by Emma Groeneveld ,published on 06 September 2016, ancient history hhtps://www.laxcaux.

eu

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lascaux

http://www.bradshawfoundation.com/lascaux/

Lascaux Cave is a Palaeolithic cave situated in southwestern France, near the village of Montignac in
the Dordogne region, which houses some of the most famous examples of prehistoric cave paintings.
Close to 600 paintings – mostly of animals - dot the interior walls of the cave in impressive
compositions. Horses are the most numerous, but deer, aurochs, ibex, bison, and even some felines
can also be found. Besides these paintings, which represent most of the major images, there are also
around 1400 engravings of a similar order. The art, dated to c. 17,000 – c. 15,000 BCE, falls within
the Upper Palaeolithic period and was created by the clearly skilled hands of humans living in the area
at that time. The region seems to be a hotspot; many beautifully decorated caves have been discovered
there. The exact meaning of the paintings at Lascaux or any of the other sites is still subject to
discussion, but the prevailing view attaches a ritualistic or even spiritual component to them, hinting
at the sophistication of their creators. Lascaux was added to the UNESCO World Heritage Sites list in
1979, along with other prehistoric sites in its proximity.

The discovery

On 12 September 1940 CE four boys examined the fox hole down which their dog had fallen on the
hill of Lascaux. After widening the entrance, Marcel Ravidat was the first one to slide all the way to
the bottom, his three friends following after him. After constructing a makeshift lamp to light their
way, they found a wider variety of animals than expected; in the Axial Gallery they first encountered
the depictions on the walls. The following day they returned, better prepared this time, and explored
deeper parts of the cave. The boys, in awe of what they had found, told their teacher, after which the
process towards excavating the cave was set in motion. By 1948 CE the cave was ready to be opened
to the public.

Occupation by humans

Around the time Lascaux cave was decorated (c. 17,000 – c. 15,000 BCE), anatomically modern
humans (homo sapiens) had been well at home in Europe for a good while already, since at least
40,000 BCE. Following the archaeological record, they seem to have been abundantly present in the
region between southeastern France and the Cantabrian Mountains in the north of Spain, which
includes Lascaux. The cave itself shows only temporary occupation, probably linked to activities
related to creating the art. However, it is possible that the first couple of metres of the entrance
vestibule of the cave – the space the daylight could still reach - might have been inhabited.

The art at Lascaux was both painted on & engraved into the uneven walls of the cave, the artists
working with the edges & curves of the walls to enhance their compositions.

From the finds originating from the cave, we know that the deeper parts of the cave were lit by
sandstone lamps that used animal fat as fuel, as well as by fireplaces. Here, the artists worked in what
must have been smoky conditions, using minerals as pigments for their images. Reds, yellows, and
blacks are the predominant colours. Red was provided by hematite, either raw or as found within red
clay and ochre; yellow by iron oxyhydroxides; and black either by charcoal or manganese oxides. The
pigments could be prepared by grinding, mixing, or heating, after which they were transferred onto
the cave walls. Painting techniques include drawing with fingers or charcoal, applying pigment with
'brushes' made of hair or moss, and blowing the pigment on a stencil or directly onto the wall with, for
instance, a hollow bone.
The catch is that there are no known deposits of the specific manganese oxides found at Lascaux
anywhere in the area surrounding the cave. The closest known source is some 250 kilometres away, in
the central Pyrenees, which might point to a trade or supply route. It was not uncommon for humans
living around that time to source their materials a bit further afield, tens of kilometres away, but the
distance in question here may indicate that the Lascaux artists put in a superb amount of effort.

Cave Painting in Lascaux

Besides the paintings, many tools were found at Lascaux. Among these are many flint tools, some of
which display signs of being used specifically for carving engravings into the walls. Bone tools were
also present. The pigments used at Lascaux contain traces of reindeer antler, most likely introduced
either because antler was carved right next to the pigments or because it was used to mix the pigments
into water. The remains of shellfish shells, some of them pierced, tie in well with other evidence of
personal adornment found among humans living in Europe during the Upper Palaeolithic.

