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There is a scientific concept, known as the Geologic Column, that is used to date palaeontological discoveries along a historical timeline. However, it’s rather a circular argument as it is used in the following way:
a)
To date a layer of stratum of earth look at the fossils it contains.
b) To date the fossils look at the stratum of earth they’ve been found
in.
In most ancient societies there are stories of giants and little people. There are also specimens of giants hidden away in some museums, although they are rarely talked about, that are explained away as being due to some genetic abnormality.
Since this October we’ve had news of not only what is colloquially called The Hobbit, but also of the "original" great ape. So perhaps it’s time to look again at those stories of giants and little people. But let’s start with the new discoveries.
Around
the 27th October news broke that the bones of an unknown, miniature, species,
had been found on Flores Island in Indonesia. According to the journal Nature this new species was human, only three feet tall, and weighing around four stone. It lived
until at least 12,000 years ago, and therefore overlapped with Homo sapiens.
The Hobbit was first thought to be the skeleton of a child, but the teeth and
skull showed it to have been an adult female. The leg bones also proved that it walked upright, just as we do.
The discovery has since been named Homo floresiensis,
and seven further specimens have now been found. It was thought to have had
long arms, and a head the size of a large grapefruit.
Sophisticated stone tools
were also discovered, which amazed some scientists as the Hobbit’s brain
size was only equivalent to that of a chimpanzee, i.e. about 380cc, whereas
the modern day human brain size is between 1,400 and 1,500cc. Scientists believe
it might have evolved from Homo erectus, the remains of which have also been
found in the area. They also hypothesize that this new species had adapted to their island environment, and that was the main reason they were so tiny.
Modern humans seem to have appeared on Flores about 11,000 years ago - whilst a volcanic explosion 12,000 years ago may have wiped out Homo floresiensis. This new species is not a pigmy form of modern man, but a smaller version of Homo erectus, the cousin of Neanderthal man, who died out about 33,000 years ago. The discovery may also indicate that the ancient humans, who left Africa 1.5 million years before modern man, actually continued to exist for far longer than has originally been thought. However, there is some scientific argument over the classification of Homo floresiensis as not all scientists believe it is a human species.
All around the Malay Archipelago, in the islands between Asia and Australia, local folklore tells of a race of little people that inhabit the jungle. And in Sumatra there are myths of the Orang Pendek, large "wild men of the woods," together with giants and other legendary creatures. But one of the most persistent legends is that from Flores itself, where the local population believe in the existence of the "Ebu Gogo." Described as being small, hairy, and able to mumble some type of language, they were said to have lived in caves at least until the time of the Dutch merchants’ arrival in the 16th Century. In fact the most recent legend only dates as far back as 100 years ago. There are also indications that Homo floresiensis might still exist in some of the more remote parts of the island. And a Catholic missionary, Father John Prior, who has lived on Flores since the 1970s told The Observer newspaper that:
I've heard stories for decades about these so-called little people. Legends about dwarfs living in caves - not the forests - are found in the west of the island, where the skeletons were found in Liang Bua.
In view of these legends, and the discovery of the Hobbit, perhaps we need to examine the reports of Leprechauns, and the Yeti, et. al., in a more serious way. As the senior editor of the journal Nature, Dr. Henry Gee, said:
Until they found this creature they would have dismissed them as tales of leprechauns, but no longer. It is possible, though not likely, that some of these creatures still survive.
This
link has a very good description of how the local inhabitants of Flores describe
the creature they call "Ebu Gogo" - little people that look like monkeys - and the local stories about it.
http://www.berkeleydailyplanet.com/
You
can read many of the news reports about the discovery of Homo floresiensis at
the following links:
http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/story?id=198867&page=1
http://www.abc.net.au/worldtoday/content/2004/s1229755.htm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/3948165.stm
http://observer.guardian.co.uk/focus/story/0,6903,1340260,00.html
http://www.nature.com/news/2004/041025/full/4311029a.html
http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns99996588
http://www.guardian.co.uk/life/science/story/0,12996,1340665,00.html
That last link also has some related stories from:
28.10.2004:
From
18,000 years ago, the one metre-tall human that challenges history of evolution
31.10.2004:
The
Flores remains could have been lost to science
31.10.2004:
Strange
world of island species
One
month later, almost to the day, came news of the discovery of the "original" great ape. In this case the find was probably a male, a little smaller than
a chimpanzee, and a fruit-eater.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/4014351.stm
For the record a male chimpanzee is three to four feet tall, whilst a female is two to three and a half feet tall.
