Ancient Civilizations
Since my post about UFOs I have sparked a interest in Ancient Civilizations and what they knew about things that still are mysteries to us today. The pictures of flying machines found in ancient Egypt are just fascinating. Where did this knowledge of flying machines come from? Could they have been as advanced as we are today?
One very interesting culture of ancient Japan is the Jomon period, thought to be the beginnings of the Japanese people. This culture was said to have flourished from 10,000 BC up until 300 BC. They were a society of hunter gatherers who foraged the land for sustenance. They are also the first culture known to have made pottery, used for food storage and cooking as well as as the earliest ground stone tools.
All Jomon pottery was made by hand, without the aid of a wheel, the potter built up the vessel from the bottom up by wrapping coil upon coil of soft clay. Women were thought to have done the pottery making similar to other Neolithic cultures. The clay was mixed with a variety of adhesive materials, including mica, lead, fibers, and crushed shells. After the pottery was formed, tools were used to smooth the inner and outer surfaces. When the vessels were completely dry, they were fired in an outdoor bonfire at temperatures of no more than 900c.
The most fascinating of the Jomon pottery in my opinion were the clay figurines called Dogu (pronounced dough-goo). They were thought to have been created as good luck talismans symbolizing good health or safe childbirth. Many dogu were found in trash heaps broken into many pieces, giving a theory to after the wish was granted they were destroyed. Another theory was that these figurines were images of gods or goddesses that were prayed to for food and health.
The theory of the images of gods or goddesses is the part that really peaks my interest. Some say these figurines represented beings that the Jomon culture had seen before. The figurines have a very keen similarity to others found in places such as the Valdivia culture in Ecuador. Could it have been part of the collective consciousness of the times, or in fact was it from visitors from other worlds?
Whatever the origins or uses of the Dogu were, they are all eerily moving and cant help but spark ones imagination in wondering about life so many thousands of years ago, and the miracle it is today. For more information and pictures of the Jomon culture visit my dear friends Blog at SnowmanJapan.net. He also has a great slideshow of pictures he took of a recent excursion to a Jomon site in Hokkaido Japan. You can find the slideshow Here.
The photo above are Dogu that were found from this period, you decide what they look like. Take Care.
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