Enchanted Mesa, A Sandstone Butte in New Mexico

Enchanted Mesa or Mesa Encantada is a sandstone butte in Cibola County, New Mexico, United States, about 2.5 miles northeast of the pueblo of Acoma. It was home of the Acoma people until a massive landslide and severe storm completely demolished the only approach.  There are no longer any ruins on the flat top. The butte is 430 feet high, 1,250 feet long and only 400 feet wide, at its widest. The elevation at the top is 6,643 feet. It is believed that massive cliffs are formed by the Zuni Sandstone and the butte is topped by the Dakota Sandstone. 

In 1892 The Charles F. Lumins visited Acoma and express the story of Acoma People life style on Enchanted Mesa.  The access from southern side to top with a large piece of butte had spalled off and formed a ramp called stone ladder up to the top. So, there main source was their fields, springs, and water source were in the valley.  Therefore, once the summer season start, the entire village descends into the valley to tend the crops.  So, once an unfortunate day, a severe thunderstone washed away the stone ladder leaving only sheer rock faces all the way around the butte. Only one young boy and three old women did not leave in the village, which couldn’t get down nor could anyone else get back to the village. 

A giant thunderbird swooped down and scooped up the four and carried them to the valley floor. The Acoma people abandoned Enchanted Mesa and moved to White Rock Mesa, now called Acoma. In 1897, Professor Williams Libbey from Princeton University climbed Enchanted Mesa, where he spent two to three hours in exploring, however he didn’t find anything ruins or artifacts. 

Moreover another archaeologist Frederick Webb Hodge didn’t believe Libbey findings, and he went on expedition in 1897 and found evidence of occupation, arrow points, stone tools, beads and pottery fragments lodged in crevices. He said, main ruins had been washed over the edge by many centuries due to massive thunderstorms. In 1974, an Acoma police officer claimed, that he had seen a UFO over Enchanted Mesa, which was later confirmed by other police officers, a red light, fast than any aircraft. So, a helicopter was sent to top of Enchanted Mesa to find the evidence of UFO, however no direct evidence was found. 

Sassi di Matera: The Oldest Inhabited Cave City

In the Basilicata region, in Southern Italy, there’s an ancient city called “Matera” well-known for its cave houses called “Sassi”. The “Sassi” are carved into the cliffs of a rocky ravine formed by what was once a big river just left now a small stream. These cave dwellings are thought to be amongst the first human settlements in Italy dating back to the Paleolithic era, more than 9,000 years ago and is believed to be the oldest continuously inhabited cave city in the world.

Since then until as recently as the caves were continuously inhabited. The first human settlements in the territory of Matera took advantage of the region’s many natural caves that define the rocky landscape. Over time new caves were dug out to accommodate the growing population. At first glance the Sassi sprawl seems as a jumble of stone huts that impeccably merge with the spectacular landscape but behind the picturesque dwellings are tales of struggle.

Moreover, some of the earliest houses look like stone huts, but behind the house-like facades is meek caves. With the passage of time, the city developed, it became emerge into jumble of narrow alleys and stairways as residents dug wherever a cliff-face provided opportunity. Hence, until the late 20th century, the Matera region was one of the poorest places in Italy. Over the years new holes were continuously carved out to make room for the ever-increasing population dwellers took advantage of every bit of rock they could and many of the layered homes feature labyrinthine alleys and stairways. After WWII, cave residents were reluctantly moved from their crumbling homes into more modern abodes in the Matera town on the cliff. While many of the ancient chambers lie abandoned and forgotten, the settlement's prospects were hugely boosted in 1993. 

However, the area was without electricity or running water or sewage disposal facility. The public were lacked of basic needs because there were no shops in the village. Therefore, a typical diet comprised of bread, oil, crushed tomatoes, and peppers. Even, big families lived alongside their livestock, and in such unhygienic conditions, disease was widespread, particularly malaria. The extreme poverty of these people during Benito Mussolini's fascist rule was uncovered in the book “Christ stopped at Eboli” by an Italian doctor Carlo Levi. It is foreseeable that the picturesque caves' timeless surroundings have had their fair share of screen time. The landscape has been used for a range of biblical film and TV scenes including the 2004 Passion of the Christ.

