Archaeologists doing a heritage impact assessment on the site of a future gold mine northwest of Carmacks, Yukon, have unearthed a Chinese coin from the 17th century. Although old Chinese coins are fairly common finds along the northwest coast of Canada and the United States, this is only the third one ever found in the interior Yukon. It was discovered in July but only announced publicly a couple of days ago after months of fact-checking and research.
According to James Mooney, cultural resource specialist with Ecofor Consulting Limited, the archaeological firm hired by Western Copper and Gold Corporation to do the heritage impact assessment, all three of the Yukon Chinese coins were found in an archaeological setting. No later historical materials were found along with them, indicating that the coins were traded into the interior before the Klondike Gold Rush via the First Nations coastal trade with Europeans rather than by Europeans traipsing into the interior themselves.
The Chinese characters mark the coin as one minted during the reign of Emperor Kangxi of the Qing Dynasty. He was the longest-reigning Chinese emperor in history, ruling from 1662 to 1722, but this particular coin was minted between 1667 and 1671. We know this because it is number six in a series of coins known as “poem coins” minted by Kangxi who was famous for his poetry. There were 20 different “poem coins” minted over the years. If placed in a certain order, the characters on each coin form a poem. The coins were considered good luck charms and once people collected all 20 in the series, they often wore them on a chain for good luck.
In addition to the Chinese characters and a square hole in the middle, the coin also has four small holes poked along the edge across from each corner of the square hole. The extra holes could have been made in China or by the First Nations in Canada. A Chinese tradition held that coins nailed to gates and doorways brought good luck, and First Nations were known to attach coins to their clothes as decoration or to create a kind of rudimentary plate armor out of a network of overlapping coins.
The area where the coin was discovered was a promontory overlooking a river on the ancient Dyea to Fort Selkirk trade route. It would have made a good camping spot for a traveler following the trade route. The first written accounts of European traders, mainly Russian fur traders, doing business in northwest Canada date from mid-1700s, although there is evidence of earlier trade, perhaps even as early as the 15th century. The Russian traders exchanged goods like silk, weapons, tobacco, clothing for sea otter, seal, beaver pelts with the coastal Tlingit peoples. The Russians would then trade the furs with the Chinese.
The Tlingit had the monopoly on direct trade with the Russians. They controlled the Chilkoot Pass through the mountains to the interior regions and they would trade coastal goods and European goods for copper and fur with the Yukon First Nations.
Given the importance of this discovery, Ecofor is recommending that the road Western Copper and Gold planned to built where the coin was found be built elsewhere so the site can continue to be studied.
In 1993, a Chinese coin date around 1400 was discovered in Beaver Creek, BC, Canada.
How’s that for real history?
There was a Chinese Navy General named Zheng He. His voyages have been documented with travels as far away as Africa and Saudi Arabia.
So does this mean he also reached N.America?
Indeed, the 15th century coin is one of the three pre-Gold Rush Chinese coins found in Yukon. It was minted between 1403 and 1424.
As for Zeng He, there’s no reason whatsoever to believe he reached the Americas. We know there was an active trade network linking China, Russia, coastal northwest America and on to the interior. No need to interpolate a grand direct connection between China and Yukon.
If a 1400’s Chinese coin was found in BC, Canada how did it get there? At that time, Europe hadn’t even emerged as a civilized continent to even have known anything about N.America and were not trading with the Far East yet.
Just because the coin is from the 1400s doesn’t mean it got to Canada the year it was minted. Somebody carried an old coin with them on a later trip is all.
My thoughts exactly. I live near an old Chinese community in the interior of B.C. (Quesnel Forks) and we’ve collected a couple dozen of these during the restoration.
Does this prove that the Russian trade route extended this far? No! It proves that Chinese people lived here.
These coins were passed from generation on down. They had an inherent intrinsic value.
Mock archaeology.
I must add though, that locally during the 1860’s Native guides and packers showed the goldseekers patches of potatoes that were soon dubbed ‘goodwill potatoes’.
The story goes that they derived from a Russian source, traded from the coast, a hundred years earlier.
Getting back to the coin…
Why would some Russian trade for a worthless brass/zinc Chinese coin and take it across the Pacific in the hope of trading it for something else?
I also read that this particular coin was found ‘inches from the surface’.
Very old Chinese coins found all over the Northwestern coast of America and as far east as the Yukon and just recently a bronze belt
buckle almost certainly from Asia found in Alaska. And yet many North Americans struggle
with the idea that there appears to have been
significant ancient trade and cultural contact
between our two continents.
In 1940 Spencer L. Rogers wrote “The Aboriginal Bow and Arrow of North America and Eastern Asia.” He wrote that North America was “invaded by the compound bow at its north eastern extremity” in ancient times. (Page 257)
His well researched and illustrated 15 page article can be accessed via any search engine.
Potatoes are native to the Americas.
True, although not to Alaska. The first permanent non-Native settlers of Alaska were in fact Russians and it was they who are thought to have first planted potatoes on Kodiak Island in the late 18th century. Potatoes grow very well in Alaska, btw. They like the cool earth and produce more sugar as a result.
I’m confused by your last response. You acknowledged that potatoes are native to the Americas but not to
Alaska. Then you say that Russians were thought to be the first to have brought potatoes to Alaska (Kodiak
Islands) in the late 18th century. The obvious question then is that because Russia is not part of the Americas where potatoes originated (per your acknowledgement)then how did potatoes get from the Americas to
Russia from where they then crossed the Bering Straits to Alaska.
The Spanish brought the potato to Europe from Peru in the 16th century. From there it spread all over the continent. By 1800, they were a common crop even in Russia. They’re cheap, easy to grow in a variety of climates and soils, packed with caloric goodness, and since you don’t need to mill potatoes in order to eat them like you do with wheat and rye, potatoes can go from field to stomach in an instant. Russian fur traders brought potatoes with them both to eat on the voyage and to plant once they reached their trading posts and, eventually, permanent settlements.
hi, I have some imformation from China that I do for my homework:
China, officially the People’s Republic of China (PRC), is considered to be the oldest civilization of the world. It is assumed that ancient China existed about 5000 to 500,000 years ago. The first Chinese civilization is believed to have flourished in the Yellow River valley, in the Neolithic era. China is ever-important on the global stage as the world’s second-largest and most populous country with a population of over 1.3 billion. Covering approximately 9.6 million square kilometers, The People’s Republic of China is a single-party state governed by the Communist Party of China. Its capital city is Beijing.
Ancient Chinese culture has made many contributions to the field of science. The world’s oldest record of continuously used writing systems is Written Chinese. In fact, many of the Chinese characters that are used currently have been traced back to about 1500 BCE. The modern Chinese culture and tradition is an amalgamation of political and cultural influences, contributed by the immigrants from various parts of Asia. Before the 15th century, China was one of the most powerful countries in the world, occupying a leading position in the development of productivity and technology. Ancient China enjoyed a developed agriculture and advanced irrigation system, an independent tradition of medicine and advanced botanical knowledge. China’s four great inventions, namely, the compass, gunpowder, movable type printing and papermaking, not only changed the world but also accelerated the evolution of world history.
I’m glad you’ve done your homework, but shouldn’t you hand it in to your teacher instead of posting it on blog entries about something else entirely? Just because China is in the title doesn’t mean it’s the perfect venue for a very basic Social Studies overview of a complex country.
Good Day,
Why, in your opinion, is there so much resistance to the overwhelming evidence that the Europeans did not discover America? As a First Nations member, Indigenous Life Skill instructor, and timber wright specializing in folk timber, stone and earth architecture of the Americas, Middle East and Asia, I have seen over whelming evidence that there was Asian influences in the Americas thousands of years before the Western Europeans came to North America. Mr. Harris information is very strong and well documented. Even within the oral teachings of my own people there is stories that would support it.
Regards,
Jay
American scholars proclaim that there were NO Pre Columbian
foreign influences in North America. The masses accept this
proclamation as fact. But there are at least two sources of evidence
that indicate that this “accepted premise” may not or probably is
not the truth. 1). The most common wedding ceremony among
Native Americans and celebrated for centuries as their own sacred
tradition is the exact same ceremony as the Vedic wedding ceremony
which originated in India thousands of years ago and still celebrated
there today. Google: “Native American Seven Step Seven Vow
Wedding” and “The Hindu Seven Step Seven Vow Wedding”
2) The swastika (Manji) is an ancient Vedic symbol which originated
in India and is and has been an sacred symbol in Hinduism and
Buddhism for thousands of years. In Sanskrit, the ancient language
of India, Manji is translated to mean “Whirlwind”. Then how can
American scholars explain the fact that the literal translation of
the word for the swastika (Manji) in the Navajo language is
“Whirling Logs” and the translation in the Hopi language is exactly
the same as it is from Sanskrit–“Whirlwind”. How could that possibly
be a coincidence? When will American historians be asked to explain
this evidence that contradicts their stated position on No Pre Columbian
Foreign Influences In North American?
For more information on the topic of Pre Columbian Buddhist influences in
North America google: “Were the Anasazi People Buddhists?”, “Mandalas
Manjis Mantras and Monuments”, “Dimensions of Dine (Navajo) and
Buddhist Traditions” and “Vedic Cafe Native American Wedding”.
…More great information Hedon, thanks for sharing this, and bring the conversation of to date. I would love to see you post on “linked In,” under a pertinent group knowledge base. I am sure it would be a ” discussion,” in no time.
