00:23:46,225
>>For Stan Gooch, Neanderthals
were their own species.
323
00:23:46,325 --> 00:23:47,794
They had their own culture.
324
00:23:47,894 --> 00:23:50,697
They had their own
civilization even.
325
00:23:50,797 --> 00:23:54,133
He used terms like
cities of dreams,
326
00:23:54,233 --> 00:23:56,769
that they built
cities of dreams.
327
00:23:56,869 --> 00:23:58,738
They had a dream culture.
328
00:23:58,838 --> 00:24:03,009
They had an advanced,
sophisticated culture.
329
00:24:03,109 --> 00:24:06,312
>>Gooch believed that the
ancient moon worship was
330
00:24:06,412 --> 00:24:09,549
possessed by the Neanderthals.
331
00:24:09,649 --> 00:24:12,051
>>Neanderthal was,
in fact, nocturnal,
332
00:24:12,151 --> 00:24:17,089
or at least semi-nocturnal
and worshipped the moon,
333
00:24:17,189 --> 00:24:19,926
whereas Cro-Magnon was a
daylight creature, a hunter
334
00:24:20,026 --> 00:24:24,497
and whatever, and
worshipped the sun.
335
00:24:24,597 --> 00:24:26,733
>>The Neanderthals
lived in Europe
336
00:24:26,833 --> 00:24:30,503
during the ice age for
at least 100,000 years.
337
00:24:30,603 --> 00:24:33,205
Neanderthals' range
included all of Europe
338
00:24:33,305 --> 00:24:36,576
and parts of Asia, the
Middle East, and the Levant.
339
00:24:41,147 --> 00:24:44,416
During the time of the
Neanderthals in the Carpathian
340
00:24:44,517 --> 00:24:47,186
Mountains, there was
a high population
341
00:24:47,286 --> 00:24:53,826
of cave bears, one of the
biggest populations in Europe.
342
00:24:53,926 --> 00:24:55,595
There is still a
puzzling mystery
343
00:24:55,695 --> 00:24:59,098
why Neanderthals went
extinct, but a number
344
00:24:59,198 --> 00:25:03,369
a possible scenarios have
been proposed by scientists,
345
00:25:03,469 --> 00:25:06,706
ranging from natural
disasters, massive earthquakes,
346
00:25:06,806 --> 00:25:08,708
and catastrophic
volcanic eruptions
347
00:25:08,808 --> 00:25:12,144
in Europe, but also
human diseases.
348
00:25:12,244 --> 00:25:14,981
It is clear if the
Cro-Magnon massively
349
00:25:15,081 --> 00:25:17,249
eliminated Neanderthal
on purpose,
350
00:25:17,349 --> 00:25:20,352
or if they were already doomed.
351
00:25:20,452 --> 00:25:24,456
Contrary to popular belief,
many Neanderthal populations
352
00:25:24,557 --> 00:25:31,030
in Europe had light skin,
green eyes, and red hair.
353
00:25:31,130 --> 00:25:34,033
>>Typically, people had
the concept of Neanderthals
354
00:25:34,133 --> 00:25:39,572
as being dark, brutish,
ape-like, if you would,
355
00:25:39,672 --> 00:25:42,308
and the Cro-Magnons,
our ancestors,
356
00:25:42,408 --> 00:25:46,545
were the light-skinned,
fair-haired individuals.
357
00:25:46,646 --> 00:25:49,381
May be totally opposite.
358
00:25:49,481 --> 00:25:52,952
That in fact, the early
archaic Homo sapiens
359
00:25:53,052 --> 00:25:55,755
were much darker
than the Neanderthals
360
00:25:55,855 --> 00:25:59,025
that they came in
contact with in Europe.
361
00:25:59,125 --> 00:26:03,696
Gooch predicted this long ago.
362
00:26:03,796 --> 00:26:07,266
>>Neanderthals were much
stronger than modern humans.
363
00:26:07,366 --> 00:26:09,669
The body type of a
Neanderthal can easily
364
00:26:09,769 --> 00:26:13,773
be compared to that of a modern
wrestler or body builder.
365
00:26:13,873 --> 00:26:17,476
They were not delicate, nor what
we would consider beautiful.
366
00:26:17,576 --> 00:26:20,747
But surprisingly, Neanderthals
were highly emotional
367
00:26:20,847 --> 00:26:23,215
and a very sensitive bunch.
368
00:26:23,315 --> 00:26:25,718
There is strong evidence
from their anatomy
369
00:26:25,818 --> 00:26:29,722
suggesting they had a very
well-developed vocal apparatus.
370
00:26:29,822 --> 00:26:34,727
Powerful voices, perfect pitch,
and a more sensitive inner ear
371
00:26:34,827 --> 00:26:37,596
than the one of
the modern human.
372
00:26:37,697 --> 00:26:41,200
Steve Mithen, an
archaeologist from the UK,
373
00:26:41,300 --> 00:26:44,303
thinks Neanderthals were
the most musically developed
374
00:26:44,403 --> 00:26:47,506
human species that ever lived.
375
00:26:47,606 --> 00:26:51,043
They were musically
inclined, amazing singers,
376
00:26:51,143 --> 00:26:54,947
and they were great performers.
377
00:26:55,047 --> 00:26:58,617
"The Neanderthals were
a nocturnal species,
378
00:26:58,718 --> 00:27:00,552
and they worshipped the moon.
379
00:27:00,653 --> 00:27:04,290
They came out at the night
and performed ceremonies
380
00:27:04,390 --> 00:27:09,796
for the moon goddess, especially
at full moon or new moon.
381
00:27:09,896 --> 00:27:12,899
Anatomical evidence for
a nocturnal lifestyle
382
00:27:12,999 --> 00:27:16,736
rests on the Neanderthals'
very large, round eye sockets,
383
00:27:16,836 --> 00:27:19,471
and very large ear apertures.
384
00:27:19,571 --> 00:27:23,375
Large eyes in particular
are the special hallmark
385
00:27:23,475 --> 00:27:25,411
of a nocturnal creature.
386
00:27:25,511 --> 00:27:31,217
The Neanderthals learned how
to not fear the darkness.
387
00:27:31,317 --> 00:27:35,955
And in the process, they fell
in love with the night sky.
388
00:27:36,055 --> 00:27:38,825
The Neanderthals worshiped
the northern sky.
389
00:27:38,925 --> 00:27:42,428
They considered that the
still center of the heavens
390
00:27:42,528 --> 00:27:44,296
was in the north.
391
00:27:44,396 --> 00:27:47,433
They worshipped the
northern constellations,
392
00:27:47,533 --> 00:27:50,970
the constellation of the
little bear and the big bear."
393
00:27:51,070 --> 00:27:54,173
According to Stan Gooch,
the cave bear ritual
394
00:27:54,273 --> 00:27:57,543
of the Neanderthals
is the oldest ritual
395
00:27:57,643 --> 00:28:01,047
in the world performed
by a human species.
396
00:28:01,147 --> 00:28:03,449
"The Neanderthal may have
been far more intelligent
397
00:28:03,549 --> 00:28:05,818
than we recognize.
398
00:28:05,918 --> 00:28:08,587
Neanderthal man appeared to
know far more about the stars,
399
00:28:08,687 --> 00:28:11,623
for example, than
one would suppose.
400
00:28:11,724 --> 00:28:13,559
I mean, our general
picture of Neanderthal
401
00:28:13,659 --> 00:28:15,561
is obviously of a shambly ape.
402
00:28:15,661 --> 00:28:18,931
And Stan argued that, in fact,
he knew an enormous amount
403
00:28:19,031 --> 00:28:21,133
about the heavens, and
also about procession
404
00:28:21,233 --> 00:28:29,208
of the equinoxes, and about
all kinds of other things."
405
00:28:29,308 --> 00:28:33,980
Symbolic behavior was central
to the Neanderthal culture.
406
00:28:34,080 --> 00:28:38,017
Neanderthals made advanced
stone tools, cook their meals,
407
00:28:38,117 --> 00:28:39,952
and ate vegetables.
408
00:28:40,052 --> 00:28:42,922
They wore jewelry
and body painting,
409
00:28:43,022 --> 00:28:45,391
had their own language
system, and lived
410
00:28:45,491 --> 00:28:48,627
in complex social groups.
411
00:28:48,727 --> 00:28:52,264
They collected and preserved
crystals and minerals,
412
00:28:52,364 --> 00:28:55,902
and probably made figurines.
413
00:28:56,002 --> 00:28:58,237
In Stan Gooch's
view, Neanderthals
414
00:28:58,337 --> 00:29:03,075
were culturally advanced people,
highly civilized in spirit
415
00:29:03,175 --> 00:29:08,680
with a deep sense of religion
and practiced herbal medicine.
416
00:29:08,781 --> 00:29:12,518
"The Neanderthal society
was fully ruled by women.
417
00:29:12,618 --> 00:29:15,888
They were the
ultimate authority.
418
00:29:15,988 --> 00:29:18,991
The night and moon
ceremonies of Neanderthal
419
00:29:19,091 --> 00:29:22,028
were presided over
by priestesses."
420
00:29:22,128 --> 00:29:25,164
>>We've got the sun, the
positive, and the moon,
421
00:29:25,264 --> 00:29:28,067
the negative, or whatever
you want to call them.
422
00:29:28,167 --> 00:29:29,802
It's incredible, really.
423
00:29:29,902 --> 00:29:32,004
And that's why the
moon and the sun
424
00:29:32,104 --> 00:29:36,208
fascinate us so much, because
they reflect, as it were,
425
00:29:36,308 --> 00:29:39,111
literally, our own duality.
426
00:29:39,211 --> 00:29:42,781
>>"The Neanderthal society
was peaceful, compassionate,
427
00:29:42,882 --> 00:29:45,684
and loving to one another.
428
00:29:45,784 --> 00:29:50,857
Central to their life was
religion and magical practices.
429
00:29:50,957 --> 00:29:55,461
Neanderthals were what we
would call today magicians,
430
00:29:55,561 --> 00:29:58,664
also shamans, and also wizards.
431
00:30:02,468 --> 00:30:08,074
Cro-Magnon's life was rooted in
the concept of male ownership.
432
00:30:08,174 --> 00:30:12,744
This was a society
fully ruled by man.
433
00:30:12,845 --> 00:30:15,948
It was a society who
worshipped the sun
434
00:30:16,048 --> 00:30:17,249
and lived for daylight."
435
00:30:17,349 --> 00:30:19,118
>>They were about
hunting and producing
436
00:30:19,218 --> 00:30:20,586
weapons, things like that.
437
00:30:20,686 --> 00:30:22,989
Cro-Magnon was
certainly superior.
438
00:30:23,089 --> 00:30:26,893
But if you're talking
about knowledge of herbs,
439
00:30:26,993 --> 00:30:28,627
then I would say
Neanderthal was superior.
440
00:30:28,727 --> 00:30:30,963
It depends on what
you're talking about.
441
00:30:31,063 --> 00:30:34,400
>>He was interested in
things like brain structure.
442
00:30:34,500 --> 00:30:38,237
He pointed out rightfully
that Neanderthals on average
443
00:30:38,337 --> 00:30:41,373
had larger brains
than modern humans.
444
00:30:41,473 --> 00:30:45,311
But these larger brains
were differently arranged,
445
00:30:45,411 --> 00:30:49,048
differently proportioned
than our modern humans.
446
00:30:49,148 --> 00:30:54,386
So for instance, a very
important point of Gooch,
447
00:30:54,486 --> 00:30:58,024
one that he makes over and
over in his writings and books,
448
00:30:58,124 --> 00:31:04,230
is that Neanderthal brains
had larger cerebellums.
449
00:31:04,330 --> 00:31:09,001
The brain of humans, be it
Neanderthal or modern humans,
450
00:31:09,101 --> 00:31:13,172
is composed of a cerebrum
and a cerebellum.
451
00:31:13,272 --> 00:31:14,873
The cerebellum is
sometimes referred to
452
00:31:14,974 --> 00:31:18,544
as the smaller brain,
the lesser brain.
453
00:31:18,644 --> 00:31:20,346
It's essentially,
one could argue,
454
00:31:20,446 --> 00:31:28,120
a separate brain housed inside
and underneath, anatomically,
455
00:31:28,220 --> 00:31:29,388
the rest of the brain.
456
00:31:29,488 --> 00:31:33,059
Gooch points out that
the cerebellum was larger
457
00:31:33,159 --> 00:31:34,426
in Neanderthals.
458
00:31:34,526 --> 00:31:37,563
He attributes, and I believe
perhaps rightfully so,
459
00:31:37,663 --> 00:31:41,567
based on clinical evidence,
that the cerebellum is really
460
00:31:41,667 --> 00:31:45,737
the seat of many
mental abilities,
461
00:31:45,837 --> 00:31:49,275
many mental processes
that we to this day
462
00:31:49,375 --> 00:31:51,910
have a very poor
understanding of.
463
00:31:52,011 --> 00:31:56,682
So for instance, dreams
may originate primarily
464
00:31:56,782 --> 00:31:57,483
in the cerebellum.
