08/19/2025
Discussion regarding Ancient Civilizations:
The sources provide a comprehensive overview of various ancient civilizations, both in the Americas (often referred to as the "New World") and in other continents (the "Old World"). They discuss their characteristics, achievements, societal structures, religious practices, and theories regarding their origins and intercontinental connections.
**Defining "Ancient Civilizations"**
The sources categorize ancient societies into different levels of development, including **savagery, barbarism, and civilization**. They differentiate between the prehistoric, protohistoric, and historic periods, noting that prehistoric times were much more ancient and prolonged than the historic period in America, though often shrouded in mystery. Civilization, technically, is linked to the **Iron Age** and historic races, but the term is also applied to some American races, particularly those that bordered on the Bronze Age or Copper Age. The emergence of agriculture and arts, building of cities, and development of social and political structures are key indicators of advancing civilization.
**Ancient Civilizations of the Americas**
The American continent is presented as an "old-world" with numerous prehistoric tokens and remains.
* **Mound-builders:**
* This distinct group inhabited the **Mississippi Valley**, including areas in Ohio, Arkansas, Tennessee, and the Gulf States, and are considered capable people with a **unique "cultus" and superior "aboriginal art"** compared to later Indian tribes. They were not "mere hunters or wild savages" but lived in **permanent villages** and had organized societal structures.
* Different classes of Mound-builders existed, including **effigy-builders** (Wisconsin), **burial mound-builders** (prairies), **altar-builders** (middle district), and **pyramid-builders** (Ohio and southern districts).
* Their works reflect diverse religious practices, such as **Animal Totemism, Fire Worship, Moon Cult, Water Cult, and Solar Cult**, which often embodied Sun Worship and Serpent Worship. Evidence of Sun Worship includes altar mounds, orientated pyramids, sun circles, and crescent-shaped walls.
* Their villages often featured earthworks, stockades, heavy walls, covered ways, observatories, watch towers, graded ways, and fortified hills.
* The Mound-builders are generally placed in the **upper grade of Savagery or lower grade of Barbarism**. Their art and relics, especially those from altar mounds, are considered more advanced than those of later Indian tribes, with some suggesting a "Copper Age" association.
* Col. C. C. Jones noted that tribes in the Gulf States were occupying works erected by a "preceding and different class of people," implying a superior earlier culture.
* **Cliff-dwellers and Pueblos:**
* These groups, along with the Mound-builders, represent **advanced stages of architecture** and are considered **"semi-civilized"**. Their relics were not much more advanced than the Mound-builders', but their houses showed architectural progress.
* The Pueblos, though semi-civilized, did not pass through a Bronze Age and may have been without the use of copper.
* **Civilized Races of Mexico and Central/South America:**
* These include the **Aztecs in Mexico, the Muyscas in Bogota, and the Peruvians in Peru**, identified as "highly-cultivated nations" and part of the **"Toltecan Family"**.
* They created **monumental architecture** such as pyramids, temples, and fortifications, with some structures rivalling those of Egypt in magnitude. The date of civilization in Mexico has been traced back to the thirteenth century, and in Central America to the sixth century, with Maya civilization potentially predating the Christian era.
* They demonstrated significant achievements in **arts and sciences**, including complex calendars, astronomy, and a developed art of writing.
* Their social organization often included four castes (priests, nobles, vassals, slaves) and written laws.
* The Aztecs inherited a high civilization, but the Spanish conquerors found their civilization, and that of places like Mitla, to be in decline compared to earlier ruins.
* The Mayas in Yucatan and Guatemala, despite living among relics of former grandeur, had lost the capacity to imitate the ancient architects. The region they inhabited previously had the highest culture in America, with architecture vying with early Egypt or Chaldea, and the development of the art of writing.
* **Other Noted American Groups:**
* **Haytians (Tainos):** An ancient nation inhabiting Hayti, Cuba, and the smaller Antilles, known for their "noble" collective name. They spoke the same language, with various dialects, and had towns of 1000 wooden houses.
* **Iroquois:** Described as the **"Romans of the West" or "Romans of America"** due to their advanced political system, military prowess, and governance, including practices like conquering nations and collecting tribute. Their social organization (gens, phratries, tribe) is presented as the **original form from which Greek and Roman societies were derived**. They had a Confederate Council with specific roles for different Lords, including Fire Keepers and mentors. They also used shells (wampum) as records for pledges, contracts, and agreements.
* **Ongwis and Linapis:** Mentioned as nations with positive facts of primitive times and annals reaching back to the flood and creation.
**Ancient Civilizations of the Old World**
The sources frequently compare American civilizations to those of the Eastern Hemisphere, suggesting connections and parallel developments.
* **Egypt, Chaldea, Babylonia, Assyria, India, and China:** These are cited as ancient civilizations with long histories, though their earliest periods are often uncertain or obscure. Their histories are constantly pushed back by new discoveries.
* **Egyptians:** Noted for their pyramids, which served as monuments for kings, and their elaborate religious systems. Ancient American and Egyptian cultures show strong analogies in architecture, religious symbols, and statues. Some sources even propose that **ancient Egypt was located in the Americas**.
* **Babylonians:** Had a sophisticated legal system and their pyramids resembled those in Mexico and Etruria.
* **Indians:** Known for their ancient solar empire and various religious practices, including the Trimurti (triple god). India and China are noted for lodging half of the world's people.
* **Greeks and Romans:**
* **Greeks:** Influential in philosophy, politics, and law. Their societal changes saw aristocracies succeed heroic kings, and these aristocracies became the custodians of law. Greek cities, especially those focused on war, viewed lucrative arts and professions as unworthy of freemen, with agriculture often practiced by inhabitants of conquered countries or slaves. They also used arbitration to avoid war.