The art

The art at Lascaux was both painted on and engraved into the uneven walls of the cave, the artists
working with the edges and curves of the walls to enhance their compositions. The resulting
impressive displays depict mainly animals, but also a significant amount of abstract symbols, and
even a human. Of the animals, horses dominate the imagery, followed by deer and aurochs, and then
ibex and bison. A few carnivores, such as lions and bears, are also present. The archaeological record
of the area shows that the depicted animals reflect the fauna that was known to these Palaeolithic
humans.

The entrance of the cave leads away from the daylight and straight into the main chamber of the cave,
the Hall of the Bulls. Aptly named, this space contains mostly aurochs, a now extinct type of large
cattle. In a round dance, four large bulls tower above fleeing horses and deer, the relief of the walls
serving to emphasise certain parts of the paintings. The animals are shown in side-view, but with their
horns turned, giving the paintings a liveliness indicative of great skill. So far, these animals are easily
identifiable, but others are less clear-cut. See, for instance, the seemingly pregnant horse with what
looks like one horn on its head. Another mysterious figure is depicted with panther skin, a deer’s tail,
a bison’s hump, two horns, and a male member. Creative minds have suggested it may be a sorcerer
or wizard, but what it really represents is hard to determine.

Wounded Bull, Man & Bird, Lascaux Cave

Beyond the Hall of the Bulls lies the Axial Gallery, a dead-end passage, but a spectacular one at that.
It has been dubbed the 'Sistine Chapel of Prehistory,' as its ceiling is home to several eye-catching
compositions. Red aurochs stand with their heads forming a circle, while the main figures of the
Gallery stand opposite one another: a mighty black bull on one side, a female aurochs on the other,
seemingly jumping onto some sort of lattice that has been drawn underneath her hooves. There are
horses in many shapes, including one known as the 'Chinese horse,' with its hooves depicted slightly
to the back, demonstrating a use of perspective far ahead of its time. Towards the back of the
passage, a horse gallops with its mane blowing in the wind while its companion falls over with legs in
the air.
A second exit from the Hall of the Bulls leads to the Passage, which houses mostly engravings but
also some paintings of a large variety of animals. In the Nave, following the Passage, a large black
bull as well as two bisons stand out because of their wild power, seemingly fleeing. Opposite, a freeze
shows five deer who appear to be swimming. After the Nave, the Chamber of Felines throws some
predators into the mix, with engravings of lions dominating the room. In another branch of the cave,
the room known as the Shaft adds some more material for discussion. Here, besides the wounded
bison with its intestines sprawling out from its gut, are a woolly rhinoceros, a bird on what might be a
stick, and a naked man with an erect member. This image clearly tells a story, although it is hard to be
certain exactly what that story might be.

The cave today

The original cave was closed to the public in 1963 CE after it became clear that the many visitors
caused, among others, the growth of algae on the cave walls, dealing irreparable damage to the
paintings. Despite the closure, fungi have spread within the cave, and efforts to control these issues
and protect the art are ongoing. Those looking for an alternative experience can visit Lascaux II, a
replica of the Great Hall of the Bulls and the Painted Gallery sections, which was opened in 1983 CE
and is located at a mere 200 metres from the original cave.

Ötzi, Wikipedia, on 8 December 2017,Wikipedia.org

http://www.iceman.it/en/the-iceman/

https://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2013/10/131016-otzi-ice-man-mummy-five-facts/

Ötzi (also called the Iceman, the Similaun Man, the Man from Hauslabjoch, the Tyrolean Iceman, and
the Hauslabjoch mummy) is a nickname given to the well-preserved natural mummy of a man who
lived between 3400 and 3100 BCE. The mummy was found in September 1991 in the Ötztal Alps,
hence the nickname "Ötzi", near Similaun mountain and Hauslabjoch on the border between Austria
and Italy.[3][better source needed] He is Europe's oldest known natural human mummy, and has
offered an unprecedented view of Chalcolithic Europeans. His body and belongings are displayed in
the South Tyrol Museum of Archaeology in Bolzano, South Tyrol, Italy.