465
00:32:00,452 --> 00:32:03,189
Certain types of
artistic impulses,
466
00:32:03,289 --> 00:32:08,127
religious impulses,
impulses of the sacred,
467
00:32:08,227 --> 00:32:11,163
certain, we could call
it loosely philosophical
468
00:32:11,263 --> 00:32:12,498
and cyclical impulses.
469
00:32:15,367 --> 00:32:19,405
>>My view is that
Neanderthal and Cro-Magnon
470
00:32:19,505 --> 00:32:24,710
cross-bred in central
Europe some 30,000,
471
00:32:24,810 --> 00:32:28,247
35,000, 40,000 years ago.
472
00:32:28,347 --> 00:32:32,351
>>When Neanderthal and
Cro-Magnon interbred,
473
00:32:32,451 --> 00:32:37,756
Stan Gooch believes each side
made a unique contribution.
474
00:32:37,856 --> 00:32:42,528
At one level, this was a
cultural cross-fertilization.
475
00:32:42,628 --> 00:32:47,766
But at a deeper level, it
was a genetic encounter.
476
00:32:47,866 --> 00:32:51,937
Neanderthal contributed
our religious genes,
477
00:32:52,038 --> 00:32:56,242
while Cro-Magnon contributed
our scientific endowment.
478
00:32:59,145 --> 00:33:01,713
A project to sequence
the Neanderthal genome
479
00:33:01,813 --> 00:33:06,285
took off in 2006 with
the participation
480
00:33:06,385 --> 00:33:09,755
of the Planck Institute
in Zurich, Switzerland,
481
00:33:09,855 --> 00:33:13,825
and the Broad Institute of
Harvard and MIT in Boston.
482
00:33:13,925 --> 00:33:19,631
In May 2010, the genome project
revealed shocking results.
483
00:33:19,731 --> 00:33:22,901
Interbreeding between
Neanderthal and Cro-Magnon
484
00:33:23,001 --> 00:33:28,174
took place, resulting
from 1% to 4%
485
00:33:28,274 --> 00:33:32,344
of the current European
and Asian populations
486
00:33:32,444 --> 00:33:36,282
having Neanderthal genes.
487
00:33:36,382 --> 00:33:39,551
>>"You have these two cultures
meeting, very different world
488
00:33:39,651 --> 00:33:40,352
views.
489
00:33:40,452 --> 00:33:43,622
Essentially a duality.
490
00:33:43,722 --> 00:33:46,058
The scientific on the
one hand, the religious
491
00:33:46,158 --> 00:33:48,026
on the other hand.
492
00:33:48,127 --> 00:33:52,631
I can imagine the Cro-Magnons
studying the Neanderthals,
493
00:33:52,731 --> 00:33:56,235
perhaps surreptitiously at
first, trying to understand,"
494
00:33:56,335 --> 00:33:59,004
well, what are these
weird people doing?
495
00:33:59,105 --> 00:34:01,307
What is all this about?
496
00:34:01,407 --> 00:34:05,677
What are these strange
rituals and practices,
497
00:34:05,777 --> 00:34:09,880
these ceremonies, this
dancing, this singing
498
00:34:09,981 --> 00:34:11,016
that they were observing?
499
00:34:11,117 --> 00:34:12,751
What this is all about?
500
00:34:12,851 --> 00:34:14,686
Cro-Magnons could
not necessarily
501
00:34:14,786 --> 00:34:16,855
understand what was going on.
502
00:34:16,955 --> 00:34:21,193
They tried to figure
out what was going on,
503
00:34:21,293 --> 00:34:23,228
but it was very alien to them.
504
00:34:23,329 --> 00:34:26,197
>>Cro-Magnon and Neanderthal
did not interbreed peacefully,
505
00:34:26,297 --> 00:34:27,966
in my opinion.
506
00:34:28,065 --> 00:34:31,603
Basically, it was Cro-Magnon
raping Neanderthal woman.
507
00:34:31,703 --> 00:34:32,971
That's how we arose.
508
00:34:33,071 --> 00:34:36,375
And that's why it says in
the Old Testament, when
509
00:34:36,475 --> 00:34:39,710
the sons of God came into
the daughters of men,
510
00:34:39,811 --> 00:34:41,580
these were the
mighty men of old.
511
00:34:41,679 --> 00:34:44,516
Their offspring were
the mighty men of old.
512
00:34:44,616 --> 00:34:47,485
Sons of God, Cro-Magnon, male.
513
00:34:47,585 --> 00:34:52,924
Daughters of men were
her, female, Neanderthal.
514
00:34:53,024 --> 00:34:56,094
It was Cro-Magnon raping
Neanderthal woman,
515
00:34:56,195 --> 00:34:59,498
in my opinion, that produced us.
516
00:34:59,598 --> 00:35:03,735
>>Our culture, our
religious impulses,
517
00:35:03,835 --> 00:35:07,706
many of our
institutions, societal
518
00:35:07,806 --> 00:35:09,908
institutions are
really a combination
519
00:35:10,008 --> 00:35:15,314
of both Neanderthal institutions
or religious aspects, if you
520
00:35:15,414 --> 00:35:19,050
want to call it that,
and Cro-Magnons,
521
00:35:19,151 --> 00:35:23,955
that the Cro-Magnons really
adopted or inherited,
522
00:35:24,055 --> 00:35:29,361
or actually took over
many Neanderthal concepts,
523
00:35:29,461 --> 00:35:32,898
many Neanderthal
mental innovations.
524
00:35:32,998 --> 00:35:39,137
For instance, maybe symbolism,
religious ceremonies.
525
00:35:39,238 --> 00:35:42,474
Many of what, in a
most deep-seated way,
526
00:35:42,574 --> 00:35:46,945
make up our culture, make up
our identity as we see it today.
527
00:35:47,045 --> 00:35:51,116
>>A lot of our culture and
our beliefs and our disbeliefs
528
00:35:51,217 --> 00:35:52,418
come from Neanderthal.
529
00:35:52,518 --> 00:35:56,988
So we've incorporated much
of the Neanderthal material
530
00:35:57,088 --> 00:35:59,191
into our lives.
531
00:35:59,291 --> 00:36:03,529
Now in particular-- I'm
picking on this in particular--
532
00:36:03,629 --> 00:36:07,299
I maintain that the story of
Christ and the Resurrection,
533
00:36:07,399 --> 00:36:11,503
all of it, is simply a distorted
version of the ancient moon
534
00:36:11,603 --> 00:36:12,871
religion.
535
00:36:12,971 --> 00:36:14,105
Crucified on the cross.
536
00:36:14,206 --> 00:36:15,707
The cross is the
symbol for the moon
537
00:36:15,807 --> 00:36:18,377
in all pre-Christian
cultures worldwide.
538
00:36:18,477 --> 00:36:21,480
He's crucified on a Friday,
which is Friars Day.
539
00:36:21,580 --> 00:36:23,014
She's the moon goddess.
540
00:36:23,114 --> 00:36:26,452
He's resurrected on Monday,
which is my Moon Day.
541
00:36:26,552 --> 00:36:30,155
And he's resurrected three
days later, then he dies.
542
00:36:30,256 --> 00:36:34,192
Now three is important for
several reasons in the moon
543
00:36:34,293 --> 00:36:35,461
culture.
544
00:36:35,561 --> 00:36:39,831
One, the moon has three
colors, white, red, and black.
545
00:36:39,931 --> 00:36:42,301
So the moon has three colors.
546
00:36:42,401 --> 00:36:43,935
And what's more
important than that?
547
00:36:44,035 --> 00:36:45,271
Oh, yeah.
548
00:36:45,371 --> 00:36:47,873
The other thing, of course,
is that earth, moon, and sun
549
00:36:47,973 --> 00:36:51,977
are considered to be
mother, father, child.
550
00:36:52,077 --> 00:36:57,048
And the earth is the child,
the daughter of the sun
551
00:36:57,148 --> 00:36:58,216
and the moon.
552
00:36:58,317 --> 00:37:00,218
That was part of
the moon religion.
553
00:37:00,319 --> 00:37:03,522
So the three is important
for several reasons.
554
00:37:03,622 --> 00:37:08,327
Christ is said to be born
of the 25th of December.
555
00:37:08,427 --> 00:37:10,829
Now that's three
days-- did you say
556
00:37:10,929 --> 00:37:14,566
three-- three days after the
shortest day when the sun is
557
00:37:14,666 --> 00:37:17,936
reborn every year after
the moon sacrifices him
558
00:37:18,036 --> 00:37:19,204
on the shortest day.
559
00:37:19,305 --> 00:37:21,740
She sacrifices him,
and then resurrects him
560
00:37:21,840 --> 00:37:23,041
so that life can continue.
561
00:37:25,877 --> 00:37:27,979
>>Could the story
of Jesus Christ
562
00:37:28,079 --> 00:37:34,320
be based upon a far older
story of Neanderthal rituals?
563
00:37:34,420 --> 00:37:37,022
Could our most cherished
religious beliefs
564
00:37:37,122 --> 00:37:41,527
originate with the Neanderthals,
such as the concepts
565
00:37:41,627 --> 00:37:44,930
we have of immortality
and resurrection?
566
00:37:45,030 --> 00:37:48,900
Could the Bible be an
actual historical source
567
00:37:49,000 --> 00:37:53,739
that had preserved some of the
Neanderthal fundamental wisdom,
568
00:37:53,839 --> 00:37:57,242
preserving it for
us in a veiled form?
569
00:38:05,250 --> 00:38:09,788
Ralph Solecki, an archaeologist
who worked at the Smithsonian
570
00:38:09,888 --> 00:38:15,060
Institution, went to do an
excavation in northern Iraq
571
00:38:15,160 --> 00:38:19,097
in a cave called Shanidar.
572
00:38:19,197 --> 00:38:21,800
What he discovered he
published in a book
573
00:38:21,900 --> 00:38:24,836
called "Shanidar: The
First Flower People."
574
00:38:24,936 --> 00:38:28,374
In the cave of Shanidar,
Solecki discovered
575
00:38:28,474 --> 00:38:34,780
nine Neanderthal skeletons, the
most ever found in one cave.
576
00:38:34,880 --> 00:38:38,817
During the excavations that
took many years to uncover,
577
00:38:38,917 --> 00:38:42,821
Solecki discovered
something extraordinary
578
00:38:42,921 --> 00:38:46,992
that changed completely the
perception of Neanderthal up
579
00:38:47,092 --> 00:38:48,527
to that point.
580
00:38:48,627 --> 00:38:51,563
This was 1971.
581
00:38:51,663 --> 00:38:56,067
What he discovered was
a burial with flowers.
582
00:38:56,167 --> 00:38:58,504
The Neanderthals had
buried their dead
583
00:38:58,604 --> 00:39:03,775
with seasonal flowers that
also had medicinal purposes.
584
00:39:03,875 --> 00:39:06,778
This was quite
shocking to discover,
585
00:39:06,878 --> 00:39:10,248
the compassion of these
people and the fact
586
00:39:10,348 --> 00:39:13,118
that they believe
in an afterlife.
587
00:39:13,218 --> 00:39:16,422
The flowers found
in the Shanidar cave
588
00:39:16,522 --> 00:39:19,357
are found in Bucegi.
589
00:39:19,458 --> 00:39:23,429
It was a spring burial
with flowers that
590
00:39:23,529 --> 00:39:27,466
were white, violet, and yellow.
591
00:39:27,566 --> 00:39:31,737
In his excavations, Solecki
discovered other things
592
00:39:31,837 --> 00:39:36,274
that changed our
perception of Neanderthal.
593
00:39:36,374 --> 00:39:42,013
He discovered the skeletons
of handicapped and old people,
594
00:39:42,113 --> 00:39:44,683
so it meant that
the Neanderthal had
595
00:39:44,783 --> 00:39:48,386
to take care of their
sick and their old.
596
00:39:48,487 --> 00:39:50,889
Isn't that such a human touch?
597
00:39:50,989 --> 00:39:55,694
Solecki called the
Neanderthals people
598
00:39:55,794 --> 00:39:58,630
with such good characters.
599
00:39:58,730 --> 00:40:04,870
We should be proud to have
them as our ancestors.
600
00:40:04,970 --> 00:40:07,673
This is a far cry from
the view of Neanderthal
601
00:40:07,773 --> 00:40:10,609
held for most of this
century, that they were
602
00:40:10,709 --> 00:40:13,344
a brutal subspecies of humans.
603
00:40:13,445 --> 00:40:16,047
In light of recent
evidence, Neanderthal
604
00:40:16,147 --> 00:40:19,317
emerges shockingly
close to a modern human,
605
00:40:19,417 --> 00:40:22,888
a sensitive, highly
intelligent creature
606
00:40:22,988 --> 00:40:25,957
with a well-developed culture
and a well-developed sense
607
00:40:26,057 --> 00:40:26,758
of self.
608
00:40:30,295 --> 00:40:34,065
Like any good scientific
theory, Gooch's ideas
609
00:40:34,165 --> 00:40:36,702
are subject to testing
and further exploration.
610
00:40:44,342 --> 00:40:47,679
Two hours walking
distance from the Sphinx,
611
00:40:47,779 --> 00:40:51,517
there is a cave
called the Bear Cave,
612
00:40:51,617 --> 00:40:56,187
because a lot of cave bear
remains had been found here,
613
00:40:56,287 --> 00:41:02,227
as well as Neanderthal tools
and two Neanderthal hearths.
