Ante's 5,000th Post Extravaganza Part I: Shocking! Amazing! Somewhat Entertaining!

I noticed the other day that I was nearing 5,000 posts and wanting to mark this milestone with something special, I've been mulling over a few ideas. Perhaps I could tell the tale of my own encounter with the unknown? Maybe a long overdue installment of my Lesser Known Mysteries series of threads? While I mulled, the counter ticked away and 5,000 drew closer and closer, until I found myself at 4,999 with nothing prepared. Confession: I haven't posted in almost two days because I didn't want to waste #5,000 on just any old post on the 3rd or 4th page of some thread nobody would ever read again! (whatevs!)

About an hour two hours ago, I decided to bite the bullet and post something so I could get back to making snarky comments and explaining to people in political threads exactly how wrong they are!

So without further adieu, I present to you dear readers, a short collection of interesting things you (probably) didn't know about. I hope you enjoy!

The Fantasy Coffins of the Ga People

Many places in the world have unique customs born of the fusion of Christianity and the traditional systems of religious belief. In the Greater Accra Region of Ghana in the 1950s, what began with a earlier funerary customs involving the carrying in processions and sometimes interring of tribal chiefs in ornate, figurative palanquins, was spread to the ranks of the common folk by a handful of gifted artisans.

Wikipedia - Fantasy Coffin:

The reason that mainly the southern Ghana-based Ga people use such elaborate coffins for their funerals is explained by their religious beliefs regarding the afterlife. They believe that death is not the end and that life continues in the next world in the same way it did on earth. Ancestors are also thought to be much more powerful than the living and able to influence their relatives who are still alive. This is why families do everything they can to ensure that a dead person is sympathetic towards them as early as possible. The social status of the deceased depends primarily on the importance, success and usage of an exclusive coffin during a burial.

Fantasy coffins are only seen on the day of the burial when they are buried with the deceased. They often symbolise the dead people’s professions. Certain shapes, such as a sword or stool coffin, represent regal or priestly insignia with a magical and religious function. Only people with the appropriate status are allowed to be buried in these types of coffins. Various animals, such as lions, cockerels and crabs can represent clan totems. Similarly, only the heads of the families concerned are permitted to be buried in coffins such as these. Many coffin shapes also evoke proverbs, which are interpreted in different ways by the Ga. That is why these coffins are also called proverbial coffins (abebuu adekai) or in the Ga language "okadi adekai".

Here are some images of the remarkable coffins from the website of the carpentry workshop of Kane Kwei, ghanacoffin.com and worldsmostamazingthings.com:

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I really could have devoted a whole post to this, the variety of coffins — animals, vehicles, tools, items of apparel, writing instruments, weapons, ammunition, etc — is simply amazing!

Cal Orko

A 328 foot tall limestone cliffside in a Bolivian quarry holds the world's largest, most diverse set of dinosaur tracks from the Cretaceous period. Called Cal Orko, the cliff is situated in an active quarry of the state-owned cement company, FANCESA. The more than 5,000 tracks from at least eight species of dinosaurs were discovered in 1985. There's no telling how many tracks are actually present as they exist in a limestone layer cake and the same erosion that threatens the site sloughs of slabs of the cliff, revealing layers of additional tracks beneath. As part of the preservation process, the site was closed for eight years until just a few years ago. Above the site there is now a museum housing some two dozen life sized replicas and guided tours are once now open to the public.

Twistedsifter.com - This 300 ft Wall in Bolivia has over 5000 Dinosaur Footprints

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So Dinosaurs Can Climb Walls Now?

Not quite. We’re looking at something 68 million years in the making. The footprints at this site were formed during the Maastrichtian age of the Cretaceous Period in the Mesozoic Era. As Ian Belcher of The Guardian explains:

“It was unique climate fluctuations that made the region a palaeontological honey pot. The creatures’ feet sank into the soft shoreline in warm damp weather, leaving marks that were solidified by later periods of drought. Wet weather then returned, sealing the prints below mud and sediment. The wet-dry pattern was repeated seven times, preserving multiple layers of prints. The cherry on the cake was added when tectonic activity pushed the flat ground up to a brilliant viewing angle – as if nature was aware of its tourism potential.”

As I was putting this together, it became clear that what I had in mind was a little much for a single thread (and also, I like pictures) so my 5,000th Post Extravaganza will actually be my 5,000th and 5,001th Post Extravaganza!

Next up: What's Left of President's Park and the Master of Miniatures.

yay, congrats!

cool post.

a reply to: theboarman

Thanks! Glad you liked it. I've just finished the second part... and now I'm off.

a reply to: theantediluvian

You've been one of my favourite members since those first few posts and I had your site on my toolbar for a long time.

Well done for keeping the quality and balance of your posts at a high level.

The dino footprint wall is cool. Congrats on 5K!

a reply to: theantediluvian

Congratulations, on your determination and longevity. And thanks for your mostly quality and not unentertainining posts.

I think I'm looking at another 3 years or so before I hit 5000.

a reply to: theantediluvian

Congratulations on your 5000th (and 5001st) posts.
I love your curio threads, they're always amazing and somewhat entertaining.

Nice job, you are always one of my favorite thread-starters since I know it is going to be a cool topic and well written.

a reply to: theantediluvian

Thanks everyone! I would have liked to thank everyone individually but I'm running late for my father-in-law's birthday party and I've got all the drinks!