After the Second World War, the new government tried to move the city’s cave residents into modern dwellings but many people were reluctant to move. Eventually, the government had to forcibly relocate the inhabitants to the new town on top of the cliff. Therefore, Matera’s fortune was changed after 1993 when UNESCO declared Matera’s Sassi and cave churches a world heritage site, bringing a fresh wave of inquisitive tourists. Since then several caves have been given a new lease of life and transformed into cozy homes, stylish hotels and restaurants to cater for waves of inquisitive tourists, eager to find out why Unesco was so impressed. Indeed this place is a good way of life. Cool in the heat of summer and warm in the winter, and no air conditioning of radiators to worry about. Back in the 70's it recalls seeing similar caves in the South of Spain, and with people still living in them.

The Mysterious Rock of Mahabalipuram India

All across the world peoples encounter enigmatic ancient monuments, buildings, structures or artifacts rock formations that are somehow related to know The Power of Real God. One such intriguing structure can be found in India. The mysterious rock which is not rolling more than 1300 years steel dare stand under his teetering 250 ton rock in India. The rock perches precariously on hill defied gravity hasn’t stopped daredevil visitor taking pictures under it. Indeed it is a miracle and science has no answer to how such huge rock weighing 250 tonnes, has managed to stay on a base- area of just 4 ft.

The Krishan’s Butter Ball also called Vaanirai Kal has been sitting on a 45 degree slope in Mahabalipuram more than 1300 years.  The robust 20 feet rock clearly defy gravity, seems will roll at any moment, and all efforts gets in vain so far. There’re various superstitions among the local peoples, who believes, this is fixed by Gods who wanted to prove their power. However, researchers believe simply as a natural formation nothing else. Moreover, geologists argue that natural corrosion is perhaps to have produced such an abnormal shape. 

Thus, the Hindu religion has notions of different opinions. The Pallava King “Narasimhavarman” actually ruled Southern India from 630 to 668 AD, tried to dislodge the round stone but couldn’t succeed.  Therefore, the various peoples put in their efforts to move on rock, from time to time, but no one gets succeed. A similar endeavor was undertaken in 1908 by the Governor of Madras Arthur Lawley, but their mission was unsuccessful. 

He wanted to save his locals peoples at the base of hill, and eventually he has used seven powerful elephants to roll in rock, but without any luck the mission failed. Now a days, the rock has becomes very famous tourist place to pose photographs under its base.  Both children and adults are eager to see this mysterious rock that just cannot be moved by any means. Even number of daredevil tries to pull it down. Moreover, so many tourists used the base as sun shield. So far, it has proved to be totally impossible to move the boulder. Source: Charismatic Planet

Avila: Europe Most Impressive Wall City

In central Spain, there’s an ancient city Avila located in the autonomous community of Castile and Leon almost 100 km to the west of Madrid. It is believed and considered one of finest walled city in Europe, built on the flat summit of a rocky outcrop, actually rises rapidly in the middle of a vast treeless plain strewn with immense grey boulders and surrounded by lofty mountains. In 1985, The Old Town of Avila was included in the list of UNESCO World Heritage Site. Therefore, Ávila has been called the “finest medieval remnant in Spain” and is a noteworthy tourist center.

The wall of Avila is an inspiring 2.5 km barrier of stone and granite that surrounds the city’s almost rectangular layout. The 2,500 meter long city wall is completely intact. The walls are up to 10 feet thick and 40 feet high, and topped by a continuous battlement rampart-walk and parapet with merlons and cernels.  Nowadays it is possible to walk upon the walls for approximately half their circumference, however at night the whole circumference of the wall is magnificently lit up by yellow-orange halogen lights, making it “the largest fully illuminated monument in the world".

The history reveals us, that Avila was once part of the Roman Lusitania, before falling to the Arab and Berber invaders in 714 CE. Hence, for the next three and a half centuries the northern Iberian Christian kingdoms tried frequently to seize control of the city, but it was King Alfonso VI of León and Castile, who sooner or later managed to conquer the Muslims in 1088 ADE. The King instantly started building a great stone wall around Avila to defend his latest conquest from further attacks. Moreover, the task was well supervised by his brother-in-law, “Raymond of Burgundy”, who was a legendary figure himself. Due to its early legal protection, the city of Ávila maintains the main features of authenticity in terms of form, design, location, and setting.

Furthermore, bulging out from the walls are eighty-eight semi-circular defensive towers, placed at uniform intervals. The walls are punctured by 8 or 9 entrance gates, but originally, there was a moat and a barbican outside the walls, but they no longer exist. The substantial fortification was finished in less than a decade. Besides, The area surrounded by the walls is now designated the Old Town, and covers all of the city’s historic landmarks including the Gothic cathedral, the Convent of Santo Tomás, containing the tombs of Tomás de Torquemada, which were the first grand inquisitor of Spain, and of Don Juan, the only son of Ferdinand and Isabella, and several Romanesque churches.