Posted on 10/19/2012 6:11:45 PM PDT by Engraved-on-His-hands
For the past 50 years—since the discovery of a thousand-year-old Viking way station in Newfoundland—archaeologists and amateur historians have combed North America's east coast searching for traces of Viking visitors.
It has been a long, fruitless quest, littered with bizarre claims and embarrassing failures. But at a conference in Canada earlier this month, archaeologist Patricia Sutherland announced new evidence that points strongly to the discovery of the second Viking outpost ever discovered in the Americas.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.nationalgeographic.com ...
North American Discovery ping
These people have been trying to deny Rome’s discovery of America ever since Columbus got here.
“Viking” is such a racist term. I prefer Scandanvian American. < /sarc>
Where do I sign up for reparations for the slaughter of my illegal immigrant Viking forebears by the nativists?
Given the way vikings traveled in boats specifically designed to go far up rivers I wouldn’t be surprised if they made it well into the great lakes region.
That doesn’t mean they left a lot of evidence or even would have left much but its certainly possible. Seems that I’ve read that there are some cliff drawings in Michigan’s upper peninsula that show boats that look suspiciously like viking longboats. Again, its not evidence but its interesting to consider.
For those interested in historical curiosities and adventure, one of my favorite books is an old one called Conquest by Man, by Paul Herrman. Although more than half a century old and out of date on many issues, it still is one of the more well-done books of its kind that I have ever read. It is not an overly sensationalized book. It simply bears out, in many cases, the saying that fact can be stranger than fiction. It has interesting information on the Vikings (e.g., that the Roman Catholic Church recognized a bishop of Greenland in the 11th century, long before Columbus) and numerous other topics, such as the Egyptians traversing the Cape of Good Hope in the 6th century B.C., 2000 years prior to Bartholomew Diaz (in 1488). Still more than worth a read in spite of its age.
Bookmark!
damn Danes! Always causing trouble.
It’s a little known fact that the Vikings were some of the best glass blowers in the world. The best way to validate this spot as Viking is to look for small, glass figurines of seals, moose and elephants.
Bk mk
Yep, there was a bishop in Gardar.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gar%C3%B0ar,_Greenland
There is an intriguing mention of Erik, the bishop of Gardar, sailing to Vinland in 1121, but nothing more was ever heard from him.
There is some compelling evidence that the so-called Kensington Runestone in Minnesota represents what was almost the deepest incursion into North America by Viking explorers.
Associated with this find are some sites in Lake Winnipeg which these explorers would've traversed (via Hudson's Bay, Churchill River, Lake Winnipeg, thence the Red River into Dakota/Minnesota country). Plus, we are presented with a genetic source for tyhe blonde hair and blue eyes that Lewis & Clark found in the Mandan tribe.
I've pinged blam to the thread since he authored an extensive thread on the Kensington Runestone here on FR and could post a link for us.
Moreover, I discovered a striking image of a Viking longship, complete with extended prow, square sail and a row of oars, with round shields mounted along the deck rails at Three Rivers Petroglyphs near Tularosa, NM back in 1966.
I'm not saying the Vikings ever got there...but stories about their boats certainly did.
Please call me a Berserker American. Or else.
Yeah, I think there was far more traveling going on but not a lot of written history being kept. Written history and record keeping was mostly a southern European thing.
Look how the tribes spread all across the vast south pacific to places as far away as Hawaii and Easter Island.
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