tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3423725371920868922.post6563354449253383336..comments2024-03-27T13:28:18.163-04:00Comments on Balter's Blog: A 12,000 year old shaman burial?Michael Balterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08311614050647338141noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3423725371920868922.post-3130944349373282922008-11-09T18:01:00.000-05:002008-11-09T18:01:00.000-05:00We Ain't Hirsute No More, No More, No MoreA FABLET...We Ain't Hirsute No More, No More, No More<BR/>A FABLE<BR/><BR/>The folks way back when were very, very hairy. Life had been going along as usual for eons and eons with everybody just learning to walk upright and throw rocks until one day someone discovered fire.<BR/><BR/>Everybody was thrilled and excited but soon learned (upon bursting into flame) that this was dangerous stuff for extremely furry people to handle.<BR/><BR/>So nothing much happened with the new discovery until one day somebody started using an old gnu hide (skin side out of course) as a sort of apron for protection. Viola! The first clothing was invented. It was not used for modesty or for warmth but as a barbeque bib.<BR/><BR/>So the hunt was on. Everything that could be caught and tasted nice went onto the grill. Life was good.<BR/>One day much later on, the strangest little baby boy was born. Cute little guy, no doubt, but almost hairless.<BR/><BR/>Nobody knew what to do with him. One bunch said ," Leave him for the hyenas", but his mother was frantic so they said," ok ,but if the kid is a problem ,he goes."<BR/>Years passed and the little hairless boy grew into a big hairless man.<BR/><BR/>One day he astounded the gang by handling fire quite easily without even wearing an apron! This was a really big deal and he grew rapidly in status and prestige. So much so that this naked young firebug became the very first shaman.<BR/><BR/>Apparently he was hugely popular with the ladies because he left a great, long legacy...the rest of us.<BR/><BR/>THE END<BR/>http://www.noabominoidshere.blogspot.com/Robert Magillhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11768002944826836257noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3423725371920868922.post-62625105605448304452008-11-04T06:50:00.000-05:002008-11-04T06:50:00.000-05:00Thanks for your comments, Richard. As Science'...Thanks for your comments, Richard. As Science's resident expert on the origins of agriculture, and author of a book on the same subject, I will have to pull rank on you and say that agriculture as usually defined--the domestication of plants-- began in the Neolithic, ie after the Natufians, although incipient cultivation of wild plants was a long process leading up to domestication. You can read about this at this link:<BR/><BR/>http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/316/5833/1830?ijkey=JM.QXhvTSRClA&keytype=ref&siteid=sci<BR/><BR/>Also, the cave art image you reproduce, while suggestive (and this subject is referred to in my online story), is not necessarily evidence of shamanism.<BR/><BR/>Finally, this has nothing to do with Israel's nationhood or history. Israeli archaeologists working in the Natufian or Neolithic periods do not claim any continuity between those societies and the Israelites, and they have done excellent and important work on the prehistory of the Near East as a whole.Michael Balterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08311614050647338141noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3423725371920868922.post-3123267011945295742008-11-04T06:21:00.000-05:002008-11-04T06:21:00.000-05:00See;http://www.flickr.com/photos/28722516@N02/2994...See;<BR/><BR/>http://www.flickr.com/photos/28722516@N02/2994863254/<BR/><BR/>and <BR/><BR/>http://www.flickr.com/photos/28722516@N02/2993580621/<BR/><BR/>- which do you prefer?Richard Parkerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11726482358889849398noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3423725371920868922.post-14472078413339475792008-11-04T06:18:00.000-05:002008-11-04T06:18:00.000-05:00'Agriculture' started long before the Natufians. S...'Agriculture' started long before the Natufians. So did 'shamanism' see:http://donsmaps.com/clickphotos/sorcerer.jpg<BR/><BR/>Israel's attempts to prove itself a nation, with a history, are not worth your time.Richard Parkerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11726482358889849398noreply@blogger.com