The Mysterious “The Longyou Caves”

Longyou caves is located near the village of Shiyan Beicun in Zhejiang province, is an extensive, magnificent and rare ancient underground world considered in China are an enduring mystery that have perplexed experts from every discipline that has examined them. In 1992, an eccentrically curious man named Wu Anai, near the Chinese village of Shiyan Beicun in Longyou County, based on a hunch, started to pump water out of a pond in his village. He had strong belief the pond isn’t natural, nor was it substantially deep as the local lore went, and one day he stepped up to decides to prove it. Anai convinced some of his villagers and together they bought a water pump and started to siphon water out of the pond. Therefore, after exorbitant  hardworking of 17 days of pumping, the water level fell enough to disclose the flooded entrance to an ancient, man-made cave, confirming Anai’s suspicion. This discovery has called the attention of many specialists from China, Japan, Poland, Singapore and USA. One of the most interesting and challenging questions is how the caverns have been able to keep their integrity for more than 2000 years.

This cave, now called the “Longyou Caves”, represent one of the largest underground excavation made during ancient times. A total of 24 hand-dug caves were ultimately discovered, each with an average floor area of a thousand square meters and ceilings that reaches heights of up to 30 meters. The cave total area covered exceeds 30,000 square meters. We know the caves are not natural because the interior walls are covered with chisel marks. The chiseling was also done in a way so as to leave uniform patterns of parallel grooves which some people rely on are symbolic. Moreover, the markings are alike to those found on pottery housed in a nearby museum, which is dated between 500 and 800 BC. There are also staircases, pillars and exquisitely carved figures.

According to some approximation the caves were dug more than 2500 years ago, possibly in 200 BCE. A rough estimation reveals that approximately a million cubic meters of rock were removed to make the caves. This was a mega project so large would surely have been mentioned by historians and travelers, but no documents at all have been found, which is particularly odd considering the ancient Chinese were meticulous record-keepers. However, one cannot rule out the possibility that the ancient cave builders were just enlarging an existing natural cave which would explain a lot of things, such as how they were constructed and what happened to the excavated rocks. Nevertheless, the excavation of the caves was a monumental project executed by man and will continue to be a lasting mystery. At present there is no explanation for their existence. They represent one of the largest underground excavations of ancient times. They are considered by Chinese to be the 'Ninth Wonder of the Ancient World'

 

 

 

 

 

Dead Sea, Jordan and Israel

Dead Sea is fascinated by the magic and healing power to create state-of-the-art cosmetics based on the minerals, plants and aromas. Dead Sea is a marvelous pantry of sea minerals and salts is the lowest point of the planet has depth of 377 meters. Dead Sea is an incredibly beautiful oasis in the desert and mountain terrain. Dead Sea is a closed lake, which lies between Jordan and Israel, located 394 meters below the sea level. Dead Sea length is 67 kilometers and the width at the maximum point amounts 18 kilometers. It is called a hypersaline lake which has no outlet to the sea. Its healing properties entice tourists from all over the world to see the mysteriousness, legendary and truly uniqueness! Though, each year the water level decreases by 1 meter. So, specialists predict that in the coming 800 years the Dead Sea would turn into Dead Valley. Moreover Dead Sea is deepest salt lake in the world. It contains the concentration of salt and other minerals, the level of salinity of which is superior the ocean water.

The Dead Sea one of the most saline water bodies in the world (33.7%). Such a remarkably high salt concentration lets people to effortlessly float on the surface of the water in a natural way. Even a person can read a newspaper or a book, without fear to wet it. This water is not suitable for living beings, though tiny bacteria and microfungi are present here. The main tributary of the lake is the Jordan River, located above the Rift Valley area. The Dead Sea represents two reservoirs, the north one which is wider and less salty, and the south one a small, near the shores of which people extract potash, bromine and numerous salts for chemical companies that produce the world famed cosmetics.

