Archaeological Oddities

A Field Guide to Forty Claims of Lost Civilizations, Ancient Visitors, and Other Strange Sites in North America

Kenneth L. Feder

Does evidence show that Native Americas residing in Utah a thousand years ago lived among dinosaurs, depicting those creatures in their rock art? Did some of those same ancient Americans also encounter visitors from other planets, painting images of space-suited aliens on canyon walls? Have archaeologists discovered evidence that members of the Lost Tribes of Israel visited ancient America, leaving their mark by engraving the Ten Commandments in Hebrew on rocks in New Mexico? And Ohio? Is there archaeological evidence of ancient Celtic visitors to the New World in the form of messages etched in stone, megalithic monuments, and even the remnants of the villages in which they lived? Are American archaeologists covering up the remains of lost cities deeply ensconced in a secret cave in Arizona and in a subterranean chamber in Missouri? Finally, have archaeologists discovered the far western outpost of an ancient Egyptian pharaoh, not in Egypt or even Africa, but in, of all places, California?

Those questions and more are answered by archaeologist Ken Feder in Archaeological Oddities: A Field Guide to Forty Claims of Lost Civilizations, Ancient Visitors, and Other Strange Sites in North Americathat the above listed questions and others addressed in his book represent the equivalent of “fake news” about America’s ancient past. The forty sites he highlights are, in fact, fascinating and fun places to visit. Feder’s guide provides an entertaining summary of those forty sites along with the practical information you’ll need to visit them. This full-color book includes over 100 fascinating photographs.

Rowman & Littlefield Publishers

Pages: 260 • Trim: 6¼ x 9⅜

978-1-5381-0596-2 • Hardback • March 2019 • $45.00 • (£35.00)

978-1-5381-0597-9 • eBook • March 2019 • $42.50 • (£35.00)

Subjects: Social Science / Archaeology, Travel / United States / General

Archaeological Oddities

A Field Guide to Forty Claims of Lost Civilizations, Ancient Visitors, and Other Strange Sites in North America

Hardback

eBook

Summary

Does evidence show that Native Americas residing in Utah a thousand years ago lived among dinosaurs, depicting those creatures in their rock art? Did some of those same ancient Americans also encounter visitors from other planets, painting images of space-suited aliens on canyon walls? Have archaeologists discovered evidence that members of the Lost Tribes of Israel visited ancient America, leaving their mark by engraving the Ten Commandments in Hebrew on rocks in New Mexico? And Ohio? Is there archaeological evidence of ancient Celtic visitors to the New World in the form of messages etched in stone, megalithic monuments, and even the remnants of the villages in which they lived? Are American archaeologists covering up the remains of lost cities deeply ensconced in a secret cave in Arizona and in a subterranean chamber in Missouri? Finally, have archaeologists discovered the far western outpost of an ancient Egyptian pharaoh, not in Egypt or even Africa, but in, of all places, California?

Those questions and more are answered by archaeologist Ken Feder in Archaeological Oddities: A Field Guide to Forty Claims of Lost Civilizations, Ancient Visitors, and Other Strange Sites in North Americathat the above listed questions and others addressed in his book represent the equivalent of “fake news” about America’s ancient past. The forty sites he highlights are, in fact, fascinating and fun places to visit. Feder’s guide provides an entertaining summary of those forty sites along with the practical information you’ll need to visit them. This full-color book includes over 100 fascinating photographs.

Details

Rowman & Littlefield Publishers

Pages: 260 • Trim: 6¼ x 9⅜

978-1-5381-0596-2 • Hardback • March 2019 • $45.00 • (£35.00)

978-1-5381-0597-9 • eBook • March 2019 • $42.50 • (£35.00)

Subjects: Social Science / Archaeology, Travel / United States / General

Author

Kenneth L. Feder, professor of anthropology at Central Connecticut State University, specializes in the archaeology of North America. He is author of several books, including Ancient America: Fifty Archaeological Sites to See for Yourself . Feder has appeared on numerous television documentaries on the National Geographic Channel, the BBC's Horizon, the History Channel, the Discovery Channel, and the SyFy Channel and has been featured in episodes of the Canadian-based William Shatner’sWeird or What?