Regards,
jay
According to Dr Stephen Lekson, University of Colorado, theories of pre Columbian North America that include elements of diffusion and/or migration are disregarded by the scholars tasked with researching this topic. His well written online essay is available at “Diffusions & Histories/ The Southwest in the World”. With the increasing amount of evidence that may point to pre Columbian contact between Buddhism and Native America is this policy more about protecting the correct historical record or is it about preventing or suppressing evidence that perhaps indicates a different ancient cultural and religious influence here than we’ve been taught and that those who prefer the European version of the story would prefer to remain untold.
Hello Hendon,
Of course I would believe the later in your above statement. The reality is our hallowed halls of higher learning are much too political for their own good, so even broaching a theory that is out of there normal purview is more than often squashed by the “wise counsels” that govern over the truth of our history. Sorry for the sarcasm.
It is well known that there are literally thousands of arches in the Four Corners region of the American Pacific Southwest. There are over two thousand arches in Arches Natl Park, Utah alone. We also know that at least one of these arches (Rainbow Bridge) is a sacred place for the Navajo and several other tribes in the area. Were the other arches in the area at some time in America’s ancient past also religious shrines as well? There are a growing number of people who are seeing similarities between Native American cultures, distinctive monuments in the area and Vedic Buddhism. Another possible connection is the arch that plays a prominent role in all Vedic religions of India including Buddhism. That arch is called a Torana in Sanskrit the language of ancient India. (Torana Vedic Gateway Arch). The primary purpose of the Torana is to be a frame for a religious image like a Buddha or other Vedic image. Therefore the most sacred part of the torana is the ground immediately below the arch itself where the sacred image rests. Interestingly the Navajo recently unsuccessfully sued the U.S. government to stop the 300,000 tourists who annually visit Rainbow Bridge from walking under the arch and across the sacred ground underneath. Sound somewhat familiar? Google: (Rainbow Bridge Hendon Harris) & (Tour of the Big 14) Landbridges
Who are you going to believe regarding the issue of Which Culture Was The First True Master of the High Seas? Was it the Europeans who began it with their “Age of Discovery” in the late 15th century? Or was it really the ancient Chinese who have been sailing the high seas for centuries prior to the beginning of the Common Era? There is truly a lot at stake in this debate. For the last 500 years western civilization has reported it was they working completely on their own who developed the maps, the ships and the navigational skills that made them able to travel and map the high seas to places that were unknown to any prior ancient advanced civilization. This entitled them to claim the places they found as their very own to do with as they pleased. However, detailed ancient Chinese records that have fairly recently been made known by sinologists point to an entirely different account of Chinese nautical history. Google: “History of Ancient Chinese Navy” “Ancient Chinese Naval Technology” and “Ship Building in Ancient China”. The Western and the Eastern accounting of the history of nautical technology, shipbuilding and navigational skills clearly does not mesh. These accounts clash! Somebody is misinformed or not telling the truth. Which of these two cultures is shaping history to support their cultural and religious declarations? I tend to believe the Eastern version of this story. There are volumes of ancient Chinese documents that support their account. The Inconvenient Maps found in the U.S. Library of Congress and in numerous private collections appear to give positive evidence that foreign world maps were showing up in 15th century Europe and were “translated” into the western format of maps. (These Inconvenient Maps disappeared from view and acceptance as quickly as they had appeared as the result of peer pressure from fellow cartographers.) The Waldseemuller Map recently purchased by our Library of Congress for ten million dollars is just of example. Google: “Inconvenient Maps at the Library of Congress”. This map is inconvenient because although it was “crafted” in 1507 by a German Catholic priest it clearly shows the Pacific Ocean years before it was ever seen by a European. This incredibly far more accurate map than other European contemporary versions was made (or copied) using the very same Chinese block back style that had been used by the Chinese to produce more accurate maps for centuries. Google “The Genius of China” Robert Temple. Bottom of Page 31″
It’s past time for western scholars to weigh in on this issue.
” I tend to believe the Eastern version of this story…”
As do I, well share and taken. I wish now that our academia would begin to reflect this non eurocentric perspective of history…
Alexander Von Humbolt (1769-1859) one of the most famous geographers/
explorers in history was also a firm believer in the premise that Buddhist
missionaries had sailed to Fu Sang (North America) long before Christopher
Columbus arrived here. Charles Darwin, Joseph Smith, kings, queens and
presidents around the world were fervent followers of Humbolt and his theories. He called Hwui Shan (Hui Shen) “the Leif Ericson of China and
Fu Sang the Vinland of the West.”. Because he was familiar with Buddhism
and the importance of phallic symbols in Buddhism he was seriously perplexed
that he couldn’t find any evidence of phallic symbols here in North America.
Because of this he theorized that the Buddhists who made it here must have
been from a sect of Buddhism that had rejected the use of such symbols in
their religion and their culture. He must not have been familiar with the
importance of Kokopelli, his phallus and its fertility symbolism in the cultures of the tribes of the Four Corners. He also was not aware that in that same area were also huge phallic symbols of the size of the “Chinese Phallic Rock Symbol at Danxia China”. Although I am sure there are many more I have
found three in Utah. The first two are in Utah at Arches Natl Park and can be accessed by googling “Buck and Mabel’s King Kong Dong” and “Bust.com Rock Hard Penis”. The third image is at Big Water, Utah among the Whaweap
Hoodoos. It can be viewed by googling “Whaweap Hoodoos by Tanya” and
then going to the images section. I believe it’s one of the last images in the second row. You can see a more distant view of it by googling “Ian Parker
Hoodoo Pool” or “Ian Parker Hoodoo Reflections”. You can get directly to this
impressive two toned image at images.summitpost.org/original/368640.jpg
Alexander Von Humbolt was already convinced that Pre Columbian Buddhists were here. If he had been aware of these phallic symbols I believe he would have felt he had conclusively proved his point.
One of the primary ways the naysayers of pre
Columbian Chinese migration and cultural/
religious influences here in North America use
to discredit this theory is by stating that the Chinese at that time did not have the technology or the navigational skills to make the trip. Its not at all difficult to prove that claim false. All you need to do is google: “History of the Chinese Navy” and “Ancient Chinese Navigation”. You might still claim then that yes they did in fact have the skills to come here then but that there
is absolutely no evidence anywhere to indicate that they did. That’s why I’m writing this
posting. I believe I have evidence to demonstrate that they did in fact travel here
from times long long ago.
Let’s start with the San Pedro Bay on the
California coast immediately south of the Palos Verdes Peninsula and just east of the
beautiful Channel Islands of which Catalina is
approximately “twenty six miles across the sea” away. For an excellent image of these features google: “Map of the California Channel Islands Ray Sterner”
Because of these geographic features San Pedro
Bay has had the capacity to be a wonderful
anchorage/ harbor since before the arrival of man on earth. Yes, its a “no brainer” that
two of the largest harbors in the world (LA and Long Beach Harbors)are now located in San
Pedro Bay but the reasons that make this a smart choice harbor today have existed for thousands of years. The Palos Verdes Peninsula protects the bay from the south flowing North Pacific Gyre currents by sending
those currents wide around the point and creating an effective backwater there. The Channel Island serve as an effective wind and
wave breakwater from the coastal winds blowing in from the west. Catalina Island itself serves this function for San Pedro Bay.
So does it then really seem shocking to anyone
that many years ago Bob Meistrell, the founder
and owner of Body Glove diving suits, found what many experts have acknowledged are 2000 or more year old Chinese stone anchors in shallow water just off the Palos Verdes Peninsula. Is this just a random discovery not connected to any other written reports of
ancient Chinese (Asian) sailing trips to a place east of China that originally got its
name Fu Sang from the enormous trees on its west coast unlike any other trees seen anywhere else in the world? Sound familiar to those of us who have seen trees like those described above that are present today on the Northern California and Southern Oregon coasts? Or what about Hwui Shan saying in his Liang Shu travel journal that the “Land of Women” (matriarchal cultures of the Puebloan people in the Four Corners region?) was 1000 li (333 miles) from the eastern side of Fu Sang. Google: “Hwui Shan Land of Women I believe I can show you” and “Buddhist Symbols
and Cultures North America”. This compelling evidence speaks for itself and points to the obvious. However, like those who find their
spouse clearly in bed illicitly with another
many do not want to deal with the truth and
find denial the more comfortable position to take. I don’t know. You tell me. With the Dalai Lama, Tibetan Buddhists, Puebloan Native American cultures and so many others clearly demonstrating by their actions and words that this is what they believe and have been practicing since ancient times why is mainstream America refusing to admit it. Is our culture so weak and our religious faith so shaky that if we were to admit to pre Columbian Chinese (Asian) influences here that our culture would be shaken. I don’t believe so. If you disagree with me on this evidence let me know so I can answer your questions.
Native Americans have a god of fire. Its an established fact. Its an established fact because it is used in the most common wedding ceremony used in North America not only by our First Nations people today but also going back hundreds of years as their own sacred tradition. But this highly specific unique ceremony (like the Manji symbol) did not originate in North America. It originated thousands of years ago in Vedic India where it is known as the Saptapadi as well as “The Seven Step Seven Vow Wedding”. It’s also celebrated around around “the sacred flame” there as it’s celebrated here. The ceremony is identical in both places. In all Vedic religions such as Buddhism and Hinduism
among others there is absolutely NO CONFUSION about the identity of the god of fire: It’s Agni. Agni has been their god of fire for a very long time going back before the common era began. Now if the Native American cultures practice of this wedding ritual is the same down to the last detail with the Vedic ritual from India started so long ago is it really presumptuous to make the assumption that the god of the “sacred fire” is the same on both continents. That would then by definition make the “sacred god of the fire” of Native Americans Agni as well. There is another clue that also points in this same direction. In the Anasazi (Ancient Puebloan) extant kivas are numerous fire pits that look identical to the fire pits (homa/havan) used by Vajrayana (Tibetan) Buddhists to worship Agni to this day. Google: “Agni Hindu God of Fire The Buddha Garden” and “Agni god of fire Hendon Harris”. In 502 CE Buddhist missionary monk
Hwui Shan gave a report to Wu Ti then Emperor of China. In that report Hwui Shan stated that he had taken Buddhism for the first time
to a country long known in China as Fu Sang.