* **Romans:** Renowned for their jurisprudence, transforming it into a precise science. Their legal system included the Twelve Tables, the evolution of Equity from *ius gentium* (law of nations), and significant legal compilations under Theodosius and Justinian, which formed the basis of Canon Law and "Civil Law". Roman law has had extensive influence on foreign subjects, especially the law of Obligation. The concept of *Patria Potestas* (parental power) was distinctively Roman but generally disappeared rapidly in advancing communities. Roman citizenship expanded gradually. The Roman Empire had a history spanning over fourteen hundred years and expanded dominion by conquering cities. However, the sources also state that the **"Roman Cult was never Christian"**, even though Emperor Constantine I officially formed the "new Roman Imperial religion of Christianity" in 326 AD.
* **Phoenicians and Tyrians:**
* Identified as **early discoverers and colonizers of the Americas between 1000-600 B.C.**. They were a maritime people, believed to be from America by some sources, who disseminated the Hebrew alphabet.
* They are part of the "Semitic race," whose language was spoken in many dialects across Middle Asia.
* Strong analogies exist between ancient American and Phoenician cultures in civilization, mythology, and architecture. The Tyrians specifically are believed to be the **original builders of ruined cities and temples in ancient America**. Peruvian mummies were found to be identical to those from Teneriffe, suggesting a Tyrian origin for American aborigines.
* **Etruscans and Pelasgians:**
* The Etruscans, whose flourishing condition lasted from 1077-670 B.C., had advanced arts and sciences, and their tasteful vases served as models. Their pyramids resembled those of Babylonians and Mexicans.
* The Haytians are suggested to be of Pelagic origin, showing significant linguistic affinity.
**Succession of Races and Cultural Shifts**
Archaeological investigations reveal a **"succession of races"** inhabiting various regions over time.
* The **Paleolithic Age** in America is evidenced by rude relics, indicating human existence during the "ice age" alongside mastodons and mammoths.
* The **Neolithic Age** followed, characterized by polished stone relics, mounds, and shell heaps, with Mound-builders primarily belonging to this age.
* Older, more advanced cultures, like the Mound-builders, Cliff-dwellers, and Pueblos, were sometimes invaded, displaced, or absorbed by **"hordes of wild tribes"** such as the Apaches, Comanches, Ojibwas, Athabascans, Algonquins, and Iroquois. This led to a decline in native art, as the borrowed art did not improve it, and inferior specimens replaced better ones. The incursion of savage hunters or the intrusion of white men may have caused this decline.
* The Mound-builder system became "merged into the Indian".
**Theories of Origin and External Contacts for American Civilizations**
There's a significant debate in the sources about whether American civilizations arose independently or from foreign influence.
* **Autochthonous Theory:** Some scholars argued that the American race was "peculiar and distinct from all others" and "strictly aboriginal to America," challenging widespread immigration theories.
* **Transatlantic and Trans-Pacific Contacts:**
* **Phoenicians and Tyrians:** As noted, they are strongly linked to early discoveries and cultural similarities in America.
* **Egyptians:** Analogies in architecture and religious symbols are prominent.
* **Hebrews (Lost Tribes of Israel):** A recurring belief among early European observers was that American Indians were descendants of the Lost Tribes of Israel, based on perceived similarities in customs (circumcision, religious practices, festivals, ark of the covenant), language, and traditions (a great flood). Archeological finds like phylacteries and Hebrew inscriptions are presented as supporting evidence.
* **Canaanites/Moors:** Some sources argue that ancient Palestine and the "land of Canaan" were in America, and the Moors (Moabites/Canaanites/Hamites) were driven out and later migrated to Northwest/Southwest Africa before returning to the Americas. They are described as "genetic remnants of the antediluvian world" and founders of ancient American cities.
* **"White-Skinned Foreigners" and Bearded Men:** Mexican and Peruvian traditions speak of civilizing figures, like Quetzalcoatl or Bochica, who were described as "bearded and very aged men from the East" with "white complexion," suggesting foreign origin for some cultural advancements. Montezuma reportedly told Cortez his ancestors were not aborigines but led by a "great Being".
* **Norsemen/Scandinavians:** Cited as potential early discoverers in the 10th century A.D..
* **Asian/Siberian Migrations:** Theories suggest origins from Asia via the Bering Strait, linking American aborigines to the Mongolian race and Eskimos, although this is challenged by language diversity and physical differences.
* **America as the "True Old World":** A significant theme in some sources is the assertion that **America is the "True Old World"** and the original biblical lands, including Canaan, Jerusalem, and Mount Zion. This perspective suggests that many ancient cultures typically associated with Europe, Asia, and Africa actually originated or drew their knowledge from the Americas. This includes placing ancient Egypt (Tamari or Tammeray) in America, and proposing that Phoenicians, from America, brought civilization and Freemasonry to Europe and West Africa.
**The Concept of "Civilization" in Historical Context**
The sources highlight that the understanding and application of the term "civilization" has varied historically, particularly in the context of European colonialism.
* In the 19th and early 20th centuries, European powers promoted a **Eurocentric "standard of civilization"**. This standard was used to distinguish between "civilized," "semi-civilized," and "uncivilized" peoples, often denying self-governance and sovereign recognition to non-European societies based on perceived lack of development, cultural differences, and non-Christian religions.
* This concept often justified colonial rule and exploitation, arguing that "superior genius of Europe" provided "civilization and Christianity" in exchange for "unlimited independence". Assimilation to European values, standards, and commercial practices was seen as a precondition for recognition.
* However, the sources also note the inherent contradiction of denying sovereignty while recognizing treaties that transferred it.
* Modern international law formally rejects this discriminatory use of "civilized nations," equating it with cultural arrogance and racism, and understands the term to refer to all recognized states.
