3600-year-old pits full of giant hands discovered in Egypt

An astonishing discovery took place in the fall of 2011 when a team of archaeologists working in the palace of ancient Avaris, Egypt, found the remains of 16 human hands in four graves in the compound. Two of the pits, located in front of the throne room, contain one hand each. And the other two holes, located outside the palace, contain the remaining 14.

A severed right hand discovered in front of a Hyksos palace at Avaris (modern-day Tell el-Daba). It would have been chopped off and presented to the king (or a subordinate) in exchange for gold. This is the first archaeological evidence of the practice. They were buried about 3,600 years ago, when the palace was being used by King Khayan © Axel Krause

The team of archaeologists who made the discovery determined that all the bones date to about 3,600 years ago, indicating that they all came from the same ceremony. All the hands appear to be abnormally long or even larger than normal. They were classified into four different graves within what scientists believe was the actual Hyksos complex.

The Austrian archaeologist, Manfred Bietak, in charge of the excavation of the ancient city of Avaris, explained to the Egyptian Archeology newspaper that the hands seem to support the stories found in the writings and art of ancient Egypt, this being the first physical evidence of that the soldiers cut off the right hands of their enemies to receive a reward of gold in return.

Besides cutting off the enemy’s hand is a symbolic means of removing the enemy’s force, the meaning of this ceremony would also be supernatural as this was done in a sacred place and temple as part of a ritual.

So far there is no evidence to show what kind of people these hands belonged to. Whether the hands belong to Hyksos or Egyptians cannot yet be determined.

When Bietak was asked to explain why he believed this ritual might have been performed, he said: “You deprive him of his power forever. Our finding is the first and only physical evidence. Each moat represents a different ceremony.”

The two pits each containing a hand were placed directly in front of a throne room. This section of Egypt was once controlled by an occupying force that most historians believe were originally Canaanites, so there may be a connection to the invasion. The other hands, which may have been buried at the same time or at a later date, are found on the outer grounds of the palace.

This image was created about 400 years after the Avaris hands were deposited. It shows the chopped-off hands of enemy soldiers being prepared for Ramses III, a pharaoh of Egypt, after a successful campaign © Karen Green / Flickr

These sacrifices are not surprising in an area that faced a foreign invasion. Egyptians often called on their gods to punish invading armies with plagues, famine, or general misfortune. It is possible that these sacrifices were part of a curse against the invading armies.

There is much more that needs to be investigated, but many signs point to this being some kind of ritual for a god or gods. It is not really known to whom these hands belonged. But the fact that the hands were abnormally large indicates that these people were specially selected, which is more characteristic of a sacrifice than killing an invading army.

The fact that two hands were buried separately may indicate that these offerings were intended to be especially satisfactory to the gods, in addition it could enter the theory of the Hyperborean civilization, where some ancient writings comment that this civilization were extremely large, that they came from Lemuria where that continent was submerged by the waters of the Indian Sea.

This find could reveal the true story about a civilization of enormous dimensions, where the discovery of these giant hands could shed light on ancient stories, that were previously discussed, were only fables or inventions of conspiracy theorists.

Related Posts

“Unveiling a ріeсe of History: Young Boy Discovers іпсгedіЬɩe 30,000-Year-Old Mammoth сагсаѕѕ”

Many young Ƅoys haʋe an innate curiosity to explore their surroundings, hoping to stuмƄle upon soмething extraordinary. That’s precisely what happened to an 11-year-old Russian Ƅoy who,…

“Half-Fish, Half-Frog: Bizarre Creature Captured in Indonesia”

Indonesian fishermen have саᴜɡһt a ѕtгапɡe creature that has left the online community Ьewіɩdeгed. The creature, which appears to be half fish and half frog, has left…

“Stone-Cold Enigma: The Astonishing Transformation of a Mythical Giant Snake into Stone Baffles Scientists”

Scientists were left Ьewіɩdeгed when they discovered that the ɩeɡeпdагу giant snake had been mysteriously petrified Receпtly, archaeologists have discovered a vast “fossil” of aп aпcieпt sпake…

Reindeer Herders Stumble Upon 10,000-Year-Old Woolly Mammoth Skeleton With Ligaments Intact

Researchers have already retrieved part of the mammoth’s pelt and are hoping to find bits of preserved brain in its skull. Artem Cheremisov/Gov. of Yamalo-Nenets of Russia…

Sʜᴏᴄᴋɪɴɢ!!More thaп 9,000 years old giaпt boпes have beeп foυпd iп Greece

sʜᴏᴄᴋɪɴɢ!! ʜᴜɢᴇ 𝟿𝟶𝟶𝟶-ʏᴇᴀʀ-ᴏʟᴅ sᴋᴇʟᴇᴛᴏɴ ғᴏᴜɴᴅ ɪɴ ɢʟɪsʜ. ɢɪᴀɴᴛ ʙᴏɴᴇs ᴍᴏʀᴇ ᴛʜᴀɴ 𝟿,𝟶𝟶𝟶 ʏᴇᴀʀs ᴏʟᴅ ʜᴀᴠᴇ ʙᴇᴇɴ ғᴏᴜɴᴅ ɪɴ ɢʀᴇᴇᴄᴇ. ʙᴇʟɪᴇᴠᴇ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ɢɪᴀɴᴛs ᴏɴᴄᴇ ᴇxɪsᴛᴇᴅ ᴡɪᴛʜ ʜᴜᴍᴀɴ sᴋᴇʟᴇᴛᴏɴ…

The Most Mysterioυs Αпd Rare Gold-cast Coffiп Iп The World, 10 Years Still No Oпe Dares To Opeп It

Dυriпg the past 10 years, experts had hoped to υпcover the mystery iпside the rare goldeп coffiп with the help of special techпiqυes. However, besides still пot…

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *