According to evolution, man has evolved from ape-like creatures to the present day intelligent hominid. His language changed from grunts to complex communication. His way of provision went from hunters and gatherers to farmers. He started as cavemen and evolved into city dwellers. Does archeology support this view?
Do We See Proof for Ancient Intelligence?
To consider the evidences of man’s superior intelligence in the past, check out the seven wonders of the ancient world: Great Pyramid of Giza (the only one of the 7 still standing), Hanging Gardens of Babylon, Statue of Zeus at Olympia, Temple of Artemis at Ephesus, Mausoleum of Maussollos at Halicarnassus, Colossus of Rhodes, and the Lighthouse of Alexandria. The Great Pyramid “contains more quarried stone than what is contained in all of the cathedrals and churches in England.” Each weighed 100 tons and was transported from 60 miles away, 2,300,000 in all! If it was really built in 20 years, that would mean about 800 tons of stone was laid each day!
Or consider the seven wonders of the Medieval world: Stonehenge, Colosseum, Catacombs of Kom el Shoqafa, Great Wall of China, Porcelain Tower of Nanjing, Hagia Sophia, and Leaning Tower of Pisa.
The Incredible Intelligence of the Incas
A recently compiled list of wonders includes a famous city in South America. Long before modern power equipment, the city of Machu Picchu was built 8000 feet above sea level in the Andes Mountains of Peru. The city was built of stones not native to the mountain but quarried down the Urubamba River and carried, somehow, up the river and then up the mountain. “The Incas were among the best stone masons the world has seen, and many junctions in the central city are so perfect that it is said not even a blade of grass fits between the stones. . . Inca walls show numerous design details that also help protect them from collapsing in an earthquake.” (Wiki)
Now consider these: The Mayans lived 2000 B.C. yet were able to calculate the length of a year to within 99.98% accuracy. A hundred years before them, Egyptians were able to electroplate and to make battery cells. Ancient skulls in South America indicate they knew how to perform brain surgery. The Aztecs of Mexico monitored the orbit of Venus and used a calendar based on its cycles. An 8-carat gold chain 10 inches long was found in a lump of coal. This is a problem for evolutionists who date coal formation long before the evolution of man. Yet the chain shows evidence not only of art but also of metallurgy. However, this is in perfect harmony with the Bible that states metallurgy was practiced seven generations after Adam (Gen. 4:22)
What Does Archaeology Indicate?
These facts are only a small portion of the vast evidence of the skill and intelligence of ancient people. Rather, archeology indicates that man has not evolved to intelligence, but rather has fallen from it because of sin.
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The examples you give date back only four thousand years, yet science has proven that the world and mankind date back much, much further. Human skeletal remains unearthed in Africa have been dated back to over 2 million years B.C. To make the argument that mankind has always had the intelligence required to manufacture such awe inspiring creations, one must go back to the earliest humans and not cherry pick the greatest achievements of the ancient era.
To suggest that “man has not evolved to intelligence, but rather has fallen from it because of sin” is to suggest that these ancient technologies are the pinacle of achievement by human intelligence. This is not the case. Since the time of Christ many innovations have been discovered and developed which indicates that as a whole mankind has become more intelligent and enlightened as time passed.
While the wonders of the ancient world are exactly that, wonders, they would be considered relatively simple by modern standards. By conservative estimates, the pyramid in Giza was constructed with an estimated workforce of 30,000 laborers who would work 9 out of every 10 days for 20 – 30 years. This massive workforce used barges to move the stones across water and sleds to move across land with the help of lubricant. The site of the pyramid is relatively close to the Nile river meaning the majority of transportation was done on water. With such a massive workforce working in assmebly line fashion and access to the Nile for easy transportation, it is easy to see how this was accomplished. If you had the same workforce and logistics with the aid of modern innovations, the pyramids could be built today in a fraction of the time.