614
00:41:02,327 --> 00:41:08,133
It is possible, I believe,
that the Neanderthals used
615
00:41:08,233 --> 00:41:11,469
this cave not only
for living, but they
616
00:41:11,570 --> 00:41:12,971
used it to perform rituals.
617
00:41:18,309 --> 00:41:22,147
Daniel Ruzo considered
that everywhere else
618
00:41:22,247 --> 00:41:25,316
in the world, the legends
and the sculptures
619
00:41:25,416 --> 00:41:27,352
had been forgotten.
620
00:41:27,452 --> 00:41:31,289
But here in the Carpathian
Mountains of Romania,
621
00:41:31,389 --> 00:41:33,925
the legends keep
alive the memory.
622
00:41:37,295 --> 00:41:41,166
A legend called the Ialomita
Cave, collected by the Romanian
623
00:41:41,266 --> 00:41:47,372
Queen Elizabeth, talks about an
old magician, an old wizard who
624
00:41:47,472 --> 00:41:51,142
was isolated here, who
lived in seclusion,
625
00:41:51,242 --> 00:41:53,579
and who practiced
herbal medicine,
626
00:41:53,679 --> 00:41:56,548
and who was very,
very knowledgeable.
627
00:41:56,648 --> 00:42:00,451
Another legend talks
about Zalmoxis.
628
00:42:00,552 --> 00:42:01,820
>>The cult of Zalmoxis.
629
00:42:01,920 --> 00:42:05,791
This was recorded by the ancient
Greek historian Herodotus,
630
00:42:05,891 --> 00:42:09,961
but clearly goes back to
much more ancient times.
631
00:42:10,061 --> 00:42:14,900
I suspect it actually goes
back to Neanderthal times.
632
00:42:15,000 --> 00:42:20,739
>>And when he emerged, he was
designated "God of Immortality
633
00:42:20,839 --> 00:42:26,377
and of the Night."
634
00:42:26,477 --> 00:42:30,415
>>It was clearly a cult that
believed in immortality,
635
00:42:30,515 --> 00:42:33,384
that there was something
beyond physical death.
636
00:42:33,484 --> 00:42:36,221
There was something beyond
the material existence.
637
00:42:36,321 --> 00:42:37,789
There was something
that we might
638
00:42:37,889 --> 00:42:41,559
call a soul that would
continue, that would survive.
639
00:42:41,660 --> 00:42:44,663
This is actually not a belief
that the ancient Greeks,
640
00:42:44,763 --> 00:42:48,333
for instance, had, but it
seems to have been a belief
641
00:42:48,433 --> 00:42:50,101
that the Neanderthals had.
642
00:43:39,417 --> 00:43:42,654
>>The Bats Cave has not
been properly excavated
643
00:43:42,754 --> 00:43:47,558
since the 1950s when Neanderthal
remains had been found here.
644
00:44:04,342 --> 00:44:06,577
The evidence in the
Carpathian Mountains
645
00:44:06,678 --> 00:44:09,147
shows that a
Neanderthal cave bear
646
00:44:09,247 --> 00:44:14,585
ritual is 75,000 years old,
the oldest in the world.
647
00:44:24,395 --> 00:44:29,835
>>It's important, in my mind,
to carry out new excavations,
648
00:44:29,935 --> 00:44:32,838
not looking for just
the same old, same old,
649
00:44:32,938 --> 00:44:35,841
but also looking for new
evidence with a new view,
650
00:44:35,941 --> 00:44:37,642
with a new frame of mind.
651
00:44:55,861 --> 00:44:58,296
No flowers have
been found yet with
652
00:44:58,396 --> 00:45:01,066
any other prehistoric burials.
653
00:45:01,166 --> 00:45:05,503
We offer the suggestion
here that up to this time,
654
00:45:05,603 --> 00:45:07,438
no one has looked
for the evidence.
655
00:45:10,275 --> 00:45:15,013
>>In early August, I returned
to Bucharest to welcome a very
656
00:45:15,113 --> 00:45:15,847
special guest.
657
00:45:28,726 --> 00:45:33,631
[music playing]
658
00:45:47,212 --> 00:45:48,113
>>Yeah, we do.
659
00:45:48,213 --> 00:45:49,414
>>[inaudible]
660
00:45:49,514 --> 00:45:52,583
>>Yeah. [inaudible] where
they were excavating before.
661
00:45:52,683 --> 00:45:53,785
>>Yes, exactly.
662
00:45:53,885 --> 00:45:54,585
>>[inaudible]
663
00:45:54,685 --> 00:45:56,087
>>Very important, yes.
664
00:46:13,271 --> 00:46:18,776
>>Even looking today, I found--
for instance, here's a tooth.
665
00:46:18,877 --> 00:46:19,577
>>Oh, wow.
666
00:46:19,677 --> 00:46:22,547
>>The remains of a tooth.
667
00:46:22,647 --> 00:46:24,115
It looks to me like a--
668
00:46:24,215 --> 00:46:25,050
>>Pretty big.
669
00:46:25,150 --> 00:46:26,351
>>Pretty big.
670
00:46:26,451 --> 00:46:28,386
A bear, ancient bear.
671
00:46:28,486 --> 00:46:29,587
You can see the root.
672
00:46:29,687 --> 00:46:30,655
You can see the crown.
673
00:46:30,755 --> 00:46:35,460
It looks to me
like a molar tooth.
674
00:46:35,560 --> 00:46:38,563
But to just come in here, just
be looking for a few minutes,
675
00:46:38,663 --> 00:46:41,232
and to find it right
on the surface.
676
00:46:41,332 --> 00:46:45,270
>>Also, there's not
only one type of ritual
677
00:46:45,370 --> 00:46:48,273
that they found with cave bears.
678
00:46:48,373 --> 00:46:51,376
That there were
different formations,
679
00:46:51,476 --> 00:46:53,411
different arrangements.
680
00:46:53,511 --> 00:46:57,582
So that implies
complexity of thinking.
681
00:46:57,682 --> 00:47:00,251
>>Exactly.
682
00:47:00,351 --> 00:47:03,989
Different rituals, maybe, for
different specific things.
683
00:47:04,089 --> 00:47:05,857
So there are
variations on a theme.
684
00:47:05,957 --> 00:47:07,258
So there's a continuity.
685
00:47:07,358 --> 00:47:08,894
There's a connection.
686
00:47:08,994 --> 00:47:11,596
But there's also the variations.
687
00:47:11,696 --> 00:47:13,464
So it shows a real complexity.
688
00:47:13,564 --> 00:47:16,801
So here you have a
connection, I think,
689
00:47:16,902 --> 00:47:18,203
at least anthropomorphic.
690
00:47:18,303 --> 00:47:23,274
A human connection between
caves on the one hand
691
00:47:23,374 --> 00:47:26,311
and stone sculptures
on the other hand.
692
00:47:26,411 --> 00:47:29,347
I find this absolutely amazing.
693
00:47:29,447 --> 00:47:32,017
Everyone looks at one
side of the Sphinx
694
00:47:32,117 --> 00:47:33,284
and sees a face there.
695
00:47:33,384 --> 00:47:34,886
It looks like a modern face.
696
00:47:34,986 --> 00:47:39,157
But if we walk around to the
other side, look what we have.
697
00:47:39,257 --> 00:47:40,225
This is a face.
698
00:47:40,325 --> 00:47:42,827
>>We have an anthropoid
looking face.
699
00:47:42,928 --> 00:47:44,062
>>Exactly.
700
00:47:44,162 --> 00:47:46,231
But it looks like a Neanderthal.
701
00:47:46,331 --> 00:47:52,837
A Neanderthal face with a
big eye socket, low forehead.
702
00:47:52,938 --> 00:47:55,440
You can see the mouth
and the nose here.
703
00:47:55,540 --> 00:47:59,244
And notice-- and I think this is
very telling, very important--
704
00:47:59,344 --> 00:48:00,912
the way it's facing.
705
00:48:01,012 --> 00:48:04,482
This face is looking
toward the west.
706
00:48:04,582 --> 00:48:05,984
And we're here in the evening.
707
00:48:06,084 --> 00:48:07,318
The sun is setting.
708
00:48:07,418 --> 00:48:09,854
Look how the sun is lined up.
709
00:48:09,955 --> 00:48:11,422
>>Direct line to the eye.
710
00:48:11,522 --> 00:48:13,124
>>Direct line to the eye.
711
00:48:13,224 --> 00:48:17,628
This Neanderthal-type face
is looking toward the west,
712
00:48:17,728 --> 00:48:19,864
looking toward the setting sun.
713
00:48:19,965 --> 00:48:23,034
Now it's been speculated
that Neanderthals
714
00:48:23,134 --> 00:48:25,503
were a more nocturnal species.
715
00:48:25,603 --> 00:48:29,474
If that's the case, what sun
would they be interested in?
716
00:48:29,574 --> 00:48:30,575
The setting sun.
717
00:48:30,675 --> 00:48:33,644
The sun that sets
as they come out
718
00:48:33,744 --> 00:48:37,315
for their nocturnal
activities, their ceremonies,
719
00:48:37,415 --> 00:48:38,449
their rituals.
720
00:48:38,549 --> 00:48:40,685
So they would not be
looking toward the east
721
00:48:40,785 --> 00:48:45,456
as many modern cultures
do, but toward the west.
722
00:48:45,556 --> 00:48:48,626
The setting sun, which would
be significant and important
723
00:48:48,726 --> 00:48:51,997
to them, because essentially,
that would start their day.
724
00:48:52,097 --> 00:48:54,499
That would start
their ceremonies.
725
00:48:54,599 --> 00:48:58,303
And here we have a
Neanderthal-like face
726
00:48:58,403 --> 00:49:00,571
looking toward the setting sun.
727
00:49:00,671 --> 00:49:07,445
Yeah, looking at this
face as a geologist,
728
00:49:07,545 --> 00:49:09,380
looking at the types
of rock, you've
729
00:49:09,480 --> 00:49:12,383
got several different
layers of rock.
730
00:49:12,483 --> 00:49:14,452
You've got more fine sandstones.
731
00:49:14,552 --> 00:49:15,720
You've got conglomerates.
732
00:49:15,820 --> 00:49:19,890
You've got rocks that
are set within the rock.
733
00:49:19,991 --> 00:49:20,891
That's all natural.
734
00:49:20,992 --> 00:49:22,227
>>Yes, like that one.
735
00:49:22,327 --> 00:49:25,796
>>Like these pink rocks and
these darker blackish rocks.
736
00:49:25,896 --> 00:49:29,500
And then you have what looks
like a little hat on top of it,
737
00:49:29,600 --> 00:49:31,802
which is a slightly
different rock,
738
00:49:31,902 --> 00:49:33,704
different lithology again.
739
00:49:33,804 --> 00:49:37,175
So you've got a very complex
interplay of different rock
740
00:49:37,275 --> 00:49:40,845
types, and that's all natural.
741
00:49:40,945 --> 00:49:45,516
Then you have them shaped
into this face, this profile.
742
00:49:45,616 --> 00:49:48,386
And that's where
I start to wonder,
743
00:49:48,486 --> 00:49:53,424
is that totally natural
erosional features,
744
00:49:53,524 --> 00:49:59,097
or is there the
possibility that it
745
00:49:59,197 --> 00:50:01,932
started to look
like a face because
746
00:50:02,033 --> 00:50:04,169
of natural erosional features?
747
00:50:04,269 --> 00:50:08,906
Is it possible that maybe people
came, they pecked away at it,
748
00:50:09,006 --> 00:50:12,977
they modified it a little
bit to look more like a face?
749
00:50:13,078 --> 00:50:16,347
We know from other
places that does happen.
750
00:50:16,447 --> 00:50:19,350
Now when I've walked around
this, looked at it closely,
751
00:50:19,450 --> 00:50:24,222
it's so badly eroded that
it's, I would say, virtually
752
00:50:24,322 --> 00:50:27,625
impossible to tell at
this point if there's
753
00:50:27,725 --> 00:50:30,095
any kind of artificiality to it.
754
00:50:30,195 --> 00:50:31,262
There could have been.
755
00:50:31,362 --> 00:50:33,264
I can't say for certain.
756
00:50:33,364 --> 00:50:38,336
But I think more importantly
in a way, it doesn't matter.
757
00:50:38,436 --> 00:50:41,339
Because you've got this profile,
you've got this structure.
758
00:50:41,439 --> 00:50:47,044
It's clearly recognizable as
a face, as a human profile.
759
00:50:47,145 --> 00:50:48,846
When you walk around
to the other side,
760
00:50:48,946 --> 00:50:52,883
you've got another clearly
recognizable profile.
761
00:50:52,983 --> 00:50:56,521
They're oriented in
important directions,
762
00:50:56,621 --> 00:51:00,091
this one toward the north,
the other face that looks more
763
00:51:00,191 --> 00:51:02,560
Neanderthal toward the west.
764
00:51:02,660 --> 00:51:04,962
That's significant
in both cases.
765
00:51:05,062 --> 00:51:07,532
So whether they're
natural or whether they're
766
00:51:07,632 --> 00:51:10,868
artificial or some
combination of both,
767
00:51:10,968 --> 00:51:14,105
I can see that they were
incredibly important.
