Introduction:
They are a variety of old objects and records and more artifacts are constantly being discovered. Are these objects and records actually as old as they say they are? How can you tell how old an object is? What is the oldest object ever found?
Naturalistic/Evolutionary Answer:
“Genetic and fossil evidence indicate anatomically modern humans emerged in Africa around 120,000 years ago.”[i] Humans first developed simple things initially made out of rock before other materials were discovered or created. This Stone Age lasted until around 3000 BC where humans began using bronze tools (the Bronze Age) and that led to the development of iron tools in 1000 BC (the Iron Age).[ii] The first pottery was created around 21,000 years ago or some suggest even 26,000 years ago.[iii] Humans have been controlling fire for 800,000, but only started farming 12,000 years ago.[iv]
Two unique and megalithic sites are Stonehenge, which is dated to about 5,000 years ago[v] and Göbekli Tepe, in Turkey, which is dated to about 11,000 years old. Göbekli Tepe, “the world’s oldest temple” is a bunch of stone pillars set up in rings “crafted and arranged by prehistoric people who had not yet developed metal tools or even pottery.”[vi]
An 8 inch bone flute dating to 35,000 years old is the oldest musical instrument ever found so far. The earliest cave art is from the Chauvet caves in France that have been radiocarbon dated to 30,000-32,000 years old.[vii] “The oldest sculpture of a human being” is the Venus of Hohle Fels, which is a 40,000 year old carved piece of Mammoth ivory.[viii] The sophistication and creativity of music and art, in part, gave Homo sapiens the edge over Neanderthals.[ix]
Archaeologists found 70,000 year old beads in South Africa. “Beads are considered definitive evidence of symbolic thinking…[and] are tangible evidence of a concept of self…you’re not going to decorate yourself if you have no concept of self.”[x]
The Schöningen spears from Germany “are the oldest complete hunting weapons ever found…[at] 380,000 to 400,000 years old.”[xi] The oldest known tools are Oldowan stone tools originally found at the Olduvai Gorge in Tanzania.[xii] These tools are around 2.6 million years old and were actually created and used by Homo habilis. Tools may still have been used before this time, but these are the oldest found so far.
The age of these objects can be determined by the type of pottery or other objects that are there and by how many layers of sediment cover the object. Scientists often use Carbon-14 dating methods to date any organic material or remnants. The amount of ancient artifacts and the corresponding dates scientifically determined, completely refute the idea that the Earth is only 6,000 years old. There are many slow naturalistic processes like rock layer formation, tree rings growth, ice layers formation, mountain building, evolution and more that all coincide and demonstrate much more time than just 6,000 years.
There are also numerous historical records and ancient cultures that predate and have influenced the Bible.[xiii] Based on this and other archaeological evidences, it would be foolish to blindly believe the young earth perspective of human history.
by Kylie Steele and Brian Mariani
Is the above correct? Do you evolutionists agree with this position? I have tried to write it as you believe it. Do you have any disagreements or concerns or additions?
Before commenting, please read the following disclosures.
Any offensive language will automatically disqualify your comment for publication, even if the arguments contained are good. Please comment on the ideas that are presented and not the presenter. If your comment becomes an ad hominem argument and does not substantially address the issue, your comment will be disqualified as well. We are looking for real arguments, not fallacious ones, so that we can present and challenge opposing ideas and arguments as they are truly believed by evolutionists. We do not want to tear down straw men as well as you do not want to be misrepresented. Also, please keep your comments as brief as possible, and if the majority of the comment does not address the current issue, but becomes a red-herring, it will not be posted as well. If your comment does not fall into one of the above restrictions, then your comment will be posted unedited (you may want to check your spelling, grammar, etc.) We thank you for your time and comments.
One thing to keep in mind, each blog is one piece of evidence. Evidence has to then be interpreted, which is not a fact…but evidence strengthening or weakening a specific hypothesis or theory. So there can be multiple ways of interpreting the same evidence. I am not being unscientific, but asking more questions and being skeptical is being more scientific. I am still working on these, so please help with your comments.
If you would like to see if an AOI seminar is right for you, or you would like to help the work of Alpha Omega Institute, please visit our website events page or our donate page. Keep up to date with what AOI is doing. Thanks for your partnership.
[i] Hillary Mayell, Oldest Jewelry? “Beads” Discovered in African Cave, April 15, 2004, National Geographic News, http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2004/04/0415_040415_oldestjewelry.html, accessed July 25, 2014.