And here are two more highly unusual discoveries from the recent past.
The
fist comes from an African palaeo-anthropologist in July 2003. It concerns a fossil skull found in Chad, 
Central Africa, which is the oldest of any pre-human ancestor yet discovered. However, it has features that are far more human than most other ancient candidates for the position of being the ancestor of humanity that have, so far, been found anywhere else in Africa. The skull has been named Toumaï, and it is 7 million years old, but some scientists claim
that it is only the skull of a female gorilla.
The
second is even more contentious. According to Lloyd Pye it may be the skull of an alien child; and it is currently undergoing tests to try to establish
where it comes from. Hence the name The Starchild Project, and you can read
all about it here.
http://www.starchildproject.com/
Now,
for those of you with a scientific frame of mind, the essay at the following link might be interesting. I’ve included only the "Abstract"
here, but the whole of the article is well worth the read.
http://origins.swau.edu/papers/man/hominid/
SCIENCE AND FAITH:
THE HOMINID FOSSIL RECORD
Lee A. Spencer, Ph.D.
Earth History Research Center
Southwestern Adventist University
Keene, TX 76059
Abstract— The fossil hominids are bipedal primates with a mixture of great ape (pongid), human, and pongid-human intermediate character states. There is a morphological continuum in skull and skeletal morphologies spanning those seen in the chimpanzee and anatomically modern man. Evolutionary/theistic evolutionary, progressive creation and “young-earth” creation interpretations of the data set are examined and tested. No interpretation remains unfalsified. Any interpretation held requires the exercise of faith. Science and faith not only are possible together, they are required.Right, if you’ve managed to digest all of that let’s take a look at the “little people” of myth and legend. The following article has been posted in many places around the Internet, and here is the author’s response to one site where it can be found.
A friend of mine wrote yesterday to alert me that a story I had written ten years ago was posted in lots of places around the net and was worried that I was concerned. I'm not. I'm flattered. Thanks for spreading the word, and please post my email along with the story.
Yours,
Mat Jacobson
AKA Buck Young
A belief in faeries of one type or another can be found in most cultures, and goes all the way back to very ancient times. For
a good introduction to the subject you might like the article at this link.
http://www.themystica.com/mystica/articles/f/fairies.html
So let’s take a slightly closer look at some of the fairy folk that are known throughout the British Isles. And as I live in Cornwall we’ll start there.
If you’ve been reading UFO Review since it began you might remember that I’ve mentioned some of these before, but for those who might be new to the e-zine I’ll give a quick description.
The best known are the Piskies – not to be confused with Pixies. They all looked identical, like little old men, and were only an inch tall. Their uniform was a white waistcoat, brown coat and trousers, green stockings, well-polished buckled shoes, and a red cap on their head. They were mischievous, and played pranks, but they often helped the old and infirm by doing chores around the house or on the farm. Some believe they came from Ireland with the saints, others that they were the souls of righteous pagans from earlier times, and some that they were the pre-Christian gods of Cornwall who started out as giants, but then shrank to just one inch tall when the new religion arrived.
Next are the Spriggans – they were hideous and much feared, with their large heads and small bodies. They stole babies, panicked lonely travellers, and raised a wind to damage crops. It was believed that they protected any place where buried treasure might lie hidden; and they also haunted ancient burial mounds and dolmens.
Then there are The Knockers – they were elfin-like, but ugly, with thin limbs, no taller than a small human dwarf, and they lived in the tin mines. The miners treated them which great respect, in the belief that any discourteousness would lead to bad luck as they were said to be the spirits of ancient miners.
Less well-known are the Small People – they were always beautiful, gentle, graceful, harmless, lively, slender, stylish, and only knee-high. They had dark shining eyes, with the ladies having a fair complexion whilst that of the men was swarthy. They entered the homes of the old, the poor, and the infirm, to give flowers and sing songs. As in many similar legends humans did not often see them; and those who trod on faery ground were instantly transformed into one of them.
You
can read about all of these in more detail here.
http://www.connexions.co.uk/culture/html/folklore.htm
Apart
from these faery folk we have giants and mermaids, the most famous of whom
are "The Wrath of Portreath," and the "Mermaid of Zennor."
Meanwhile, Ireland also has a plethora of faery folk. And here you can find
an explanation of most of them; including an explanation of the four major divisions of the Irish Mythological Cycle.
http://maxpages.com/mapit/FOLKLORE_MYTHS_AND_LEGENDS
One
of the most famous branches of Irish mythology is the Tuatha De Dannan - People
of the Goddess Danu – said to be the ancestors of the Irish people. They have now gone down into Irish folklore as the Sidhe.
