"Whether that means Vikings made it to Minnesota.... Color me somewhat more skeptical."

If a Packer could make it to Minnesota and settle, Vikings could have.

"I'm not sure how much we can draw from a similarity in stone tools, but it certainly seems plausible that prehistoric Northern Europeans might have crossed to North America at one time or another. So there are some mysteries still to be illuminated, I'm sure."

No guarantees on similarities, but progression and transmission of technological forms is a bedrock of archaeology. Having an interest in flint tools that has led me to buy books on the crafting of them, the Clovis and a Folsoms look more European mesolithic than Asian. My uncle has a couple of each and I've examined them. That may be because the lower 48 is much richer in quality flint than the tundras, or it may be that it was a cultural relic from a different migration. As seal skin boats don't fossilize well and ceramic technology is pretty much unknown from that time period, the flints and known oceanic currents and known cultural traits of the dwellers on the edges of ice packs are our best clues to a wild guess. In full glacial times, the trip wasn't that long.

I live on what was a Roman habitate but all I ever bloody find is rubble from the 'cowboy' 'do it yourselfer' who lived here before me !!!!!

It was an antique hoax perpetrated by my great uncle Sigvarth.

Sigvarth was both a stone mason and an amature Rune expert. Hmmmmm.

The Scandanavian community around Minnesota and Wisconsin loves to find these sort of things and buy into them regardless of their veracity or obvious lack thereof.

Havelock, some quick overview of the Solutrean discussion:

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"The Solutrean hypothesis proposes that stone tool technology of the Solutrean culture in prehistoric Europe may have later influenced the development of the Clovis tool-making culture in the Americas, and that peoples from Europe may have been among the earliest settlers in the Americas.[1][2] It was first proposed in 1998. Its key proponents include Dennis Stanford, of the Smithsonian Institution, and Bruce Bradley, of the University of Exeter.

In this hypothesis, peoples associated with the Solutrean culture migrated from Ice Age Europe to North America, bringing their methods of making stone tools with them and providing the basis for later Clovis technology found throughout North America. The hypothesis rests upon particular similarities in Solutrean and Clovis technology that have no known counterparts in Eastern Asia, Siberia or Beringia, areas from which or through which early Americans are known to have migrated...[more at linkie]

This gets us to the core of the Masonic/Templar conflation. I've done some reading on the subject and take a middle path, that the Templars stayed as an underground tradition, but likely had no particular spiritual insight.

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The Templars were a society of knights that had the misfortune to be both extremely rich and secretive about their rituals at a time when the king of France needed money.

They were executed almost to a man and their extensive property both in France and in the Holy Land seized.

The Masons have about as much link to the Templars as the Kiwana's or the FOE's do.

"They were executed almost to a man and their extensive property both in France and in the Holy Land seized."

Jacques DeMolay survived several years after recanting his heresy, before finally being executed after taking it up again. The movement continued in Scotland with the St. Clairs for a few more centuries.

"The Masons have about as much link to the Templars as the Kiwana's or the FOE's do."

Opinions vary on that. More correct might be that the average Mason has as little connection to the Templars as the average Nazi had to the Teutonic Knights or the average Knight of Columbus has to the Hospitlars.

Yeah I was kind of hoping to fish him out. Oh well. And btw, I don't want to discuss this tonight. I'll post on Tues. I find the theory very convincing. I'm just wondering how "dumb" I am on the Faith-based "dumb-ometer".

;)

"We all originated 'out of Africa' anyway didn't we ?"

Personally? I don't think so. But maybe that's for another time.

" I'm just wondering how "dumb" I am on the Faith-based "dumb-ometer"."

It's turning into a good thread, so sit down and listen:)

"Additionally, the KRS idea appeals to the neo-Nazi types (like David Duke) who like to think that "good, decent, blonde Aryans discovered America, not some Eye-tie""

Never heard of any of that, though I have heard of the Nazi's trying to come up with archaeological evidence for ancient Scandanavian/Norse roots.

"Like much of Patrick's Fortean stuff....little evidence and likely not true."

Why not?

" (and note I'm not saying anything about the Chinese :))."

What about the Chinese? I don't mind? When did they hit the shores?

"So - the Kensington stone is interesting, but most likely a hoax. Not definitely - and it wouldn't shock me if Viking artifacts were found inland (they certainly were intrepid exploreres) - but probably."

I don't think it's a hoax. I'll post later. Actually there's an observatory on the east coast, an ancient Norse round-church that functions as an astronomical observatory, and a keystone, whatever, points in the direction of the stone. I'll post later.

Were the hell is Ein, btw? I was looking to discuss runes. Like the hoaxer would have had no knowledge of the runes and "secret code" they cracked as part of the runes before, I forget, but way after they discovered the stone.

Bad links. Just give me the supposed summary of what the stones suggest.

Oh yeah, got that book. Never read it yet. Got stuff about templars in America huh?

Did you know that Christopher Columbus was a Mason and templar? Just look at the sail on his boats, which was a red cross emblem.