ALTERNATIVE SCIENCE • BY ROBERT M. SCHOCH, Ph.D. Imagine this: Aerial bombardments raining down havoc on humans and beasts alike, setting wildfires and incinerating everything that is flammable. The intense heat is great enough in some cases to literally melt surface rocks which, once they cool, form a crude vesicular glass in a process known as vitrification. Elevated radiation levels are so high that a few day’s exposure is lethal. The only realistic safe haven, the only place to flee, is deep underground in an intricate maze of subterranean passageways and rooms. Perhaps this sounds like a scene out of a Cold War scenario where something went terribly wrong, resulting in a nuclear attack. However, this is not fantasy, but a realistic account of what may have occurred thousands of years ago. To piece together precisely the history of the remote past, we need to examine multiple lines of evidence around the world. One key piece of the puzzle is found in central Turkey, in the region known as Cappadocia. Having just returned from leading an archaeological tour to Turkey (June 2012), which included several days in Cappadocia, I can report that this is a strange and hauntingly beautiful land. Formed of volcanic rocks (tuffs or tufa) spewed out millions of years ago by local volcanoes, the terrain has eroded into an incredible topography consisting of steep valleys, ridges, and odd formations including columns often topped with harder rock, known colloquially as “fairy chimneys.” <strong>What</strong> is more, the volcanic tuffs are relatively easily dug into, carved, and excavated; this has served the people of the region well—and I believe has saved many a life when catastrophe hit. It can be argued that this was one of the outposts or refuges that allowed humanity to survive and reemerge, literally, from below the ground. For in Cappadocia are found not just dwellings and churches carved into the sides of hills and rock cliffs, but entire ancient underground cities. Over 200 underground cities are reported in Cappadocia; most have not been adequately explored, and it seems certain that many more wait to be discovered. Two of the best known are Kaymakli and Derinkuyu, portions of which are open to the public. To this day nobody really knows the true extent of these or other underground cities of the area, but they were substantial. Kaymakli consists of at least eight floors or underground stories (only four of which are currently accessible), each extending in a labyrinthine manner over a vast area. The city may have supported a population of 3000 to 4000 people plus farm animals and supplies, all housed underground. Derinkuyu, with an estimated 20 floors and extending an estimated 85 meters (280 feet) below the surface, may Continued on Page 60 24 ATLANTIS ATLANTIS RISING RISING • Number 95 Rock formations known as “fairy chimneys,” Cappadocia. (Photos by Robert Schoch) ������������������������ ���������������������� Did Did These These Long Long Forgotten Forgotten Passages Passages Host Host Survivors Survivors of of a a Concluding Concluding Ice Ice Age? Age? Room in Kaymakli. Narrow passageway in the underground city of Kaymakli Subscribe or Order Books, DVDs and Much More! Interior area in Kaymakli.
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