[ii] The Stone, Bronze, and Iron Ages, 2014, Essential Humanities, http://www.essential-humanities.net/history-overview/stone-bronze-iron-ages/, accessed July 25, 2014.
[iii] Andrew Lawler, World’s Oldest Pottery?, June 2, 2009, American Association for the Advancement of Science, Science Latest News, http://news.sciencemag.org/archaeology/2009/06/worlds-oldest-pottery, accessed July 25, 2014.
Adam Benton, The oldest pottery discovered, July 5, 2012, EvoAnth, http://evoanth.wordpress.com/2012/07/05/the-oldest-pottery-discovered/, accessed July 25, 2014.
Andrea Silnes, History of Ceramics, May 19, 2014, The American Ceramics Society, http://ceramics.org/learn-about-ceramics/history-of-ceramics, accessed July 25, 2014.
[iv] Human Evolution Timeline Interactive, Smithsonian: National Museum of Natural History, What does it mean to be human?, last updated July 17, 2014, http://humanorigins.si.edu/evidence/human-evolution-timeline-interactive, accessed July 25, 2014.
[v] Dan Jones, New Light on Stonehenge, October 2008, Smithsonian Magazine, http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/new-light-on-stonehenge-11706891/, accessed July 25, 2014.
[vi] Andrew Curry, Göbekli Tepe: The World’s First Temple?, November 2008, Smithsonian Magazine, http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/gobekli-tepe-the-worlds-first-temple-83613665/, accessed July 25, 2014.
[vii] Michael Marshall, Bear DNA is clue to age of Chaevet cave art, April 19, 2011, New Scientist, Magazine issue 2809, http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg21028093.900-bear-dna-is-clue-to-age-of-chauvet-cave-art.html#.U9KueHl0zZ4, accessed July 25, 2014.
Don Hitchcock, Chauvet Cave, last update November 13, 2013, Don’s Maps, http://www.donsmaps.com/chauvetcave.html, accessed July 25, 2014.
[viii] Andrew Curry, The Cave Art Debate, March 2012, Smithsonian Magazine, http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/the-cave-art-debate-100617099/, accessed July 25, 2014.
[ix] Pallab Ghosh, ‘Oldest musical instrument’ found, June 25, 2009, BBC News, http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8117915.stm, accessed July 25, 2014.
[x] Hillary Mayell, Oldest Jewelry? “Beads” Discovered in African Cave, April 15, 2004, National Geographic News, http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2004/04/0415_040415_oldestjewelry.html, accessed July 25, 2014.
[xi] Arlette P. Kouwenhoven, World’s Oldest Spears, May/June 1997, Archaeology newsbriefs, Vol 50, No 3, http://archive.archaeology.org/9705/newsbriefs/spears.html, accessed July 25, 2014.
[xii] Oldowan & Acheulean Stone Tools, last update July 25, 2014, Museum of Anthropology at the University of Missouri, http://anthromuseum.missouri.edu/minigalleries/handaxes/intro.shtml, accessed July 25, 2014.
[xiii] Melloson Allen, 10 Ways The Bible Was Influenced By Other Religions, June 30, 2013, ListVerse, http://listverse.com/2013/06/30/ten-influences-on-the-bible/, accessed July 30, 2014.
Jim Walker, The Dark Bible: A Short History of the Bible, 2006, http://www.nobeliefs.com/DarkBible/darkbible2.htm, accessed July 30, 2014.
2 Comments
These attempts are all too familiar statements of “absolute fact” rather than theory based on data found and archaeological dating methods. But there are some obvious false statements like the “sources that predate the Bible” he cites the Epic of Gilgamesh which was from the Sumerians around 2600BC. Creation at 4000BC predates this. Prior to Moses writing down the creation it was carried by oral tradition from generation to generation and obviously was heard by the Sumerians the same they would know about the flood. Dating of “earlier versions” of Gilgamesh to the 12th and 13th century BC are speculative at best. Mohammed did, to some degree, the similar thing as the Samaritans with plagiarizing the story of Abraham from the OT and Revelation in the NT in 600AD.
Bottom line, it is a battle for truth.
Great points, Geoff! There are so many assumptions at play when trying to understand the past. It seems like often times the assumptions are treated as already proven facts. A thousand years of history is a lot of time, but really not that much. If the entire population of the Earth descended from around 2400 BC (approximately the time of the worldwide flood), then their own heritage would naturally be testimony of the Truth of God’s Word, even if their histories of the flood or Abraham may become errant over time. Praise God for how He has preserved His Word throughout the ages!
-Brian