10 secrets of the Sahara desert revealed by modern archaeologists

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

The sands of the Sahara have consumed animals, people and entire cities for centuries. This is the largest desert in the world, and those who had the imprudence to get lost on its endless sandy plains disappeared forever. It is known that in the ancient world, entire armies tried to cross this desert, after which no one else ever saw them. Only now, with the help of modern technologies, people begin to comprehend the secrets of the Sahara, which have accumulated surprisingly many.

1. Lost Fortresses

The satellites have allowed explorers to peer beneath the pristine, dense jungle and into the heart of the most inhospitable deserts - all without even getting up from a comfortable chair. In 2010, satellites discovered the remains of more than 100 fortresses belonging to the ancient people of "Garamanty" in Libya. The area was fairly well mapped during oil exploration (when oil companies were looking for places to drill), so archaeologists were able to scan satellite images for signs of walls.

Later, the researchers were already able to personally confirm that the structures were indeed built by the Garamants, although the expedition had to be stopped due to the revolution in Libya (the overthrow of Muammar Gaddafi). During the heyday of the Garamantes (from about the second century BC to the seventh century AD), the territory in which they lived was already incredibly arid. To cultivate the land, they built underground canals that provided water to ancient reservoirs. When these sources of water dried up, the fields dried up, and the Sahara buried the remains of fortresses and villages under the sand.

2. Meteorites and craters

Earth has always been bombarded by meteorites from space. Most of them burned harmlessly in the atmosphere, leaving nothing but a streak of light across the sky. Others reached the ground and had a truly destructive effect. Since most of these disasters happened in the distant past, craters left by meteorite impacts are often ignored because erosion or plant growth obscures them. However, in the deserts one can still see "scars" from the blows of "guests from outer space".

For example, the 45-meter-wide Kamil crater in southwestern Egypt was the site of an iron meteorite about 5,000 years ago. Fragments of the meteorite itself, shattered by a terrible impact on the ground, were found scattered around the crater of Kamil. And this is not an isolated discovery. Almost a fifth of all discovered meteorites were found in the Sahara. Only the snows of Antarctica are more "fertile" to ancient meteorites.

3. Libyan desert glass

Even when the remains of meteorites and their craters disappeared after millennia, other traces of cosmic collisions may remain. About 29 million years ago, a meteorite struck Earth, releasing enough energy to melt a fairly large area of the Libyan desert, turning sand into sheets of thin green glass. The crater left by this explosion has not yet been found, but there is still a lot of desert glass that can be found even in very unexpected places.

When Howard Carter opened the tomb of Tutankhamun, he found among the treasures a jeweled breastplate belonging to the dead pharaoh. In its center was a sacred scarab beetle carved out of green glass. The Egyptians probably had no idea about the origin of the glass they were using, but interestingly, another artifact was found made from otherworldly material. One of the daggers in the grave was crafted from meteorite iron.

4. Nabta stones

Wherever one finds water in the desert, life always arises around it. When people lived near Nabta Playa in southern Egypt 9000-6000 years ago, the area was subject to annual flooding, which resulted in the formation of a lake. Neolithic tribes came to this place to feed and water their animals. These people not only survived there, but also developed a unique sacrifice culture. Archaeologists have found the remains of cows, sheep and goats in a ritual burial. About 6,000 years ago, people in Nabta set up large stone blocks in a circle.

Scientists believe that this stone circle, which is 1000 years older than Stonehenge, is the earliest known astronomical structure. There is still debate as to what exactly this circle points to, but one researcher claims that it coincides with the position of Orion's Belt as it was seen 6,000 years ago.

5. Lost river

The Sahara Desert did not always exist. As the climate has changed over millions of years, the boundaries of the sands have changed as well. Scientists looking for evidence of ancient water on Mars turned their attention to the history of the Sahara. Research has shown that a river with the 12th largest drainage basin in the world once flowed out of the Sahara. The remains of this river in Mauritania were seen when an underwater canyon was discovered off the coast, which was pierced by the current of the river.

