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VITRIFIED STONEWORK OF THE ANCIENT WORLD itrified stones are simply stones that have been melted to a point where they form a glass or glaze. There is much debate in archaeological circles over the ancient examples under study for| two reasons: few cases are known to have been tested; and even iff Glazing found on hey have, there are many questions over how the stones were vitrified. Oe 9 Glassy rocks form naturally under conditions of high temperatures and vitrified forts mn pressures found in and around volcanoes. Glass and glazes are traditionally created using a furnace. Furnace or kiln examples are found on everyday the northern objects such as glassware and ceramics. The ceramics glazes are created by hemisphere and pasting certain finely crushed stones, sometimes with tinctures, onto fired ° pots and plates. The objects are then fired to temperatures usually in excess on stonework mn of 1,000 degrees Celsius. Peru and Bolivia The difficulty with many of the curious, ancient, vitrified examples is that . . he vitrification is found on objects so large that they couldn’t have been IS evidence that the placed in a furnace. The vitrification process itself is quite a mystery. A ° eye eam of chemists on Arthur C. Clarke's Mysterious World subjected rock samples ancients utilised rom 11 vitrified forts to rigorous chemical analysis. They concluded that the an unknown emperatures needed to produce the vitrification were up to 1,100°C. Simply burning the walls with wood interlaced with stone could not achieve such technology able emperatures. Recent experiments along these lines have had virtually no nine success at all. t STONEWORK VITRIFIED ANCIENT WORLD THE Glazing found on vitrified forts in the northern hemisphere and on stonework in Peru and Bolivia is evidence that the ancients utilised an unknown technology able to melt mineral compounds directly onto rock surfaces. Glazing found on vitrified forts in the northern hemisphere and on stonework in Peru and Bolivia is evidence that the ancients utilised an unknown technology able to melt mineral compounds directly onto rock surfaces. Vitrified Structures in Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia There are several confirmed cases of unusual, vitrified remnants from across the globe. In Europe, there are several forts and buildings with vitrified ramparts. The crude stone enclosure walls seem to have been subjected to the action of heat. No mortar has been found in any of these structures. Despite this, the rocks seem to be fused together. This fusion is uneven throughout the various forts and even in a single wall. Some stones are only partially melted and calcined, while others have their adjoining edges fused firmly together. In many instances, pieces of rock are enveloped in a glassy enamel-like coating which binds them into a whole. In some cases, the entire length of the wall presents one solid mass of vitreous substance. It is not clear why or how the walls were vitrified. Some have argued that it was done to strengthen the wall, but the heating weakens the structure. Battle damage, as some have proposed, is unlikely to be the cause. The walls would have needed carefully maintained fires to ensure vitrification. There are about 50 examples that have been discovered in Scotland. It was thought that these forts were peculiar to Scotland. However, they have also been found in County Londonderry and County Cavan in Ireland. On mainland Europe, they have been identified in Upper Lusatia, Bohemia, Silesia, Saxony and Thuringia. by Jan Peter de Jong and Christopher Jordan © 2012 Ancient Mysteries Explained and Secrets of the Sun Sects Websites: http://www.ancient-mysteries- explained.com http://www.secretsofthesunsects. wordpress.com/ by Jan Peter de Jong and Christopher Jordan © 2012 Ancient Mysteries Explained and Secrets of the Sun Sects NEXUS ¢ 59 AUGUST - SEPTEMBER 2012 www.nexusmagazine.com