excerpt from Archeological Coverups by David Hatcher Childress
Perhaps the most amazing suppression of all is the excavation of an Egyptian
tomb by the Smithsonian itself in Arizona. A lengthy front page story of
the PHOENIX GAZETTE on 5 April 1909 (follows this article), gave a highly
detailed report of the discovery and excavation of a rock-cut vault by an
expedition led by a Professor S.A. Jordan of the Smithsonian. The Smithsonian,
however, claims to have absolutely no knowledge of the discovery or its
discoverers.
The World Explorers Club decided to check on this story by calling the
Smithsonian in Washington, D.C., though we felt there was little chance of
getting any real information. After speaking briefly to an operator, we were
transferred to a Smithsonian staff archaeologist, and a woman's voice came
on the phone and identified herself.
I told her that I was investigating a story from a 1909 Phoenix newspaper
article about the Smithsonian Institution's having excavated rock-cut vaults
in the Grand Canyon where Egyptian artefacts had been discovered, and whether
the Smithsonian Institution could give me any more information on the
subject.
"Well, the first thing I can tell you, before we go any further," she
said, "is that no Egyptian artefacts of any kind have ever been found in
North or South America. Therefore, I can tell you that the Smithsonian Institute
has never been involved in any such excavations." She was quite helpful and
polite but, in the end, knew nothing. Neither she nor anyone else with whom
I spoke could find any record of the discovery or either G.E. Kinkaid and
Professor S.A. Jordan. While it cannot be discounted that the entire story
is an elaborate newspaper hoax, the fact that it was on the front page, named
the prestigious Smithsonian Institution, and gave a highly detailed story
that went on for several pages, lends a great deal to its credibility. It
is hard to believe such a story could have come out of thin air. Is the
Smithsonian Institution covering up an archaeological discovery of immense
importance? If this story is true it would radically change the current view
that there was no transoceanic contact in pre-Columbian times, and that all
American Indians, on both continents, are descended from Ice Age explorers
who came across the Bering Strait. (Any information on G.E. Kinkaid and Professor
S.A. Jordan, or their alleged discoveries, that readers may have would be
greatly appreciated.....write to Childress at the World Explorers Club at
the above address.)
Is the idea that ancient Egyptians came to the Arizona area in the ancient
past so objectionable and preposterous that it must be covered up? Perhaps
the Smithsonian Institution is more interested in maintaining the status
quo than rocking the boat with astonishing new discoveries that overturn
previously accepted academic teachings.
Historian and linguist Carl Hart, editor of WORLD EXPLORER, then obtained
a hiker's map of the Grand Canyon from a bookstore in Chicago. Poring over
the map, we were amazed to see that much of the area on the north side of
the canyon has Egyptian names. The area around Ninety-four Mile Creek and
Trinity Creek had areas (rock formations, apparently) with names like Tower
of Set, Tower of Ra, Horus Temple, Osiris Temple, and Isis Temple. In the
Haunted Canyon area were such names as the Cheops Pyramid, the Buddha Cloister,
Buddha Temple, Manu Temple and Shiva Temple. Was there any relationship between
these places and the alleged Egyptian discoveries in the Grand Canyon?
We called a state archaeologist at the Grand Canyon, and were told that
the early explorers had just liked Egyptian and Hindu names, but that it
was true that this area was off limits to hikers or other visitors, "because
of dangerous caves."
Indeed, this entire area with the Egyptian and Hindu place names in the
Grand Canyon is a forbidden zone - no one is allowed into this large area.
We could only conclude that this was the area where the vaults were located.
Yet today, this area is curiously off-limits to all hikers and even, in large
part, park personnel.
I believe that the discerning reader will see that if only a small part
of the "Smithsoniangate" evidence is true, then our most hallowed archaeological
institution has been actively involved in suppressing evidence for advanced
American cultures, evidence for ancient voyages of various cultures to North
America, evidence for anomalistic giants and other oddball artefacts, and
evidence that tends to disprove the official dogma that is now the history
of North America.
The Smithsonian's Board of Regents still refuses to open its meetings
to the news media or the public. If Americans were ever allowed inside the
'nation's attic', as the Smithsonian has been called, what skeletons might
they find?
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from the front page of THE PHOENIX GAZETTE of April 5th, 1909 EXPLORATIONS
IN GRAND CANYON
Mysteries of Immense Rich Cavern being brought to light
Jordan is enthused
Remarkable finds indicate ancient people migrated from Orient
The latest news of the progress of the explorations of what is now regarded
by scientists as not only the oldest archeological discovery in the United
States, but one of the most valuable in the world, which was mentioned some
time ago in the Gazette, was brought to the city yesterday by G.E. Kinkaid,
the explorer who found the great underground citadel of the Grand Canyon
during a trip from Green River, Wyoming, down the Colorado, in a wooden boat,
to Yuma, several months ago.
