Review of “800-year-old ancient extinct squash uncovered during archeological dig on Menominee Indian reservation” by Dennis Vu
The discovery of any ancient vessel is an excellent way to learn human history beyond the limits of any written records. Especially if the vessel is found on a First Nation’s reserve, it provides a special insight of our ancestor’s heritage, culture, and how they interacted with their environment. However, this only remains true if the findings are truthful and follow a scientific approach during the discovery. Unfortunately, in the discovery of the clay vessel and its variety of seeds by Brian Etkin, this is not the case as blatant lies and forgery were the backbone of the entire findings.
Presumably fueled by fame and money to kick-start his agriculture business by going viral, he claims that an ancient vessel containing 800-year-old extinct squash seeds were both found on the First Nation’s reserve in…show more content… However, the likelihood of finding such an important artifact brings into question its plausibility. With a simple reverse Google search, it was revealed that Brian’s vessel was actually found in the ruins of Sardis, Turkey (1). The ruin of Sardis was home to King Croesus – a king who is quite enamoured by his own wealth. With Sardis being the city where coinage was invented, it is an archaeological wonder for a rich source of classic antiquity to which the clay vessel was found. The vessel contained coins, sharp metal implements, and an egg which dated back to 70~89 A.D, instead of the falsified seeds said by Brain(1). The only similarity to the Sardis ruins and Brian’s claim was a University of Wisconsin professor, Nicholas Cahill, who overseen the dig and happens to live in the same state (1). It is likely that this was how Brian managed to get knowledge of the vessel and photos of