768
00:51:14,205 --> 00:51:17,575
They would have attracted
attention in ancient times
769
00:51:17,675 --> 00:51:19,144
just as they do now.
770
00:51:19,244 --> 00:51:24,115
Many sacred sites around
the world are natural,
771
00:51:24,215 --> 00:51:26,451
and they're maybe even
considered more sacred
772
00:51:26,551 --> 00:51:27,885
because they are natural.
773
00:51:27,985 --> 00:51:29,487
They're from nature.
774
00:51:29,587 --> 00:51:30,655
They're from the gods.
775
00:51:30,755 --> 00:51:31,456
>>Exactly.
776
00:51:31,556 --> 00:51:32,690
So it looks like a miracle.
777
00:51:32,790 --> 00:51:33,491
>>That's right.
778
00:51:33,591 --> 00:51:34,259
That's right.
779
00:51:34,359 --> 00:51:35,526
That's right.
780
00:51:35,626 --> 00:51:39,264
>>The natural rock has a
shape of a face or an animal.
781
00:51:39,364 --> 00:51:40,431
>>Exactly.
782
00:51:40,531 --> 00:51:42,333
>>Without any--
783
00:51:42,433 --> 00:51:45,836
>>Any human touch,
any artificialities.
784
00:51:45,936 --> 00:51:51,776
So in some ways, one could argue
that if this is fully natural,
785
00:51:51,876 --> 00:51:55,780
it's even more spectacular,
even more important,
786
00:51:55,880 --> 00:51:59,884
because it's an indication
of something that
787
00:51:59,984 --> 00:52:03,521
could be considered from
the gods' sacred divinity.
788
00:52:03,621 --> 00:52:04,489
>>Exactly.
789
00:52:04,589 --> 00:52:06,491
If this is completely
natural, I'm
790
00:52:06,591 --> 00:52:12,230
a lot more impressed
and moved than if it was
791
00:52:12,330 --> 00:52:13,831
sculpted by the hand of man.
792
00:52:13,931 --> 00:52:17,202
>>So I see this as a huge head.
793
00:52:17,302 --> 00:52:20,171
But really, only the
upper portion of the head,
794
00:52:20,271 --> 00:52:22,473
what I call the emerging head.
795
00:52:22,573 --> 00:52:26,043
And if you look at it, this
to me looks like a nose.
796
00:52:26,143 --> 00:52:28,313
So you've got a
nose starting here.
797
00:52:28,413 --> 00:52:29,113
>>It's a huge nose.
798
00:52:29,214 --> 00:52:30,448
>>Huge nose.
799
00:52:30,548 --> 00:52:33,451
You've got an eye socket here.
800
00:52:33,551 --> 00:52:36,787
And then above the eye
socket, the brow ridge.
801
00:52:36,887 --> 00:52:39,190
And then a low forehead.
802
00:52:39,290 --> 00:52:41,025
And what's interesting
is this forehead
803
00:52:41,125 --> 00:52:43,828
is not like a modern
forehead, but much lower.
804
00:52:43,928 --> 00:52:47,398
The whole skull, the
whole head is pulled back,
805
00:52:47,498 --> 00:52:50,301
elongated toward
the back portion.
806
00:52:50,401 --> 00:52:53,971
Which, to me, says this
is a Neanderthal head.
807
00:52:54,071 --> 00:52:57,275
It's not a modern head,
but it's a Neanderthal head
808
00:52:57,375 --> 00:53:00,077
or a Neanderthal face
emerging from the bedrock.
809
00:53:00,177 --> 00:53:00,878
>>Exactly.
810
00:53:00,978 --> 00:53:01,912
Top of face.
811
00:53:02,012 --> 00:53:03,013
>>Yeah.
812
00:53:03,113 --> 00:53:05,383
It's like it's being
born from the bedrock.
813
00:53:05,483 --> 00:53:08,453
And so not only do you have
this face sort or this emerging
814
00:53:08,553 --> 00:53:11,489
head, which I think
is very recognizable--
815
00:53:11,589 --> 00:53:12,557
>>Oh, yeah.
816
00:53:12,657 --> 00:53:14,325
>>Neanderthals would
have recognized it.
817
00:53:14,425 --> 00:53:18,396
But you also have-- look
what we're standing on.
818
00:53:18,496 --> 00:53:21,632
Sort of this staging area
right in front of it,
819
00:53:21,732 --> 00:53:23,033
which I think could
have been used
820
00:53:23,133 --> 00:53:27,372
for ritual purposes,
ceremonies, initiations.
821
00:53:27,472 --> 00:53:28,673
It would make a perfect place.
822
00:53:28,773 --> 00:53:30,207
It's like a-- I
don't want to call it
823
00:53:30,308 --> 00:53:36,046
an altar, but a stage where
things could take place
824
00:53:36,146 --> 00:53:38,816
with the backdrop of the head.
825
00:53:38,916 --> 00:53:43,988
Here on this area in front
of the emerging head,
826
00:53:44,088 --> 00:53:47,458
where I've suggested that
ceremonies, rituals may
827
00:53:47,558 --> 00:53:51,262
have been taking place,
look what we have.
828
00:53:51,362 --> 00:53:54,031
What this is is sort
of a scooped out area.
829
00:53:54,131 --> 00:53:54,999
>>It's almost a round--
830
00:53:55,099 --> 00:53:55,933
>>Yeah.
831
00:53:56,033 --> 00:53:57,435
It's a round, sort
of basin area.
832
00:53:57,535 --> 00:54:00,204
If you put your hand in it,
it's filled with rainwater now
833
00:54:00,305 --> 00:54:01,105
and sediment.
834
00:54:01,205 --> 00:54:02,673
It's actually quite deep.
835
00:54:02,773 --> 00:54:04,275
>>Very.
836
00:54:04,375 --> 00:54:07,111
I mean, that is deep, and I'm
not really touching the end.
837
00:54:07,211 --> 00:54:08,112
>>Yeah, it's quite deep.
838
00:54:08,212 --> 00:54:09,046
>>It's just sediment.
839
00:54:09,146 --> 00:54:10,315
>>Yeah.
840
00:54:10,415 --> 00:54:12,283
It's just sediment that's
collected in modern times.
841
00:54:12,383 --> 00:54:17,355
But what I think we have here
is really a depression or basin
842
00:54:17,455 --> 00:54:19,690
area that would
have been perfect
843
00:54:19,790 --> 00:54:24,962
for ritualistic purposes, for
different ceremonial purposes.
844
00:54:25,062 --> 00:54:28,098
It may have started out
as a natural depression,
845
00:54:28,198 --> 00:54:34,071
but I believe it was probably
enhanced by people rubbing it,
846
00:54:34,171 --> 00:54:35,340
scratching it.
847
00:54:35,440 --> 00:54:38,809
You see in more recent
ancient sites from only a few
848
00:54:38,909 --> 00:54:43,514
thousand years ago, say at
temple complexes in Egypt,
849
00:54:43,614 --> 00:54:47,852
in Turkey, places where
people will rub the rock.
850
00:54:47,952 --> 00:54:50,220
They'll scrape it, and
it makes depressions.
851
00:54:50,321 --> 00:54:53,290
They're trying to get
the sacredness, the power
852
00:54:53,391 --> 00:54:54,892
from that sacred site.
853
00:54:54,992 --> 00:54:58,796
This may have been formed
initially the same way, formed
854
00:54:58,896 --> 00:54:59,997
this depression.
855
00:55:00,097 --> 00:55:04,068
This now serves for
ceremonial purposes.
856
00:55:04,168 --> 00:55:05,803
>>How many people
would you need--
857
00:55:05,903 --> 00:55:06,871
>>Oh, many--
858
00:55:06,971 --> 00:55:08,506
>>In order to create
something like this.
859
00:55:08,606 --> 00:55:10,541
>>Oh, a lot if you're
scraping it like that.
860
00:55:10,641 --> 00:55:11,942
>>Over a very long
period of time.
861
00:55:12,042 --> 00:55:13,711
>>Over a very long
period of time.
862
00:55:13,811 --> 00:55:15,079
>>Thousands and thousands--
863
00:55:15,179 --> 00:55:18,449
>>Of generations, potentially,
if they're doing it by hand
864
00:55:18,549 --> 00:55:21,018
and rubbing it or
scraping away at it.
865
00:55:21,118 --> 00:55:23,488
But once you have it,
you've got this depression,
866
00:55:23,588 --> 00:55:26,156
this basin that could
be used for any number
867
00:55:26,256 --> 00:55:27,892
of ceremonial purposes.
868
00:55:27,992 --> 00:55:30,495
Maybe it was filled with
water and used for some kind
869
00:55:30,595 --> 00:55:32,196
of cleansing ritual.
870
00:55:32,296 --> 00:55:37,835
Maybe it was used for some kind
of sanctified or holy water.
871
00:55:37,935 --> 00:55:39,404
We still have those
concepts today,
872
00:55:39,504 --> 00:55:41,439
either cleansing
rituals as you go
873
00:55:41,539 --> 00:55:44,675
into a sacred place
or holy water that
874
00:55:44,775 --> 00:55:48,212
brings the power
of the sacred site,
875
00:55:48,312 --> 00:55:52,383
and lets you may be ingest it
or sprinkle it on yourself.
876
00:55:52,483 --> 00:55:53,651
Baptism.
877
00:55:53,751 --> 00:55:57,422
We still use water from a
basin from a depression.
878
00:55:57,522 --> 00:56:02,159
Maybe it was used to collect
some kind of sacrifice
879
00:56:02,259 --> 00:56:03,360
for the gods.
880
00:56:03,461 --> 00:56:05,295
Maybe it was filled with liquid.
881
00:56:05,396 --> 00:56:08,633
Maybe some kind of drink.
882
00:56:08,733 --> 00:56:11,335
Maybe it was used to
collect blood if there
883
00:56:11,436 --> 00:56:14,138
were sacrifices of animals.
884
00:56:14,238 --> 00:56:17,141
>>We saw a little bit
higher, that basin area
885
00:56:17,241 --> 00:56:19,844
that may have been used
for ceremonial purposes.
886
00:56:19,944 --> 00:56:21,145
To me, this is very similar.
887
00:56:21,245 --> 00:56:24,248
This is not exactly a basin.
888
00:56:24,348 --> 00:56:27,652
Possibly it was at one point,
if this has eroded back
889
00:56:27,752 --> 00:56:28,686
in more recent times.
890
00:56:28,786 --> 00:56:30,521
You can see there
some breakage there.
891
00:56:30,621 --> 00:56:34,625
But what it looks like is
an area that eroded out.
892
00:56:34,725 --> 00:56:35,793
You can put your hand--
893
00:56:35,893 --> 00:56:36,861
>>Almost.
894
00:56:36,961 --> 00:56:41,566
Because I really cannot
reach in the end.
895
00:56:41,666 --> 00:56:43,033
>>No, it goes way back.
896
00:56:43,133 --> 00:56:43,901
>>Probably up to--
897
00:56:44,001 --> 00:56:45,703
>>At least back to there.
898
00:56:45,803 --> 00:56:49,440
And what it looks to
me like is a place
899
00:56:49,540 --> 00:56:51,576
where people may
have been scraping
900
00:56:51,676 --> 00:56:54,745
at it, removing material.
901
00:56:54,845 --> 00:56:59,717
It's a slightly different rock
here in the general matrix.
902
00:56:59,817 --> 00:57:01,118
It would have
attracted attention.
903
00:57:01,218 --> 00:57:03,854
You see it's sort of an
orange-ish, reddish color.
904
00:57:03,954 --> 00:57:09,760
But like you see at other sacred
sites of more recent origin,
905
00:57:09,860 --> 00:57:11,862
it may have been a place
where people scratched
906
00:57:11,962 --> 00:57:14,064
it to try to get a
little bit of powder,
907
00:57:14,164 --> 00:57:19,837
a little bit of the,
essentially, power,
908
00:57:19,937 --> 00:57:22,840
the sacred power of this spot.
909
00:57:39,824 --> 00:57:44,562
Another feature that is on the
plateau that really struck me
910
00:57:44,662 --> 00:57:50,668
is what we can call the bearded
head or the bearded man's head.
911
00:57:50,768 --> 00:57:53,137
It's a huge structure.
912
00:57:53,237 --> 00:57:56,073
Very powerful, very
moving in my mind.
913
00:57:56,173 --> 00:58:00,177
And I suspect that whether
it's natural or artificial
914
00:58:00,277 --> 00:58:03,514
or some combination
of both, this
915
00:58:03,614 --> 00:58:06,584
is something that
may have survived
916
00:58:06,684 --> 00:58:11,455
from a very long time
ago, geologically,
917
00:58:11,556 --> 00:58:14,725
and may have moved people
and been recognized
918
00:58:14,825 --> 00:58:18,896
by people, specifically
Neanderthals,
919
00:58:18,996 --> 00:58:20,631
before the end of
the last ice age.
920
00:58:20,731 --> 00:58:24,268
That they would have recognized
this as looking like a face,
921
00:58:24,368 --> 00:58:28,472
as a bearded face,
just like we do now.