According to the story related to the Gazette by Mr. Kinkaid, the
archaelogists of the Smithsonian Institute, which is financing the expeditions,
have made discoveries which almost conclusively prove that the race which
inhabited this mysterious cavern, hewn in solid rock by human hands, was
of oriental origin, possibly from Egypt, tracing back to Ramses. If their
theories are borne out by the translation of the tablets engraved with
heiroglyphics, the mystery of the prehistoric peoples of North America, their
ancient arts, who they were and whence they came, will be solved. Egypt and
the Nile, and Arizona and the Colorado will be linked by a historical chain
running back to ages which staggers the wildest fancy of the fictionist.
A Thorough Examination
Under the direction of Prof. S. A. Jordan, the Smithsonian Institute is
now prosecuting the most thorough explorations, which will be continued until
the last link in the chain is forged. Nearly a mile underground, about 1480
feet below the surface, the long main passage has been delved into, to find
another mammoth chamber from which radiates scores of passageways, like the
spokes of a wheel.
Several hundred rooms have been discovered, reached by passageways running
from the main passage, one of them having been explored for 854 feet and
another 634 feet. The recent finds include articles which have never been
known as native to this country, and doubtless they had their origin in the
orient. War weapons, copper instruments, sharp-edged and hard as steel, indicate
the high state of civilization reached by these strange people. So interested
have the scientists become that preparations are being made to equip the
camp for extensive studies, and the force will be increased to thirty or
forty persons.
Mr. Kinkaid's Report
Mr. Kinkaid was the first white child born in Idaho and has been an explorer
and hunter all his life, thirty years having been in the service of the
Smithsonian Institute. Even briefly recounted, his history sounds fabulous,
almost grotesque.
"First, I would impress that the cavern is nearly inaccessible. The entrance
is 1,486 feet down the sheer canyon wall. It is located on government land
and no visitor will be allowed there under penalty of trespass. The scientists
wish to work unmolested, without fear of archeological discoveries being
disturbed by curio or relic hunters. A trip there would be fruitless, and
the visitor would be sent on his way. The story of how I found the cavern
has been related, but in a paragraph: I was journeying down the Colorado
river in a boat, alone, looking for mineral. Some forty-two miles up the
river from the El Tovar Crystal canyon, I saw on the east wall, stains in
the sedimentary formation about 2,000 feet above the river bed. There was
no trail to this point, but I finally reached it with great difficulty.
Above a shelf which hid it from view from the river, was the mouth of
the cave. There are steps leading from this entrance some thirty yards to
what was, at the time the cavern was inhabited, the level of the river. When
I saw the chisel marks on the wall inside the entrance, I became interested,
securing my gun and went in. During that trip I went back several hundred
feet along the main passage till I came to the crypt in which I discovered
the mummies. One of these I stood up and photographed by flashlight. I gathered
a number of relics, which I carried down the Colorado to Yuma, from whence
I shipped them to Washington with details of the discovery. Following this,
the explorations were undertaken.
The Passages
"The main passageway is about 12 feet wide, narrowing to nine feet toward
the farther end. About 57 feet from the entrance, the first side-passages
branch off to the right and left, along which, on both sides, are a number
of rooms about the size of ordinary living rooms of today, though some are
30 by 40 feet square. These are entered by oval-shaped doors and are ventilated
by round air spaces through the walls into the passages. The walls are about
three feet six inches in thickness.
The passages are chiseled or hewn as straight as could be laid out by
an engineer. The ceilings of many of the rooms converge to a center. The
side-passages near the entrance run at a sharp angle from the main hall,
but toward the rear they gradually reach a right angle in direction.
The Shrine
"Over a hundred feet from the entrance is the cross-hall, several hundred
feet long, in which are found the idol, or image, of the people's god, sitting
cross-legged, with a lotus flower or lily in each hand. The cast of the face
is oriental, and the carving this cavern. The idol almost resembles Buddha,
though the scientists are not certain as to what religious worship it represents.
Taking into consideration everything found thus far, it is possible that
this worship most resembles the ancient people of Tibet.
Surrounding this idol are smaller images, some very beautiful in form;
others crooked-necked and distorted shapes, symbolical, probably, of good
and evil. There are two large cactus with protruding arms, one on each side
of the dais on which the god squats. All this is carved out of hard rock
resembling marble. In the opposite corner of this cross-hall were found tools
of all descriptions, made of copper. These people undoubtedly knew the lost
art of hardening this metal, which has been sought by chemicals for centureis
without result. On a bench running around the workroom was some charcoal
and other material probably used in the process. There is also slag and stuff
similar to matte, showing that these ancients smelted ores, but so far no
trace of where or how this was done has been discovered, nor the origin of
the ore.
