Turkey Mountain inscriptions
Encyclopedia
Turkey Mountain inscriptions refers to some markings etched on stone in Turkey Mountain, a large hill on the west side of the Arkansas River
in Tulsa, Oklahoma
. Some of these have been described as "Old World Records in Ancient America." These markings are believed by some enthusiasts to have been left by pre-Columbian
Europe
an travelers, a view not accepted by mainstream researchers.
, a professor of invertebrate
zoology
and amateur epigrapher, claimed that due to the shape of the "A" it is a Punic
word written in the Northeastern Iberian script
, which had fallen out of use by the 1st century AD, meaning "white". He also interpreted a nearby marking as a word written in the Ogham
alphabet, used on the British Isles
between the 4th and 10th centuries AD, and reading "GUIN", with gwyn (female form: gwen) and gwynn meaning "white" in Welsh
and Cornish
respectively. He wrote:
Although other amateur archaeologists agree with Fell, such as Gloria Farley, an amateur rock art enthusiast, and William F. McNeil, a historian of baseball, his speculations are not considered credible by mainstream researchers.
Arkansas River
The Arkansas River is a major tributary of the Mississippi River. The Arkansas generally flows to the east and southeast as it traverses the U.S. states of Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Arkansas. The river's initial basin starts in the Western United States in Colorado, specifically the Arkansas...
in Tulsa, Oklahoma
Tulsa, Oklahoma
Tulsa is the second-largest city in the state of Oklahoma and 46th-largest city in the United States. With a population of 391,906 as of the 2010 census, it is the principal municipality of the Tulsa Metropolitan Area, a region with 937,478 residents in the MSA and 988,454 in the CSA. Tulsa's...
. Some of these have been described as "Old World Records in Ancient America." These markings are believed by some enthusiasts to have been left by pre-Columbian
Pre-Columbian
The pre-Columbian era incorporates all period subdivisions in the history and prehistory of the Americas before the appearance of significant European influences on the American continents, spanning the time of the original settlement in the Upper Paleolithic period to European colonization during...
Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an travelers, a view not accepted by mainstream researchers.
Background
It has been rumored that the site was a hobo shelter in the 1920s. Gouges at the narrow hallway's entry seem to indicate that a gate had once hung here. Notches cut in the slab's top and the opposite cliff further suggest boards had once been in them for the roof.Speculations of Punic and Ogham scripts
On the wall of the cave is a cross-hatched line, carved above the letters "PIA". Rather than reading this as initials or a common Spanish name, the controversial Barry FellBarry Fell
Barry Fell was a professor of invertebrate zoology at the Harvard Museum of Comparative Zoology. His primary research was on starfish and sea urchins...
, a professor of invertebrate
Invertebrate
An invertebrate is an animal without a backbone. The group includes 97% of all animal species – all animals except those in the chordate subphylum Vertebrata .Invertebrates form a paraphyletic group...
zoology
Zoology
Zoology |zoölogy]]), is the branch of biology that relates to the animal kingdom, including the structure, embryology, evolution, classification, habits, and distribution of all animals, both living and extinct...
and amateur epigrapher, claimed that due to the shape of the "A" it is a Punic
Punic language
The Punic language or Carthagian language is an extinct Semitic language formerly spoken in the Mediterranean region of North Africa and several Mediterranean islands, by people of the Punic culture.- Description :...
word written in the Northeastern Iberian script
Northeastern Iberian script
The northeastern Iberian script is also known as Levantine Iberian or Iberian, because it is the Iberian script that was most frequently used, and was the main means of written expression of the Iberian language. The language is also expressed by the southeastern Iberian script and by the...
, which had fallen out of use by the 1st century AD, meaning "white". He also interpreted a nearby marking as a word written in the Ogham
Ogham
Ogham is an Early Medieval alphabet used primarily to write the Old Irish language, and occasionally the Brythonic language. Ogham is sometimes called the "Celtic Tree Alphabet", based on a High Medieval Bríatharogam tradition ascribing names of trees to the individual letters.There are roughly...
alphabet, used on the British Isles
British Isles
The British Isles are a group of islands off the northwest coast of continental Europe that include the islands of Great Britain and Ireland and over six thousand smaller isles. There are two sovereign states located on the islands: the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and...
between the 4th and 10th centuries AD, and reading "GUIN", with gwyn (female form: gwen) and gwynn meaning "white" in Welsh
Welsh language
Welsh is a member of the Brythonic branch of the Celtic languages spoken natively in Wales, by some along the Welsh border in England, and in Y Wladfa...
and Cornish
Cornish language
Cornish is a Brythonic Celtic language and a recognised minority language of the United Kingdom. Along with Welsh and Breton, it is directly descended from the ancient British language spoken throughout much of Britain before the English language came to dominate...
respectively. He wrote:
"The Ogham script is 'G-W-N,' meaning 'Gwen' or 'Gwynn,' masculine form of 'Fair,' one of the commonest Celtic names and equivalent to the English 'White.' The inscription below the Ogham, reading from left to right, are the North Iberian letters, 'Pa-ya-a,' spelling a Punic word that also means 'white'."
Although other amateur archaeologists agree with Fell, such as Gloria Farley, an amateur rock art enthusiast, and William F. McNeil, a historian of baseball, his speculations are not considered credible by mainstream researchers.
Other petroglyphs
There are two other inscriptions reading "LOS CAVE" and "Bad Dog" claimed to be made with a different etching tool than the alleged Punic and Ogham scripts.See also
- America's StonehengeAmerica's StonehengeAmerica's Stonehenge is an archaeological site consisting of a number of large rocks and stone structures scattered around roughly within the town of Salem, New Hampshire in the northeast United States. America's Stonehenge is open to the public for a fee...
- Bourne stoneBourne StoneThe Bourne Stone is an archaeological curiosity located in the town of Bourne, Massachusetts.The object is a 300-pound chunk of pink granite, upon which two lines of carvings were made. For many years it served as the doorstep for a meetinghouse in Bourne...
- Los Lunas Decalogue StoneLos Lunas Decalogue StoneThe Los Lunas Decalogue Stone is a large boulder on the side of Hidden Mountain, near Los Lunas, New Mexico, about 35 miles south of Albuquerque, that bears a very regular inscription carved into a flat panel. The stone is also known as the Los Lunas Mystery Stone or Commandment Rock...
- Mi'kmaq hieroglyphic writingMi'kmaq hieroglyphic writingMíkmaq hieroglyphic writing was a writing system and memory aid used by the Míkmaq, a Native American people of the east coast of what is now Canada....
- Petroglyphs Provincial ParkPetroglyphs Provincial ParkPetroglyphs Provincial Park is a historical-class provincial park situated in Woodview, Ontario, Canada, northeast of Peterborough. It has the largest collection of ancient First Nations petroglyphs in Ontario...
- Pre-Columbian trans-oceanic contactPre-Columbian trans-oceanic contactTheories of Pre-Columbian trans-oceanic contact are those theories that propose interaction between indigenous peoples of the Americas who settled the Americas before 10,000 BC, and peoples of other continents , which occurred before the arrival of Christopher Columbus in the Caribbean in 1492.Many...