The Dead Sea area has become a major research center in the field of health for some good reason. Because the mineral content in the water is distinctive; as no pollen and other allergens in the atmosphere, due to the large depth there is less ultraviolet in sunlight radiation and the atmospheric pressure is higher, which has a beneficial effect on the human health. A distinctive benefit of this place lies in healing mineral mud, has a wound-healing effect, strengthens hair roots, and eliminates dandruff and seborrhea. After the mud application the wrinkles are smoothed out and usually the aging course is slowed down.

Furthermore, the Dead Sea water is very effectively helps in the treatment of allergies, psoriasis, eczema, acne. It also improves the blood circulation and enhance metabolism, calms the nervous system, cleanses skin and improves its appearance and elasticity. Thus, the low humidity and high evaporation at high levels of bromide in the air proliferations metabolism, increases bronchial tubes and blood vessels, normalizes the activity of the nervous system. Hence, this combination of rich mineral water, sunlight filtered by the troposphere and dry air of the desert attracts many people. And it is far from the whole list of useful properties of this place. The water of Dead Sea is having the density of 1.240kg/L due to which swimming in Dead Sea is almost synonymous to floating. That is why it is said that nobody ever drowns in the Dead Sea. It is worthy of mentioning in this connection that the Great Salt Lake in America is also similar to Dead Sea in this respect.Source: Charismatic Planet

The Irish Sky Garden Crater

The Irish Sky Garden Crater is strange thing in first glance. The massive in scale landscape composition was created by American artist James Turrell. This exclusive minimalistic garden is situated in the Irish county of Cork. It is a kind of natural observatory, and anyone can become a visitor. However, the artist’s concept implies privacy, surveillance and meditative immersion. You won’t believe that this is an artificial landmark; however, it mightily attracts the eye! James Turrell refers to the pleiad of the Californian conceptualists, in the late 1960s have declared that an object as a piece of art was a passed stage. They started to develop space projects based on the optical effects.

They were interested, in the phenomenon of the direct or the flowing in time visual perception, feelings of pure sensory experience and instantaneous discovery through the monitoring process, and a mechanical search of the facet where the reality differs from the visibility. Therefore, the Irish Sky Garden is one of a conceptual series of installations formed on the principle of “open sky” called Skyspaces. The essence of the installation offers visitors to get inside through the black tunnel, going towards the bright light, symbolizes birth and gives the spectators a charge of optimism. The Irish crater has depth of 13 meters.

The henge type stone arch signifying the first transition or birth, from a gladed wood with a pond through a long womb like structural passage before a steep climb up some steps into the still and silent, oval, bowl shaped interior which measures 50 mtrs x 25.  Thus, upon entrance, the bottom of the crater has a stone in the center, and one can actually lie on the stone and watch the horizon, appreciate and enjoy the “celestial vault”. The walls of the crater overlap your peripheral vision, and thus it emphasizes the “infinity and variability of the sky.” James Turrell considered to be the greatest American Land Art Artist, actually likes the manipulation of light, because it is his main tool and material. The talented artist has turned the crater into a huge naked – eye observatory, has made the studio from the sky. His mastermind lies in the fact that he sees the beauty in the simplicity of the idea and the complexity of the construction at the same time. Every element has been prudently designed to seem natural.

Therefore, not a one element was left to chance everything was done by human hands. Such attention to details shows that each item was performed due to the large labor and experience of the author. Thus, in contrast to the background of soft green grass and the evenly clipped top edge of the crater, visitors can see only the Irish sky. It is a promise that visitors can enjoy the afternoon time or the nocturnal sky without the slightest interference. It is presumed that a very small group of people is expected to attend the Irish Sky Garden Crater, and ideally it should be just two people. The stone plinth in the center, the “Vault Purchase”, according to the inkling of James Turrell, was intended for two people. It would be romantic and dreamy to come here and relish the moments with your loved ones. Don’t you think so? The acoustics are such that not a sound can be heard from outside and visitors are encouraged to explore in silence. The Sky Garden is very different, clever and beautiful, would normally to ‘go see it’ but in this instance it's ‘go feel it’! Source: CP

The Burning Mountain of New South Wales, Australia

Burning Mountain, is also called “Mount Wingen”, is a hill near Wingen, New South Wales, Australia. It is located approximately 224 km north of Sydney just off the New England Highway. The mountain was discovered in 1828 by geologist T. L. Mitchell identified it as a coal seam fire. The name derives from a smoldering coal seam running underground through the sandstone, contained within the Burning Mountain Nature Reserve, which is administered by the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service. A trail runs from the parking lots to the site where smoke emanates from the ground. The underground fire is estimated that the fire has burned for approximately 6,000 years and is the oldest known coal fire.

