Wednesday, August 07, 2019
Interesting find, dubious explanation
An intriguing bit of ancient knowledge about magnetism.
The people of Monte Alto didn’t live in isolation. Though Chinchilla says the sculptures at Monte Alto are the “most impressive,” several potbellied sculptures were found distributed around the coastal region of what is today Guatemala, El Salvador and the Mexican state of Chiapas, suggesting the Monte Alto influenced other cultures in the region. At least some of the stones used to craft sculptures were hit by lightning at some point in the past, magnetizing the material, according to the research conducted on 11 basalt figures. Moreover, the potbellied sculptures were carved in such a way that protruding features had the strongest magnetic forces, suggesting the artisans knew which parts of the material were most magnetic. The team found that the navel area of four potbellied sculptures displayed the most magnetism, and all three of the colossal head sculptures had strong magnetic anomalies around their right temples and cheek areas.Lightning wouldn't explain localized magnetism. Also, I can't imagine how the sculptor was always able to carve out the correct piece with the hot spots on the temple and belly. I'd guess that the statues were magnetized by human interaction. Worshippers or supplicants came in with magnets and rubbed the official sacred spots on the statue, giving the statue a magnetic tribute or kiss. Sacred actions are ritualistic, so all the rubbing would be in the same direction. You'd believe that your own magnet had been tuned or synchronized with the gods, so you could use it for healing. And maybe you'd be right. I'm not inclined to doubt it. Magnetic healing is a fact that gets discovered and forgotten repeatedly. Within recent times it was discovered in 1840, forgotten in 1920, discovered again in 1980. Greek magnetic rituals around 300 AD had a similar flavor. The 'sympathetic' movement of magnets showed that you were aligned with the will of the gods. ¶ 7:08 AM