Discovery

Ötzi was found on 19 September 1991 by two German tourists, at an elevation of 3,210 metres
(10,530 ft) on the east ridge of the Fineilspitze in the Ötztal Alps on the Austrian–Italian border. The
tourists, Helmut and Erika Simon, were walking off the path between the mountain passes
Hauslabjoch and Tisenjoch. They believed that the body was of a recently deceased mountaineer.[4]
The next day, a mountain gendarme and the keeper of the nearby Similaunhütte first attempted to
remove the body, which was frozen in ice below the torso, using a pneumatic drill and ice-axes, but
had to give up due to bad weather. The next day, eight groups visited the site, among whom happened
to be the famous mountaineers Hans Kammerlander and Reinhold Messner. The body was semi-
officially extracted on 22 September and officially salvaged the following day. It was transported to
the office of the medical examiner in Innsbruck, together with other objects found. On 24 September
the find was examined there by archaeologist Konrad Spindler of the University of Innsbruck. He
dated the find to be "about four thousand years old", based on the typology of an axe among the
retrieved objects.

At the Treaty of Saint-Germain-en-Laye of 1919, the border between North and South Tyrol was
defined as the watershed of the rivers Inn and Etsch. However, near Tisenjoch the (now withdrawn)
glacier complicated establishing the watershed at the time and the border was established too far
north. Therefore, although Ötzi's find site drains to the Austrian side, surveys in October 1991 showed
that the body had been located 92.56 metres (101.22 yd) inside Italian territory as delineated in
1919Coordinates: 46°46′45.8″N 10°50′25.1″E.[7] The province of South Tyrol therefore claimed
property rights, but agreed to let Innsbruck University finish its scientific examinations. Since 1998, it
has been on display at the South Tyrol Museum of Archaeology in Bolzano, the capital of South
Tyrol.

Scientific analyses

The corpse has been extensively examined, measured, X-rayed, and dated. Tissues and intestinal
contents have been examined microscopically, as have the items found with the body. In August
2004, frozen bodies of three Austro-Hungarian soldiers killed during the Battle of San Matteo (1918)
were found on the mountain Punta San Matteo in Trentino. One body was sent to a museum in the
hope that research on how the environment affected its preservation would help unravel Ötzi's past.[8]

Body

By current estimates, at the time of his death Ötzi was approximately 1.65 metres (5 ft 5 in) tall,[9]
weighed about 61 kilograms (134 lb)[10] and was about 45 years of age.[9] When his body was
found, it weighed 13.750 kilograms (30.31 lb).[11] Because the body was covered in ice shortly after
his death, it had only partially deteriorated. Initial reports claimed that his penis and most of his
scrotum were missing, but this was later shown to be unfounded.[12] Analysis of pollen, dust grains
and the isotopic composition of his tooth enamel indicates that he spent his childhood near the present
village of Feldthurns, north of Bolzano, but later went to live in valleys about 50 kilometres farther
north.

Analysis of Ötzi's intestinal contents showed two meals (the last one consumed about eight hours
before his death), one of chamois meat, the other of red deer and herb bread. Both were eaten with
grain as well as roots and fruits. The grain from both meals was a highly processed einkorn wheat
bran,[14] quite possibly eaten in the form of bread. In the proximity of the body, and thus possibly
originating from the Iceman's provisions, chaff and grains of einkorn and barley, and seeds of flax and
poppy were discovered, as well as kernels of sloes (small plumlike fruits of the blackthorn tree) and
various seeds of berries growing in the wild. Hair analysis was used to examine his diet from several
months before.

Pollen in the first meal showed that it had been consumed in a mid-altitude conifer forest, and other
pollens indicated the presence of wheat and legumes, which may have been domesticated crops.
Pollen grains of hop-hornbeam were also discovered. The pollen was very well preserved, with the
cells inside remaining intact, indicating that it had been fresh (estimated about two hours old) at the
time of Ötzi's death, which places the event in the spring, or early summer. Einkorn wheat is
harvested in the late summer, and sloes in the autumn; these must have been stored from the previous
year.

In 2009, a CAT scan revealed that the stomach had shifted upward to where his lower lung area would
normally be. Analysis of the contents revealed the partly digested remains of ibex meat, confirmed by
DNA analysis, suggesting he had a meal less than two hours before his death. Wheat grains were also
found. High levels of both copper particles and arsenic were found in Ötzi's hair. This, along with
Ötzi's copper axe blade, which is 99.7% pure copper, has led scientists to speculate that Ötzi was
involved in copper smelting. By examining the proportions of Ötzi's tibia, femur and pelvis,
Christopher Ruff has determined that Ötzi's lifestyle included long walks over hilly terrain. This
degree of mobility is not characteristic of other Copper Age Europeans. Ruff proposes that this may
indicate that Ötzi was a high-altitude shepherd.

Using modern 3-D technology, a facial reconstruction has been created for the South Tyrol Museum
of Archaeology in Bolzano, Italy. It shows Ötzi looking old for his 45 years, with deep-set brown
eyes, a beard, a furrowed face, and sunken cheeks. He is depicted looking tired and ungroomed.

The cause of death remained uncertain until 10 years after the discovery of the body.[57] It was
initially believed that Ötzi died from exposure during a winter storm. Later it was speculated that Ötzi
might have been a victim of a ritual sacrifice, perhaps for being a chieftain.[58][59] This explanation
was inspired by theories previously advanced for the first millennium BCE bodies recovered from
peat bogs such as the Tollund Man and the Lindow Man. Influenced by the "Curse of the pharaohs"
and the media theme of cursed mummies, claims have been made that Ötzi is cursed. The allegation
revolves around the deaths of several people connected to the discovery, recovery and subsequent
examination of Ötzi. It is alleged that they have died under mysterious circumstances. These persons
include co-discoverer Helmut Simon[73] and Konrad Spindler, the first examiner of the mummy in
Austria in 1991.[74] To date, the deaths of seven people, of which four were accidental, have been
attributed to the alleged curse. In reality hundreds of people were involved in the recovery of Ötzi and
are still involved in studying the body and the artifacts found with it. The fact that a small percentage
of them have died over the years has not been shown to be statistically significant.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cop%C3%A1n

http://www.copanusa.com/, December 5, 2017, Jefferson Avenue Murrieta

http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/129 ,

Copán is an archaeological site of the Maya civilization located in the Copán Department of western
Honduras, not far from the border with Guatemala. It was the capital city of a major Classic period
kingdom from the 5th to 9th centuries AD. The city was located in the extreme southeast of the
Mesoamerican cultural region, on the frontier with the Isthmo-Colombian cultural region, and was
almost surrounded by non-Maya peoples.

Copán was occupied for more than two thousand years, from the Early Preclassic period to the
Postclassic. The city developed a distinctive sculptural style within the tradition of the lowland Maya,
perhaps to emphasize the Maya ethnicity of the city's rulers.[2]

The city has a historical record that spans the greater part of the Classic period and has been
reconstructed in detail by archaeologists and epigraphers.[2] Copán was a powerful city ruling a vast
kingdom within the southern Maya area.[3] The city suffered a major political disaster in AD 738
when Uaxaclajuun Ub'aah K'awiil, one of the greatest kings in Copán's dynastic history, was captured
and executed by his former vassal, the king of Quiriguá.[4] This unexpected defeat resulted in a 17-
year hiatus at the city, during which time Copán may have been subject to Quiriguá in a reversal of
fortunes.A significant portion of the eastern side of the acropolis has been eroded away by the Copán
River, although the river has since been diverted in order to protect the site from further damage.

Copán is located in western Honduras close to the border with Guatemala. Copán lies within the
municipality of Copán Ruinas in the department of Copán. It is situated in a fertile valley among
foothills at 700 meters (2,300 ft) above mean sea level.[2] The ruins of the site core of the city are
located 1.6 kilometers (1 mi) from the modern village of Copán Ruinas, which is built on the site of a
major complex dating to the Classic period.

Little is known of the rulers of Copán before the founding of a new dynasty with its origins at Tikal in
the early 5th century AD, although the city's origins can be traced back to the Preclassic period.[13]
After this, Copán became one of the more powerful Maya city states and was a regional power in the
southern Maya region.[2] However, it suffered a catastrophic defeat at the hands of its former vassal
state Quirigua in 738, when the long-ruling king Uaxaclajuun Ub'aah K'awiil was captured and
beheaded by Quirigua's ruler K'ak' Tiliw Chan Yopaat (Cauac Sky).[14] Although this was a major
setback, Copán's rulers began to build monumental structures again within a few decades.[5]

The area of Copán continued to be occupied after the last major ceremonial structures and royal
monuments were erected, but the population declined in the 8th and 9th centuries from perhaps over
20,000 in the city to less than 5,000. This decrease in population took over four centuries to actually
show signs of collapse, showing the stability of this site even after the fall of the ruling dynasties and
royal families.[15] The ceremonial center was long abandoned and the surrounding valley home to
only a few farming hamlets at the time of the arrival of the Spanish in the 16th century.

