Beneath the cold, dark waves of the Baltic Sea, hides
a rare piece of history
.
In the German bay of Mecklenburg, 21 meters deep, scientists have found an ancient megastructure, dating back to the Stone Age, more than 10,000 years ago.
The structure, which spans a length of almost a kilometer and is composed of large stones, defies all natural explanation, meaning that it appears to have been built deliberately for some purpose,
thousands of years before it was swallowed by the sea
.
The German research team led by geophysicist Jacob Geersen of Kiel University believes
the structure is a wall
, perhaps to aid the efforts of the hunter-gatherers who inhabited the region so many years ago.
It is one of the oldest structures found on Earth
The scientists called the discovery Blinkerwall.
"The site represents one of the oldest
documented artificial hunting structures
on Earth, and is among the largest Stone Age structures known in Europe," the researchers write in their paper.
A part of the underwater structure found.
It is 10,000 years old (Philip Hoy).
"It will be important to understand livelihood strategies, mobility patterns and inspire debates on territorial development in the Western Baltic Sea region."
Many coastal settlements and structures have been washed away by waves over time, hidden from view and difficult to access for humans.
The treasures under the sea
However, in recent years, continually developing technologies have begun to reveal the treasures hidden in the seabed.
Geersen and his team found Blinkerwall using high-resolution hydroacoustic imaging,
an autonomous underwater vehicle
, and human divers to explore the bay and map the true extent of the structure.
The structure was found under the Baltic Sea (AFP).
The data collected revealed a long stretch of about
1,670 individual stones
, spanning about 971 meters.
These stones tended to be less than a meter high and less than 2 meters wide, and were side by side along the length of the structure.
"Based on the available information," the researchers write, "the most plausible functional interpretation of the Blinkerwall is that it was built and used as hunting architecture to drive herds of large ungulates."
At that time it was mainly
reindeer or bison
.
It's not such a strange idea.
Hundreds of colossal stone structures have been found scattered from the lava fields of the Saudi Arabian desert to central Asia.
Scientists believe that these structures were also used to drive herds of animals, making them easier to hunt.
Source: ScienceAlert
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