The Mayans were certainly brilliant mathematicians which is why they were able to so accurately calculate the calendar, but they also believed that when the sun set it went underground. They also believed that caves were the gateways to hell and that human sacrifices would bring them good fortune.
As far as the story of the gold chain in a lump of coal, this could easily be a case of an industrial accident. It is quite possible that a worker could fall into a coal hopper while wearing a gold chain. Were any modern dating methods used to determine the age of the necklace in question?
Your article does absolutely nothing to disprove evolution or the evolution of human intelligence.
What evidence would be proof to you that there was great intelligence in the past? Say a cataclysmic event wiped out humans (science show things like that have happened several times in the past) tell me what evidence would be left of our own intelligence that would be definite proof our intelligence to future generations? Now if you can’t provide anything that would prove our level of intelligence some 100k-1,000,000 yrs from now, how do expect someone to prove that other intelligence may have existed in the past? IE if we ourselves have nothing that is going to last some 100K plus years to prove our intelligence why would you think a past intelligent being would have anything that would have lasted to present day to prove their existence?
There is 1 thing that I can think of that would still be around in 100K-1,000,000yrs from now. That is the gmo’s we created. All metal and plastic would have corroded or decayed in that time, but the changes we humans made to the dna of some species would still be around (assuming those species didn’t go extinct). Now consider this- our gmo’s have no transitional fossils, and will show up as a sudden appearance in the fossil records. This closely matches what we find in our own fossil record- no transitional fossils, but sudden/rapid appearances of new organisms. Knowing that humans have been genetically modify organisms, and comparing how these new organism would appear in the fossil record of the future it comes close to mirroring what we see in the fossil record of the past. I would offer as evidence of intelligence of the past every time we see an “evolution” of a species in the past that is a sign that rather than Mother Nature winning some random evolutionary lottery it instead indicates a period of time where an intelligent species existed. You may scoff at that suggestion if so ask yourself how you can objectively differentiate between a gmo and a non-gmo- IE what scientific test is there to prove what was created/modified by humans (an intelligent being) and what supposedly “evolved” naturally over millions of year, and if you can’t scientifically differentiate between the two why would you conclude everything up to this point evolved but past this point in time species where intelligently designed? We can prove intelligent design is a fact with every gmo we create so why do so many believe this has never occurred in the past?
Several questions arise from your articulate comments. First, science has not ‘proven’ that the earth is millions or billions or years old. The methods used to date the earth are based on assumptions that cannot be proven. Further, they are based on the assumption that no major catastrophes took place, causing the earth to appear older than it actually is.
I did not mean to imply that ancient technologies were any pinnacle. After all, we can any of them today. However, they were able to do astounding things without modern equipment. They had amazing skill and knowledge much of which was lost until modern times. Yes, you are right, they did many things wrong as well.
The 10 inch long 8 carat gold chain was found with both ends embedded in the coal, not resting in a crevice. The implication was that the coal formed around the chain.
The article is one of over 100 on the subject of creation evidences. The weight of evidence is clearly in favor of intelligent design. So say even honest evolutionists. Previous articles deal with evolutionists’ own admissions.
As stated before, origins cannot truly be proven with science for science deals with experiments of repeatable processes. Life has never been seen evolving or being created. Therefore, both theories must be accepted by faith. I choose to accept creation because God said in the Bible that is how everything came into being. If you chose to believe what evolution teaches, you are certainly free to do so. But my articles show the objective evidence is heavily in on my side.
Jim, the statement that you made regarding Scott’s, “both theories must be accepted by faith,” suggest that a decision must be made. The belief of the probability of science based conclusions, or Intelligent design. In order to make an educated conclusion on Creation/Design one would have to start from a spiritual perspective/foundation, meaning one would of had to have experienced God spiritually in order to make an educated conclusion. Seek God in a genuine manner (pray honestly) this requires more than a 2 second prayer and or a demand. Most who expend abundant amounts of energy scoffing at the idea, or trying to prove the non-existence of God/our Creator never made an honest effort to call on Him, sincerely Dave.