5 Comments

Thank you for another fascinating read. I never knew about the Shigir Idol.

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I'm from the Urals and this is the first time I'm hearing about it as well. Thank you Patrick!

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You're very good at interpreting societies with limited written records. How about something on the Phoenicians (Carthage) and whether or not Tophets were child sacrifice.

I am shocked by articles I came across and also fascinated / disgusted that elites might sacrifice their own children to maintain their status and standing (my interpretation of what the elites might have been doing) to appease the gods.

If true, no wonder the Romans hated them!

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IIRC, the Israelites made the same claim about the Carthaginians' forebears in Phoenicia.

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As a young cat, I read an essay called "The Archaeology of The City Dump". According to the essay, that's basically what archaeology is, looking through long-ago people's trash and trying to draw conclusions, such as whether Coca Cola was the name of a king or a god and how this related to the Cult of The Great Clown Ronald.

Something similar in the anthropology line:

https://usflearn.instructure.com/courses/1058273/files/47476872

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