922
00:58:28,573 --> 00:58:31,976
It almost looks to me like what
some people's image of God is.
923
00:58:32,076 --> 00:58:36,480
You know, a Judeo-Christian
bearded male figure.
924
00:58:36,581 --> 00:58:39,784
Interesting that you find
it up in the mountains.
925
00:58:39,884 --> 00:58:42,887
And you approach it, and
it seems to be, in my mind,
926
00:58:42,987 --> 00:58:45,089
a sacred, ritualistic setting.
927
00:58:45,189 --> 00:58:49,193
I'm told that the name that's
been given to it is the Mechid.
928
00:58:49,293 --> 00:58:52,429
It's a name that goes back.
929
00:58:52,529 --> 00:58:54,531
We don't know exactly how long.
930
00:58:54,632 --> 00:58:57,401
But it's called the
Mechid, which loosely
931
00:58:57,501 --> 00:59:00,004
translates as the church.
932
00:59:00,104 --> 00:59:03,674
And this suggests right away
that there's something special
933
00:59:03,774 --> 00:59:05,142
about this area.
934
00:59:05,242 --> 00:59:06,510
What is the Mechid?
935
00:59:06,611 --> 00:59:11,415
It's this incredible limestone
formation, huge formation,
936
00:59:11,515 --> 00:59:14,084
incredibly symmetrical.
937
00:59:14,184 --> 00:59:20,057
And it appears to me as if
it were a stage or a podium,
938
00:59:20,157 --> 00:59:22,526
but of enormous scale.
939
00:59:22,627 --> 00:59:24,795
At a scale-- I think of giants.
940
00:59:24,895 --> 00:59:26,597
It's a huge scale.
941
00:59:26,697 --> 00:59:29,533
And it's symmetrically arranged.
942
00:59:29,634 --> 00:59:31,401
It itself is symmetrical.
943
00:59:31,501 --> 00:59:36,841
And it sits in the little valley
area that forms, in my mind,
944
00:59:36,941 --> 00:59:39,009
a natural amphitheater.
945
00:59:39,109 --> 00:59:43,848
This, I can't help but think,
would form a perfect stage
946
00:59:43,948 --> 00:59:47,151
for ceremonies, for
ritual practices,
947
00:59:47,251 --> 00:59:49,754
for initiation,
for other types of
948
00:59:49,854 --> 00:59:52,823
sacred and religious practices.
949
00:59:52,923 --> 00:59:56,260
In fact, maybe at night it
would be even more dramatic
950
00:59:56,360 --> 00:59:59,664
if there were huge
bonfires on the Mechid,
951
00:59:59,764 --> 01:00:05,235
if various trees like evergreen
trees were thrown onto bonfires
952
01:00:05,335 --> 01:00:07,972
and then sparked
up like fireworks.
953
01:00:08,072 --> 01:00:15,746
If there was drumming, if there
were singing, music, voices.
954
01:00:15,846 --> 01:00:18,515
So I think this could be
a very powerful setting
955
01:00:18,615 --> 01:00:21,151
for ceremonial purposes.
956
01:00:21,251 --> 01:00:24,789
All of the pieces, in
my mind, come together
957
01:00:24,889 --> 01:00:28,926
here to suggest that this
is a central location.
958
01:00:29,026 --> 01:00:33,430
The river, the ancient name for
the river, which effectively
959
01:00:33,530 --> 01:00:36,333
originates at the
Mechid, is sometimes
960
01:00:36,433 --> 01:00:40,671
interpreted or translated
as divine river,
961
01:00:40,771 --> 01:00:42,339
or the heavenly river.
962
01:00:42,439 --> 01:00:47,311
So here we have more allusions
to the divine, to the sacred.
963
01:00:47,411 --> 01:00:48,813
But there's still more.
964
01:00:48,913 --> 01:00:53,017
On one side of the valley,
the rock formations,
965
01:00:53,117 --> 01:00:56,854
the rock peak is
referred to as the Origin
966
01:00:56,954 --> 01:00:58,455
Peak, or the beginning peak.
967
01:00:58,555 --> 01:01:01,258
This suggests to me a
religious connotation
968
01:01:01,358 --> 01:01:05,796
of the origins of the universe,
the cosmos, of people.
969
01:01:05,896 --> 01:01:06,964
How did things originate?
970
01:01:07,064 --> 01:01:10,634
Sort of in a Judeo-Christian
sense, a genesis?
971
01:01:10,735 --> 01:01:16,673
How did life itself and the
universe, the cosmos originate?
972
01:01:16,774 --> 01:01:19,476
On the other side of the
valley, the formations
973
01:01:19,576 --> 01:01:22,246
are known as the Goddesses.
974
01:01:22,346 --> 01:01:27,017
Clear reference to
divinity, especially
975
01:01:27,117 --> 01:01:28,518
if we're talking
about Neanderthals,
976
01:01:28,618 --> 01:01:33,190
and they put a lot of emphasis
on women and goddesses.
977
01:01:33,290 --> 01:01:34,558
So we've got the Goddesses.
978
01:01:34,658 --> 01:01:35,926
We've got the Origins.
979
01:01:36,026 --> 01:01:37,327
We've got the Mechid.
980
01:01:37,427 --> 01:01:39,964
We've got the heavenly
or divine river.
981
01:01:40,064 --> 01:01:43,768
And then if we keep going
further north beyond the Mechid
982
01:01:43,868 --> 01:01:46,303
to the highest peak,
we have the Peak
983
01:01:46,403 --> 01:01:48,472
of the Human Being,
which suggests
984
01:01:48,572 --> 01:01:52,509
to me that origins of life,
the origins of humanity.
985
01:01:52,609 --> 01:01:56,480
Processions would be
carried on, going up
986
01:01:56,580 --> 01:02:00,384
the river valley from the
south up toward the Mechid.
987
01:02:00,484 --> 01:02:06,490
As you ascend up the river
valley toward the plateau,
988
01:02:06,590 --> 01:02:10,460
you find the Mechid as
a very central location.
989
01:02:10,560 --> 01:02:13,964
There's nothing else like
this in the vicinity.
990
01:02:14,064 --> 01:02:17,001
There's nothing like
this in the area.
991
01:02:17,101 --> 01:02:20,304
There's nothing like this
potentially in all of Europe.
992
01:02:20,404 --> 01:02:24,674
So perhaps this was a focal
point, a gathering place
993
01:02:24,775 --> 01:02:28,712
for ancient Neanderthal
people from a very
994
01:02:28,813 --> 01:02:30,480
broad geographic region.
995
01:02:30,580 --> 01:02:33,250
I could see this very
much as a gathering
996
01:02:33,350 --> 01:02:36,954
place for sacred
rituals, for ceremonies.
997
01:02:37,054 --> 01:02:39,323
And in fact, as I've
looked at the maps,
998
01:02:39,423 --> 01:02:42,326
as I've looked at the
geology and the topography,
999
01:02:42,426 --> 01:02:44,661
the geography of
this region, you
1000
01:02:44,761 --> 01:02:48,265
don't have anything
like this anywhere else.
1001
01:02:48,365 --> 01:02:51,001
You don't have a place
that's at high altitude
1002
01:02:51,101 --> 01:02:54,571
where from below, it looks
like huge mountain peaks.
1003
01:02:54,671 --> 01:02:56,573
In fact, we're in the
Carpathian Mountains.
1004
01:02:56,673 --> 01:03:00,244
But then when you get up to
the top, it's like a fortress,
1005
01:03:00,344 --> 01:03:03,047
and it opens up
into this plateau.
1006
01:03:03,147 --> 01:03:06,050
>>And in the middle of
the fortress, there is--
1007
01:03:06,150 --> 01:03:07,084
>>Structures like this.
1008
01:03:07,184 --> 01:03:09,219
>>This natural or
artificial feature.
1009
01:03:09,319 --> 01:03:10,387
>>Here it is.
1010
01:03:10,487 --> 01:03:13,924
So this would be
a gathering point.
1011
01:03:14,024 --> 01:03:15,759
I see it very much
as a gathering
1012
01:03:15,860 --> 01:03:18,395
point, a ceremonial point.
1013
01:03:18,495 --> 01:03:24,801
And I wonder as I think about
how widespread the populations
1014
01:03:24,902 --> 01:03:27,771
were that would gather here
periodically, because there's
1015
01:03:27,872 --> 01:03:32,409
no other area that's
as well-suited as this
1016
01:03:32,509 --> 01:03:36,013
for, I believe,
hundreds of kilometers.
1017
01:03:36,113 --> 01:03:39,016
So if we're talking
about Neanderthal culture
1018
01:03:39,116 --> 01:03:43,854
and consistent rituals over
a large geographic area,
1019
01:03:43,954 --> 01:03:46,723
consistent beliefs,
shared beliefs,
1020
01:03:46,823 --> 01:03:51,228
shared religious ceremonies,
periodically, they
1021
01:03:51,328 --> 01:03:56,066
would gather all together
to exchange stories,
1022
01:03:56,166 --> 01:03:59,636
to participate in
ceremonies that would bond
1023
01:03:59,736 --> 01:04:01,405
different communities together.
1024
01:04:01,505 --> 01:04:03,707
I think this is the
perfect spot for that.
1025
01:04:03,807 --> 01:04:07,077
We know that there's a strong
Neanderthal presence here.
1026
01:04:07,177 --> 01:04:11,916
We have a number of caves,
caves that occur along the river
1027
01:04:12,016 --> 01:04:15,285
valley as you ascend
up toward the Mechid
1028
01:04:15,385 --> 01:04:17,321
and up toward the plateau.
1029
01:04:17,421 --> 01:04:21,758
These caves to this
day preserve evidence
1030
01:04:21,858 --> 01:04:24,194
of Neanderthal
presence, evidence
1031
01:04:24,294 --> 01:04:26,563
of Neanderthal rituals.
1032
01:04:26,663 --> 01:04:32,236
>>The anthropoid face of the
Sphinx looks towards the west
1033
01:04:32,336 --> 01:04:34,638
to the Old Lady Mountain.
1034
01:04:34,738 --> 01:04:39,076
Inside that mountain,
there is a cave considered
1035
01:04:39,176 --> 01:04:42,746
sacred for a very long time.
1036
01:04:42,846 --> 01:04:47,484
Robert and I, we
go to investigate.
1037
01:04:47,584 --> 01:04:49,019
And this is the bear hole.
1038
01:04:49,119 --> 01:04:50,520
>>Oh, OK?
1039
01:04:50,620 --> 01:04:51,421
[yell]
1040
01:04:52,923 --> 01:04:54,091
>>Very echo-y.
1041
01:04:54,191 --> 01:04:58,262
The perfect place for some
type of musical ceremony.
1042
01:04:58,362 --> 01:04:59,663
>>Yeah.
1043
01:04:59,763 --> 01:05:03,033
I mean, maybe there were ritual
feasts in a chamber like this.
1044
01:05:03,133 --> 01:05:07,604
>>What's the behavior of-- what
was the behavioral of ice age
1045
01:05:07,704 --> 01:05:08,405
bears?
1046
01:05:08,505 --> 01:05:09,506
>>Right.
1047
01:05:09,606 --> 01:05:10,740
And also--
1048
01:05:10,840 --> 01:05:15,145
>>Would it be natural
for-- would so many of them
1049
01:05:15,245 --> 01:05:17,982
come here to die?
1050
01:05:18,082 --> 01:05:18,782
>>Yeah.
1051
01:05:18,882 --> 01:05:19,916
Yeah.
1052
01:05:20,017 --> 01:05:21,485
And they just all
decided to come here
1053
01:05:21,585 --> 01:05:23,187
when they were about to die.
1054
01:05:23,287 --> 01:05:25,489
>>It's also possible
that perhaps they
1055
01:05:25,589 --> 01:05:27,091
were used in rituals.
1056
01:05:27,191 --> 01:05:28,225
>>That's what I'm thinking.
1057
01:05:28,325 --> 01:05:30,827
They'd be using tame bears.
1058
01:05:30,927 --> 01:05:31,962
>>Yes.
1059
01:05:32,062 --> 01:05:35,232
And if this place was
used for performance,
1060
01:05:35,332 --> 01:05:38,802
it would make a lot
of sense that they
1061
01:05:38,902 --> 01:05:40,304
would have the dancing bears.
1062
01:05:40,404 --> 01:05:41,105
[water rushing]
1063
01:05:41,205 --> 01:05:42,272
Beautiful.
1064
01:05:42,372 --> 01:05:44,674
>>Really incredible space.
1065
01:05:44,774 --> 01:05:48,645
It's an amazing experience.
1066
01:05:48,745 --> 01:05:49,646
>>I don't know.
1067
01:05:49,746 --> 01:05:51,215
For me, it creates
an experience that
1068
01:05:51,315 --> 01:05:54,084
is really extraordinary,
very moving.
1069
01:05:54,184 --> 01:05:57,787
But it's hard to
find the right words.
1070
01:05:57,887 --> 01:05:58,588
>>Yeah.
1071
01:05:58,688 --> 01:05:59,423
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
1072
01:05:59,523 --> 01:06:00,690
It's not easily put in language.
