Groundbreaking Coast Show on Bosnian Pyramid Tuesday!
Rob Simone interviews the father of the Bosnian Pyramid and David on Tuesday night! Get the cosmic download on pyramids around the world, how they work and why they were built!
GREAT SHOW ABOUT TO ARRIVE!
I've been working really hard finishing my book -- and the end is in sight! I'm really looking forward to being finished and I'm very close.
I wanted to get this posted before we get hit with the big blizzard here in New York -- because we may very well lose power. We've got all our supplies ready to rock in case that happens -- and we've already had a preliminary dusting of snow.
I'm going to take some time away from this final stretch on my book to accept my friend Rob Simone's invitation to be his invited guest. This is his Big Debut on Coast -- filling in while George is on Christmas vacation.
I was also on Coast for the last half-hour of Christmas Eve. I had some fun with George -- starting out with the classic question, "Did you know Santa is a mushroom?" -- and we went on from there.
Interestingly, Rob called me just as I started writing this post to discuss the details of what we will be talking about. He was blown away by what we're going to be covering. This will be a classic!
A HISTORIC EVENT
Semir Osmanagic's work on the Bosnian Pyramid is very important on a variety of levels -- and this is his world debut on Coast, which makes it all the more satisfying to come on the air right after him to discuss it!
You can listen live on the radio Tuesday night, or download the MP3s by becoming a Streamlink member at coasttocoastam.com.
The specific link for our show, to get schedule details and so forth, is here:
http://www.coasttocoastam.com/show/2010/12/28
Rob and I are old friends and we both have quite the sense of humor. He's one of the only people who can keep up with me and not bust out laughing when I really get going! I just told him "This could be a lot more like Stewart and Colbert than you usually ever hear on Coast!"
I don't expect we're going to be a non-stop comedy show, but it will be a lot of fun nonetheless -- and most definitely informative. This will be a comprehensive overview of pyramid technology -- really unveiling many suppressed truths.
Hope to see you there! We will probably take your calls in the last hour, so you can look forward to that as well.
I hope you're having a happy and fulfilling holiday season, and wish you all the best. I may update this page with more stuff for the show before we go on the air -- so check back Tuesday night!
VIDEO FOOTAGE OF THE BOSNIAN PYRAMIDS
This video is what first convinced me that this was not a hoax:
This 3D animation helps us visualize the possible sub-structure of the Bosnian Pyramids:
Here we have a recent video of flying over the Bosnian Pyramids -- the pyramid first becomes visible as of 1:21:
DISCLOSURE SHOW WITH RICHARD C. HOAGLAND AND PROJECT CAMELOT
I also just got an email from Kerry to a location where you can purchase the post-conference stream from the incredible five-hour-and-fifteen-minute show we just did on Disclosure:
This was very comprehensive and I loaded it to the hilt with incredible information, as did Richard. Very high quality content.
We did have a lot of problems with switching from one person to another. Kerry had a switchboard and had trouble seeing where we were among all the callers, as apparently we kept moving around.
So, the stream that is now available is a distilled, edited version with all the gaps, pauses and problems removed. It's probably still over four hours of incredible information nonetheless.
The other problem is that so far we have not been able to locate the video file on the Livestream server. If anyone captured the video live, please let us know -- as we very much want to edit and post-produce it so that's part of the show.
Everyone but Richard was on webcam and we did get a good sync between audio and video, and no frame-dropping -- so once we get rid of the pauses that should definitely add something!
Project Camelot in particular was in critical need of emergency financing, and that's part of why I took the time to do this, after a direct, urgent request from a dream. I thank all of you for participating -- it really makes a big difference!
We have a robust volunteer staff as well as a small core of paid employees in order to maintain this site, its functions and all our conference work -- and some of our conferences do not generate much revenue due to the extreme costs of hotel rental space, airfare, lodging, AV rental, et cetera -- so your support is greatly appreciated!
Looking forward to Tuesday night! I will get the Fulford interview out soon, but right now I am in massive 'deadline mode' to finish this book, as I am way behind and it is urgent that I focus and get this done. Hopefully it will be very soon!
Semir Osmanagic, a US citizen of Bosnian origin, claims to have found ancient pyramids in Bosnia-Herzegovina whose existence would demand a total reappraisal of European prehistory. Anthony Harding went to look.
In January 2006 I was contacted out of the blue by an officer of EUFOR, the EU's protection force for Bosnia-Herzegovina, asking if the European Association of Archaeologists (EAA) could help the archaeological community in the Republika Srpska (the Serb part of Bosnia) with vehicles for their work. This unusual request was followed by news that a gigantic prehistoric pyramid had been discovered near Sarajevo: did I know anything about it? I did not, but I was soon to learn.