The underground fire is estimated to be at a depth of around 100 ft. Many explorers and settlers to the area believed the smoke, coming from the ground, was volcanic in origin. The coal fire is usually moving in a southerly direction at a rate of about 3 feet per year. The combustion has caused soil discoloration and an uneven ground surface in the area. Coal seams are extremely common across the world, and at any time there’re over 1000 burning. They happen regularly in lesser-developed mineral rich countries, but are often put out within a few days or at most a month. Moreover, considering the average duration of a coal seam fire, Mount Wingen’s fiery longevity has become something of a marvel across the globe and sightseers have flocked to observe the sulfur-tinged smoke emanating from the mountain. Though Mount Wingen has enticed sightseers in droves, it has also caused huge ecological damage to the area’s vegetation. The View from high up is very pretty and very interesting history and how the heat changes the landscape.

The Burning Mountain, heat and toxic gases from the fire have left it rocky and jagged in parts, and the land has caved in. How the mountain was first set ablaze is a mystery. Burning Mountain Nature Reserve has management strategies in place to protect and conserve the values of this park. The scientific explanation for Burning Mountain is a gradually combusting coal seam and as it eats through the coal, rocks slip into the gap, triggering fissures and slumping at the surface level. Moreover, you must be sure to wear sturdy footwear and stay on the formed track. Not only that, but watch out for fossils, too: 200 million years ago, this whole area was covered by ocean.

The Tree of Life, Bahrain

In the desert of Bahrain, where there’s no groundwater source, quite inexplicably has been 400 years grows lonely acacia tree. It is also called "Hadzharat Al Haya" or Shajarat al-Hayah, which means "tree of life". It is located in Bahrain paradise gardens of Eden, has become the main attraction of Bahrain, tourists pulls feel involvement in the secret and touch the symbol of survival and triumph over circumstances. The tree stands on a hill in the Arabian Desert surrounded by miles of sand. There is not another tree as far as the eye can see; there is actually no life at all in the vast, arid desert. The average temperature in the region is 105 degree Fahrenheit often soaring to 120 degree, and bone stripping sandstorms are common.

The 400-year-old mesquite tree is growing in Bahrain, approximately 2 KM from the hill Jabal Dakhan. The tree height is 32 feet growing at a decent distance from all his fellows, in the middle of the desert, on top of 25-foot of a sandy hill. Hence, like all mesquite trees, Sharajat-al-Hayat pretty good feels dry conditions. No one is sure how the tree survives. However, researchers have speculated that the nearest possible source of water is an underground stream about two miles away and that the tree is somehow drawing water from that stream. Thus, the others say the tree has learned to extract moisture from breezes blowing it from the Persian Gulf or squeeze moisture from grains of sand. Others claim that the tree is standing in what was once the Garden of Eden, and so has a more mystical source of water.

Ideally, this could be attributed to deep into the ground leaving the root system; the roots went deep into the mesquite almost 50 meters. In this case the tree grows his longer roots, in order to reach though any groundwater. Moreover, extra-long roots do not explain why only one tree survived?  However, rumors about some miraculous bacteria residing in the sand somehow help the Tree of mine water; however, there is no official confirmation of this theory. The tree is a local popular tourist attraction, and it is visited by approximately 50,000 tourists every year. It is very prevalent because it is believed to be growing in the middle of nowhere, with no water source and has never been watered once throughout history. Moreover, Bahrain also has little to no rain throughout the year. As a result, it is also believed to be the site for cults practicing ancient rites. Thus, since October 2010, archaeologists have unearthed pottery and other artifacts in the vicinity of the tree, some of which may date back to the Dilmun civilization.