1073
01:06:06,696 --> 01:06:08,698
See, I'm wondering how
they're physically following
1074
01:06:08,798 --> 01:06:10,800
the river at this point.
1075
01:06:10,900 --> 01:06:13,603
>>Because the best
would be 20 meters down.
1076
01:06:13,703 --> 01:06:14,404
>>Right.
1077
01:06:14,504 --> 01:06:16,473
>>And the river is--
1078
01:06:16,573 --> 01:06:19,243
>>And the river's going
through that pass.
1079
01:06:19,343 --> 01:06:20,577
>>Yeah.
1080
01:06:20,677 --> 01:06:25,649
And here it would be almost
the same - almost narrower.
1081
01:06:25,749 --> 01:06:27,684
>>Right.
1082
01:06:27,784 --> 01:06:29,253
See, what I'm saying,
where would they
1083
01:06:29,353 --> 01:06:32,522
be walking unless they're
walking right in the river?
1084
01:06:32,622 --> 01:06:34,124
>>That's what I would
think, that they
1085
01:06:34,224 --> 01:06:36,893
would be walking in the river.
1086
01:06:36,993 --> 01:06:41,031
>>People could have been
coming from many even hundreds
1087
01:06:41,131 --> 01:06:45,735
of kilometers or more away,
gathering at a certain time.
1088
01:06:45,835 --> 01:06:48,772
Maybe this was something that
happened every few years.
1089
01:06:48,872 --> 01:06:51,541
Maybe it was even
major ceremonies that
1090
01:06:51,641 --> 01:06:53,743
occurred once in a generation.
1091
01:06:53,843 --> 01:06:55,545
And it was a pilgrimage.
1092
01:06:55,645 --> 01:06:58,982
And we can very
much imagine-- and I
1093
01:06:59,083 --> 01:07:00,717
think it's more than
just imagination.
1094
01:07:00,817 --> 01:07:03,187
We can reconstruct,
start to reconstruct
1095
01:07:03,287 --> 01:07:08,325
how such a pilgrimages occurred,
and what practices would have
1096
01:07:08,425 --> 01:07:10,527
been carried out along the way.
1097
01:07:10,627 --> 01:07:15,765
Maybe initiations were
carried out along the passage,
1098
01:07:15,865 --> 01:07:17,334
getting up to the plateau.
1099
01:07:41,491 --> 01:07:45,129
>>We are really the
combination, in many ways,
1100
01:07:45,229 --> 01:07:48,498
of both Neanderthals
and Cro-Magnons.
1101
01:07:48,598 --> 01:07:52,169
And one question is,
can we successfully
1102
01:07:52,269 --> 01:07:54,904
integrate these two aspects?
1103
01:07:55,004 --> 01:07:59,276
Arguably, Neanderthals
were much closer to nature.
1104
01:07:59,376 --> 01:08:03,813
They understood how they
fitted into nature much better
1105
01:08:03,913 --> 01:08:04,648
than Cro-Magnons.
1106
01:08:07,551 --> 01:08:10,154
>>The overall experience
of one going into this cave
1107
01:08:10,254 --> 01:08:13,323
would be it's sort of
similar for a Neanderthal.
1108
01:08:13,423 --> 01:08:15,659
>>Oh, I think it
would be very similar.
1109
01:08:15,759 --> 01:08:17,227
What an incredible
experience here.
1110
01:08:24,000 --> 01:08:26,736
>>Especially if they
had better night vision.
1111
01:08:26,835 --> 01:08:28,971
>>I was going to say, if
they had better night vision.
1112
01:08:29,072 --> 01:08:33,243
And also, what were they
using for illumination?
1113
01:08:33,343 --> 01:08:34,644
Even with really
good vision, they
1114
01:08:34,744 --> 01:08:37,981
had to have some
kind of illumination.
1115
01:08:38,081 --> 01:08:41,218
What are the acoustics in here?
1116
01:08:41,318 --> 01:08:44,621
Oh, well--
1117
01:08:44,720 --> 01:08:48,091
[yelling]
1118
01:08:48,192 --> 01:08:49,593
[clapping]
1119
01:08:52,162 --> 01:08:53,062
[yell]
1120
01:08:54,664 --> 01:08:56,800
>>That's pretty good.
1121
01:08:56,899 --> 01:09:01,604
>>This place could be used for
some sort of musical rituals.
1122
01:09:01,705 --> 01:09:02,939
>>Yeah.
1123
01:09:03,039 --> 01:09:03,907
>>Worked well.
1124
01:09:04,006 --> 01:09:06,643
You got good
acoustics, potentially.
1125
01:09:06,743 --> 01:09:09,012
You've got sort of
a natural chimney.
1126
01:09:09,112 --> 01:09:12,449
You've got water that you
could channel through.
1127
01:09:12,549 --> 01:09:16,219
You probably keep a
fairly-- you know,
1128
01:09:16,319 --> 01:09:21,524
temperature-wise, fairly
close tolerances year-round,
1129
01:09:21,625 --> 01:09:22,326
naturally.
1130
01:09:22,425 --> 01:09:23,292
>>Mm-hmm.
1131
01:09:23,393 --> 01:09:25,529
Yeah.
1132
01:09:25,629 --> 01:09:27,831
>>A perfect place to live.
1133
01:09:27,931 --> 01:09:32,669
>>It creates very interesting
shapes all of a sudden.
1134
01:09:32,769 --> 01:09:34,571
Things start to emerge.
1135
01:09:34,671 --> 01:09:35,371
>>Yeah.
1136
01:09:35,471 --> 01:09:36,573
Yeah, isn't that amazing?
1137
01:09:36,673 --> 01:09:37,607
Just one candle.
1138
01:09:37,707 --> 01:09:40,143
>> For me-- I don't
know for you--
1139
01:09:40,244 --> 01:09:42,646
everything is a lot
more organic and alive.
1140
01:09:42,746 --> 01:09:43,647
>>Yeah, I agree.
1141
01:09:43,746 --> 01:09:44,914
I agree.
1142
01:09:45,014 --> 01:09:49,553
Because I think the harsh
headlamps and flashlights,
1143
01:09:49,653 --> 01:09:51,621
they sort of flatten everything.
1144
01:09:51,720 --> 01:09:54,023
You don't see the texture to it.
1145
01:09:54,122 --> 01:09:55,492
It washes things out.
1146
01:09:55,592 --> 01:10:02,832
>>And imagine now a ceremony
here and a musical performance.
1147
01:10:02,932 --> 01:10:05,635
>>Oh, yeah.
1148
01:10:05,735 --> 01:10:07,704
With things like pine
trees and whatnot.
1149
01:10:07,804 --> 01:10:09,873
If you brought in
the pine branches,
1150
01:10:09,973 --> 01:10:12,909
you know how if you light them,
they just all of a sudden,
1151
01:10:13,009 --> 01:10:16,012
for a short period of time,
you have-- it's like fireworks.
1152
01:10:16,112 --> 01:10:17,013
>>Exactly.
1153
01:10:17,112 --> 01:10:18,282
>>And I could see
them doing things
1154
01:10:18,382 --> 01:10:22,050
like that for dramatic
effect and at certain times.
1155
01:10:22,151 --> 01:10:23,420
You know, during a ceremony.
1156
01:10:23,520 --> 01:10:26,590
I bet a lot of the hearths
and a lot of the fire
1157
01:10:26,690 --> 01:10:30,059
remains that are found had
nothing to do with warmth.
1158
01:10:30,159 --> 01:10:31,695
It was probably ritualistic.
1159
01:10:31,795 --> 01:10:34,598
I mean, they were
used to the climate.
1160
01:10:34,698 --> 01:10:35,398
>>Exactly.
1161
01:10:35,499 --> 01:10:36,532
And they would have fur.
1162
01:10:36,633 --> 01:10:38,134
>>And they would
have fur and whatnot.
1163
01:10:38,234 --> 01:10:41,571
And in fact, if anything, I
could say during these rituals,
1164
01:10:41,671 --> 01:10:46,075
they might have been overheated
because they're not-- you know,
1165
01:10:46,175 --> 01:10:48,478
fires get really hot like that.
1166
01:10:48,577 --> 01:10:55,684
And if you're used to the
natural climate, and relatively
1167
01:10:55,785 --> 01:11:00,424
cold conditions, and that's
what is normal for you,
1168
01:11:00,523 --> 01:11:02,791
you wouldn't want to be
building these huge fires
1169
01:11:02,892 --> 01:11:04,827
just to get really hot,
then to go back out
1170
01:11:04,928 --> 01:11:05,962
and get really cold.
1171
01:11:06,062 --> 01:11:07,096
You
1172
01:11:07,196 --> 01:11:09,299
>>Build a huge fire, and
then also wear the fur,
1173
01:11:09,398 --> 01:11:13,136
and you would be boiling up.
1174
01:11:13,236 --> 01:11:18,141
That's the traditional image you
see everywhere of Neanderthals.
1175
01:11:18,241 --> 01:11:19,843
>>Huddling around the fire.
1176
01:11:19,943 --> 01:11:22,946
>>All around the
fire, wearing furs.
1177
01:11:23,046 --> 01:11:23,746
>>Yeah.
1178
01:11:23,847 --> 01:11:24,714
Yeah.
1179
01:11:24,814 --> 01:11:26,516
That's probably not
the case at all.
1180
01:11:26,616 --> 01:11:31,287
Christmas traditions, which of
course are way pre-Christian,
1181
01:11:31,388 --> 01:11:36,192
bringing in a tree,
bringing in-- what
1182
01:11:36,291 --> 01:11:39,929
do you call it--
wreaths and vines.
1183
01:11:40,029 --> 01:11:41,064
>>Yes.
1184
01:11:41,164 --> 01:11:45,268
>>And does that go back
100,000 years or more?
1185
01:11:45,369 --> 01:11:49,038
>>This was covered
with snow and ice.
1186
01:11:49,138 --> 01:11:54,478
The caves that we are
going to see in a bit
1187
01:11:54,577 --> 01:11:58,415
were probably
covered by glaciers.
1188
01:11:58,514 --> 01:12:00,183
>>Or on the edge of
a glacier somehow.
1189
01:12:03,753 --> 01:12:06,523
This is the Bear Cave.
1190
01:12:06,623 --> 01:12:09,993
Reminds me of a pyramid in
the sense of the height.
1191
01:12:10,093 --> 01:12:14,263
Oh, you know, I bet the floor
may have been lower back then.
1192
01:12:14,364 --> 01:12:15,064
>>Exactly.
1193
01:12:15,164 --> 01:12:17,601
With all these deposits.
1194
01:12:17,701 --> 01:12:18,835
>>Yeah, deposits inside here.
1195
01:12:22,839 --> 01:12:23,940
Oh, yeah.
1196
01:12:24,040 --> 01:12:26,376
I can see, it's-- getting
more and more beautiful.
1197
01:12:29,245 --> 01:12:30,647
Oh, wow.
1198
01:12:30,746 --> 01:12:32,549
It's like a cathedral.
1199
01:12:32,648 --> 01:12:35,952
You don't get-- at least I don't
get this feel from a quote,
1200
01:12:36,052 --> 01:12:37,654
"real church," unquote.
1201
01:12:37,754 --> 01:12:39,255
Modern church.
1202
01:12:39,355 --> 01:12:41,023
>>So it makes so
much sense that this
1203
01:12:41,124 --> 01:12:45,895
would be, like you said
before, a ritual cave.
1204
01:12:45,995 --> 01:12:47,362
>>I'm thinking if
they were bringing
1205
01:12:47,464 --> 01:12:50,199
crystals in or special
stones, things probably
1206
01:12:50,299 --> 01:12:51,300
take them out again.
1207
01:12:51,401 --> 01:12:52,101
>>Yeah.
1208
01:12:52,201 --> 01:12:53,036
>>Use them.
1209
01:12:53,136 --> 01:12:54,804
Or I'm even thinking
if they were
1210
01:12:54,904 --> 01:12:56,573
using some kind of
crystals or whatnot,
1211
01:12:56,673 --> 01:13:00,209
they might bring them
in, sort of sanctify
1212
01:13:00,309 --> 01:13:01,645
them, if I could
put it that way.
1213
01:13:01,745 --> 01:13:03,447
And then they'd want
to take them with them.
1214
01:13:03,547 --> 01:13:05,849
So it's not like we
expect-- it's not
1215
01:13:05,949 --> 01:13:09,585
like we would expect them to
leave their valuables just
1216
01:13:09,686 --> 01:13:11,588
laying about for
us to find later.
1217
01:13:11,688 --> 01:13:12,822
Yeah.
1218
01:13:12,922 --> 01:13:14,458
>>Stunning.
1219
01:13:14,558 --> 01:13:17,160
>>Those are really stunning.
1220
01:13:17,260 --> 01:13:18,193
Yeah.
1221
01:13:18,294 --> 01:13:19,496
>>What a beautiful environment.
1222
01:13:19,596 --> 01:13:20,864
>>Yeah.
1223
01:13:20,964 --> 01:13:24,400
Oh, this is really
interesting how it works.
1224
01:13:24,501 --> 01:13:26,670
>>A few candles
and a few crystals,
1225
01:13:26,770 --> 01:13:31,307
and suddenly, you have an
extraordinary, unexpected
1226
01:13:31,407 --> 01:13:38,147
experience away from
modern life and time.
