For centuries, perhaps even millennia, people have been
finding weird skulls and strange artefacts that they cannot easily
explain. These range from gold coins
embedded in coal to complicated tools such as the Antikythera Mechanism. The same is true for skull bones and there
have been many discovered that challenge the perception of human
evolution. The fairly recent
archaeological discovery of miniature human bones on the Indonesian Island of
Flores has lead to the establishment of a new, if contentious, species of human
– Homo Floresiensis. In South America
scientists have revealed many strange bones and elongated skulls and in North
America a small foundation has been established to study the mysterious
Starchild Skull. As with any somewhat
controversial topic the subject matter attracts strong views from those who
support the associated findings and those that dispute them. This page is an introduction to some of the
weird skull artefacts and bones that have been revealed as well as some of the
debate that surrounds their authenticity.
| WEIRD ANDOVER VAMPIRE SKULL Is this weird and vertically elongated Skull the one from Andover? Real or Hoax - We're not sure but it's a fantastic picture. |
THE WEIRD ANDOVER VAMPIRE SKULL (New)
There have been several reports of vampire skulls being
unearthed with the most recent taking place in Venice, Italy. During the first quarter of 2009 a team of
archaeologists were excavating a mass burial pit on the island of Lazzaretto
Nuovo when they unearthed a female skull with a slab of rock forced into her
mouth. This was a typical burial for a
suspected vampire and was supposed to prevent the creature rising from the
dead. The skull and associated bones
were in keeping with a normal human physiology and displayed none of the
physical characteristics associated with the modern perception of
vampires. However, a more intriguing
story is that of the Andover Skull. The
information is sketchy but the basis of the story is that at sometime during
the 1950’s a newly married couple, Mr F and Mrs B Morris, moved to Andover
Massachusetts in the USA.
WEIRD ANDOVER VAMPIRE SKULL
Is this weird and vertically elongated Skull the one from
Andover? Real or Hoax - We're not sure but it's a fantastic picture.
They were disappointed to discover the house they had
purchased had not been fully emptied and that the attic remained stacked with
books, broken furniture and other such possessions. A year or so after moving in Mrs Morris
finally decided to empty to attic and, in the process, found a heavy wooden box
which had been nailed shut. That evening
her husband opened the box with a claw-hammer and together they discovered a
large and disturbing skull. It had unusually big eye sockets and several pieces
of the bone cranium were broken. There
were strange carvings on the front left of the skull but the most interesting
part of the discovery were its canine teeth which were strangely
elongated. Overall the skull was larger
than an average human’s and had a distinctive domed forehead. Mr Morris glued the skull fragments together
and apparently kept it in his study where he would show it to curious friends
and visitors. After some months Mrs
Morris became distressed by its presence and insisted that it be reburied as
she had convinced herself that it was demonic or at least the skull of a
powerful Indian medicine man. Instead,
he allegedly took the skull to a nearby Museum of Archaeology which specialised
in Native American history.
| THE STARCHILD SKULL Cranium of the Starchild widely available on the internet Note the close set eyes and low retinal nerve. Discovered in el Paso |
THE STARCHILD SKULL
Of all the skulls featured here, the “Starchild” is probably
the most controversial one discovered if only because of its widespread
publicity. In brief, the original skull,
which is estimated to be 900 years old,
was discovered by an American teenage girl near the Copper Canyon
district of Sierra Tarahumara in the south west of Chihuahua State, Mexico.
After her death in 1990 the skull came into the possession of El Paso
residents, Ray and Melanie Young in 1998.
They sought the advice of Mr. Lloyd Pye who is often described as a
researcher into the alternative. Shortly afterwards he established the
Starchild Project to better understand the skull. There is no doubt that the
skull is real. The bone is thinner than
average and although it appears to belong to a four or five year old child the
cranial capacity is 1600cc which is 200cc more than your average adult
human. DNA testing has revealed that it
has both the X and Y human chromosome which seems to indicate that it is
human. However, proponents of alternate
theories suggest that it could be the child of a human-alien hybrid itself.
