Ancient Skies - Vol 17 No 3 - 1990

Magazine Overview

Title: ANCIENT SKIES
Issue: Volume 17, Number 3
Date: July-August, 1990
Publisher: ANCIENT ASTRONAUT SOCIETY
Country: USA
Price: $3.00

This issue of ANCIENT SKIES, the official logbook of the Ancient Astronaut Society, explores several enigmatic topics related to ancient history and potential extraterrestrial influence.

Animal Mutations in Ancient Egypt?

By Erich von Daniken

This article delves into the mysteries surrounding the ancient Egyptian site of Sakkara, renowned for its vast quantities of mummified animals and subterranean corridors. Von Daniken recounts the discovery by archaeologist Auguste Mariette of sarcophagi in the Seraphaum, which were expected to contain mummified bulls (Apis-Bulls) but were found to contain only broken bones mixed with bitumen. He notes that later discoveries also yielded similar results, with one sarcophagus containing bones of eight different animals, some unidentifiable, and another with bones of a bull-like animal with two heads.

Von Daniken references Herodotus' description of the Apis-Bull, noting its distinctive markings and its veneration as a heavenly animal created by the god Ptah. He cites Plutarch, who wrote that the holy bull was created by a beam from heaven, and a stelae found by Mariette that states, "you have no father, holy Apis, you have no mother, the gods created you directly."

The author speculates that these anomalies suggest extraterrestrial genetic manipulation. He draws support from the writings of the Egyptian priest Manetho and historian Julius Africanus, as quoted by Eusebius. Eusebius recounts Manetho's description of gods creating humanoids with multiple wings and faces, animals with mixed features (legs of goats, horns of other animals), and bulls with human heads or two heads. These "monsters" are represented in Babylonian and Egyptian sculptures.

Von Daniken further discusses reliefs and sculptures found in museums, depicting winged humanoids and creatures with animal bodies and human heads, such as those on the black obelisk of King Salamanassaar II in the British Museum. These figures are described as "man-animals" being transported to prison, with inscriptions indicating their unnatural origins.

He presents two possible explanations for these findings: either they are mere fantasies, or these creatures did exist and were created by genetic engineering, as nature and evolution could not produce such monsters.

Regarding the empty sarcophagi at Sakkara, von Daniken proposes that they were not tombs but prisons for "destroyed monsters." He suggests that certain animals, including some Apis-Bulls, were considered "holy ones" belonging to extraterrestrials. These animals, free during their lifetime, sometimes caused destruction. When they died, priests, fearing their resurrection, broke their bones into pieces, wrapped them in bitumen, and sealed them in gigantic sarcophagi within subterranean caves, effectively imprisoning them.

He poses rhetorical questions about the purpose of the gigantic sarcophagi, why the bones were broken and mixed with bitumen, why bones of different animals were found together, and why animals with two heads were discovered. He concludes that later pharaohs and priests may have worshipped these sarcophagi, mistaking them for holy animals without realizing they contained the remains of ancient monsters.

Super Intelligence at Malta's Megaliths

By Joseph S. Ellul

This article focuses on the Stone Age Megalithic temples of Malta, described as the oldest existing buildings in the world. The Hagar Qim complex is highlighted, with its main building of seven chambers and an older temple with semi-circular apses. The author notes the use of highly technological methods in their construction, including the manipulation of acoustics to channel sound between chambers.

A significant enigma is the "Globigerina Limestone" used in construction. While most of this stone found in Malta cracks when exposed to fire, the stone found on the sister island of Gozo is impervious. Ellul points out a stone block at Hagar Qim, near the main entrance, which shows reddish effects of fire but is not cracked, raising questions about how the ancient builders sourced this specific type of stone.

Mnajdra, another Neolithic site, is described as being situated near high cliffs overlooking the Mediterranean Sea. This site also shows marks of sacrificial fires and areas likely used as dwelling places for priests. A lower building at Mnajdra contains a sleeping room with a stone bunk bed and a small niche where the skeleton of a baby was discovered around 1840.

The entrance to the Mnajdra building is aligned with the rising sun at the Equinox and Solstices. The author explains how a dome-shaped stone block placed below the horizon helps mark the exact position of the sun's rise. He argues that the precise alignment of the Solstice Stone at Mnajdra, which indicates the Winter Solstice rising at 30 degrees south of east, suggests that the site is at least ten thousand years old and that the phenomenon of Precession, which implies a change in the Earth's axis inclination, does not exist.

Mr. Ellul, a lifelong resident of Malta, is an amateur archaeologist and has written a book on the subject.

What Was the Secret of Methuselah's Longevity?

By Dr. Franklin R. Ruehl

This article examines the exceptionally long lifespans of biblical patriarchs, noting that six others besides Methuselah lived over 900 years, including Adam (930) and Noah (950). Ruehl suggests that this longevity was not a wild exaggeration but the result of a genetic factor.

A progressive decline in lifespans over centuries is observed, with the first ten patriarchs living at least 777 years. The lifespans then decrease through subsequent generations, with later patriarchs living into their 400s, 200s, and finally over 100 years.

Ruehl proposes that this genetic longevity factor was responsible for the extraordinary lifetimes but was eventually bred out of the human race through intermarriage with ordinary mortal females. He speculates that this factor may have been introduced by ancient astronauts through a genetic engineering procedure performed on Adam to create Eve, as theorized by some paleovisiologists.

He draws a parallel to modern terrestrial geneticists on the verge of deciphering the human genome and the potential for extended longevity. Ruehl suggests that extraterrestrials, who may have explored Earth thousands of years ago, could have possessed advanced biomedical knowledge and performed genetic experiments.

Skeptics might dismiss the ages as exaggerations, but Ruehl argues that the recorded ages of fathering their first sons are critical for assessing validity. He refutes alternative methods of division, stating that either all ages are accurate or none are.

The article notes that Sarah, Abraham's wife, bore her first child at age 90 and lived to 127, fitting the pattern of later stages of the Genesis period. The evidence from the Scriptures, according to Ruehl, strongly points to ancient astronaut intervention in the patriarchs' longevities, indicating that life is abundant throughout the universe.

Books and Authors

This section provides brief descriptions and ordering information for several books:

• CELTIC SECRETS by Donald L. Cyr.
• LOST CITIES by David Hatcher Childress.
• THE LEGEND OF THE SONS OF GOD by T.C. Lethbridge.
• FLYING SERPENTS AND DRAGONS by R. A. Boulay.
• Erich von Daniken's latest book, Die Spuren der Ausserirdischen, is available in German.
• Maurice Chatelain, author of Our Ancestors Came from Outer Space, plans to publish his last three books privately.

Recurring Themes and Editorial Stance

The recurring themes in this issue are the potential influence of ancient astronauts on human history, particularly concerning unexplained phenomena in ancient Egypt and Malta, and the possibility of extraterrestrial genetic engineering. The magazine promotes the idea that ancient civilizations possessed knowledge and capabilities beyond their time, often attributing these to alien intervention. The editorial stance is clearly in favor of exploring and promoting the ancient astronaut theory, as evidenced by the selection of articles and the publication of the Ancient Astronaut Society's logbook.