Here again we see the belief that they began as a race of giants, who appeared from the north. Legend has it that they reached Ireland in approximately 1894 B.C. They were thought to have ruled for almost 200 years, until around 1690
B.C. However, once Christianity arrived they diminished in size and significance. Some believe they were fallen angels who now live under ground, under water, under
hills, and under prehistoric earthworks. And some say they emerged from these
hiding places, many 
eons later, to appear as theLeprechauns. There is also a
belief that the Tuatha De Dannan were great magicians who, according to some legends, came from the stars to teach humanity about love and harmony. You can read more about them here:
http://www.irishmythology.com/Irish_Mythology_Tuatha_de_Dannan.htm
It
is interesting to note that Celtic myth maintained that the Tuatha De Dannan
were gods who lived in ancient burial chambers, such as Newgrange.
If
you’d like to know more about Irish mythology the following site has links
to many of the myths and legends.
http://www.irishcultureguide.com/folkmyth.html
Of course,
both the other Celtic areas of the UK have similar folklore. In Wales, for example,
you can find the Ellyllon. These were pigmy elves that haunted the groves and
valleys, and corresponded pretty closely with the English elves.
There
is also a very interesting article about Welsh folklore here.
http://www.sacred-texts.com/neu/celt/wfl/wfl02.htm
Meanwhile,
in Scotland there are many different types of faery folk. For a good list this
link is very informative.
http://www.fife.50megs.com/scots-folklore-faeries.htm
But, to
mention just one of the better known, the Trows were said to inhabit the Orkney
Islands. They were very similar to others found throughout Northern Europe,
and are described as being ugly and roguish faeries that live inside ancient
mounds.
Of
course you might well ask where all this is leading. Well, before I get to the dénouement I want to take a quick look at the Sutton Hoo Treasure. No,
really, I haven’t taken leave of my senses – it is relevant!
Very
briefly indeed, this was treasure from the burial site of a 7th Century Anglo Saxon
king that was found near Woodbridge, in Suffolk, UK, in 1939. It was discovered
due to the dream of Mrs. Pretty, the lady on whose land it was found.
The site contained a fully equipped burial ship, without a body, and was one
of the richest discoveries every uncovered in Europe, let alone being one of
the most exceptional in England. Many items were contained in the grave,
but the most famous is the Sutton Hoo Helmet. This was made of iron and decorated with tinned bronze, sliver, and garnets. Some of the other items that were discovered are listed here:
http://csis.pace.edu/grendel/projs4a/sutton.htm
And
the following link, from the British Museum, has a good description of the helmet,
plus many pictures of the other objects that were found with it.
http://www.thebritishmuseum.ac.uk/compass/ixbin/goto?id=OBJ3920
Now, if
you just read that short introduction to the Sutton Hoo Treasure, the word Woodbridge
will probably have rung a bell for you. Yes, the very same Woodbridge in Rendlesham
Forest where the UFO event took place. Most of you will already know that story
inside out, but just in case you’re new to it here are some links
that tell the basic story of what happened back there in 1980.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/suffolk/dont_miss/codename/ufos/ufos_rendlesham.shtml
http://www.bbc.co.uk/suffolk/dont_miss/codename/ufos/ufos_rendlesham2.shtml
http://www.bbc.co.uk/suffolk/dont_miss/codename/ufos/ufos_rendlesham3.shtml
OK, scroll
back just a little and take another look at that Sutton Hoo Helmet. Does itremind you of any of these?
Let’s put them side by side.
Now?
I’m sure you can see the connection. Personally, I don’t claim to
have been abducted by aliens but I find all images of the Greys, and the image
of the Sutton Hoo Helmet, equally disturbing.
Has the description of the archetypal Grey evolved from more ancient days – when belief in the faery folk was still strong? Or was there always an "alien" influence at the basis of the myths and legends? Many of us were told fairy stories in our childhood – but what if the Little People, and even the Giants, really did exist? What if they still exist?
What
does the discovery of Homo floresiensis, and the "original" great
ape, mean for the persistent reports of, for example, the Yeti – or those
who claim to see faeries, or even angels? Is ET simply the modern interpretation
of what we previously called creatures from folklore? Or were the Little People actually connected to these new anthropological discoveries?
What if they were
the ancestors of the modern ET? If that were true then E.T. wouldn’t be
"alien" at all ……. If!