According to the Starchild Project they refute that the DNA from both parents
was easily identified and suggest that the father's DNA was something other
than ordinary.
Two distinct schools of thought regarding the specimen have
emerged. One group see it as evidence of
various theories ranging from alien-human hybrids to proof of an alternative
evolution. The other group believe that
the skull is nothing more than a natural deformity possibly caused by
brachycephaly, Crouzon syndrome or some other natural genetic mutation. Both groups’ present compelling evidence and
it is definitely worth understanding both sides of the story before making up
your own mind.
| QUEEN NEFERTITI Queen Nefertiti - 18th Dynasty - 3300 years old Please note the elongated head and neck. |
QUEEN NEFERTITI - A VERY WEIRD SKULL
The image to the right is from the limestone carving called
the "Relief of a Royal Couple" and is believed to depict Nefertiti an
Egyptian queen and is from the 18th Dynasty circa 1330BC. It is on display in
the Altes museum in Berlin - Germany. Nefertiti was the wife of Akhenaton the
Egyptian Pharaoh who strangely forced many social and religious changes on his
subjects including the concept of Sun or Star worship. It would seem that Nefertiti was
exceptionally beautiful and had many otherworldly qualities including a
significantly elongated skull. In all
artworks she is either shown with an elaborate headdress or with a elongated
skull. Apparently this characteristic
was inherited by her daughters who are depicted in the same manner.
For many years Egyptologists have dismissed this attribute
as artistic license but it has become ever more obvious and accepted that the
ancient artists depicted their subjects as they really appeared. If this is true then the Egyptian queen not
only had a very unusual cranial structure but it was at least 50% larger than
that of the average human being thus ruling out simple head-binding practices.
QUEEN NEFERTITI
Queen Nefertiti - 18th Dynasty - 3300 years old
Please note the elongated head and neck.
| ELONGATED INCA SKULLS Weird elongated Inca skull discovered in Peru possibly created by head binding - quite common. |
WEIRD ELONGATED INCA SKULLS
The harsh fact is that the human brain and skull has
increased faster in size than the female pelvis. Incredibly fast! Put simply,
the average human baby’s head is now too big and requires extreme physical contortion
and rotation to achieve a natural birth.
(Of all the facts that we present you on the Aquiziam website – this is
the one that is the most important. Evolution does not usually make this kind
of mistake. Currently one in three
children born in Canada and the United States is delivered via Caesarean
section. How could this have happened?) Giving birth is an extremely painful
episode for most women and is almost unique to humans. Most other creatures on this planet do not
seem to experience the same degree of discomfort. This is an extremely important clue to the
origin of our species that is embarrassingly overlooked by most of the
scientists that study evolution. Still, as a result, life has ensured that foetal
skulls are soft and pliable to allow them to pass through the bony ring of the
pelvis and the vaginal canal. It is not
uncommon for children to be born with cone shaped heads that quite quickly
readjust to the appropriate shape.
However, in many ancient cultures it became the practice to
bind the infant’s head with cloths and wooden slats for a period of between six
months to one year to create a shape that was socially acceptable and tribally
recognisable. In a sense it was a
primitive ID card that said you belonged to the “pick-your-name” tribe for now
and forever. This practice resulted in a
wide variety of misshapen cranial structures that still baffle modern science
particularly as in some cases the volume of the brain-chamber has also been
increased. This practice may have also stimulated some unforeseen side-effects.
By changing the geometry of the skull it may have been possible to change the
functioning of the brain. Today it would
be considered extreme to carry out this practice and as a result it is almost
never done. We cannot tell what
psychological changes it might have created.