In March a TV company approached me with more news about the pyramid, including the results of geophysical work on the hill in question that purported to show the existence of tunnels within it. I was directed to a website run by the organisers of the project, where fuller information was available. The force behind the project was one Semir (Sam) Osmanagic, an American of Bosnian origin described as an "author and metalworker", who was now devoting his time and money to his homeland. Apparently the "pyramid", for that is what it was stated to be, dated to around 12,000 years ago and was evidence of a hitherto unknown civilisation that was capable of erecting vast structures of this sort long before they became known in other parts of the world.
Since such claims obviously belonged to a fantasy world, I was inclined to ignore the affair; but when the Times published a news item on April 15, with little suggestion that the whole thing was a huge hoax and without having referred it to their archaeology correspondent Norman Hammond, I realised things were more serious. I wrote to the Times, and my letter was published on April 27. I and my colleagues in the EAA had already heard that the situation of archaeology within Bosnia was very difficult, with few resources available and little in the way of a legal framework to protect the national heritage. In the days following my letter, I was bombarded with requests for information. As a result, I decided that I would take advantage of a visit to Zadar, Croatia, in early June to drive on to Sarajevo to discuss the situation with professional colleagues there.
On our way down, Predrag Novakovic (EAA secretary), Sylvie Kvetinová (administrator) and I called in at the hill of Visocica, on the edge of the town of Visoko, and looked at the excavation trenches that had been opened. We did this solely in order to avoid the charge, already laid at our door, that we had condemned the project without seeing it for ourselves. As we expected, we saw areas of natural stone (a breccia), with fissures and cracks; but no sign of anything that looked like archaeology. The cracking in the rock was similar to many exposures we had seen in the past on natural rock formations, and did not look anything like a human construction. Geologists who have seen the site have said the same; the hill is similar in formation to many others in the Sarajevo-Zenica mining basin.
There was a press conference the next day in the Sarajevo Museum, called to draw attention to the plight of heritage protection in Bosnia. We were asked questions about only one thing: was the pyramid genuine? Had we seen it? Why did we not believe in it? Since the room was packed not only with journalists but also with pyramid supporters, we were treated with some scorn. The pyramid people soon started their own press conference outside, to which most of the reporters repaired. The following day's newspapers were full of it. Most dismissed the views of the "experts" as the result of our jealousy or minds closed to new ideas. One paper said that the whole thing had obviously been stage-managed by the museum staff.
Since that time, the number of "pyramids" in central Bosnia has multiplied considerably. The Visocica hill is the "Pyramid of the Sun"; apparently there is also a "Pyramid of the Moon" and a "Pyramid of the Bosnian Dragon". A Wikipedia article provides useful information on the development of the story (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bosnian_pyramids). The official website is at www.piramidasunca.ba, but apart from photos there is little hard information there. Alternatives include www.bosnianpyramid.com. Most of the websites are filled with hype of one kind or another, so that it is quite hard to find out what is really happening.
Certainly the trenches we saw had been dug with care, and we had no reason to believe that the medieval site of Visoki, higher up the hill, had been damaged by the work. On the other hand, Osmanagic has stated that he wishes to find organic material in order to obtain radiocarbon dates, given the universal scorn with which the profession has greeted his datings so far. This presents us with a dilemma.
We would all agree that the taking of such samples would need to be done by trained personnel, who could vouch for the true stratigraphical context and ensure that the sample was not contaminated at any stage prior to its reaching the lab. Do we, as trained archaeologists, agree to take part in such work? Without the presence of an experienced person one would be very suspicious of any result that emerged; but those who agree to take part in any of the Visoko work quickly seem to find themselves billed as supporters of the project. Several websites record how some archaeologists unwittingly found themselves enlisted without their knowledge and certainly, had they known, against their wishes.
Why can't there be pyramids in Bosnia at 12,000 BC/BP?
This is a question that journalists are fond of asking. Telling them that Europe was in the late upper palaeolithic or early mesolithic (depending on what date is being suggested, and this seems to vary from month to month) does not get one very far. They respond a little better to being told that people living in the Balkans at that time were hunter-gatherers, with little in the way of fixed dwelling sites or other constructions. If they are still listening, one can go on to describe the research that archaeologists have done in the Balkan peninsula, which gives us a very good idea of what human communities were like 10–12,000 years ago. One may point to the work being done by Preston Miracle of Cambridge University in both Croatia and Bosnia, on both cave and open-air sites. This tells us a great deal about the people of the western Balkans in the late palaeolithic; their tool-kits, their living areas, and their food sources. It does not, however, tell us anything about pyramids or other monumental constructions. This does not absolutely exclude that they could have existed: but a manned landing on the (non-) planet Pluto in the next 20 years is more likely.