"Among the other finds are vases or urns and cups of copper and gold,
made very artistic in design. The pottery work includes enameled ware and
glazed vessels. Another passageway leads to granaries such as are found in
the oriental temples. They contain seeds of varous kinds. One very large
storehouse has not yet been entered, as it is twelve feet high and can be
reached only from above. Two copper hooks extend on the edge, which indicates
that some sort of ladder was attached. These granaries are rounded, as the
materials of which they are constructed, I think, is a ver hard cement. A
gray metal is also found in this cavern, which puzzles the scientists, for
its identity has not been established. It resembles platinum. Strewn
promiscuously over the floor everywhere are what people call "cats eyse',
a yellow stone of no great value. Each one is engraved with the head of the
Malay type.
The Hieroglyphics
"On all the urns, or walls over doorways , and tablets of stone which
were found by the image are the mysterious hieroglyphics, the key to which
the Smithsonian Institute hopes yet to discover. The engraving on the tables
probably has something to do with the religion of the people. Similar
hieroglyphics have been found in southern Arizona. Among the pictorial writings,
only two animals are found. One is of prehistoric type.
The Crypt
"The tomb or crypt in which the mummies were found is one of the largest
of the chambers, the walls slanting back at an angle of about 35 degrees.
On these are tiers of mummies, each one occupying a separate hewn shelf.
At the head of each is a small bench, on which is found copper cups and pieces
of broken swords. Some of the mummies are covered with clay, and all are
wrapped in a bark fabric.
The urns or cups on the lower tiers are crude, while as the higher shelves
are reached, the urns are finer in design, showing a later stage of civilization.
It is worthy of note that all the mummies examined so far have proved to
be male, no children or females being buried here. This leads to the belief
that this exterior section was the warriors' barracks.
"Among the discoveries no bones of animals have been found, no skins,
no clothing, no bedding. Many of the rooms are bare but for water vessels.
One room, about 40 by 700 feet, was probably the main dining hall, for cooking
utensils are found here. What these people lived on is a problem, though
it is presumed that they came south in the winter and farmed in the valleys,
going back north in the summer.
Upwards of 50,000 people could have lived in the caverns comfortably.
One theory is that the present Indian tribes found in Arizona are descendants
of the serfs or slaves of the people which inhabited the cave. Undoubtedly
a good many thousands of years before the Christian era, a people lived here
which reached a high stage of civilization. The chronology of human history
is full of gaps. Professor Jordan is much enthused over the discoveries and
believes that the find will prove of incalculable value in archeological
work.
"One thing I have not spoken of, may be of interest. There is one chamber
of the passageway to which is not ventilated, and when we approached it a
deadly, snaky smell struck us. Our light would not penetrate the gloom, and
until stronger ones are available we will not know what the chamber contains.
Some say snakes, but other boo-hoo this idea and think it may contain a deadly
gas or chemicals used by the ancients. No sounds are heard, but it smells
snaky just the same. The whole underground installation gives one of shaky
nerves the creeps. The gloom is like a weight on one's shoulders, and our
flashlights and candles only make the darkness blacker. Imagination can revel
in conjectures and ungodly daydreams back through the ages that have elapsed
till the mind reels dizzily in space."
An Indian Legend
In connection with this story, it is notable that among the Hopi Indians
the tradition is told that their ancestors once lived in an underworld in
the Grand Canyon till dissension arose between the good and the bad, the
people of one heart and the people of two hearts. Machetto, who was their
chief, counseled them to leave the underworld, but there was no way out.
The chief then caused a tree to grow up and pierce the roof of the underworld,
and then the people of one heart climbed out. They tarried by Paisisvai (Red
River), which is the Colorado, and grew grain and corn.
They sent out a message to the Temple of the Sun, asking the blessing
of peace, good will and rain for people of one heart. That messenger never
returned, but today at the Hopi villages at sundown can be seen the old men
of the tribe out on the housetops gazing toward the sun, looking for the
messenger. When he returns, their lands and ancient dwelling place will be
restored to them. That is the tradition.
Among the engravings of animals in the cave is seen the image of a heart
over the spot where it is located. The legend was learned by W.E. Rollins,
the artist, during a year spent with the Hopi Indians.
There are two theories of the origin of the Egyptians. One is that they
came from Asia; another that the racial cradle was in the upper Nile region.
Heeren, an Egyptologist, believed in the Indian origin of the Egyptians.
The discoveries in the Grand Canyon may throw further light on human evolution
and prehistoric ages.
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