With news from Chile, Germany, Ethiopia and Siberia to make the point (see page 11) it is easy to see that the orthodox scientific scenario for the origins of man is being forced much further back in time. If primitive man was around so many thousands of years earlier than the experts have been willing to admit, the time available for evolution to higher levels increases. When coupled with other factors, such as evidence of advanced technology implicit in the building methods of ancient monuments or the proven existence of ancient mastery of such subtle astronomical processes as the precession of the equinoxes, to say nothing of water-weathering evidence for much greater antiquity than supposed for the Sphinx, the new discoveries make the likelihood of a great pre-historic fountainhead of civilization much harder to deny.

As Galileo's telescope once forced authorities to raise their sights to include a larger universe, the advance of true science, once again, seems destined to make the academic establishment adjust its horizons, though on this occasion, in time rather than space. And just as scaling a mountain exposes new vistas, our trek from the valleys of ignorance and superstition may soon reveal hitherto undreamed of possibilities pertaining to our origins.

One of the benefits of climbing a great mountain is the ultimate opportunity to discover other mountains of comparable height which were hidden from view in the lowlands. In fact, some would argue, our struggle upward may be, at least partly, motivated by an unconscious desire to unveil the sibling realities of other peaks, to understand that we are not alone in time or space.

With each new age of discovery, comes a new appreciation for peers in previous ages. In the Italian renaissance came a rediscovery of ancient Greek culture. In the Age of Enlightenment, the records of ancient Egypt were reclaimed. Now, perhaps, the dawn of a new millennium may advance our understanding far enough to uncover a world, even more deeply buried beneath the sands of our forgetfulness.

Perhaps, the reason that we have been unable, previously, to find sufficient tangible proof to convince skeptics of the achievements our ancient forebears has been a lack of sufficient breadth of vision to behold and comprehend their achievements.

Does the reappearance of an ancient comet portend that we may soon attain the necessary height to see other mountains-in-time equal to, if not exceeding, our own? We will soon see.

Over the next ridge, perhaps.

J. Douglas Kenyon

Publisher