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"Squaring the Circle" in the Amazon: Graham Hancock Got It Wrong

4/25/2019

Yesterday on my walk home I listened to another chunk of Graham Hancock's appearance on Joe Rogan's podcast. Most of what I listened to was about the new discoveries in the Amazon, which Hancock claims include large geometric earthworks (aka geoglyphs) produced by "squaring the circle." Hancock misuses/misunderstands the term (which refers to constructing a square the same area as a given circle, not just drawing a square around a circle), and consequently concludes that the societies who made the structures had advanced geometrical knowledge.

Rather than write about it, I made a video to demonstrate my point:

Is Graham Hancock's New Book Really as Much of a Yawner as it Sounds Like It Is?

4/24/2019

If you're interested in pseudoarchaeology, you probably know that Graham Hancock's new book America Before is now out. I haven't read it yet. I will probably take at stab at it at some point over the summer, but I have to face the reality that I'm just not excited.

This is my "I'm getting too old for this crap" face.

My lack of enthusiasm stems mostly, I think, from a gut feeling that there is not a whole lot in the book that is particularly new, thought-provoking, or even interesting. The summary reviews I have read so far bear that out (you can read Jason Colavito's review here, and Carl Feagan's take here). I already knew Hancock was going to going to claim that a comet wiped out some kind of fantastical "advanced civilization" that existed during the Ice Age, and I already knew that he would try to connect his claim to the archaeology of North America in whatever ways possible. I predict anyone who has any legitimate expertise in this region of the world can see through Hancock's game in two seconds. I guess if you're blissfully ignorant maybe it all sounds very exciting . . . I wouldn't know: as someone who has been doing real archaeology in North America for 25 years now I can hear the sound of this book ringing hollow before I even crack the cover.

Saturday Morning News Dump: Art, Archaeology, Miscellany

4/6/2019

I didn't write a single blog post in February or March. That's probably the longest I've ever gone without writing since I started blogging. As usual, it isn't because I haven't been doing stuff. If/when my blog dies it won't be because I don't have things to talk about. It will be because I don't have time to talk about them.

Here's a taste of what's been going on over the last couple of months.

"Rocket Queen" Belongs to West Columbia

I'm happy to report that my seahorse sculpture "Rocket Queen" is now the property of the City of West Columbia. It will be installed with pieces by other artists in a new sculpture park that the city is building along their riverfront. My understanding is that the park will be open this spring/summer at some point.

"Squaring the Circle" in the Amazon: Graham Hancock Got It Wrong

Is Graham Hancock's New Book Really as Much of a Yawner as it Sounds Like It Is?

Saturday Morning News Dump: Art, Archaeology, Miscellany

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