The Copán site is known for a series of portrait stelae, most of which were placed along processional
ways in the central plaza of the city and the adjoining acropolis, a large complex of overlapping step-
pyramids, plazas, and palaces. The site has a large court for playing the Mesoamerican ballgame.[63]

The site is divided into various groups, with the Main Group and the Cemetery Group in the site core
linked by a sacbe to the Sepulturas Group to the northeast.[64] Central Copán had a density of 1449
structures per square kilometer (3,750/sq mi), while in greater Copán as a whole this density fell to
143 per square kilometre (370/sq mi) over a surveyed area of 24.6 square kilometers (9.5 sq mi)

The Main Group represents the core of the ancient city and covers an area of 600 by 300 meters
(1,970 ft × 980 ft). The main features are the Acropolis, which is a raised royal complex on the south
side, and a group of smaller structures and linked plazas to the north, including the Hieroglyphic
Stairway and the ballcourt. The Monument Plaza contains the greatest concentration of sculpted
monuments at the site.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orrorin, 2 December 2017, Orrorin,

http://humanorigins.si.edu/evidence/human-fossils/species/orrorin-tugenensis, February 9, 2016,

http://www.becominghuman.org/node/orrorin-tugenensis-essay , becoming human, The Institute of

Orrorin tugenensis (pronunciation) is a postulated early species of Homininae, estimated at 6.1 to 5.7
million years (Ma) and discovered in 2000. It is not confirmed how Orrorin is related to modern
humans. Its discovery was an argument against the hypothesis that australopithecines are human
ancestors, as much as it still remains the most prevalent hypothesis of human evolution as of 2012.

The name of genus Orrorin (plural Orroriek) means "original man" in Tugen,[2][3] and the name of
the only classified species, O. tugenensis, derives from Tugen Hills in Kenya, where the first fossil
was found in 2000.[3] As of 2007, 20 fossils of the species have been found.

Fossils
The 20 specimens found as of 2007 include: the posterior part of a mandible in two pieces; a
symphysis and several isolated teeth; three fragments of femora; a partial humerus; a proximal
phalanx; and a distal thumb phalanx.

Orrorin had small teeth relative to its body size. Its dentition differs from that found in
Australopithecus in that its cheek teeth are smaller and less elongated mesiodistally and from
Ardipithecus in that its enamel is thicker. The dentition differs from both these species in the presence
of a mesial groove on the upper canines. The canines are ape-like but reduced, like those found in
Miocene apes and female chimpanzees. Orrorin had small post-canines and was microdont, like
modern humans, whereas robust australopithecines were megadont.

In the femur, the head is spherical and rotated anteriorly; the neck is elongated and oval in section and
the lesser trochanter protrudes medially. While these suggest that Orrorin was bipedal, the rest of the
postcranium indicates it climbed trees. While the proximal phalanx is curved, the distal pollical
phalanx is of human proportions and has thus been associated with toolmaking, but should probably
be associated with grasping abilities useful for tree-climbing in this context.

After the fossils were found in 2000, they were held at the Kipsaraman village community museum,
but the museum was subsequently closed. Since then, according to the Community Museums of
Kenya chairman Eustace Kitonga, the fossils are stored at a secret bank vault in Nairobi.[5]

Classification

If Orrorin proves to be a direct human ancestor, then australopithecines such as Australopithecus

Discovery

The team that found these fossils in 2000 was led by Brigitte Senut and Martin Pickford from the
Muséum national d'histoire naturelle. The discoverers conclude that Orrorin is a hominin on the basis
of its bipedal locomotion and dental anatomy; based on this, they date the split between hominins and
African great apes to at least 7 million years ago, in the Messinian. This date is markedly different
from those derived using the molecular clock approach, but has found general acceptance among
paleoanthropologists.The 20 fossils have been found at four sites in the Lukeino Formation, located in
Kenya: of these, the fossils at Cheboit and Aragai are the oldest (6.1 Ma), while those in Kapsomin
and Kapcheberek are found in the upper levels of the formation (5.7 Ma).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nubian_pyramids , 23 November 2017, Nubian pyramids

http://www.independent.co.uk/travel/africa/sudan-pyramids-twice-the-number-of-egypt-meroe-soleb-
prudhoe-lions-tours-a7579141.html ,Emma Thomson, 14 February 2017

http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/inpictures/2015/04/forgotten-pyramids-sudan-
150405062541595.html , Sorin Furcoi, 5 Apr 2015
Nubian pyramids are pyramids that were built by the rulers of the ancient Kushite kingdoms.