1227
01:13:38,246 --> 01:13:40,984
What do think about this
setting with all the--
1228
01:13:41,084 --> 01:13:42,952
with about 15 candles?
1229
01:13:43,052 --> 01:13:46,089
>>Yeah, it's beautiful.
1230
01:13:46,189 --> 01:13:52,161
This is the first church
or sanctuary or cathedral.
1231
01:13:52,261 --> 01:13:53,763
Whatever you want to call it.
1232
01:13:53,862 --> 01:13:54,731
>>Very much, yeah.
1233
01:13:54,831 --> 01:13:58,868
It has the feel of a cathedral.
1234
01:13:58,968 --> 01:14:00,068
>>Yeah.
1235
01:14:00,169 --> 01:14:04,841
I mean, I think the
modern, artificial churches
1236
01:14:04,941 --> 01:14:09,245
and cathedrals, they're
trying to imitate this.
1237
01:14:09,344 --> 01:14:10,780
Not vice versa.
1238
01:14:10,880 --> 01:14:11,880
>>Yes.
1239
01:14:11,981 --> 01:14:16,184
It makes me really feel
religion, but not--
1240
01:14:16,285 --> 01:14:17,153
>>Well, spirituality.
1241
01:14:17,253 --> 01:14:19,755
>>In a very deep
and personal sense.
1242
01:14:19,856 --> 01:14:20,590
>>Yeah.
1243
01:14:20,690 --> 01:14:21,389
Yeah.
1244
01:14:21,491 --> 01:14:22,659
Yeah.
1245
01:14:22,759 --> 01:14:27,764
Not like an organized religion,
but a real deep feeling
1246
01:14:27,864 --> 01:14:32,335
of sanctity and
spirituality, I would say.
1247
01:14:32,434 --> 01:14:37,641
>>You go into a cathedral
in many cases, one that's
1248
01:14:37,741 --> 01:14:40,009
not illuminated by
modern lighting,
1249
01:14:40,109 --> 01:14:42,679
but it's illuminated
the more traditional way
1250
01:14:42,779 --> 01:14:46,182
with very subdued lighting,
essentially, in my mind,
1251
01:14:46,282 --> 01:14:48,451
you're going to an
artificial cave.
1252
01:14:48,552 --> 01:14:52,355
I think that many of the
churches and cathedrals we
1253
01:14:52,455 --> 01:14:56,192
see now from medieval
or Renaissance
1254
01:14:56,291 --> 01:14:58,294
times, for instance,
are actually
1255
01:14:58,394 --> 01:15:03,166
a legacy, a legacy of
the cave, the cave being
1256
01:15:03,266 --> 01:15:04,934
used as a ritualistic site.
1257
01:15:05,034 --> 01:15:07,904
Some of these legacies may
go back tens of thousands
1258
01:15:08,004 --> 01:15:09,138
of years.
1259
01:15:09,237 --> 01:15:11,474
I suspect, for a
Neanderthal culture,
1260
01:15:11,575 --> 01:15:15,712
for Neanderthal civilization,
maybe the single most important
1261
01:15:15,812 --> 01:15:19,616
thing, the most central point
was their religion, what
1262
01:15:19,716 --> 01:15:21,250
we would now call religion.
1263
01:15:21,350 --> 01:15:23,553
I'm not sure they would have
used that term, because it
1264
01:15:23,653 --> 01:15:26,755
may have been so
all-encompassing for them
1265
01:15:26,856 --> 01:15:30,159
that it was well beyond what
we think of religion now
1266
01:15:30,259 --> 01:15:32,361
in a modern, Western sense.
1267
01:15:32,460 --> 01:15:38,668
But the religiosity, the mental
world that they developed.
1268
01:15:38,768 --> 01:15:42,505
And we'll call it a
religious/magical sense.
1269
01:15:42,606 --> 01:15:44,974
And they may have been
incredibly sophisticated,
1270
01:15:45,074 --> 01:15:46,175
incredibly developed.
1271
01:15:46,275 --> 01:15:51,447
I think possibly well
beyond where we are today.
1272
01:15:51,547 --> 01:15:54,450
The Cro-Magnons,
I would speculate,
1273
01:15:54,550 --> 01:15:56,620
tried to put it into
simplistic terms.
1274
01:15:56,719 --> 01:15:59,589
Well, what's going on
with these other people,
1275
01:15:59,689 --> 01:16:02,291
these Neanderthals?
1276
01:16:02,391 --> 01:16:03,392
Who are they?
1277
01:16:03,492 --> 01:16:05,460
We can't really understand
what's going on,
1278
01:16:05,561 --> 01:16:08,665
so they try to categorize
it in simple terms.
1279
01:16:08,764 --> 01:16:10,700
Well, sometimes it's black,
sometimes it's white,
1280
01:16:10,800 --> 01:16:12,201
sometimes they're
doing good things,
1281
01:16:12,300 --> 01:16:14,804
sometimes they're
doing bad things.
1282
01:16:14,904 --> 01:16:21,344
And our modern concept of things
like a good god, a bad devil,
1283
01:16:21,443 --> 01:16:26,514
angels versus
Satan may have come
1284
01:16:26,616 --> 01:16:31,554
from a simplistic
Cro-Magnon understanding
1285
01:16:31,655 --> 01:16:37,193
of much more subtle, much more
nuanced Neanderthal rituals
1286
01:16:37,293 --> 01:16:38,527
and religion.
1287
01:16:38,628 --> 01:16:41,965
I suspect for Neanderthals,
it wasn't a simple category
1288
01:16:42,065 --> 01:16:45,434
of good on one side and
bad on the other side,
1289
01:16:45,534 --> 01:16:50,273
or what we would
call God and devil.
1290
01:16:50,373 --> 01:16:52,776
It may have been
much more nuanced.
1291
01:16:52,876 --> 01:16:57,446
It may have seemed
you need both aspects.
1292
01:16:57,546 --> 01:17:01,284
I even think of ancient
religions in a classical sense.
1293
01:17:01,384 --> 01:17:03,585
For instance, ancient Egyptians.
1294
01:17:03,687 --> 01:17:06,355
They did not make
this same distinction
1295
01:17:06,455 --> 01:17:10,259
between good and bad as
modern society often does.
1296
01:17:10,359 --> 01:17:12,295
They realized that
for the working
1297
01:17:12,395 --> 01:17:18,634
of the cosmos, the universe, in
a general sense as they saw it,
1298
01:17:18,735 --> 01:17:20,568
there had to be
both good and bad.
1299
01:17:20,670 --> 01:17:22,071
You had to have
both sides, or what
1300
01:17:22,171 --> 01:17:23,272
we would call good and bad.
1301
01:17:23,371 --> 01:17:27,811
They were just two ends
of a continuous spectrum.
1302
01:17:27,911 --> 01:17:32,248
And I suspect that Neanderthals
saw a lot of gray area also.
1303
01:17:40,189 --> 01:17:42,491
>>I would say, well, we've
got to accept that we are,
1304
01:17:42,591 --> 01:17:46,295
you know, Neanderthal
and Cro-Magnon in one.
1305
01:17:46,395 --> 01:17:48,264
It's not easy to do.
1306
01:17:48,364 --> 01:17:52,535
>>What we really have to do
is to take our dual aspects,
1307
01:17:52,635 --> 01:17:55,538
the Cro-Magnon aspects
and Neanderthal aspects,
1308
01:17:55,638 --> 01:17:59,675
combine them so that either
overpowers the other,
1309
01:17:59,776 --> 01:18:02,846
hit a balance between them.
1310
01:18:02,946 --> 01:18:05,414
And if we can do
that successfully,
1311
01:18:05,514 --> 01:18:08,617
we may, in fact,
create something
1312
01:18:08,718 --> 01:18:10,153
that rises above either.
1313
01:18:36,279 --> 01:18:41,785
>>It could have been some
sort of ritual or pilgrimage
1314
01:18:41,885 --> 01:18:43,787
that would come here.
1315
01:18:43,887 --> 01:18:44,620
>>Right.
1316
01:18:44,719 --> 01:18:45,321
Right.
1317
01:18:45,421 --> 01:18:46,155
>>Sort of a returning.
1318
01:18:46,255 --> 01:18:46,923
>>Yeah.
1319
01:18:47,023 --> 01:18:47,757
Yeah.
1320
01:18:47,857 --> 01:18:48,758
>>Returning to the beginning.
1321
01:18:48,858 --> 01:18:49,558
>>Yeah.
1322
01:18:49,657 --> 01:18:50,960
Maybe certain times of year.
1323
01:18:51,059 --> 01:18:55,098
Or there may even be times that
even bigger groups got together
1324
01:18:55,198 --> 01:18:56,699
on a more lengthy cycle.
1325
01:18:56,800 --> 01:18:57,500
>>Cyclic.
1326
01:18:57,600 --> 01:18:58,067
>>Yeah.
1327
01:18:58,166 --> 01:18:59,335
Cyclical maybe.
1328
01:18:59,434 --> 01:19:02,171
You know, based on a lunar
cycle of the-- what is it?
1329
01:19:02,271 --> 01:19:04,540
The 19-year return, or
something like that,
1330
01:19:04,639 --> 01:19:07,043
which was essentially
be a generational thing.
1331
01:19:07,143 --> 01:19:12,548
And you might have a huge
sort of congregation of--
1332
01:19:12,648 --> 01:19:13,349
>>Hundreds or--
1333
01:19:13,449 --> 01:19:14,183
>>If not more.
1334
01:19:14,282 --> 01:19:15,584
>>Possibly thousands of people.
1335
01:19:15,684 --> 01:19:16,019
>>Yeah.
1336
01:19:16,119 --> 01:19:16,652
Yeah.
1337
01:19:16,752 --> 01:19:17,787
Yeah.
1338
01:19:17,887 --> 01:19:19,856
Which would have been--
and you can visualize.
1339
01:19:19,956 --> 01:19:23,893
It would have been
really amazing.
1340
01:19:23,993 --> 01:19:26,295
>>It's something that makes
it very intimate and personal.
1341
01:19:26,395 --> 01:19:27,096
>>Yeah.
1342
01:19:27,196 --> 01:19:28,431
Yeah.
1343
01:19:28,531 --> 01:19:31,700
>>At the same time, it's also
very public and communal,
1344
01:19:31,800 --> 01:19:34,003
but it's also very private.
1345
01:19:34,103 --> 01:19:35,138
>>Yeah.
1346
01:19:35,237 --> 01:19:39,041
But it's reminding me
of being in the caves.
1347
01:19:39,142 --> 01:19:43,980
So you get in almost
that intimacy here,
1348
01:19:44,080 --> 01:19:49,252
but then you can go out and
it's sort of ties them together.
1349
01:19:51,987 --> 01:19:54,389
>>It's almost as though--
yeah, like I said, the shock.
1350
01:19:54,490 --> 01:19:57,559
They were bringing out whatever.
1351
01:19:57,660 --> 01:19:58,361
>>Exactly.
1352
01:19:58,460 --> 01:19:59,862
>>And you're exposing it.
1353
01:19:59,963 --> 01:20:00,897
>>Exactly.
1354
01:20:00,996 --> 01:20:02,264
And that's what's
happening here.
1355
01:20:02,365 --> 01:20:05,768
>>To the people
in the community.
1356
01:20:05,869 --> 01:20:07,036
and to the nature.
1357
01:20:07,136 --> 01:20:08,037
>>Exactly.
1358
01:20:08,137 --> 01:20:10,539
It really does look like that.
1359
01:20:10,639 --> 01:20:15,044
And because our civilization,
it's based on such triviality.
1360
01:20:15,144 --> 01:20:17,947
>>It seems today we are
missing something vital
1361
01:20:18,047 --> 01:20:20,449
to our human well-being.
1362
01:20:20,549 --> 01:20:23,552
We are missing that deep
connection with nature
1363
01:20:23,652 --> 01:20:26,422
the Neanderthals had
so well developed.
1364
01:20:26,522 --> 01:20:29,092
How would rediscovering
Neanderthal values
1365
01:20:29,192 --> 01:20:31,928
impact our civilization today?
1366
01:20:32,028 --> 01:20:37,433
What will this new awareness
bring to our lives?
1367
01:20:37,532 --> 01:20:41,971
They lived around the
mountains and carved into them.
1368
01:20:42,071 --> 01:20:44,974
They appreciated
the natural beauty
1369
01:20:45,074 --> 01:20:47,843
and had high mental abilities.
1370
01:20:47,943 --> 01:20:51,447
Ruzo called them the guardians
of an ancient wisdom.
1371
01:20:51,547 --> 01:20:55,684
It was a magical work, done
by a culture whose science
1372
01:20:55,784 --> 01:21:00,589
and understanding of the world
was different from the present.
1373
01:21:00,689 --> 01:21:04,360
>>I think modern society
or people in modern society
1374
01:21:04,460 --> 01:21:07,996
are afraid to deal
with a lot of things.
1375
01:21:08,097 --> 01:21:11,334
I think they're almost
a terrible stereotype
1376
01:21:11,434 --> 01:21:14,803
or generalization, but they're
afraid to deal with anything
1377
01:21:14,904 --> 01:21:16,772
that's really meaningful.
