The photos of well-preserved remains of a female of Turkic origins — believed to date back 1,500 years — released by archaeologists earlier this week are causing a stir in the online conspiracy theory blogosphere after viewers noted that one of the photos appears to show the mummy wearing Adidas boots. According to conspiracy theorists, the modern footwear found on the ancient mummy unearthed this week provides conclusive proof of time travel.
The remains were found in the Altai Mountains of Mongolia at an elevation of nearly 10,000 feet (nearly 3,000 meters) above sea level in a grave about 10-feet deep (three meters).
The cool temperatures of the mountain environment helped to preserve the corpse, researchers said.
People think this 1,500-year-old mummy ‘wearing Adidas boots’ is proof time travel exists ? https://t.co/PNxbgGUhDf pic.twitter.com/k9jv2bqL22
— Daily Mail Online (@MailOnline) April 13, 2016
Ancient mummy reveals modern footwear fashions from Mongolia 1,500 years ago https://t.co/3tGzEn6ORv pic.twitter.com/k6i7H8xuSC
— The Mirror (@DailyMirror) April 11, 2016
Archeologists find ancient mummy approximately 1,500 years old in Mongolia https://t.co/0ZXhjst86i pic.twitter.com/YNKefhes3V
— The Siberian Times (@siberian_times) April 11, 2016
Out-of-place artifacts conspiracy theorists indulged in wild speculation after archaeologists released the first photos of the mummy — said to be the first complete Turkic burial found in Central Asia.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_MiBd5Mqx3A
Clearly visible in the photos of the 1,500-year-old human remains were a hand and feet. But what caught the attention of conspiracy theorists was a photo that appeared to show the mummy wearing footwear designed by the German sportswear maker Adidas. The 1,500-year-old footwear was uncannily similar in appearance to Adidas footwear, complete with the iconic stripes of the German sportswear brand ( see below ).
Social media erupted in wild speculation, and in the midst of the uproar many on Twitter and Facebook claimed unabashedly that the 1,500-year-old mummy was the preserved corpse of a time traveler from the future who met an unexpected end while visiting the Altai Mountains Turkic tribes.
A shocked viewer of the photos on LiveLeak blurted , “Didn’t know they had Adidas back them…”
Another viewer, who couldn’t believe the apparent testimony of his eyes, asked fellow social media users, “The mummy had on some Adidas in the first pic?”
Nike might have signed more star athletes but Adidas has mummies under contract https://t.co/2Zj9IDFTdW
— Georgi Kantchev (@georgikantchev) April 13, 2016
#Archeologists find ancient #Turkic #mummy approximately 1,500 years old in #Mongolia https://t.co/crjx5RYyF8 pic.twitter.com/FM7roHuldK
— International Turkic Academy (@turkic_academy) April 13, 2016
“Must be a time traveler. I knew we would dig one up sooner or later’,
“Huh? Time-travelling Mummy?”
“Obviously fake. Adidas trains don’t last 15 minutes, let alone 15 centuries.”
“I’ve got a few pair but I ain’t had them that long.”
Meanwhile, archaeologists in Mongolia said they were working to unwrap the preserved body. They said they expect it to provide new insights into how the native Turkic peoples of Mongolia lived in the period around the sixth century C.E.
1500 yr old mummy found in #Mongolia – fascinating insight into ritual and routine https://t.co/lw5LMDgqf2 pic.twitter.com/deIEgQflXp
— Catherine Arnold (@HMAArnold) April 11, 2016
“Now we are carefully unwrapping the body and once this is complete the specialists will be able to say more precisely about the gender,” B. Sukhbaatar, a research worker at the Khovd Museum in Mongolia, said.
The Turkic peoples consist of several groups that have lived in Central Asia and Siberia since the sixth century B.C.E. Today, they live in many parts of Asia and parts of Eastern Europe united by the languages belonging to the Turkic subfamily of the Altaic family of languages.
Turkic peoples today include the Azerbaijanis, Kazakhs, Tartars, Turks, and Uzbeks.
Sukhbaatar told The Siberian Times that the ancient Turkic peoples often buried their dead with domestic and treasured possessions so that they could use them in the next world.
“This person was not from the elite, and we believe it was likely a woman, because there is no bow in the tomb.”
Found in the tomb with the body were an elaborately embroidered saddle, bridle, clay vase, trough, iron kettle, wooden bowl, embroidered coats, pillows, felt travel bag, and a mare between four- and eight-years-old apparently sacrificed at burial, according to The Siberian Times .
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WhFBFahoq9A
The body was preserved by the cool temperatures in the mountain region.
Sukhbaatar explained that the person “was not from the elite, and we believe it was likely a woman, because there is no bow in the tomb.” The wide variety of quality items found in the grave of a “simple person” suggested that the period in which she died was one of relative prosperity when arts and crafts were well-developed, the archaeologist said.
“It is the first complete Turkic burial at least in Mongolia – and probably in all Central Asia. This is a very rare phenomenon. These finds show us the beliefs and rituals of Turkics,” Sukhbaatar explained.
“We can see clearly that the horse was deliberately sacrificed. It was a mare, between four and eight years old,” he continued. “An interesting thing we found is that not only sheep wool was used, but also camel wool. We can date the burial by the things we have found there, also the type of hat. It gives us a preliminary date of around the 6th century A.D.”
Experts at the Khovd Museum found the tomb after local herdsmen led them to it.
[Image via aperturesound/Shutterstock.com]