Re: who discovered death valley
Posted by Joel Briggs on April 08, 2002 at 14:52:19:
In Reply to: who discovered death valley posted by lashell on April 07, 2002 at 21:28:38:
Timbi-sha Shoshone Tribe of the Great Basin Indians arrived in the region around 3,500-9,000 years ago. Some say as far as 12,000 years ago(Both are being debated at this time.)
From here, another debate is being investigated regarding Spaniards entering into Death Valley.
There is a “behind the scene” debate going on about the finding of a “year” engraved in rock in the Panamint, Argus, and Funeral Mountain Ranges along prehistoric trails. With these dates, they have found nearby "rock" cravings of Spaniard symbols. Indian Petroglyphs depicting a man wearing a helmet riding a horse have been found in the Coso, Argus, and Panamint Mountain Ranges too. Furthermore, Spaniard Army records have mentioned a place of “…unbearable heat (fire), covered with brown salt…”
The debate – did the Spaniards enter Death Valley first? When this was first mentioned, it was quickly “snuffed” and many top archaeologist and historians of Western Cultures stated, “…this was impossible and all a fabrication.”
Initial testing of these date rock engravings stated they were a fraud as with one of the stones they were engraved on. But two university’s performed other tests and determined them to be accurate as with the Spaniard symbols - representing army units of that era. The fraud rock with the engraving weighs approximately 14 tons. So how can this rock be a fraud? (Briggs,J., Abstract. UCR, ANTH 111. Peopling of the New World)
In 1849, Manely and his clan ventured into Death Valley and the rest is history.
Just my two cents... and a very long research project... which continues today...