The Encyclopedia of World Religions

28 S archaeology and religion

a universal flood never occurred. On the one hand, archaeologists have uncovered documents that make it possible to trace in a general way where the writers of the Bible got the story. On the other, there is no evidence for the kind of cataclysmic flood that the Bible records. Evidence of such a flood should be everywhere, and it should be unmistakable. It is worth pointing out that archaeology does not question claims only of J UDAISM and C HRISTI ANITY . Some indigenous North Americans think that human life originated in the Western Hemi sphere. However, evidence from archaeology and other sources, such as comparative anatomy, make this extremely unlikely. Hindus have traditionally traced sacred events to times in the very distant past. They have dated the events of the Mahab harata to roughly 3000 B . C . E . and the events of the Ramayana to roughly 867,000 B . C . E . ( see R AMA , R AMAYANA ). The first date is unlikely; the second is inconceivable. Archaeology does more than raise questions about religious claims. It also makes those claims more vivid and meaningful. For example, archae ology has provided an understanding of cities and ways of life pictured in the Hebrew Bible. It has also provided a more accurate and detailed image of what crucifixion was like at the time of J ESUS . At the same time, archaeology can say very little about some very important religious claims. These include claims such as the following: G OD wants Jews to live according to the T ORAH ; Jesus is the son of God; the prophet M UHAMMAD received the Q UR ’ AN by divine revelation; the B UDDHA discov ered the path to NIRVANA . SIGNIFICANCE Archaeology has transformed the way people think about religions. It has also transformed the way people think about religious claims. Some religious people have reacted negatively to these develop ments, but others have seen them as an opportu nity to rethink and reformulate religious truth. Further reading: Glyn E. Daniel, A Short History of Archaeology (London: Thames and Hudson, 1981);

Despite the dangers, archaeologists have provided a wealth of information about prehis toric religions. They have shown that religion goes back at least to the Neanderthal people, and perhaps even further. From the Paleolithic period they have discovered evidence of religion that includes cave paintings, statuary, and buri als. Marija Gimbutas and others have studied the religious significance of Neolithic figurines from eastern Europe. “Archaeoastronomers” have examined megalithic monuments like Stonehenge as well as temples in Mesoamerica. They note the way these monuments relate to the sun, moon, stars, and planets. Some scholars, inspired by the geographer Paul Wheatley, have explored the role religion played in the founding of cities. In south Asia archaeology has uncovered a massive, early civilization known as the Indus Valley or Harap pan civilization ( see I NDUS V ALLEY RELIGION ). Its writing remain undeciphered. In China archaeol ogists have unearthed massive, early tombs ( see C HINA , RELIGIONS OF ). Archaeologists have also made tremendous contributions to the study of historical religions. One way they have done so is by discovering ancient texts that were previously unknown. Such texts include the hieroglyphs and calendars of the Maya ( see M AYA RELIGION ), texts from ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia ( see E GYPTIAN RELIGION and M ESOPOTAMIAN RELIGIONS ), and texts that have transformed the understanding of the B IBLE and its world. The last include Canaanite texts from Ugarit and Ebla ( see C ANAANITE RELIGION ), texts from Qum ran known as the D EAD S EA S CROLLS , the Nag Ham madi Codices of ancient Gnostics ( see G NOSTICISM ), and texts of the Bible itself. ARCHAEOLOGY AND RELIGIOUS CLAIMS Because religions make claims about the past, archaeological discoveries may have something to say about those claims. Sometimes archaeol ogy raises questions about religious claims. An example is the story of the universal FLOOD . Televi sion stations occasionally show programs in which “archaeologists” are searching for N OAH ’s ark. In fact, archaeology has made it virtually certain that