Ancient Romans In Texas?

Science Frontiers online ^ | Nov-Dec 1993 | William Corliss

[Hellmouth]

ANCIENT ROMANS IN TEXAS?

If one searches long enough and hard enough, one can discover hints that just about any ancient culture you care to name set foot in the New World well before the Vikings and Columbus. Old coins, inscriptions, language concordances, and the like are taken by many as proofs that Egyptians visited Oklahoma, the Chinese moored along the Pacific coast, the Celts toured New England, and so on. Now, according to Professor V. Belfiglio, the ancient Romans had Texas on their itineraries.

Belfiglio's evidence is fourfold, and so are mainstream criticisms:

• Roman coins found in Texas. The most convincing example came from the bottom of an Indian mound at Round Rock. This mound is dated at approximately 800 AD. Skeptics suppose that the coin was dropped on top of the mound in recent times and was carried to the bottom by rodents and tree roots. Hmmm!

• The remains of a shipwreck. Circa 1886, the wreck of an unusual ship was found in Galveston Bay. Belfiglio says this ship's construction is typically Roman. Nautical experts doubt this. but they will admit that real Roman craft were perfectly capable of sailing to Texas.

• The remains of an ancient bridge. Also in Galveston Bay, the timbers of an old bridge were found under 15 feet of sediment. A similar divergence of opinion prevails here.

• Language concordances. Belfiglio has pointed out many similarities between Latin and a dialect of the now-extinct Karankawas tribe. No comment here from the language experts.

(Lee, Victoria; "Professor Explores Theory of Romans' Ancient Voyage," Dallas Morning News, June 13, 1993. Cr. T. Adams via L. Farish.)

[shekkian]

That's right. "Treasure" was about a Roman galley hiding artifacts from the Library of Alexandria in a place later identified as Texas.

[ASA Vet]

"What in the world did they come to the Gulf Coast for?"

They were is search of a preposition.

[sawsalimb]

Point,and a very good point.

[Loyalist]

What seems unlikely is that there was any regular, culturally significant contact between the Old and New worlds in ancient times, the claims of the Afrocentrists notwithstanding.

You don't need to give credence to the Afrocentrists' claims to believe that there was much more contact between the Old and New Worlds before Columbus than is generally known.

The evidence is all around North America: Mystery Hill in New Hampshire, the Newport Tower, the Westford rock etchings, castle ruins in New Ross, Nova Scotia; Prince Henry Sinclair's discovery of Nova Scotia and the Micmac Indians' legends of Glooscap; St. Brendan's Navigatio, the Kensington (MN) stone, the Beardmore (ON) Viking relics; the Melungeons, Chinese descriptions of the Grand Canyon and Arizona deserts; Johannes Scolvuss; etc. etc.

[stands2reason]

Were Roman the only ones with Roman coins anyway?

[stands2reason]

I have a few questions. Does anyone else believe it? Also, don't you also believe in Velikovsky's work?

[stands2reason]

I would call that the most plausible explanation.

[stands2reason]

LOL!!!

[f.Christian]

You should get the joke of the day---week on this one.

Doe's this mean the Italians get to start opening Casinos in Texas?

19 posted on 4/14/02 5:57 AM Hawaii-Aleutian by willyone

Why the apostrophe?

[blam]

" Does anyone else believe it?"

Don't know. I tend to.

" Also, don't you also believe in Velikovsky's work?"

Conceptually, some aspects. Velikovsky tried to hard to explain and connect everything.

[Redbob]

"I think accidental landing is probably the most plausible explanation also."

Of course. The alternative being that a bunch of ancient Romans sat around and said, "Hey, whattaya say we all pile in Bub's galley and sail on over to Texas!"

[TenthAmendmentChampion]

What is it about this title that makes me want to ask, "Ancient Texans in..."?

[Senator Pardek]

"Memphis - home of Elvis and the ancient Greeks." - D.B.

[tomkat]

All hat and no cataloni.

Quote of the Day !

fofl ...

[LostTribe]

>I'm personally of the opinion that certain ancient peoples like the Viking, Celt and Roman traveled over a much larger range of the world than what is usually credited to them. When one considers how knowlege like iron working was cloistered and treated like a "trade secret" for centuries by the Scythians....................

Yep, evidence keeps getting uncovered to make that appear true.

I read an interesting (for it's photos) but otherwise dreadful article on the Scythians today in a 6 year old National Geographic. The editor got most everything wrong and just couldn't bring himself to admit these Scythians were CELTS, in the exact place (north of the Black Sea), and the exact time (7th Century BC) where 5 MILLION CELTS suddenly appear in history. He even had them going in the wrong direction.

It was right there hitting him in the head and he couldn't see it. (Probably too busy thinking about another upcoming article on bugs or "global warming"...)

[Charles Henrickson]

Lots of Latinos down there in Texas. This would explain it.

[Charles Henrickson]

Why do you think they call 'em "Roman"?

[weegee]

Atsa 'cause there were no refin'ries ta getta the gas for a Desoto when those explorers came drivin' tru...

'owsa that one, boss?

[weegee]

Just don't tell them that there's a Palestine as well...

[weegee]

LOL