Chapter 6 Appendix

Historical records constitute the only dating information we really have. Prior to the beginnings of history, which is only a few thousand years ago, we have only rocks, water, sky, and conjectures. Here are additional statements in regard to the dating of our earliest actual information about recorded history:

The earliest records only go back to about 3000 B.C.

"The earliest records we have of human history go back only about 5,000 years."—"World Book Encyclopedia, 1966 edition, Vol. 6, p. 12.

Another scientist tells us that historical records only go back to 3000 B.C.

"It is a common error to think of man's existence in terms of recorded history. Historical records go back to about 3,000 B.C., but this is only a small fraction of the time man has lived on earth. "—*A.M. Winchester, Biology and Its Relation to Mankind (1964), p. 600.

*Montague suggests 4000 B.C. as the absolute limit of possible historical records.

"Recorded history is no more than six thousand years old, whereas human beings have been making history ever since they have been on this earth, a period believed to be about one million years."—*Ashley Montagu, Man: His First Million Years (1957), p. 21.

Even with the use of certain time-extending devices, the very earliest possible dates given for the invention of writing only go back to 4000 B.C.

"The invention of writing, about 6000 years ago, ushered in the historic period of man. The time prior to 6000 years ago is known as the prehistoric period."—*Mark A. Hall and *Milton S. Lesser, Review Text in Biology (1966) p. 354. .

Although it is said that the earliest writing goes back to 4000 B.C., the earliest written language only goes back to 3500 B.C.

"The earliest written language, Sumerian cuneiform, goes back to about 3500 B.C." —*Ashley Montagu, Man: His First Million Years (1957), p. 116.

We have no data on any human civilization prior to 4000 B.C.

"Historical records of any human civilization before 4000 B.C. are completely absent."—H. Enoch, Evolution or Creation (1967), p. 137.

Oddly enough, man has accomplished more in the last 6,000 years than he did in the previous million years. This would be true in light of the fact that we have not one shred of evidence that man did anything in that previous one million years!

"In the last six thousand years, man has advanced far more rapidly than he did in the million or more years of his prehistoric existence."— *Louise Eisman and *Charles Tanzer, Biology and Human Progress (1958), p. 509.

The developer of radiocarbon dating was astounded to learn that there are no records of mankind prior to 3000 B.C. (His teachers had not mentioned it in college.)

"The research in the development of the [radiocarbon] dating technique consisted of two stages—dating of samples from the historic and the prehistoric epochs, respectively. Arnold [a coworker] and I had our first shock when our advisors informed us that history extended back only for 5,000 years . . You read statements to the effect that such and such a society or archeological site is 20,000 years old. We learned rather abruptly that these numbers, these ancient ages, are not known accurately; in fact, the earliest historical date that has been established with any degree of certainty is about the time of the 1st Dynasty in Egypt."— *Willard Libby, Science, March 3, 1961, p. 624.

Prior to a certain point several thousand years ago, there was no trace of man having ever existed. After that point, civilization, writing, language, agriculture, domestication, and all the rest—suddenly exploded into intense activity!

"No more surprising fact has been discovered by recent excavation, than the suddenness with which civilization appeared in the world. This discovery is the very opposite to that anticipated. It was expected that the more ancient the period, the more primitive would excavators find it to be, until traces of civilization ceased altogether and aboriginal man appeared. Neither in Babylonia nor Egypt, the lands of the oldest known habitations of man, has this been the case." P.J. Wiseman, New Discoveries in Babylonia About Genesis (1949), p. 28.

Dates going back to 3000 to 4000 B.C. are estimated as the longest possible dates. But "well-authenticated" dates from Egypt, which scientists consider to have been history's oldest civilization, only go back to 1600 B.C.

"Well authenticated dates are known only back as far as about 1600 B.C. in Egyptian history, according to John G. Read."—*Journal of Near Eastern Studies, (1970), Vol. 1, p. 29.

DATING EARLY MAN

The following material is also found in chapter 18, Ancient Man, but is also included here so that, in one location, you might have a more complete presentation. Here you will find statements about the earliest farming, cities, etc. For additional information, see the chapter on Ancient Man.

The various radiodating techniques could be so inaccurate that mankind has only been on earth a few thousand years.

"Dates determined by radioactive decay may be off—not only by a few years, but by orders of magnitude.. Man, instead of having walked the earth for 3.6 million years, may have been around for only a few thousand."—*Robert Gannon, "How Old Is It?" Popular Science, November 1979, p. 81.

We have no records indicating human civilization going back beyond a few thousand years.

"Only six or seven thousand years ago. . civilization emerged, enabling us to build up a human world."—*Jonathan Schell, The Fate of the Earth (1982), p. 181.

There are no written records before about 3000 B.C.

"In the Old World, most of the critical steps in the farming revolution were taken between 10,000 and 5000 BC . . Only for the last 5000 years has man left written records."—*Reader's Digest, The Last Two Million Years (1984), pp. 9, 29.

Almost as soon as there was civilization, there were towns and cities, and the oldest were in Mesopotamia.

"In most civilizations urbanization began early. There is little doubt that this was the case for the oldest civilization and the earliest cities: those of ancient Mesopotamia." —*Robert M. Adams, "The Origin of Cities," Scientific American, Vol. 203, September 1960, p. 154.

The earliest king lists only go back to shortly before 3000 B.C.

"The Egyptian king lists go back to the First Dynasty of Egypt, a little before 3000 B.C. Before that, there were no written records anywhere. " —*Colin Renfrew, Before Civilization (1983), p. 25.

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APPENDIX 6
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CHAPTER 7- DATING METHODS