That report is recorded in the Liang Shu (The
Book of Liang). It was translated into French in 1763 by sinologist Joseph de Guignes. In that report Hwui Shan told the emperor that his 40 plus years in Fu Sang had been successful and that he and his fellow clerics
had not only converted numerous people to Buddhism but that in the process he had materially impacted significant parts of their
indigenous culture. I believe that Fu Sang was
the coastal plain of the North American west
coast. I believe that coastal plain was/is
approximately 67 miles wide in Southern California up to where the Mojave Desert begins on the other side of the mountains. I also believe that the western boundary of the ancient so called by Hwui Shan “Land of Women” was approxiamtely 300 miles wide (900 li) from what is today “The Four Corners Monument” to its western border. That would then tie in with Hwui Shan recorded measurement of 1000 li (333 miles) from the eastern boundary of Fu Sang to the western boundary of “The Land of Women” or the Four Corners area. That area is home even today to several matriarchal Native American cultures.
The distance from Santa Monica California to the Four Corners monument is 700 miles. Hwui
Shan’s measurement of 333 miles of “The Great Waste” or Mojave Desert between Fu Sang and The Land of Women fits.
For more evidence of Vedic symbols in North America google: “Canadian
Goose Bisti Badlands”. Take a good look at that image. Then google:
“Hamsa Vedic Swan Goose”. Hamsa was the vehicle for Hindu goddess
Saraswathi wife of supreme Hindu deity Brahma. For other evidence in the
same New Mexico wilderness google: “Cracked Eggs Vedic Symbol of Creation”. Then google: “Bisti Badlands Cracked Eggs” for numerous examples of these cracked egg images also there as well. For other Vedic images in the same wilderness google: “Petrified Logs Bisti Badlands” for
huge petrified logs on raised earthen berms. Petrified wood is sacred in
Vedic religions including Vajrayana Buddhism as well as numerous Native
American tribal cultures especially those in the Four Corners region. Another
Vedic image is the Buddhist Chattra seen by googling: “Bent Hoodoo by Ned”.
All these rock (carved?) formations with potential religious symbol connections
to Vedic India are found in one location–The Bisti Badlands Wilderness Area.
BREAKING WORLDWIDE NEWS: The Smithsonian Magazine in their October 2014 edition has published an article “Did Marco Polo Discover America?”. This information has been picked up by news services and is being printed in newspapers around the world. If true this may show that Marco Polo arrived on the west coast of N America in the 13th century or 200 years before Columbus arrived on N America’s eastern side. Dr. Benjamin Olshin has written a book due out in November titled “The Mysteries of the Marco Polo Maps”. His years of research on this topic have been focused on the Rossi Map Collection and in particular the “Map with Ship” document which was donated to the Library of Congress in 1930 by Italian immigrant Marcian Rossi. Dr. Olshin’s work reveals interesting details of the geography and cultures of the people that Marco Polo encountered on his way to a place known as “Fu Sang”.
It’s interesting indeed because the descriptions of the places Polo passes and the people he encounters bear a remarkable similarity to the places and people encountered by Buddhist monk Hwui Shan (800 years earlier) also on his way to a place known as Fu Sang. I believe there is a simple explanation for those similarities. Although 800 years apart, these men were both traveling to the same place.
They didn’t take a random bearing due east from China to Fu Sang. They both took a specific route
that we know of today as the North Pacific Gyre. The North Pacific Gyre is the name of interconnecting ocean currents that flow clockwise
up the coast of China, past Korea, Japan and Kamchatka and then flows easterly south of the Bering Straits over to Alaska, down the west coast of N America before it swings west to flow across the Pacific Ocean to China where it once again flows north up the coast repeating the process. This powerful current flows close to the coasts of Asia and N America passing in close proximity to the countries and cultures that both Marco Polo and Hwui Shan describe in their expeditionary reports.
Unfortunately, this story highlights the fact that the world is ready to hear of European discovery adventures but not Asian discoveries. Marco Polo,
his father and his uncle came to China overland.