Did it increase intelligence? Did
it stimulate paranormal abilities? Did
it emulate an entity that was perceived as a God? There must have been some
benefit or it would not have been carried out in the first place. Archaeologists have discovered many dozens of
elongated skulls from both Egypt and South America. Interestingly, these regions both had a
fascination with the construction of pyramids, the stars, calendars,
mummification and death. Both societies also had complex agricultural secrets
and a powerful priesthood. We don’t know
what this means and are reluctant to add yet another theory but it should make
you stop and think – if only for a moment
| HOMO FLORESIENSIS Homo Floresiensis or Flores man. A weird find that may rewrite the archeological record |
HOMO FLORESIENSIS
In 2003 a team of researchers decided to explore and conduct
excavations in the Liang Bua Cave on the Island of Flores which is part of the
Indonesian chain. To their surprise they
quickly discovered the almost complete skeleton of a tiny hominid (ancient
human). The height of the adult female skeleton was approximately 3 ft 6 in and
displayed many characteristics that indicated that a new species of human had
been located. This was reinforced by the
simultaneous discovery of tools and artefacts consistent with the size of
skeletons. There were also indications
that the “little People” had used fire and had hunted a range of now extinct
animals including giant rats and miniature elephants known as Dwarf Stegodon. The cranium has a sloping forehead and no
specific bone-based chin although it does have human-like teeth and all
indications are that it walked upright. Although there is still some
controversy over whether Homo Floresiensis in a new species or is just a
variation of modern humans or perhaps Homo Erectus, there is no doubt that a
strange population of human-like creatures once lived on the island.
HOMO FLORESIENSIS
Homo Floresiensis or Flores man. A weird find that may
rewrite the archeological record.
In fact, according to local legends there still references
to tribes of “little people” that live deep in the forests. The skull is much smaller than that of a
modern human but the prefrontal cortex is still the same size as modern human
beings indicating a high degree of intelligence and self-awareness. Many researchers into Homo Floresiensis go to
great lengths to explain that these people were not pygmies or dwarfs they were
something unique. As such, they have been
given the nickname – hobbits – after the famous Halfling folk from the Lord of
the Rings trilogy written by J. R. R. Tolkien (1954)
| THE CRYSTAL SKULLS The weird Crystal Skull on display in the British Museum. Discovered by Eugène Bobaneird. |
THE CRYSTAL SKULLS
Whilst most of the serious scientific community agree that
the crystal skulls on display in various museums and private collections are
not pre-Columbian artefacts and were made between the 18th and 19th centuries,
there may be some deeper aspects that remain uncertain. To start with,
scientific testing is based on the body of knowledge available at the time of
the test. For example, should a new (and similar) skull be discovered in a well
documented excavation it would provide the scientific community with a new
perspective to consider? The most common challenge to the authenticity of the
skulls is the evidence that they appear to have been made with fairly modern
tools which were not available to the Aztec pre-Columbians.
However, this also
makes the assumption that simply because they have not been found such tools they
never existed. A simple study of paleontology clearly shows that all the
fossils ever found probably represent less than 0.1 percent of the
bio-diversity that has existed in the past. Still, it is probably likely that
the skulls of which we are aware are best viewed as modern creations.
However, there has also been some speculation that these
crystal skulls were all modeled on an earlier skull that was remarkably
detailed and that had been taken from the body of a fallen god. It is this theme that is explored in the very
popular film released in 2008 “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal
Skull.” Given the trade in real and fake
pre-Columbian artefacts that emerged in the 1870’s and 1880’s it is possible
that such a skull existed or the story was a popular myth amongst traders in central
and South American antiquities.
Whatever the true origins of the crystal skulls they remain on display
in respectable museums and continue to fascinate people.
| WEIRD SKULLS WITH HORN(S) Fake picture of a weird horned skull. Still the belief persists and who knows the truth? |
WEIRD SKULLS WITH HORN(S)
There are numerous accounts of human beings with horns. Unfortunately, many of them are poorly
documented and even worse, the possession of the artefacts has been mismanaged
to the extent that the records become very questionable. Still, there is definitively a powerful
socio-genetic memory of human-like creatures with horns and they are usually
depicted as evil or at the very least, powerful and destructive. Satan is the
most obvious example but many demons, giants, biblical creatures, shamans,
witch doctors, the Minotaur and (possibly) mythical creatures such as dragons
all had horns. The unicorn is the
exception ... although it is also said to have a fascination with young virgins
which is a bit odd when you think about it.
