Creation Answer:
Based on the history recorded in the Bible, we would expect that the oldest objects and records should be only up to about 6,000 years old or even less due to the destructive global flood around 4,400 years ago. There would be no problem if human remains or objects were found in the fossil record.[i] Naturalists have no problem assigning an age older than 6,000 years to an object because they expect or assume that humans have slowly developed civilizations over the past 200,000 years.
In the middle to late 1800s, researchers assumed that the stone, bronze, and iron tools demonstrated the development of mankind. However, in some cases “the iron, bronze and stone tools are all mixed together”[ii] at the same dig sites. In fact, “modern archaeologists now acknowledge that the Stone–Bronze–Iron Age system is not very helpful outside Europe.” In fact, “the archaeological evidence suggested that rather than developing slowly and painfully, as is normal with human societies, the civilization of Ancient Egypt, like that of the Olmecs, emerged all at once and fully formed.”[iii]
“While there has been a sequence to technological innovation, all the basics were well advanced long before Noah’s Flood in the days of Tubal–cain, who ‘forged all kinds of tools out of bronze and iron’ (Genesis 4:22).”[iv] In fact, there are people groups today that live like Stone Age hunter-gatherers that have actually “devolved” from more advanced civilizations due to location or cultural changes.[v]
Modern anthropologists may “tend to ignore the local cultural memories as of no consequence, effectively imposing a western evolutionary stamp onto their past.”[vi] Assumptions among archaeologists are quite evident when you look at the different ways that archaeologists interpret Egyptian chronology[vii] or the Ice Age.[viii] “If you believe the Ice Age lasted 2.6 million years, then you must assume human beings were making the same basic tools for at least 50,000 generations before any new ideas were invented. That scenario does not quite fit what we know about human ingenuity.”[ix]
“Imagine if you and your extended family were suddenly forced to migrate rapidly into an unpopulated wilderness. Even though you come from a society with great technology, it is likely that your family group would not carry all of the necessary knowledge with you to, for example, be able to find ore-bodies, and smelt and work metals. So you might choose to use stone tools to survive.”[x] Caves were ready made homes that offered great protection and cool temperatures in the summer, and warmer temperatures in the winter.
“The typical ‘cave-man’ is portrayed as a hairy, dim-witted, brutish creature. However, many cave paintings reveal a skill equivalent to that of some of the greatest artists of modern times…“‘Stone-age’ musical instruments” reveal “a high level of understanding and musical ability.” [xi] We expect to find stone tools, cave art, and metal tools at nearly the same time as well. It’s quite possible that the poorest of people could not afford metal tools and simply made do with stone tools.
Göbekli Tepe, with its location and intricate carvings of animals, may be “one of the earliest big human monuments we have—a tentative dating would put it soon after the Flood.” “To put things in perspective [about Göbekli Tepe] —archaeologists are claiming that, 12,000 years ago, people were capable of carving these huge monuments. This is supposed to be long before any sort of written language, thousands of years before the Egyptian pyramids, and prior to the settlement of Sumer. Out of nowhere, we have this ancient monument, and then humans supposedly put down their chisels and don’t build anything for thousands of years more—but when they do, we get Sumer and the Egyptian pyramids. This stretches credulity.”[xii]
“Only 5% of Göbekli Tepe has been uncovered—who knows what will be discovered as the other circles are excavated. At this point, archaeologists are making tons of assumptions that they can’t possibly know. They have a little bit of data, to which they add a lot of assumptions to give the narrative gloss so that the History Channel can make a compelling piece on it.”[xiii]
“Reports about human origins tend to catch the attention of the world’s media, especially when they claim older and older dates.”[xiv] This may be a factor for scientists to stretch the truth to make their research seem more significant (older) than it is so that they can gain more funding. Cultural pride may even be an issue in making correct assessments of the bits and pieces of evidence that is found in archaeological investigations.
