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Oak Island Money Pit

Started by stromboli, January 13, 2014, 04:46:20 PM

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stromboli

http://www.history.com/shows/the-curse-of-oak-island

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oak_Island

I first read about Oak Island decades ago and was intrigued by it. It can be discounted as woo, except there are certain aspects of it that just can't be dismissed. I won't get into the lengthy history, that would require a thousand words; suffice it to say that there is a belief of a possible treasure on an island on the coast of Nova Scotia. What makes it intriguing is that recent finds (apparently, if you trust the History channel) tend to vindicate earlier claims. Read the Wikipedia link to get up to speed.

The treasure theory started 200 years ago when some people digging for a treasure discovered a man made flagstone platform a few feet under ground. Along with that, evidence of something deeper, including a piece of parchment and deeper down, a coded piece of stone with a statement indicating the presence of treasure. Total woo.

Except for a few things. The island has some stone formations on it and obvious man made construction that is not accounted for and predates the original finds. A stone with a Masonic symbol, and more telling, coconut fiber dating from 1250 to 1400 A.D.; the coconut fiber was used in building a flooding system to sabotage any potential treasure hunters. The coconut fiber is significant because, obviously, it had to be imported from the tropics and the date puts it in the realm of the Knights Templar, which is one theory of who put the treasure there. Wacky stuff. You decide.

It seems like woo, but too much of what has been found and artifacts disclosed on video cameras lowered into the "money pit" reveal what could be boxes and ancient tools. And the evidence of construction, including a man made harbor.

You can discount it, but if you are into this sort of thing, it is on the History Channel. Two brothers who are using scientific methodology to explore the story and look for truth in the story. I personally think it worth the watch, just for the fascination.

GrinningYMIR

I've heard about that, its really cool actually. Things like this fascinate me because of how many curious things one finds if they investigate them further.


And for those of you who know, SCP 87-b was inspired by a similar find in Canada, where they found an old descending staircase buried that went on for far longer than anyone had anticipated, 37 or so stories underground when they stopped, and they stopped because of lack of funding. The staircase went on,
"Human history is a litany of blood shed over differing ideals of rulership and afterlife"<br /><br />Governor of the 32nd Province of the New Lunar Republic. Luna Nobis Custodit

Insult to Rocks

If it is the Templars, I would be much more interested in how they got to Nova Scotia and what they were doing there than whatever treasure they have buried.
Or we could go all Assassin's Creed and say there's a Piece of Eden in the pit.
"We must respect the other fellow\'s religion, but only in the sense and to the extent that we respect his theory that his wife is beautiful and his children smart."
-- H. L. Mencken

stromboli

The show airs Sunday night locally on the History Channel. If what they said about the coconut fiber is true, that is really incredible. That alone is enough to encourage continued investigation. The curse about seven people dying before the gold is found is freaky, considering they have a couple of 90 year old men involved.

aitm

so....the reason that the really rich don't get involved in this shit while those of lesser means fight to fund? Well, let those that die, die. If a treasure is ever found, they will find a way to get it by hook or crook. Why bother with the crazy when they can get the crazy from the crazy by legal means?
A humans desire to live is exceeded only by their willingness to die for another. Even god cannot equal this magnificent sacrifice. No god has the right to judge them.-first tenant of the Panotheust

AllPurposeAtheist

Well...It's obvious the gorge of eternal peril is under it so be darned careful what questions ye ask lest ye be cast in the gorge..
dramatic music.....
I mean the Knights Templar and the Holy Grail!
spooky music...
  :shock:  :shock:  :shock:  :-k  8-[  :-$  :roll:
All hail my new signature!

Admit it. You're secretly green with envy.

stromboli

Its probably woo but it is interesting to me, considering the history and all the effort put into it. And there is just enough tantalizing information to keep people going on it.

AllPurposeAtheist

That's cool..I never did buy the story how Christopher Columbus discovered America, but the pilgrims landed at Plymouth Rock then George Washington Crossed the Delaware and Indians were all just blood thirsty savages and the cowboys invented Burger King.  :rolleyes:
All hail my new signature!