River sediments were also found in unexpected places. The presence of the lost river, which was named Tamanrasett, was finally confirmed by satellite. Researchers continue to seek further information about the body of water, which may have dried up just 5,000 years ago.

6. Whales

It was not only the rivers that disappeared under the sands of the Sahara. Over a very long time, what was once an ocean has become one of the driest places on Earth. In Wadi Al-Hitan in Egypt, one can find evidence of the long-disappeared Tethys Ocean. Known as Whale Valley, this place is one of the best places to find whale fossils. When the ancestors of modern whales died at sea 37 million years ago, their bodies were covered with a thick layer of sediment. When the earth's crust lifted, their former home turned into earth. Today, paleontologists are studying skeletons 15 meters long, as well as the creatures with which the whales lived at sea. Teeth of very large sharks were found next to the bones of the whales.

7. Mahimosaurus Rex

The seas have always been home to monsters. About 120 million years ago, the 9-meter crocodile Machimosaurus rex lived in what is now the Sahara Desert. Mahimosaurus Rex is the largest ocean-dwelling crocodile. The area where this reptile once lived was probably a huge lagoon stretching to the Tethys Ocean. There Mahimosaurus hunted sea turtles and fish.

It is likely that this reptile also devoured the corpses of larger creatures. It may seem ironic that so much marine life was found in the Sahara, but in fact, paleontologists are making so many discoveries there precisely because the desert is extremely inhospitable to all life. Given that there are no plants or soil here, scientists can often find amazing finds right under their feet.

8. Spinosaurus

Continuing the theme of marine discoveries made in the desert, it is worth mentioning the Spinosaurus - the largest carnivorous dinosaur ever discovered by scientists. Lived 95 million years ago, Spinosaurus (aka Spinosaurus aegyptiacus) was about 7 meters tall and 16 meters long, which is more than the more famous Tyrannosaurus rex. Spinosaurus was not at all like its more famous competitor. He had a huge "sail" of bones sticking out of his back, and a number of other "devices" that baffled scientists.

Spinosaurus is now believed to be the only known semi-aquatic dinosaur. Since the bones of the originally discovered spinosaurus were destroyed during World War II, it wasn't until 2014 that other types of fossils were discovered in Morocco, and researchers were finally able to study the spinosaurus. One of the pieces of evidence that the spinosaurus lived partly in water was that its long, flat legs were well adapted for rowing, and its nostrils were set high on the muzzle so that the dinosaur could breathe, even when it was mostly underwater. Surely the sight of the approaching huge sail on its back, inspired the inhabitants of the ancient seas with about the same horror as the shark fin today.

9. Fighter of the Second World War Curtiss P-40 Kittyhawk

On June 28, 1942, Sergeant Dennis Copping flew a damaged Kittyhawk P-40 to a British desert base for repairs. Somewhere in the middle of the way, he disappeared. It wasn't until 2012 that the remains of the plane were discovered when an oil worker accidentally stumbled upon them. The plane remained largely intact and was taken to the El Alamein Museum, where it was restored. Interestingly, no trace of Dennis Coping was found. His fate is another mystery kept by the Sahara.

10. Skeletons of Gobero

Paul Sereno was already on this list as he was part of the team that found the spinosaurus fossils in 2012. It was during one of his trips to retrieve dinosaur bones that he accidentally found the largest human cemetery in the Sahara. The Gobero site in Niger was inhabited about 10,000 years ago and was once full of lush greenery. The remains of fish, crocodiles and other animals are mixed with human bones. Many of the discoveries just stuck out of the sand.

Over two years of excavation, about 200 human burials were found in two separate habitats, separated by more than 1000 years. These traces were left by the Kiffian and Tenerian cultures. Bone ornaments and bone arrowheads have been found alongside harpoons that were used to hunt in nearby waters. Many of the burials were very unusual. One person was buried with his head stuck in a pot, while another rested on the remains of a tortoise shell. Perhaps we will never know exactly how these people lived and died. Sahara stubbornly refuses to reveal all his secrets.