From a naturalistic standpoint, the oldest objects are the Oldowan tools.[xv] But, both dating methods used (argon/argon dating and paleomagnetic dating) are based on assumptions and thus are questionable. In dating the supposed 400,000 year old Schöningen spears, “their method of dating [was] biostratigraphy.”[xvi] This method dates an object based on the organisms found alongside it. Ultimately, it is circular reasoning and based on a lot of assumptions.[xvii]
Naturalists date objects based on the layers of the sediment, astronomical alignments, radiometric dating, and similarities with other sites or objects such as pottery styles, coins, etc. These methods are based on a lot of assumptions and are greatly debated based on some inconsistent results. Archaeology is like a big puzzle, it is not as objective and straight-forward as one would hope, so realistically, there is a lot of guesswork and that guesswork is influenced by the opinions of the researcher. It has been said “put three archaeologists in a room and you get five opinions.”[xviii]
“Researchers recognize that published dates are based on many unprovable assumptions so they have no hesitation dismissing dates they do not agree with.”[xix] “The published dates give the impression of being precise and absolute but in reality they are subjective and flexible.” Mungo Man, the Aborigine from New South Wales, Australia was dated at 24,000 years old in the 1960s. “Twenty years later, a different dating method gave an age of 42,000 years, so the carbon-14 dates were abandoned and the duration of Aboriginal occupation revised upward. Then in 1999 researchers, using five different methods, obtained a date of 62,000 years. This date has become popular with tourist guides in Australia, but many geologists won’t accept the new date because it contradicts the big-picture view of human evolution world-wide.”[xx]
“A popular theory, proposed by liberal “scholars,” said that the Hebrews “borrowed” from the Babylonians, but no conclusive proof has ever been offered. The differences, including religious, ethical, and sheer quantity of details, make it unlikely that the Biblical account was dependent on any extant source from the Sumerian traditions. The divine inspiration of the Bible would demand that the Genesis account is the correct version…The Book of Genesis is viewed for the most part as an historical work, even by many liberal scholars, while the Epic of Gilgamesh is viewed as mythological.”[xxi] God’s word is the priority and the total authority and it makes sense that it would influence other writings.
The observed evidences of modern archaeology can and do make a lot of sense with respect to the Bible and there have been numerous possible discoveries (Sodom and Gomorrah, Jericho, King David, and many more) that have continued to confirm the truth of the Bible.[xxii] Evidence from modern archaeology better correlates with the Biblical record as opposed to the evolutionary timeline.
What the Bible Says: Gen 1, 2, 3, 6, 7
by Kylie Steele and Brian Mariani
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[i] Brian Thomas, Possible Human Artifact Found in Coal, February 20, 2013, Institute for Creation Research, http://www.icr.org/article/possible-human-artifact-found-coal/, accessed July 30, 2014.
John D. Morris, An Amazing Anomalous Fossil, 2010, Acts & Facts 39(2):16, Institute for Creation Research, http://www.icr.org/article/amazing-anomalous-fossil/, accessed July 30, 2014.
Andrew Snelling, Where Are All the Human Fossils?, December 1, 1991, Answers in Genesis, https://answersingenesis.org/fossils/fossil-record/where-are-all-the-human-fossils/, accessed July 30, 2014.
[ii] Robert Niemand, “The Stone ‘Age’ – a figment of the imagination?, September 2005, Creation 27(4):13, Creation Ministries International, http://creation.com/the-stone-age-a-figment-of-the-imagination, accessed July 28, 2014.
[iii] Graham Hancock, Fingerprints of the Gods, pp. 135–136, New York Crown Trade Paperbacks, 1995.
[iv] Robert Niemand, “The Stone ‘Age’ – a figment of the imagination?, September 2005, Creation 27(4):13, Creation Ministries International, http://creation.com/the-stone-age-a-figment-of-the-imagination, accessed July 28, 2014.
[v] Carl Wieland, A challenge to traditional cultural anthropology, December 1997, Journal of Creation 11(3):258-259, Creation Ministries International, http://creation.com/moriori-hunter-gatherers, accessed July 30, 2014.
David Catchpoole, The people that forgot time (and much else, too), June 2008, Creation 30(3):34-37, Creation Ministries International, http://creation.com/the-people-that-forgot-time-and-much-else-too, accessed July 30, 2014.
Carl Wieland, Tasmanian aborigines – another example of cultural ‘devolution,’ January 1979, Creation 2(1):18-19, Creation Ministries International, http://creation.com/tasmanian-aborigines-another-example-of-cultural-devolution, accessed July 30, 2014.
Joseph Mizzi and Michael Matthews, The amazing cave people of Malta: Evolutionist indoctrination has led many to link the idea of ‘cave dwelling’ with the notion of ‘primitive subhumans’. But this does not logically follow, as recent evidence confirms, December 2003, Creation 26(1):40-43, Creation Ministries International, http://creation.com/the-amazing-cave-people-of-malta, accessed July 30, 2014.
[vi] Tas Walker, Dating of “oldest pottery” from China is based on assumptions: The evidence is consistent with biblical history, June 11, 2009, Creation Ministries International, http://creation.com/dating-oldest-pottery-from-china, accessed July 28, 2014.
[vii] Elizabeth Mitchell, The New Answers Book 2, Chapter 24: Doesn’t Egyptian Chronology Prove That the Bible Is Unreliable?, July 22, 2010, Answers in Genesis, https://answersingenesis.org/archaeology/ancient-egypt/doesnt-egyptian-chronology-prove-bible-unreliable/, accessed July 30, 2014.
Elizabeth Mitchell, Radiocarbon Dating Shortens the Timeline for Ancient Egypt, September 19, 2013, Answers in Genesis, https://answersingenesis.org/archaeology/ancient-egypt/radiocarbon-dating-shortens-the-timeline-for-ancient-egypt/, accessed July 30, 2014.