They didn’t bring ships with them. If this story is proven true how do you suppose that Marco Polo made it to N America? He arrived in an Asian ship with and Asian crew using Asian navigational skills and technology. So while we are applauding Mr. Polo for his 13th century trip to N America let us also remember the Asian cultures and their technology which made his trip possible. And let us also not forget Buddhist missionary cleric Hwui Shan who risked life and limb coming to Fu Sang not for
fame or wealth but because he simply wanted to make a positive impression in the lives of the indigenous people he would meet when he arrived there. Google: “Vajrayana Buddhism in Pre Columbian
North America”
Eurocentric scholars go to great lengths to state that although the Oceanic Silk Road connencted Chang’an China to Alexandria, Egypt from 300 BCE to
300 CE, Chinese merchant ships DID NOT make the entire trip by themselves.
They claim that the Chinese ships traveled no further than South East Asia or
India at the furthest. The explanation goes on to state that the trading companies or their host countries between China and Egypt refused to be cut
out of revenue generated by this trade. Therefore, any trade items coming out
of China were taken off the Chinese ships and transferred to either Arabian
or Indian ships at some point along the way for their final journey on to Alexandria. It’s now the common wisdom. However, there are at least two
facts that seem to bring that hypothesis into question.
Although the Chinese geographic classic the Shan Hai Jing which some scholars date back to 2300 BCE is extant, the maps that at one time were a
part of that same work are longer available. A few scholars believe that the
Chinese ancient maps (The Tian Xia–Everything Under Heaven Maps) are
copies of copies of the map that at one time accompanied the Shan Hai Jing.
For reasons that are presently unknown these maps were kept and copied in
Korea but were destroyed every else including China. (Sounds similar to what
the Arabs did in Egypt by perserving Ptolemy’s works for a thousand years when the western world had no use for them until the west once again needed
the oceanic trade route information in the 14-15 centuries after the Ottoman
Turks shut down the overland routes to the Middle and Far East.). These
Chinese circular maps drawn on a single page are very crude. While most western scholars agree that China, Korea and Japan are on the map, all the
other countries shown are said to be mythical places even though they show up in basically the same place on every map in this format. There are scores
of these maps in private collections and prestigious museums around the world including The Library of Congress. If you take the time you will see the
Continent of Africa on the bottom left side of the continents in the middle of the
Map. The Mediterranean without an opening to the Atlantic Ocean is just above. The land mass to the east of Africa is India etc. What is amazing about this map format is that They All have an accurate depiction of The Red Sea, The Arabian Peninsula and The Persian Gulf. On such a crude map made originally in China at least a quarter of a world away that detail in my opinion can hardly be a coincidence. This part of the world seemed to be of particular interest to the ancient Chinese for good reason. The Tigris and Euphrates Rivers flow into the Persian Gulf. Ancient Babylon 2300 BCE to
approx. 230 BCE was connected to the Persian Gulf by the Euphrates. Then
from approximately 307 BCE to 215 CE the City of Seleucia on the banks of the Tigris took over the commercial role previously provided by Babylon. A
canal was dug to connect these two ancient cities during the transition. (In
1000 BCE the abacus was used as an everyday method of calculations by the
Phoenicians and Babylonians “as well as the Chinese” (Google: “Babylonian
Timeline”, “Asian Religious Mappaemundi 231” and “Jia Dan Geographer-Wikipedia”). Between 785 and 805CE Jia Dan in China described the sea route going into the mouth of the Persian Gulf and the Light Houses that the medieval Iranians had constructed there. A hundred years later Jia’s report was confirmed by two Arabic writers. At the top of the Red Sea was the City
of Alexandria. There were at least two ways of getting goods there via the Red Sea. One way was to sail to the top of the Red Sea and then take the Pharoh’s Canal over to Alexandria the New York City of the ancient Near East.
However, because of the unpredictable weather and resulting danger by using
that route another option was also used. A now abandoned ancient Red Seaport and shipyard on the Egyptian coast was used to portage ships’ cargos
over to and down the Nile to Alexandria before being shipped around the Mediterranean. The name of that seaport is Berenice, Egypt. Google: “Berenice Ttoglodytica” 285 BCE-246 CE”. As the result of recent digs amazing finds have been found there that indicates the presence of Buddhism
and teak wood used as the extremely durable boards for the ships that needed
to be repaired there. At the entrance to the Red Sea were what we know today as Somalia and Yeman the source of many of the spices the entire ancient and medieval world craved (including the best source of Frankincense and Myrrh). In my opinion the trade, the spices and the likely technological exchanges between the Near East, the Middle East and the Far East that
when shared improved all these cultures is why this particular area was consistently drawn so accurately on the Chinese Everything Under Heaven
Map.
A book recently written (2012) by Dr. Hyunhee Park as the result of research for her dissertation has opened up new areas of discussion regarding Pre-Modern oceanic navigation in the Indian Ocean. Her
book is titled “Mapping the Chinese And Islamic Worlds” Her well written and researched book describes the cultural exchanges of the people of Asia from the 8th to the 15th century.
The South China Sea and the Indian Ocean were a
“beehive” of oceanic activity during that time just
as it had been during the days of the “Oceanic Silk
Road” from Alexandria, Egypt to Chang’an China from
at least 300 BCE to approximately 300 CE.
