Korean dolmens, with the largest one being 7.1 meters long and 5.5 meter wide, come in three different shapes, known as northern, southern and mixed types.
The first kind, also called a table type is believed to have been influenced by Siberian culture. A high capstone is supported by two or four upright stone slabs, which are above the ground.
In the southern type, supporting stones are erected between an underground chamber and capstone on the ground, while the mixed type consists of an underground chamber covered by a stone slab without supporting stones.
There used to be a string of dolmens, stretching 2 km over low hills in the region, until the land was converted into farmland and rice paddies. Only five of them remain now.
"Megalithic relics in four countries are currently on the Unesco list. Those in Korea should be considered since they also have a lot of historic value," Yoo said. The association is trying to develop these sites into tourist attractions. "We expect that in 2000, Korean megalithic sites will draw over 2 million tourists including 200,000 foreigners, which accounts for 20 percent of foreign travelers in Korea last year," he said. But development will be carefully done so as not to damage the sites, he added. The association is also planning to hold the World Megalith Festival next year, which will be the first international cultural and academic event devoted to megaliths.
Yoo hopes the festival will help rally people around the world behind the association's cause. "Megalithic culture is the first and greatest common cultural heritage of humans, originating from when the world had no borders," he said. To ensure the success the inaugural world festival, the association will hold a preliminary festival in Kochang in September and October with various programs, including photo exhibitions, demonstrations on constructing dolmens and folk art performances by troupes from five nations.
Source: Korean Herald
Prehistoric altar found in China
A team of Chinese and Japanese archaeologists has excavated a 6,000-year-old altar, believed to be the oldest ever found in China.
The 2,200-square-foot altar, in the shape of an ellipse, was found near Dongting Lake in Hunan province, central China. Nearby, archaeologists found some 40 pits containing bones of people believed to have been offered as human sacrifices. He Jiejun, director of the Hunan Archaeological Research Society, said the altar apparently was used for community activities over a 300-year period.
Source: Associated Press
Miami Circle may be 2,000 years old
Scientific evidence now proves that the site of the Miami circle (see Archaeo News no.3), a 11,6 meter (38-foot) wide stone ring believed to be a sacred site carved by the Tequesta Indians is at least 1,800 years old and the circle itself could be much older than that, Miami-Dade County archaeologists said after receiving the results of radiocarbon tests.
Bob Carr, director of the Miami-Dade Historic Preservation Division, said tests showed that a piece of charcoal found within one of the 30 basins that form the Circle was 1,800 to 2,100 years old. Another piece of charcoal, found in the center of the Circle, was 1,850 to 1,990 years old, he said.
"There's certainly a suggestion here that the Circle could be 2,000 years old ore more" Carr said, "but the definitive answer to that will come from more dating tests."
The archaeological discovery in downtown Miami, on the south bank of the Miami River and just east of the Brickell Avenue bridge, has become a worldwide sensation. Archaeologists believe it was created by the long-extinct Tequesta tribe. The mysterious formation consists of stone carvings and post holes that link to form a perfect circle, apparently based on geometric calculations. Archaeologists speculate the circle could have been used to measure time or for religious purposes. In some deeper holes they have found the remains of a 5-foot shark and a sea turtle, possibly evidence of ceremonial sacrifices.
Amid enormous public pressure, Miami-Dade officials late last month blocked a developer from cutting up and moving the circle to a popular botanical garden nearby and began steps to buy the land (but buying back the property could cost more than $100-million) under eminent domain proceedings. Court action is pending.
Sources: Miami Herald, St.Petersburg Times
Stone Age ax found in Switzerland
During underwater digging at a late Stone Age village in the site in Cham-Eslen, 15 miles south of Zurich (Switzerland), archaeologists have found a stone ax more than 6,000 years old. The double-headed stone ax, with a well-preserved wooden handle about 1,2 meter (4 feet) long and a finely made blade, is unique in Europe, the archaeologists said.
Work at the site is concentrating on the parts of the Stone Age settlement under greatest danger from erosion. A team of divers has been working under the surface of Lake Zug since October 1998.
Source: Associated Press
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