Ancient Skies - Vol 20 No 2 - 1993

Magazine Overview

Title: ANCIENT SKIES
Issue: Volume 20, Number 2
Date: May-June, 1993
Publisher: ANCIENT ASTRONAUT SOCIETY
Country: USA
Language: English
Cover Headline: "Come Search With Us!"

This issue of Ancient Skies, the official logbook of the Ancient Astronaut Society, presents a collection of articles exploring various facets of ancient astronaut theories, the search for humanity's origins, and related phenomena.

A STUDY OF OUR SEARCH FOR TRUTH by Uli Knatterbusch

Uli Knatterbusch, writing under a pen name, shares his thoughts after immersing himself in the contents of Ancient Skies. He praises the society's persistent search for truth despite frustrations and obstacles. Knatterbusch posits that the idea of ancient visitations by astronauts helps sustain humanity's philosophical and theological dream of understanding its origins. He notes that while many traditional texts and theories have survived destruction, Erich von Daniken's work awakened a broader interest, leading to numerous publications on related topics such as UFOs, lost continents, pyramids, geomancy, ley lines, sacred geometry, numerology, astrology, astronomy, secret societies, general history, the grail, paradoxes, architecture, religion, and the occult. He observes that despite the vast accessibility of information today, humanity's ability to transform knowledge into wisdom remains limited. Knatterbusch disagrees with Goethe's notion that there are more things between heaven and Earth than the human mind can fathom, urging readers to remain open to exploring everything.

He outlines two key points regarding the search for truth:

1. Real Truth = Appropriate Question + Correct Answer: Knatterbusch argues that truth is concealed but exists and can be explored through persistence. He warns that the truth, once found, may be dangerous and shocking, potentially not conforming to human fantasy or traditional speculation. A minority might accept it, while the ignorant majority could react with anger and fear, posing dangers. He highlights the challenge of preserving and revealing the truth, noting that the discoverer might face pressure to maintain secrecy due to the truth's potential severity and the threat from fundamentalist agitators.
He presents several scenarios for the disclosure of truth:
* The truth is revealed, but powers of darkness prevail, messengers are persecuted, and the truth is ridiculed or buried.
* A virtuous elite conceals the truth, revealing it selectively to the worthy through an initiation process, leading to its eventual acceptance.
* The elite's defenses fail, the truth is destroyed, or it deteriorates into a footnote.
* The truth is kept secret forever, used by skillful exploiters for personal gain, leaving humanity without benefit.
* The truth is kept secret, and the search is deemed useless, with the only benefit being proof of humanity's capability to find it.
Knatterbusch concludes that realizing the dream of finding truth is only one aspect; the real problems may arise afterward.

2. Un-natural Humanity = Natural Earth + Space Interference: He asserts that humanity's search for its origins begins and ends with humanity itself. Humans have a natural, Earthly component (e.g., sex drive, herd instinct) but also possess an un-natural, extra-terrestrial element, evidenced by universal concepts like language, art, science, environmental pollution, and religious/philosophical ideas (God, afterlife, compassion). He questions whether being human inherently means being un-natural and explores various definitions of "nature." He notes the conspicuous absence of economics in discussions about ancient astronaut theories and interference, questioning whether the current economic imbalance is intentional or a result of our inability to perceive a larger economic plan.

MORE ON THE ANCIENT HOVERCRAFT

This section revisits a previous article (Ancient Skies 19:6) about a pre-Columbian art object identified as a model of a Ground Effect Machine (G.E.M.) or hovercraft. The one-foot-long object, dated to 200 AD from the Vera Cruz, Mexico Culture, was displayed at the DeYoung Museum in San Francisco. The author provides a photograph and describes the object's features, including twin booms in a shallow vee, a pilot platform, half-circle wings for ducted airflow, and a "scorpion tail" for drag and steering. The object is attributed to Vaughn M. Greene.