Vasco da Gama’s arrival in Calicut, India in 1498
brought him to this very lucrative trade area 65 years after the Chinese opted out in 1433 as the result of the Ming Emperor’s decree to basically isolate China from the rest of the world and wrap up their prior massive naval presence in that area as evidenced by Zheng He’s huge fleet’s several voyages.
A reading of this book and the realization of the
highly advanced maps, knowledge of geography, the navigational abilities as well as the Asians’ship building capabilities give readers in my opinion
reason to question the theory of western superiority in these areas that we have been taught
for over 500 years. Clearly based on the evidence that Dr. Park presents these Asian maps were far superior to European maps by hundreds of years. If you doubt this check it out for yourself. The book isn’t inexpensive but it’s easily accessible through your library.
Have Ancient Chinese Shang Dynasty Characters Been
Discovered in North America? In July 2015 the London Daily Mail published an article on Dr John Ruskamp’s claims of such discoveries in the N American Pacific Southwest. That article can be accessed at “John Ruskamp-Daily Mail”. Unfortunately neither the international wire services or other newspapers have picked up and written more on this topic. Unfortunately for Dr. Ruskamp many western scholars are not supporting this discovery claiming that there is insufficient archaeological evidence to support his theory. That is unfortunate because everyone has to admit that finding evidence of a 3000 plus year old civilization to support your original claim is not easy to locate. This argument of insufficient evidence to prove the theory has been used every time the topic of Pre Columbian explorations, settlements and the influences left behind by Asian explorers and missionaries comes up for discussion.
The problem with that argument arises however when
that argument is used in regard to evidences of Buddhism in Pre Columbian North America. Its a problem fo those who attempt to deny it because of the abundance of evidence to support that claim. The hard evidence points not just to Buddhism but one specific school of Buddhist. That school of Buddhism originated in India (it’s the smallest school of Buddhism) where it was the only form of Buddhism that embraced many of the features of Vedic Hinduism that Buddha had apparently rejected when he originated the religion in the 6th century BCE. Numerous Vedic features from India have remained a significant part of Vajrayana (Tibetan) Buddhism to this day. Symbols, customs and monuments of Tibetan Buddhism are present in
numerous Native American tribes today. Google: “Ancient Buddha Tree of Life Lotus Flower” for a
Vajrayana geoglyph located near Egar, Colorado.
Also access “Were the Anasazi Buddhists?”, Mandalas, Mantras, Manjis, Monuments” and “Dimensions of Dine and Buddhist Traditions” an
online article by Univ. of New Mexico professor Jeanie Martinez Welles.
The Naca Lines in S America are not unique. There are geoglyphs to be found in N America. Google: “Hendon’s Geoglyphs” for numerous examples of Asian
art and alternating colored grid (chessboard like) designs that can only be viewed by satelliet photos across the western part of N America. That includes an image of two domino tiles to the immediate west of Diamond Lake Oregon. The area
surrounding Eugene Oregon has the largest area of
connected color coordinated grids that I’ve located to date.
From the recorded Chinese historical record of Buddhist missionary Hwui Shan’s trip to a place (Fu Sang) described by the Chinese as being across the Eastern Sea to the numerous customs such as the Seven Step Seven Vow Native American Wedding ceremony which is identical to the Seven Step Seven Vow Hindu wedding ceremony called the “Saptapadi”
in India where it originated thousands of years ago. How could that possibly be a coincidence? There is abundant evidence to prove that Pre Columbian N American Buddhism was abundant here.
So this amount of evidence clearly demonstrates that even in cases where there is abundant archaeological evidence to support the theory of
ancient Asian influences here that modern scholars do not want to discuss it. Their unwillingness can’t be blamed on lack of evidence. Could it be a religious and/or cultural unwillingness to give this credit to an Asian civilization?
Holy jeez. A 4 year-long discussion that borders on conspiracy theories.
No. Scholars do not deny the fact that Native American cultures descend from Asian cultures. In fact, they SUPPORT this theory. How?
Easy: Ice ages, and the fact that North America was populated by a group of animals called “homo sapiens” that originated in Africa.OF COURSE Native Americans descended from Asians. What they did, was cross the Bering Straight, which was all ice at the time. Some Asians also may have used canoes through the islands in the South Pacific. Before becoming a state, the Kingdom of Hawaii was (and currently is,) a multi-cultural state.
So. Yes. Native Americans are descended from Asians. And no. Scholars do NOT deny this fact. What they do note, is that PERMANENT and REGULAR contact among ALL of the world’s peoples occurred because of Europe’s “Age of Discovery.”
This is not some grand conspiracy pushed by universities with an “agenda.”