1378
01:21:16,871 --> 01:21:20,675
It's not a given that a culture
has to be materialistic.
1379
01:21:20,776 --> 01:21:23,913
>>Archaeologist Ralph
Solecki ended his book
1380
01:21:24,013 --> 01:21:28,050
"Shanidar: The
First Flower People"
1381
01:21:28,151 --> 01:21:32,321
saying, "in the face of
the growing evidence,
1382
01:21:32,421 --> 01:21:35,858
we will be forced to
accept Neanderthal
1383
01:21:35,959 --> 01:21:39,562
as our real human ancestor."
1384
01:21:39,662 --> 01:21:43,599
>>And so you have this dichotomy
between religion and intuition
1385
01:21:43,699 --> 01:21:48,938
with Neanderthals, reason
and logic with Cro-Magnons.
1386
01:21:49,038 --> 01:21:55,210
And Stan Gooch says that
it was sort of monumental
1387
01:21:55,311 --> 01:21:58,314
when the two met.
1388
01:21:58,414 --> 01:22:02,851
Also, you had two different
world views coming together.
1389
01:22:02,952 --> 01:22:05,654
Neither really
understood the other.
1390
01:22:05,754 --> 01:22:07,823
So Neanderthals didn't
really understand
1391
01:22:07,923 --> 01:22:11,294
these new Cro-Magnons that
were invading their territory.
1392
01:22:11,394 --> 01:22:13,096
The Cro-Magnons didn't
really understand
1393
01:22:13,196 --> 01:22:16,966
what the Neanderthals were doing
with all these weird rituals
1394
01:22:17,066 --> 01:22:20,769
and ceremonies and
dancing and singing.
1395
01:22:20,869 --> 01:22:22,005
That was foreign to them.
1396
01:22:22,105 --> 01:22:25,041
They tried to figure it
out, what they called magic.
1397
01:22:25,141 --> 01:22:26,409
>>Exactly.
1398
01:22:26,509 --> 01:22:30,913
And they probably-- I mean, how
would you see these rituals?
1399
01:22:31,014 --> 01:22:32,715
They would have to
spy probably at night.
1400
01:22:32,815 --> 01:22:33,516
>>Night.
1401
01:22:33,616 --> 01:22:34,650
Yeah.
1402
01:22:34,750 --> 01:22:37,186
Try to figure out
what's going on.
1403
01:22:37,286 --> 01:22:38,287
>>From a distance.
1404
01:22:38,387 --> 01:22:39,788
>>It must have been
very mysterious, very
1405
01:22:39,888 --> 01:22:44,227
scary to the Cro-Magnons
to see these people doing
1406
01:22:44,327 --> 01:22:45,494
all these things.
1407
01:22:45,594 --> 01:22:48,130
You know, when you don't
understand something,
1408
01:22:48,231 --> 01:22:50,666
you fear it in many cases.
1409
01:22:50,766 --> 01:22:53,169
Much of our culture--
1410
01:22:53,269 --> 01:22:53,969
>>And our beliefs--
1411
01:22:54,070 --> 01:22:55,004
>>--and our beliefs--
1412
01:22:55,103 --> 01:22:56,539
>>Our religious practices--
1413
01:22:56,639 --> 01:22:58,273
>>--that's inheritance
from Neanderthals.
1414
01:22:58,374 --> 01:23:01,910
So we, in a cultural
sense, carry
1415
01:23:02,011 --> 01:23:04,180
on many Neanderthal traditions.
1416
01:23:09,718 --> 01:23:14,223
>>Erik Trinkaus, a leading
Neanderthal expert,
1417
01:23:14,323 --> 01:23:17,760
is convinced that a
cult of immortality
1418
01:23:17,860 --> 01:23:21,996
was invented by
the Neanderthals.
1419
01:23:22,098 --> 01:23:26,669
He thinks the Neanderthals
were the first ones to practice
1420
01:23:26,769 --> 01:23:32,941
burials, and that Homo Sapien,
Cro-Magnon, learned how to bury
1421
01:23:33,041 --> 01:23:36,879
the dead from the Neanderthals.
1422
01:23:36,978 --> 01:23:42,451
He observed how they buried and
how they did their practices,
1423
01:23:42,550 --> 01:23:44,520
and so he copied them.
1424
01:23:51,427 --> 01:23:55,331
Daniel Ruzo had said that
the Carpathian Mountains were
1425
01:23:55,431 --> 01:24:00,335
at the center of the oldest
European civilization known
1426
01:24:00,436 --> 01:24:01,537
today.
1427
01:24:01,637 --> 01:24:05,841
The first age was the age
of truth and knowledge.
1428
01:24:05,941 --> 01:24:08,244
The people lived around
the sacred mountains
1429
01:24:08,344 --> 01:24:11,980
of pyramidal summits,
and carved into them
1430
01:24:12,081 --> 01:24:15,518
for us and for the
future generations,
1431
01:24:15,618 --> 01:24:17,085
signaling the caves.
1432
01:24:17,186 --> 01:24:21,190
"The cave represents the
other world, but also
1433
01:24:21,290 --> 01:24:22,691
the entire universe.
1434
01:24:22,791 --> 01:24:25,494
It is a place that
constitutes a world--
1435
01:24:25,594 --> 01:24:26,728
>>--in itself.
1436
01:24:26,829 --> 01:24:30,633
The ritual cave sometimes
imitates the night sky.
1437
01:24:30,733 --> 01:24:37,072
In other words, it is an mago
mandi, a universe in miniature.
1438
01:24:37,173 --> 01:24:40,109
Living in a cave
does not necessarily
1439
01:24:40,209 --> 01:24:42,745
imply going down
among the shades.
1440
01:24:42,844 --> 01:24:48,251
It can as well imply living in
a different world, a world that
1441
01:24:48,351 --> 01:24:52,655
is vaster and more complex
because it incorporates
1442
01:24:52,755 --> 01:24:58,193
various modes of existence,
and hence is full of riches
1443
01:24:58,294 --> 01:25:00,862
and countless virtualities."
1444
01:25:00,963 --> 01:25:05,701
>>"Here in the mountains of
Romania lies the blood of men,
1445
01:25:05,800 --> 01:25:09,638
the subterraneous tunnels
where humanity saved itself
1446
01:25:09,737 --> 01:25:11,407
during the flood.
1447
01:25:11,507 --> 01:25:13,976
These are the caverns
of the treasure referred
1448
01:25:14,076 --> 01:25:18,281
to in so many world legends."
1449
01:25:18,380 --> 01:25:21,984
>>The Egyptian Sphinx is
part of a larger complex,
1450
01:25:22,084 --> 01:25:25,154
just like the Carpathian Sphinx
is part of a larger complex.
1451
01:25:25,254 --> 01:25:27,255
So in both cases,
I believe we're
1452
01:25:27,356 --> 01:25:33,061
talking sacred ceremonial sites
that held incredible importance
1453
01:25:33,162 --> 01:25:37,032
to their respective people, to
their respective populations.
1454
01:25:37,132 --> 01:25:39,368
>>"It is in these
sacred mountains
1455
01:25:39,468 --> 01:25:43,239
where people found their
salvation after the flood,
1456
01:25:43,339 --> 01:25:45,208
and where they
will be saved when
1457
01:25:45,308 --> 01:25:47,943
the next catastrophe occurs.
1458
01:25:48,043 --> 01:25:52,248
It is vital today to find
these sacred mountains
1459
01:25:52,348 --> 01:25:54,282
and sacred caves."
1460
01:25:54,383 --> 01:25:55,784
>>They and other
ancient-- you know,
1461
01:25:55,884 --> 01:25:59,087
certain other ancient peoples,
but we'll focus on Neanderthals
1462
01:25:59,188 --> 01:26:05,827
for now-- were much more
sophisticated in ways
1463
01:26:05,928 --> 01:26:10,266
that we don't even have a
good language to describe.
1464
01:26:10,366 --> 01:26:13,669
I mean, you have traditions
around the world.
1465
01:26:13,769 --> 01:26:17,573
The golden age,
which I think is not
1466
01:26:17,673 --> 01:26:20,543
referred to a
materialist golden age.
1467
01:26:49,438 --> 01:26:54,009
Our civilization has progressed
one way, materialistically.
1468
01:26:54,109 --> 01:26:56,812
And that type of
sophistication, we've plummeted.
1469
01:26:59,448 --> 01:27:03,486
To judge a culture
like the Neanderthals
1470
01:27:03,585 --> 01:27:09,825
by the scanty remains, physical
remains, it's sort of insane.
1471
01:27:13,862 --> 01:27:16,898
In fact, Neanderthals,
with their traditions,
1472
01:27:16,999 --> 01:27:21,637
with their concepts,
they were the pioneers.
1473
01:27:21,737 --> 01:27:26,342
Looking at the universe with its
cosmic rhythms, untold beauty,
1474
01:27:26,442 --> 01:27:29,478
and great dangers, they
understood themselves
1475
01:27:29,577 --> 01:27:33,115
as part of something bigger
than they themselves were.
1476
01:27:33,215 --> 01:27:37,052
They knew their place
in the order of things.
1477
01:27:37,152 --> 01:27:40,121
We need to recover that
sense of the world.
1478
01:27:40,222 --> 01:27:42,358
>>In waking up to
the new paradigm,
1479
01:27:42,458 --> 01:27:46,061
we recover something
long lost, something
1480
01:27:46,161 --> 01:27:50,366
very old in ourselves.
1481
01:27:50,466 --> 01:27:54,603
"When you climb a mountain, you
go with humility and devotion,
1482
01:27:54,702 --> 01:27:59,141
as in a cathedral, where you
enter not to conquer a creed,
1483
01:27:59,241 --> 01:28:02,911
but to rediscover yourself,
to rediscover something
1484
01:28:03,011 --> 01:28:06,849
inside yourself,
hidden for so long,
1485
01:28:06,949 --> 01:28:08,684
that awaits to be awakened.
1486
01:28:11,353 --> 01:28:15,290
>>When you climb a mountain, you
go with humility and devotion
1487
01:28:15,391 --> 01:28:19,995
as in a cathedral, where you
enter not to conquer a creed,
1488
01:28:20,094 --> 01:28:23,866
but to rediscover yourself,
to rediscover something
1489
01:28:23,966 --> 01:28:27,202
inside yourself,
hidden for so long that
1490
01:28:27,302 --> 01:28:29,905
awaits to be awakened."
1491
01:28:30,005 --> 01:28:33,008
>>Here's a setting
where effectively
1492
01:28:33,108 --> 01:28:35,878
in the mythology and
the religious beliefs,
1493
01:28:35,978 --> 01:28:37,646
humans may have originated.
1494
01:28:37,746 --> 01:28:40,115
And maybe this was
the most important,
1495
01:28:40,215 --> 01:28:44,587
the most sacred, the
most central location
1496
01:28:44,687 --> 01:28:47,723
for Neanderthal
populations as a whole.
1497
01:28:50,325 --> 01:28:54,797
It's as if you're approaching
an incredible cathedral,
1498
01:28:54,897 --> 01:28:56,999
and incredibly holy spot.
1499
01:28:57,099 --> 01:29:02,538
And as you approach it,
you come to various points
1500
01:29:02,638 --> 01:29:09,210
where you prepare yourself
for the ultimate adventure,
1501
01:29:09,311 --> 01:29:12,380
the ultimate religious
experience at the highest
1502
01:29:12,481 --> 01:29:14,349
peaks.
1503
01:29:14,450 --> 01:29:19,822
So this entire complex,
which in many ways
1504
01:29:19,922 --> 01:29:23,692
is symbolized by the
Carpathian Sphinx,
1505
01:29:23,791 --> 01:29:30,165
is a huge, religious,
ceremonial, ritualistic complex
1506
01:29:30,264 --> 01:29:33,135
that must have been
incredibly important
1507
01:29:33,235 --> 01:29:38,541
to the Neanderthal people for
generations and generations,
1508
01:29:38,641 --> 01:29:41,710
probably thousands and
thousands of generations
1509
01:29:41,809 --> 01:29:45,514
over tens of thousands of years.
1510
01:29:45,614 --> 01:29:47,850
Really important to
me to be able to come
1511
01:29:47,950 --> 01:29:50,753
here and experience
firsthand the caves,
1512
01:29:50,853 --> 01:29:54,222
to experience
firsthand the plateau,
1513
01:29:54,322 --> 01:29:57,593
to experience firsthand
the Carpathian Sphinx.
1514
01:29:57,693 --> 01:30:00,295
To me, in fact, in
some ways, we can
1515
01:30:00,395 --> 01:30:02,764
think of the Carpathian
Sphinx as being
1516
01:30:02,865 --> 01:30:06,201
a symbol for a lost world.
1517
01:30:06,300 --> 01:30:10,973
Literally a lost
people, a lost culture.
1518
01:30:11,073 --> 01:30:13,442
The mountain is
a lost cathedral,
1519
01:30:13,541 --> 01:30:17,112
and the Carpathian
Sphinx is the lost altar.
1520
01:30:17,212 --> 01:30:21,984
[singing]
1521
01:33:25,067 --> 01:33:29,204
[music playing]
114836
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