Admit it. You're secretly green with envy.

stromboli

Yeah, there's fairly good evidence that Columbus wasn't the first. The "known" about the Templars is that when they were rounded up and persecuted, eight  ships managed to disappear with what was evidently a massive hoard of treasure. There's any number of theories about where they wound up, including Scotland. There is a definite connection between Freemasonry and the KT, but dating after 1700.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knights_Te ... reemasonry)

 I've seen claims the Freemasonry comes from the Templars, who got some of their mystic notions from Sufism and other Middle Eastern beliefs. this is some of the shit I studied after leaving Mormonism.

Whoever left whatever at Oak Island had to know some serious engineering skills, apparently. If that is the case, the Templars also fit the picture, because they built many castles before they were taken down. And they would've known about cocoa fiber and other related shit.

Insult to Rocks

Quote from: "stromboli"Yeah, there's fairly good evidence that Columbus wasn't the first. The "known" about the Templars is that when they were rounded up and persecuted, eight  ships managed to disappear with what was evidently a massive hoard of treasure. There's any number of theories about where they wound up, including Scotland. There is a definite connection between Freemasonry and the KT, but dating after 1700.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knights_Te ... reemasonry)

 I've seen claims the Freemasonry comes from the Templars, who got some of their mystic notions from Sufism and other Middle Eastern beliefs. this is some of the shit I studied after leaving Mormonism.

Whoever left whatever at Oak Island had to know some serious engineering skills, apparently. If that is the case, the Templars also fit the picture, because they built many castles before they were taken down. And they would've known about cocoa fiber and other related shit.
You mean the Masons or the Templars were inspired my Sufism? Neither really makes sense, and neither does a definite connection to the Templars, as they were not in any way a secret society like the media portrays them to be. The Templars were, for most of their existence, simply a origination of Christian crusaders similar to the Knights Hospitalier. The Templars were just very good at financial management as well as fighting, which is why they attracted the attention of the pope and the king of France. If they were to go anywhere after their exile, it would have been the Middle East, as they knew the land fairly well and could hide there, or perhaps take a small chunk of Muslim land as a little fiefdom. If the Hashashin could do it, I'm sure the Templars could.
"We must respect the other fellow\'s religion, but only in the sense and to the extent that we respect his theory that his wife is beautiful and his children smart."
-- H. L. Mencken

Shiranu

I could care less who built it or why (for now), I just want to know how far it goes. Until we reach the bottom all we can do is guess. Even reaching the bottom doesn't guarantee we will find any items that will tell us who made it... but at least we tried.

Surely there is equipment in 2014 that could make the excavation safer and affordable. For Christ's sake we have spent billions on war toys and this is far more interesting.
"A little science distances you from God, but a lot of science brings you nearer to Him." - Louis Pasteur

Atheon

I remember being fascinated by a TV report about the Money Pit when I was a kid. Even then we had the technology to go down, and it seems that each attempt was stopped because people ran out of money. So... surely there are more resourceful treasure hunters, billionaires or governments that would like to get a piece of the action?

I remember there was some story about a human hand being found down there. That kind of creeped me out when I was an impressionable kid.
"Religion is regarded by the common people as true, by the wise as false, and by the rulers as useful." - Seneca

stromboli

The problem is that the inherent difficulty of excavating the pit and the costs involved prohibit serious investment because of lack of proof. It costs a great deal just to bring heavy equipment to the island, millions to buy the rights to dig, and so on. One of the main premises of the show is that they produce enough evidence to justify further investments of money, which is why the cocoa fiber is so huge. But there would have to be more to justify it, I'm sure.

 If they were to find anything significant in the sediment they pumped out or could prove any artifact in the pit predated the first exploration in the 1700's, that might be sufficient. In that case it would rate as archaeologically significant, as well as the potential for treasure.

The Skeletal Atheist

At the bottom is a note that says "you have too much time on your hands.".
Some people need to be beaten with a smart stick.

Kein Mehrheit Fur Die Mitleid!

Kein Mitlied F�r Die Mehrheit!

Insult to Rocks

All we really need to find the treasure is some plucky Oregonian kids, they're horny teenage friends, and gentle but hideously deformed man. Then we can save the Oak Island docks!
"We must respect the other fellow\'s religion, but only in the sense and to the extent that we respect his theory that his wife is beautiful and his children smart."
-- H. L. Mencken