On 11-06-15 Mike M wrote “What they do note (referring to western scholars), is that Permanent and REGULAR contact among all the world’s peoples occurred because of Europe’s “Age of Discovery. This is not some grand conspiracy” Mike, your quote and what it implies is inaccurate and therein lies the problem. Your statement implies that the west (European civilization) specifically from the 15th century forward and Europe’s Age of Discovery is the reason the world become connected leading up to today.
That statement is not only inaccurate it smacks of
Western arrogance. The reason you are so adamant
in making that statement is because that is what you and I have been taught and what you believe.
Travel throughout the known world did not begin in the 15th century as the result of European discoveries. That is what we were/are taught in the required freshman course in college, The History of WESTERN CIVILIZATION by people who either know or should know better.
Alexander the Great in the 4th century BC is the one credited with originally connecting the known world as the result of his conquests. This resulted about a hundred or so years later in the Oceanic and Overland Silk Road and Spice Road routes that connected Eastern China and Chinese merchandise and technology with the Mediterranean area and all points in between. These interchanges lasted until
approximately the 3rd century AD when Europe made the decision to isolate itself both economically and culturally from the rest of the world. That was
the beginning of 1100 years of intellectual, economic and cultural regression known as the Dark Ages (Middle Ages). That lasted up until approximately the 14th century when the beginnings of the European Enlightenment, Age Of Discovery etc began.
However, while Europe was sinking into an 1100 year intellectual and cultural rabbit hole Asia continued to move forward in scientific and technological advances until the early 14th century
when Asia began to sink into its own 500 year
period of decline also brought on by Asia’s own sense of self accomplishment and cultural superiority. Asia only began to find it’s way out of that period of decline in the early to mid 20th century.
The main point of this posting is the evidence that clearly shows that during the time of Europe’s decline Asia (China, India and the Middle East) was gaining scientific and technological information and expanding their trade networks from East Asia all the way to West Africa and all points in between. The value of the trade travelling through this network particularly from the 8th to the 15th
centuries would be valved in the billions of today’s dollars. Google: “Mapping the Chinese and Islamic Worlds by Hyunhee Park” and “The Mysteries of the Marco Polo Maps by Benjamin Olshin” These books are both written by PhDs who have devoted years of their lives to their research on this specific topic.
Technology has changed over the last hundreds of years by the nature of man has almost always been
shaped by the desire for more money and power.
Because of conflicts with the Ottomans the European
overland access to China and those extremely lucrative trade cities along the South China Sea and Indian Ocean had been cut off. The ONLY ACCESS
to that area and the huge money to be made there was by sea. Access to the Indian Ocean and the South China Sea was in my opinion the true reason why the rush in the 15th and 16th century to get to India. That was the true motive for the so called “European Age of Discovery”. It wasn’t a desire to discover new lands. It was a desire to get in on the massive trade going on in the Indian Ocean and
the nautical knowledge that was available there.
In the two books I have mentioned above are numerous mentions of longitude and latitude being used in extant documents from that period.
However, even though the documents to support what I have just written are readily available few western scholars acknowledge their existence.
Google: “Inconvenient Maps in the Library of Congress”
Gotta share this to make a fair discussion, regarding the establishment of the Chinese community at Quesnel Forks, BC. ” By 1875, it BECAME a thriving Chinese community with over 200 merchants and miners.” http://www.travel-british-columbia.com/cariboo-chilcotin/cariboo/likely/. At least in this site, the town history has been recorded, as it was a serious town of 5000 during the gold rush of the 1860’s. Perhaps someone can get its history before this time period.
Hendon Harris cherry-picked my previous post. I never said there was no contact among the world’s people. As a matter of fact, that was part of my response!
Had this person read my post with any sort of comprehension, he would see that my post was, indeed, quite accurate.
The Native Americans travelled here through Asia along the land bridge in the Bering Sea. (There is new evidence that most may have travelled here by canoe.) The schools and universities do not deny this. As a amtter of fact, this is exactly what they teach.
They also teach that Marco Polo was a man who travelled to China, and there was freqeunt trade along the so-called “Silk Road.”
What Hendon Harris wants you to believe, is that I am somehow racist and egotistical by stating a simple fact:
PERMANENT contact among ALL of the world’s people did, in fact, occur specifically because of the Western European Age of Discovery. That is an unmitigated fact.
The reason the Europeans embarked upon this epic journey, is specifically because the Silk Road was taxing traders to death through the Middle East.
And no. There was no regular, permanent contact between the Western Hemisphere, and the Eastern Hemisphere. That is also a fact.
It is a fact that the European “discovery” of the North and South American continents brought lasting change to the entire planet.|
That is not a racist comment. It is not an egotistical comment. That is a fact. Period. Pure and simple.
There is no conspiracy among our schools and universities. Period. End of story.
Google: “Church Rock Cathedral in the Desert’ , “Chinese Discover America.com” and “Mandalas, Mantras, Manjis,
Monuments and Medicine Men” There is a growing body of evidence that supports pre Columbian Buddhist culture and influences here in North America.