The area of the Nile valley known as Nubia, which lies within present day Sudan, was home to three
Kushite kingdoms during antiquity. The first had its capital at Kerma (2600–1520 BC). The second
was centered on Napata (1000–300 BC). Finally, the last kingdom was centered on Meroë (300 BC–
AD 300).

Kerma was Nubia's first centralized state with its own indigenous forms of architecture and burial
customs. The last two kingdoms, Napata and Meroë, were heavily influenced by ancient Egypt
culturally, economically, politically, and militarily. The Kushite kingdoms in turn competed strongly
with Egypt economically and militarily. In 751 BC, the Kushite king Piankhi overthrew the 24th
Dynasty and united the entire Nile valley from the delta to the city of Napata under his rule. Piankhi
and his descendants ruled as the pharaohs of the Twenty-fifth Dynasty. The Napatan domination of
Egypt ended with the Assyrian conquest of Egypt in 656 BC. The Nubian pyramids are recognized as
a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Approximately 255 pyramids[2] were eventually constructed at
three sites in Nubia over a period of a few hundred years to serve as tombs for the kings and queens of
Napata and Meroë. The first of these was built at the site of el-Kurru, including the tombs of King
Kashta and his son Piye (Piankhi), together with Piye's successors Shabaka, Shabataka, and
Tanwetamani. Fourteen pyramids were constructed for their queens, several of whom were renowned
warrior queens. This can be compared to approximately 120 much larger pyramids that were
constructed in Ancient Egypt over a period of 3000 years.

Later Napatan pyramids were sited at Nuri, on the west bank of the Nile in Upper Nubia. This
necropolis was the burial place of 21 kings and 52 queens and princes including Anlami and Aspelta.
The bodies of these kings were placed in huge granite sarcophagi. Aspelta's weighed 15.5 tons, and its
lid weighed four tons.[3] The oldest and largest pyramid at Nuri is that of the Napatan king and
Twenty-fifth Dynasty pharaoh Taharqa. The most extensive Nubian pyramid site is at Meroë, which is
located between the fifth and sixth cataracts of the Nile, approximately 100 kilometres (62 mi) north
of Khartoum. During the Meroitic period, over forty queens and kings were buried there. The physical
proportions of Nubian pyramids differ markedly from the Egyptian edifices: they are built of stepped
courses of horizontally positioned stone blocks and range from approximately 6–30 metres (20–98 ft)
in height, but rise from fairly small foundation footprints that rarely exceed 8 metres (26 ft) in width,
resulting in tall, narrow structures inclined at approximately 70°. Most also have offering temple
structures abutting their base with unique Kushite characteristics. By comparison, Egyptian pyramids
of similar height generally had foundation footprints that were at least five times larger and were
inclined at angles between 40–50°. All of the pyramid tombs of Nubia were plundered in ancient
times. Wall reliefs preserved in the tomb chapels reveal that their royal occupants were mummified,
covered with jewellery and laid to rest in wooden mummy cases. At the time of their exploration by
archaeologists in the 19th and 20th centuries, some pyramids were found to contain the remains of
bows, quivers of arrows, archers' thumb rings, horse harnesses, wooden boxes, furniture, pottery,
colored glass, metal vessels, and many other artefacts attesting to extensive Meroitic trade with Egypt
and the Hellenistic world.

The pyramids were further damaged in the 1830s as the Italian doctor-turned-explorer and treasure
hunter Giuseppe Ferlini blew the tops off about 40 tombs during his quest for treasure. A pyramid
excavated at Meroë included hundreds of heavy items such as large blocks decorated with rock art
and 390 stones that comprised the pyramid. A cow buried complete with eye ointment was also
unearthed in the area to be flooded by the Meroë Dam, as were ringing rocks that were tapped to
create a melodic sound.