The African continent has always fascinated explorers, treasure hunters, educational TV show producers and other like-minded people. Being cradle humanity, much of it has been thoroughly explored and studied over the past few centuries, although we still have not been able to solve some of its most enduring mysteries.
10. Lydenburg Heads
The Lydenburg Heads are a set of seven terracotta heads discovered by chance by a ten-year-old boy. Ludwig von Besing in the South African town of Lydenburg. Beginning in 1957, he found remains of sculptures and other artefacts at the same site, such as iron and copper beads, pottery, and even pieces of bone. The find would have gone completely unnoticed if he had not brought it to the archaeology department of the University of Cape Town, leading to even greater excavation efforts by local archaeologists.
Although the structures are complex and full of archaeological detail, we still don’t know exactly who built them. Some believe they were originally used as religious sites. Bantu-speaking Iron Age people, a vast group of pastoral peoples who spread across Africa. This may be true, although we know surprisingly little about them. Even today, the Bantu are made up of many different groups and tribes with different cultural backgrounds.
9. Ruins of Great Zimbabwe
Spread over 1,800 acres in modern-day Zimbabwe, the Great Zimbabwe Ruins are the remains of an ancient city that existed between the 11th and 15 centuries The ruins include a complex of stone walls, towers and enclosures that may have been part of a palace, as well as a number of other buildings. Over the years, archaeologists have uncovered evidence of an advanced and sophisticated civilization that traded with distant lands, including the Arab world and China.
Beyond that, however, we know little about the remains. They were first described by European explorers in the late 19th century, with some even claiming that they were the work of an ancient, lost white civilization. This idea has since been debunked, and the question of who built Great Zimbabwe and where they came from remains a matter of debate. Some scholars argue that the builders were indigenous people, such as Bantu speakers. tribe Shona , while others suggest that they were migrants from the coast or from North Africa.
8. Dabu Giraffes
The Dabu giraffes and the rock art surrounding them were first recorded by the French archaeologist Christian Dupuis in In 1987 . This is a set of over 800 petroglyphs named after the two largest and most impressive giraffe engravings. They are thought to be between 6,000 and 8,000 years old, making them some of the oldest rock art in the world. The larger giraffe is at least 18 feet tall, making it the largest petroglyph we have ever found.
While it is clear that a lot of effort went into their creation, we still do not know exactly who made them. In addition to the giraffes, the Dabus site is home to many other types of engravings, including various forms of animals, humans, and human-animal hybrids. Although they are now located in a remote part of the Sahara Desert, the region was likely a vast savannah , when these petroglyphs were first made.
7. The Lost City of the Kalahari
In 1885, a Canadian explorer named William Leonard Hunt claimed to have discovered the remains of a mythical lost city in the deserts of southern Africa, now known as the Lost City of the Kalahari. Under his pseudonym Guillermo Farini He wrote about the elaborate stone ruins, including a section that resembled the Great Wall of China, and supported it with sketches and photographs taken by his son.
While we don’t yet know whether Hunt actually found anything, his reports have spawned at least 30 expeditions since then. In 1964, an explorer named A. J. Clement attempted to retrace his route and came across some strange rock formations. While it’s possible that Hunt mistook them for the ruins of an ancient civilization, it’s also possible that this was an entirely different region of the Kalahari than the one he described, as his account didn’t point to any specific place .
6. Where is Cleopatra's tomb located?
Cleopatra, the famous last ruler of the Ptolemaic kingdom in Egypt, was a powerful queen who ruled the country for over 20 years. She is still remembered for her beauty and intelligence, as well as her infamous relationship with Julius Caesar and Mark Antony, who had a profound influence on Egypt and Rome.
Although we know quite a few details about her life, we do not know what happened to her after her death. Cleopatra's tomb is one of the most enduring mysteries of the ancient Egyptian era, largely due to the mysterious circumstances of her death. According to legend, Cleopatra was buried next to Mark Antony after their defeat by Octavian, although it is also possible that she ran from Rome before her death. Theories suggest it could have been deep in the seas around her palace, in a temple Taposiris Magna or in the port city of Alexandria.
5. Mount Liko
IN 2012 Conservation biologist Julian Bayliss has discovered something strange on top of an isolated mountain in Mozambique. Using Google Earth, he found an entire rainforest on top of Mount Liko, a towering structure that has been known to locals for centuries, though no one has ever managed to climb it.
IN 2018 Bayliss assembled a team of scientists, biologists, climbers, and other experts to finally scale it. What they found could be one of the last unexplored places on Earth, as the forest had been completely untouched by human presence up until that point. They found entirely new species of mammals and reptiles, including one unknown species of amphibian, and they were just beginning to explore the site. They also found several inverted pots at the base of the stream, which may indicate human presence in the past.
4. Eye of the Sahara
The Eye of the Sahara, also known as the Richat Structure, is a massive circular geological structure located in the desert of Mauritania, West Africa. Its diameter is about 30 miles , making it one of the few natural structures on Earth visible from space. It consists of a concentric ring of rocky ridges and is thought to have been formed by erosion over millions of years, although this is just one of many theories regarding its origin.
Scientists believe it could have formed in a number of other ways. We know it is not a volcano, as previously thought, and is not associated with any known tectonic activity. Some believe it is the site of a meteorological impact, although the structure lacks the characteristic central peak and raised rim of meteorite craters. The most widely accepted theory at present is that it is a geological dome formed by complex erosion patterns over millions of years, even if that does not explain its unique, almost perfectly round shape. form .
3. KV55
The story of tomb KV55 began in 1907, when it was first discovered during an archaeological expedition in Egypt's Valley of the Kings. At first glance, it was a completely unremarkable tomb with few engravings or other decorations separating it from other tombs nearby. It contained one mummified body, as well as several artifacts belonging to several people.
It has been more than a century since KV55 was first discovered, although we still do not know the circumstances of the burial, or even who the tomb belongs to. The most widely accepted theory points to a pharaoh Akhenaten , as radiocarbon dating shows that the body found inside is closely related to his father, King Tutankhamun Moreover, there is evidence that the tomb was not made for him, but was instead intended for a woman, possibly his queen Nefertiti or perhaps one of his other wives, Kiya.
2. Ruins of Gedi
Although locals had probably known about the site for much longer, the ruins of Gedi, off the east coast of Kenya, were first discovered by the outside world in the 1920s. However, it was not until 1948 that a British archaeologist James Kirkman conducted detailed excavations in the area. He soon realized that he had discovered an ancient city that had no mention in local legends or other historical evidence of its existence in the larger region.
The site of Gedi is currently one of the most mysterious historical sites in Africa, mainly because of how complex it is. Probably built sometime in the 13th century, the settlement covers an area of at least 44 hectares , with two sets of walls separating the rich and middle-class residents of the city. The ruins of clay and wattle houses are still visible, including urban improvements such as wells and elaborate drainage and sewerage systems.
1. San Civilization
The Sao civilization was a mysterious ancient culture that flourished in central Africa from the sixth century BC to the 15th century AD, making it perhaps one of the longest-lasting civilizations in history. We know of their existence from a wealth of archaeological evidence, including stone carvings, pottery, and metal objects, as well as oral records.
There are still many mysteries surrounding the Sao, as we know nothing about their language, origins or culture. According to the legends of their modern descendants, the Kotoko people, the Sao were a race giants , living somewhere between Nigeria and Cameroon.
However, we do know that they were a powerful group of people and traded with other kingdoms in the region and beyond for hundreds of years. One of theories It says that they were descended from the Hyksos people, a Palestinian dynasty that once upon a time rules for the most part Ancient Egypt .
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