Add to this the sheer size of the Visocica hill: I guess it must be at least a kilometre across each side of the base. For comparison, the Great Pyramid of Giza measures around 230m square at the base and originally rose to some 146m in height; the Pyramid of the Sun at Teotihuacán has sides 225m long and is slightly over 70m high. Interestingly, the "pyramid" at Visoko is said to measure 220m along the sides. Since there is no obvious change in the topography of the hill it is easy to see where this figure comes from.
Now all this might be dismissed as harmless fun. Why not let rich expatriates come and indulge their fantasies if that is what they want to do? Why not let locals peddle trinkets showing pyramids and other symbolic items? Unfortunately there is a much darker side to the story.
Since the Bosnian war and in the new political order, each community has felt the need to reinforce its identity. Mostar remains a largely divided city, in spite of the huge sums poured in by the international community to rebuild the famous bridge and its surrounding buildings.
Visoko lies in the mainly Muslim part of Bosnia-Herzegovina. Roman Catholic symbols and depictions of Croat war heroes have become widespread, even in areas populated by Muslims. In Muslim Bosnia, the search for a new past is equally strong, and the refusal of archaeologists to accept the pyramid as genuine infuriates the nationalist press and public. Bosnians who scorn it are vilified and called "traitors", while foreigners are treated to abuse and ridicule. (Before the furore arose, a search for my name on Google turned up a modest 50 or 60 hits; now you will find 100,000 or more! This is fame of a sort.) The staff of the Zemaljski Muzej in Sarajevo (in Austrian times the Landesmuseum, ie State Museum) – an institution of international importance, founded in 1888 – are in the front line. Zilka Kujundzic-Vejzagic, who has led the resistance, is a renowned scholar as well as a modest and unassuming person, but she was careless enough to be born to Croatian parents; not a comfortable situation in a predominantly Muslim area.
At the meeting we held with the professional community, we were given a bleak picture of the situation of archaeology in Bosnia-Herzegovina. There are fewer than 20 professional archaeologists in the whole country, responsible for site protection, rescue archaeology, museology and archaeological education. Their institutions are starved of resources – leaking roofs, no vehicles, no money for fieldwork, education or even basic museum curation. Worse still, since the break-up of Yugoslavia, there is no set of laws concerning the heritage and how it is to be dealt with, for instance in the planning process.
One hears frequent stories of deals between politicians and developers, even where archaeological sites are known about – and this says nothing about checking for sites where none is known. Annex 8 of the Dayton Accord laid down that property could be submitted to an international commission for designation as a national monument (though it did not specify how it was then to be protected). Such a commission does exist. Obviously it has much work to do before the legal situation can be considered anything like normal; and to fulfil the requirements of the Valletta Convention of 1992, which most European states are now attempting to integrate into their planning framework, will take a lot longer. In the meantime, as we were told, no one knows who has responsibility for what.
Of course there are positive aspects to the pyramid saga. Tourists are visiting Visoko and bringing money into the local economy; in an area with high unemployment, in a country ranked 98th in the world in terms of GDP per capita, this is no bad thing. The question I ask, and to which I have not yet received an answer, is: Why not channel this enthusiasm to some of the genuine sites, monuments and museums of Bosnia, which at present are suffering badly from neglect? Money has apparently been put into the pyramid project by the government, though whether at state, federal or cantonal level is unclear. Haris Silajdzic, president of the party for Bosnia and former prime minister, was quoted recently as saying, "Let them dig and we'll see what they find. Besides, it's good for business". What a pity he did not put his energies behind the cause of heritage protection in his country.
We were not able to help the Bosnian Serbs with vehicles, but we did meet some of their archaeologists and we learnt about their situation. It was sad indeed, on leaving the press conference in Sarajevo that day, to emerge from the building to find two sparkling new estate cars proudly bearing the symbol Bosanska Piramida Sunca, or Bosnian Pyramid of the Sun Foundation, dedicated to the cause of a fictional past for one of Europe's poorest and most conflict-ridden countries.
Here is a suggestion for Mr Osmanagic and his team. Paint out those words and that logo, and give the vehicles to the professional archaeologists of Bosnia. They really need your help.
Anthony Harding holds the anniversary chair in archaeology at Exeter University, and is president of the European Association of Archaeologists.
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