The main source of the belief in real horned skulls comes from an entry
in the book, Mysteries of the Unexplained published by Readers Digest in the
1990’s. The section refers to the
discovery of a number of skulls that clearly had horns projecting above their
eyebrows. Basically, the skulls were
supposed to have been found by reputable people in a burial mound in Sayre,
Bradford County, Pennsylvania, in 1880.
Unfortunately, the original story was exaggerated by the press who
confused a statement about individuals that had been buried with deer
horns. It was 1916 after all.
WEIRD SKULLS WITH HORN(S)
Fake picture of a weird horned skull.
Still the belief persists and who knows the truth?
The story re-emerged on the internet as early as 1996 and
has been the mainstay of the horned-skull belief for well over a decade. There are also many references on the
internet to a horned-skull on display in the London Museum. Well ... we went there and looked for it and
couldn’t find it. Maybe it’s in a secret
room. The picture to the right and above is a fake. It’s quite a good fake and we fully expect to
find it at the heart of some horned-skulls proof a few years from now. Still, it’s a fake created with the help of
Adobe Photoshop. It’s also worth noting that “freak shows were once a popular
form of entertainment and unfortunate people with rare skull deformities (such
as The Elephant Man) were displayed to the general public. Unscrupulous carnival owners would have
amazing artefacts manufactured and horned skulls were popular. If you sift through the internet you will
find quite a few pictures and descriptions of people with horns. Unfortunately, it is very hard to know if
they too are real or not. We’ve included
this section on horned skulls not because there is significant proof of their
existence but because so many people truly seem to believe that they have
existed at some point in the past.
| GIANT SKULLS The skull of a large neanderthal alongside a contemporary human skull - a giant indeed. |
GIANT SKULLS
Over the years archaeologists and explorers have discovered
many unusually large skulls that have intrigued scientists from around the
world. These giants may have simply been
human anomalies or may represent a branch of anthropology that remains a
mystery. It is worth noting that there
are various medical conditions that can cause “Giantism” or more correctly,
Gigantism. Pituitary Gigantism is the most common and is caused when the when
an excess of growth hormone is released during puberty. However, skulls from people afflicted with
this condition tend to display characteristics that can fairly easily identify
this as the cause. Some of the giant
skulls discovered are also simply explained as being those of the Neanderthal
species of human beings (Homo Sapiens Neanderthalensis) that became extinct
approximately 15,000 years ago. Still,
there are other skulls that defy such simple analysis. Two cases stand out and are worth mentioning
even though one may well be a hoax. The
first is the Lovelock cave find. In 1911
a team of guano miners, who where excavating the cave, began to unearth various
Native American bones and remains. Archaeological teams were brought in and
over the next 15 years various mummies and skeletal remains were discovered.
From various bones, and particularly the femurs, it was concluded
that the average height of the buried skeletons was ten feet tall. Many of the bones were sent to scientists and
educational institutions and over the course of time have become lost. However, some of the finds, including a giant
skull, can still be viewed at the Humboldt Museum in Winnemucca in the state of
Nevada. The second case refers to the discovery of a truly giant skeleton by an
oil exploration team in Saudi Arabia in 2002.
Apparently this being was 25ft tall and had a skull that was nearly 5ft
in length. According to internet rumour
the find was hushed-up by the Saudi authorities who immediately distributed
fake photos through a Photoshop competition that created such confusion that
nobody really has any idea whether this was a real occurrence or a hoax. However, it is important to note that Bedouin
legend does make reference to such a race naming them as being of the Aad or
Hood nation. (If you’re interested in
finding out more about this skull and skeleton simply Google “Saudi Arabia
Giant Skeleton” and decide for yourself.) Legends of weird giants are common in
almost every part of the world. They
range from those of merely tall people to truly gigantic beings that can move
mountains. (Shrewsbury Giant) This is clearly a shared belief-memory that
deserves more investigation. At the time
of writing the tallest, scientifically recorded, man was Robert Pershing Wadlow
who was 9ft 11in. His skull was 36% larger
than that of his father. Another recent
giant was Anna Haining Bates who reached 7.5ft in height and had a cranial
capacity 22% larger than her father.
Records indicate that she was extremely intelligent
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