THE TUNGUSKA EXPLOSION REVISITED

This article critiques two newspaper reports (Chicago Tribune and Chicago Sun-Times) that attributed the 1908 Tunguska explosion to a rocky asteroid. The author argues that these reports ignore key facts: eyewitness accounts of a bright, fast-moving object that stopped and changed direction, and physical evidence at the blast site that is identical to that produced by a high-altitude nuclear blast. The presence of tiny globules of glass containing melted metal, similar to those found at the Trinity nuclear test site, is cited as further evidence. The article concludes that a nuclear-powered spacecraft from another world malfunctioned and exploded five miles above the Siberian forest in 1908. It mentions that Dr. Vladimir V. Rubtsov, a member of a Soviet scientific team investigating the event, confirmed the absence of a crater and stated that the official Soviet explanation was that there was no explanation.

ATLANTIS RISEN by Filip Coppens

Filip Coppens discusses the theory of Atlantis, challenging the view that Plato's account was merely an imaginary ideal civilization. He highlights Plato's description of Atlantis as a democracy. Coppens introduces Marcel Mestdagh, a Belgian teacher who, after studying Vikings, discovered a large oval-structured civilization in Northern France centered around Sens. Mestdagh found links between this civilization and megalithic culture, with megaliths pointing towards Sens. In 1979, Mestdagh compared his findings with Plato's description of Atlantis and concluded that the Vikings had found Atlantis, their motherland. Mestdagh planned to write four books on his discovery, but only one was published posthumously. Coppens notes that Mestdagh identified Sens as "Poseidonis," the Atlantean capital, and that this aligns with Maurice Chatelain's "French Great Pyramid" theory. Mestdagh also identified the Gulf of Morbihan as an Atlantean data-cache, supported by Erich von Daniken's discussion of Gavrinis. Coppens suggests Atlantis was linked to, but different from, the Sumerian Anunnaki civilization, noting differences in base numbers and a focus on the star Sirius, unlike the Sumerians. He also mentions Hans Rudolf Hitz's discovery of a link between Glozel, with its proto-celtic tablets, and the Atlantean civilization. Coppens laments that most scholars ignore Mestdagh's theory because it conflicts with scientific dogma and implies ancient astronauts established a high civilization on Earth.

Coppens also notes that the subject of economics, as it relates to the search for truth and interference in humanity's evolution, is conspicuously absent from discussions, despite its potential relevance to understanding why humanity lives the way it does.

Conferences and Events

Several upcoming conferences are listed:

• July 2-4, 1993: MUFON 1993 International UFO Symposium in Richmond, Virginia.
• July 26-August 2, 1993: International Crop Circles Conference at Stonehenge, England.
• October 9-10, 1993: John White's The UFO Experience Conference in North Haven, Connecticut.

Additionally, the issue announces the 20th Anniversary World Conference of the Ancient Astronaut Society at the Imperial Palace Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada, from August 1-5, 1993. Dr. Matest M. Agrest, a former Soviet scientist who theorized about extraterrestrial visits to Earth, will be a featured speaker. Other confirmed speakers include Erich von Daniken, Gene M. Phillips, Andrew Tomas, and many more. The conference fee is US$150, including lectures, a banquet, and a show. Special hotel rates and airfare discounts are available.

Publications Mentioned

• "The Day the Gods Died" by Walter Ernsting, in cooperation with Erich von Daniken, is available in a limited German Edition.
• "Atlantis: Mestdagh's Theory On A Lost Civilization" by Filip Coppens is available in English.

Recurring Themes and Editorial Stance

The recurring themes in this issue are the persistent search for truth regarding humanity's origins, the potential involvement of ancient astronauts, and the exploration of enigmatic historical events and civilizations like the Tunguska explosion and Atlantis. The editorial stance, as reflected in the articles, is one of open inquiry into unconventional theories, challenging established scientific dogma, and encouraging readers to critically examine evidence and consider alternative explanations for historical and scientific phenomena. There is a strong emphasis on the idea that truth, while potentially dangerous, is knowable and worth pursuing, even in the face of societal resistance or deliberate obfuscation.