"Columbus of the Stone Age" by Anatoly Varshavsky, summary

This work by a Soviet writer and historical PhD sheds light on the early stages of settlement on the American continent. Published in 1978, it is a rigorous, documented account of the search for the first people in the New World, based on actual archaeological excavations and anthropological data.

First finds and a change in chronology

Europeans long wondered about the origins of the indigenous populations of the New World. Spanish conquistadors actively destroyed the indigenous heritage, smashing the sacred Intihuatana stones used by priests to observe the sun. For a long time, science considered the appearance of humans overseas a recent event, occurring two to three millennia ago.

In the summer of 1925, a black cowboy named George McJunkin was driving cattle near the town of Folsom. He noticed unusual bones protruding from the washed-out bank of a dry river. The remains soon came to the attention of scientist Figgins at the Denver Museum of Natural History. The researcher identified the bones as belonging to an extinct species of bison.

Among the enormous ribs was a stone spearhead with a distinctive groove. Figgins’s discovery proved the coexistence of humans and Pleistocene fauna ten thousand years ago. Folsom’s discovery forced the scientific community to reconsider the age of humanity in the Americas. Excavations began across the continent. Scientists uncovered new bones of ancient animals bearing traces of stone tools.

A long journey through the ice

Darwin’s theory of evolution compelled anthropologists to search for traces of ancient archanthropes. Siberian expeditions provided an answer to the riddle of migration. Soviet scientists excavated a Paleolithic site at Berelekha in Yakutia at 71 degrees north latitude. Stone tools embedded in permafrost proved the passage of Asian tribes across the frozen Bering Strait.

The Beringian land bridge once connected two continents. Glaciation froze the oceans, causing sea levels to drop by hundreds of meters. Vast expanses of land were opened up for the migration of animals and people. Asia became the starting point for future Native American civilizations.

Primitive hunters traveled vast distances following migrating herds of animals. These Stone Age people became the true discoverers of the continent, millennia before European explorers. They mastered the harsh landscape and slowly moved south. The stone industry of the ancient Americans developed independently of Europe.

Corn and the transition to agriculture

Ancient people gradually abandoned their hunting lifestyle for a sedentary one. Agriculture began with the domestication of wild maize. Botanists have established maize’s complete dependence on humans: its seeds are unable to germinate without artificial planting. Excavations in central Mexico and Peru have uncovered early varieties of maize dating back thousands of years BC.

Agriculture gave impetus to the development of crafts and complex social structures. Archaeologists used stratigraphy — the study of soil layers — to reconstruct ancient natural environments. Fossilized pollen and seeds were found in the earth layers. Excavations proved the independent emergence of agriculture in the New World. Local residents themselves became skilled crop breeders.

The exotic maize plant quickly attracted the attention of the Spaniards. The Indians cultivated it everywhere. Its yield exceeded that of any known grain. Food surpluses arose. People began to build permanent settlements. Crafts, pottery, and weaving developed.

The Mysterious Olmecs and the Paracas Culture

American archaeologist Matthew Stirling embarked on expeditions through the swamps, building on the work of Frans Blom and Olivier La Farge. In La Venta, Mexico, he unearthed massive helmeted basalt heads. These monuments belonged to the Olmecs. The word itself comes from the Aztec language and means "rubber people."

These sculptures weighed tens of tons. The basalt was transported hundreds of kilometers from quarries. The Indians did not use the wheel. Transporting these enormous boulders required thousands of workers. This demonstrated the existence of a complex state apparatus. The Olmecs developed their culture long before the Mayans.

Peruvian explorer Julio Tello studied a necropolis on the arid Paracas Peninsula. Hundreds of mummies dating back to the third century BCE were excavated from the sands. The Indians wrapped the dead in intricately woven and brightly colored cotton fabrics and llama wool. The finest fabrics were striking in the quality of the yarn and the richness of the embroidery.

Mayan pyramids and Nazca astronomers

In the jungles of Chiapas, Mexican archaeologist Alberto Ruz Lhuillier was working at the ancient Mayan city of Palenque. Inside the Temple of the Inscriptions, he discovered a rubble-filled staircase descending beneath the foundations of a pyramid. At the very bottom was a massive sarcophagus. The vaults of the tomb were covered in exquisite stalactites.

A sculpted portrait of the ruler Pakal was carved into a stone slab. The hieroglyphs dated the year 633 AD. The discovery disproved the theory that Central American temples were not used as funerary structures. The walls were decorated with alabaster sculptures. The tomb resembled an abandoned palace.

Scientist Paul Kozok and mathematician Maria Reiche dedicated their lives to studying the Nazca lines in Peru. The stripes and figures of birds, monkeys, and spiders stretched for tens of kilometers. Ancient priests scraped away the rocky desert layer to reveal the light-colored clay beneath. Reiche flew in the first helicopters with heavy cameras to capture topographical maps.

Kozok established the astronomical purpose of the giant contours. During the summer solstice, the sun set along the axis of one of the straight lines. The Nazca lines served as a calendar for calculating the changing seasons and flood periods. Maria Reiche continued to clean and save the drawings from destruction, dedicating the rest of her life to this task.