Timber Structure Older than Stonehenge Found in London

Archaeologists have unexpectedly uncovered London’s oldest timber structure, which predates Stonehenge by about 500 years.

The structure, apparently a platform or trackway used to make a boggy area more navigable, was found during the excavation of a prehistoric peat bog adjacent to Belmarsh Prison in Plumstead, Greenwich, in advance of the construction of a new prison building.

Radiocarbon dating has shown the structure to be nearly 6,000 years old, well before Stonehenge was erected. Previously, the oldest timber structure in Greater London was the timber trackway in Silvertown, which has been dated to 3340 to 2910 B.C., about 700 years younger than the newly discovered setup.

The platform or trackway has been buried over time and was found about 15.4 feet (4.7m) beneath two yards (meters) of peat adjacent to an ancient river channel.

Wetlands adjacent to rivers such as the Thames were an important source of food for prehistoric people, and timber trackways and platforms made it easier to cross the boggy terrain. The structure discovered at Plumstead is an early example of people adapting the natural landscape to meet human needs, researchers said.

"The discovery of the earliest timber structure in London is incredibly important. The timber structure is slightly earlier in date than the earliest trackways excavated in the Somerset Levels, including the famous 'Sweet Track' to Glastonbury, which provide some of the earliest physical evidence for woodworking in England," said Mark Stevenson, Archaeological Advisor at English Heritage, the British government's advisor on the historic environment, which was involved with the finding.

www.livescience.com...

So...

*puts tin foil cap on*

It seems there are a lot of finds lately that challange when we think civilization started.

Here is an example from yesterday of a "cathedral" with high difficulty stonework that was found in Brittan.

www.abovetopsecret.com...

What's going on?

Are they finally going to come clean and tell us everything we were told in History was a lie?

Next will be Science.

What's with this? maybe they will finally tell us that weve been around longer than 6009 years? What I want to know is why it is that most of our history seems to be tied only to the bible. I am sure that our history cannot be the that of a fairy tale like the bible. it does not make sense. Could this be the thing to put a glitch in the matrix.

double post-

[edit on 14-8-2009 by zazzafrazz]

YAWN

Thx scoobs for posting the article, I was excited to see a archaeoliogical piece without the OP sensationalising and trying to throw in aliens and coverups.
Having worked as a archaeologist, I can aussure the minions, not once did i hear "hide info" pass anyones lips, in fact uncover past is what you were trained to do.

As for will "they" tell us we are older tha 6000 years now...who is they?
The history and science I was taught told me we have been around for tens of millenia more than that......

Its a good discovery, and Archaeoligists didnt try cover anything up, just release a find that gives more background into how humans existed within that environment at that time.

sigh~



[edit on 14-8-2009 by zazzafrazz]

reply to post by breakingdradles


I don't see anything in this find that challenges the existing theories. It's not like it's a marvelous feat of engineering or anything