Matt McClellan, Ancient Egyptian Chronology and the Book of Genesis, August 24, 2011, Answers in Genesis, https://answersingenesis.org/archaeology/ancient-egypt/ancient-egyptian-chronology-and-the-book-of-genesis/, accessed July 30, 2014.
David Down and John Ashton, Unwrapping the Pharaohs, (Green Forest, Ar: Master Books, 2006).
[viii] Andrew Snelling and Mike Matthews, When Was the Ice Age in Biblical History?, February 26, 2013, Answers in Genesis, https://answersingenesis.org/environmental-science/ice-age/when-was-the-ice-age-in-biblical-history/, accessed July 30, 2014.
Michael Oard, The New Answers Book, Chapter 16: Where Does the Ice Age Fit?, November 22, 2007, Answers in Genesis, https://answersingenesis.org/environmental-science/ice-age/where-does-the-ice-age-fit/, accessed July 30, 2014.
Jake Herbert, Was There an Ice Age?, 2013, Acts & Facts 42(12), Institute for Creation Research, http://www.icr.org/article/was-there-ice-age/, accessed July 30, 2014.
Ice Age, 2014, Answers in Genesis, https://answersingenesis.org/environmental-science/ice-age/, accessed July 30, 2014.
[ix] Andrew Snelling and Mike Matthews, When Was the Ice Age in Biblical History?, February 26, 2013, Answers in Genesis, https://answersingenesis.org/environmental-science/ice-age/when-was-the-ice-age-in-biblical-history/, accessed July 30, 2014.
[x] Steve Cardino, The mystery of ancient man, March 1998, Creation 20(2):10-14, Creation Ministries International, http://creation.com/the-mystery-of-ancient-man, accessed July 30, 2014.
[xi] Steve Cardino, The mystery of ancient man, March 1998, Creation 20(2):10-14, Creation Ministries International, http://creation.com/the-mystery-of-ancient-man, accessed July 30, 2014.
[xii] Lita Cosner and Robert Carter, How does Göbekli Tepe fit with biblical history?, July 26, 2011, Creation Ministries International, http://creation.com/gobekli-tepe, accessed July 30, 2014.
[xiii] Lita Cosner and Robert Carter, How does Göbekli Tepe fit with biblical history?, July 26, 2011, Creation Ministries International, http://creation.com/gobekli-tepe, accessed July 30, 2014.
[xiv] Tas Walker, Dating of “oldest pottery” from China is based on assumptions: The evidence is consistent with biblical history, June 11, 2009, Creation Ministries International, http://creation.com/dating-oldest-pottery-from-china, accessed July 28, 2014.
[xv] Angela M.H. Schuster, World’s Oldest Stone Tools, March/April 1997, Archaeology newsbriefs, Vol 50, No 2, http://archive.archaeology.org/9703/newsbriefs/tools.html, accessed July 25, 2014.
[xvi] Robert H. Gargett, Shedding New Light on the Schöningen Spears, October 8, 2012, The Subversive Archaeologist, http://www.thesubversivearchaeologist.com/2012/10/shedding-new-light-on-schoningen-spears.html, accessed July 25, 2014.
[xvii] Brian Thomas, Cyclostratigraphy: Another Round of Circular Reasoning?, June 20, 2014, Institute for Creation Research, http://www.icr.org/article/8195/, accessed July 30, 2014.
[xviii] Glenn Hodges, “Cahokia: America’s Lost City,” National Geographic, January 2011, 139.
[xix] Tas Walker, Dating of “oldest pottery” from China is based on assumptions: The evidence is consistent with biblical history, June 11, 2009, Creation Ministries International, http://creation.com/dating-oldest-pottery-from-china, accessed July 28, 2014.
[xx] Tas Walker, Dating of “oldest pottery” from China is based on assumptions: The evidence is consistent with biblical history, June 11, 2009, Creation Ministries International, http://creation.com/dating-oldest-pottery-from-china, accessed July 28, 2014.
[xxi] Frank Lorey, The Flood of Noah and the Flood of Gilgamesh, 1997, Acts & Facts 26(3), Institute for Creation Research, http://www.icr.org/article/noah-flood-gilgamesh/, accessed July 30, 2014.
[xxii] Noah Wiener, Top 20 Biblical Archaeology Events and Discoveries of 2012, January 11, 2013, Bible History Daily, Biblical Arachaeology Society, http://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/news/top-20-biblical-archaeology-events-and-discoveries-of-2012/, accessed July 30, 2014.
- Archaeological Finds: Seven Compelling Evidences, March 20, 2011, Answers in Genesis, https://answersingenesis.org/archaeology/6-archaeological-finds/, accessed July 30, 2014.
Israel Finkelstein and Neil Asher Silberman, The Bible Unearthed: Archaeology’s New Vision of Ancient Israel and the Origin of Its Sacred Texts, 2001, The New York Times, https://www.nytimes.com/books/first/f/finkelstein-bible.html, accessed July 30, 2014.