Table of Contents

Preface - What I Did on My Summer Vacations (and intersessions, Spring breaks, and too many long weekends to count)

Chapter 1- Turn and Face the Strange

Chapter 2- Here’s What We Know

The Sites

Ancient Visitors: Written Messages

1. Crack Cave, Comanche National Grassland, Colorado

2. Davenport Tablets, Davenport, Iowa

3. Dighton Rock, Berkley, Massachusetts

4. Westford Knight, Westford, Massachusetts

5. Michigan Relics, Michigan

6. Kensington Rune Stone, Alexandria, Minnesota

7. Los Lunas Decalogue Stone, Los Lunas, New Mexico

8. Newark Holy Stones, Newark, Ohio

9. Heavener Rune Stone, Heavener, Oklahoma

10. Bat Creek Stone, Loudon County, Tennessee

11. Grave Creek Stone, Moundsville, West Virginia

Ancient Visitors: Stone Monuments

12. Acton Stone Chamber, Acton, Massachusetts

13. Upton Stone Chamber, Upton, Massachusetts

14. Peach Pond Chamber

15. Druid Hill, Lowell, Massachusetts

16. Balanced Rock, North Salem, New York

17. Newport Tower, Newport Rhode Island

Ancient Visitors: Villages

18. Gungywamp, Groton, Connecticut

19. America’s Stonehenge/Mystery Hill, North Salem, Massachusetts

20. L’anse aux Meadow, Newfoundland, Canada

Ancient Visitors: Aliens

21. Roswell Flying Saucer Crash Site, Roswell, New Mexico

22. Serpent Mound, Peebles, Ohio

23. Head of Sinbad, San Rafael Swell, Utah

24. Sego Canyon, Thompson Springs, Utah

Lost Civilization

25. Tucson Artifacts, Tucson, Arizona

26. Grand Canyon Secret Cave, Grand Canyon, Arizona

27. Moberly Subterranean City, Moberly, Missouri

28. Burrows Cave, Illinois

Biblical Proof?

29. The Cardiff Giant, Cooperstown, New York

30. Paluxy River Footprints, Glen Rose, Texas

31. Black Dragon Pictograph, San Rafael Swell, Utah

32. Kachina Bridge Pictograph, Natural Bridges National Monument, Utah

New Age Antiquity

33. Palatki Cliff Dwelling, Sedona Arizona

34. Honanki Cliff Dwelling, Sedona, Arizona

Unexpected Critter Depiction

35. Painted Rock Hairy Man Depictions, Tule Indian Reservation, Porterville, California

Follies

36. Lost Egyptian City, Guadaupe, California

37. Carhenge, Alliance, Nebraska

38. The Dig, Governor’s Island, New York, New York

39. Columcille Megalithic Park, Bangor, Pennsylvania

40. Maryhill Stonehenge, Maryhill, Washington State

Reviews

Archaeologist and author Kenneth L. Feder has written several books about ancient sites and, in this book, takes on forty places that have interesting but strange stories that stretch credulity. He tells the story of the place, how it was discovered, what artifacts were found and in what condition and circumstances, who was involved and what their motive might have been to create the find, why there is skepticism, and how to find and visit the site now. Since he is a highly educated archaeologist, Feder is able to debunk this stories handily. He is an accomplished writer with a lively writing style and a wonderful sense of humor exemplified by the ‘Fake-o-meter’ included in many of the chapters. Wonderful photographs support the writing and help to make this an absolutely fascinating book. Don’t miss this one.
— Tulsa Book Review

Feder has written the indispensable travel guide to the most colorful blind-alleys and wacky dead-ends of North American archaeology. He knows the territory like nobody else, and he’s passionate about the subject with a delightful sense of humor. And along the way, you’ll learn a lot about real archaeology too. Buckle up and enjoy the ride.
— Brad Lepper, Senior Curator of Archaeology, Ohio History Connection

Ken Feder is an indefatigable archaeological traveler, blessed with insatiable curiosity. He takes us on an entertaining, at times funny, and always well informed excursion to forty archaeological sites where you can experience the often zany site of North American archaeology first hand. This nicely written, well illustrated book takes us on a delicious archaeological journey through a sumptuous array of oddities. It’s a delight.
— Brian Fagan, emeritus professor of anthropology, University of California, Santa Barbara

Feder's humorous commentary and honest presentation of facts make this a fun and informative read. Probably the best way to plan a unique trip to an unusual place in search of hidden messages, lost civilizations, and ancient aliens.
— Sara Head, host of Archaeology Fantasies

Feder’s latest is a fascinating field guide to America’s imaginary past from an expert archaeological traveler who combines deep knowledge, a wicked sense of humor, and a thoughtful perspective on the many ways Americans envision ancient times.
— Jason Colavito, author of The Cult of Alien Gods: H.P. Lovecraft and Extraterrestrial Pop Culture

Feder's excellent Archaeological Oddities is an oddity itself: an exhaustive guide to the spookiest archaeological sites in North America that provides real evidence. Readers who want the facts, dig in. Highly recommended.
— Jeb J. Card, assistant teaching professor, department of anthropology, Miami University