By Victor Block
In 1944, German warships sailed down the Danube River in an attempt to flee from advancing forces of the Soviet Union. That effort to escape failed, and many of the vessels plunged to their final resting place at the bottom of the waterway. Recently they have reappeared to serve as reminders of that chapter of military history.
Those ships became visible as the result of drought created by climate change, which has caused rivers throughout Europe and around the world to recede and, in some cases, dry up. Along with the negative impacts that phenomenon is having on the Earth, there also is one positive result.
The drought caused by the changing climate — and the resulting low water levels in rivers and lakes — is uncovering fascinating historical relics. Some may be close to home, while others await discovery for travelers around the United States and throughout the world.
That German warship graveyard, which is the final resting place for more than 20 vessels, offers a treasure-trove of artifacts for maritime scholars and military historians. Some turrets, command bridges and ruptured masts have emerged from low-lying sand banks. However, researchers seeking to study them face a potential major hazard. The ships might contain thousands of rounds of live ammunition and other undetonated explosives.
The retreating Elbe River also has revealed secrets, in the form of engraved markings on stones that have begun to resurface along shorelines in Germany and the Czech Republic. While most of them were carved in recent years, the earliest legible date appears to be 1616, and historians suggest that some may have been etched in the 1400s. One enigmatic message, which has been translated, reads: "If you see me, then weep."
Rather grim results of low water levels include skeletal human remains along the shores of Lake Mead in Nevada and the Colorado River reservoir behind the Hoover Dam. One is a man who died from a gunshot wound. That find has prompted speculation among police that this discovery — and others that might follow — could be connected to unsolved murder cases dating back decades in Las Vegas, which is a 30-minute drive away.
An unusual structure known as the Spanish Stonehenge also may be seen today, thanks to receding water. A dolmen is a tomb consisting of two or more stone columns that support a horizontal boulder lying across their top. The Dolmen of Guadalperal in Spain contains 150 vertical granite stones that form a chamber, which has been exposed in the past decade by drought conditions. A long, wavy carving on one rock is believed to represent the Tagus River, which passes through the area.
Peat bogs also provide historical tidbits and information of various kinds, and drying conditions make them more accessible. The accumulation of organic matter over thousands of years offers a record of past climate and vegetation, and the tannin properties and slow decaying action of some mosses can act as preservatives.
Of several "bog bodies" that have been uncovered in peat marshes around the world, the Tollund Man probably is most famous. The naturally mummified corpse of a person who lived in Denmark during the fourth century B.C. showed up with a rope around his neck that killed him by strangulation. The body is in such good condition that scientists were able to ascertain that his last meal consisted of porridge.
Elling Woman lost her life a century or two after Tollund Man but was discovered only feet from his final resting place. Her remains suggest that she also was hanged, but rather than a judicial murder, her clothes and body placement show the hallmarks of a ritual sacrifice.
Cashel Man lived some 4,000 years ago in Ireland, and because he died wearing a crown, he may have been a king. He suffered a violent death, as indicated by stab wounds on his back and arm.
Frozen water in the form of glaciers is uncovering hidden historic gems in Norway. As ice sheets on the highest peaks in that country melt, archaeologists are finding artifacts dating back as far as 4000 B.C. They include clothes, weapons and ancient skis. Among vestiges of more recent times is a walking stick marked by an inscription from the 11th century.
People in the United States need travel no farther than Texas to view tracks of dinosaurs that roamed there about 113 million years ago. When drought dried stretches of the Paluxy River in Texas, dinosaur footprints became visible. Among creatures that left their marks in what now is Dinosaur Valley State Park were a three-toed carnivore that stood about 15 feet tall and weighed 7 tons and a towering 60-foot-tall specimen that tipped the proverbial scales at close to 45 tons.
On the other side of the world, plunging water levels of the Yangtze River in China have revealed a submerged island and three ancient Buddhist statues standing on its highest point. The figures are believed to be about 600 years old, dating from the Ming and Qing dynasties. One depicts a monk seated on a lotus pedestal.
Chinese monks, diverse dinosaurs and the remains of long-lost humans are but a few examples of chapters of the past that are being revealed as one result of climate change. Hopefully they add a bit of good news to the otherwise negative results of its impact.
Victor Block is a freelance writer. To read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.
Remains of the Tollund Man are on display at the Silkeborg Museum in Denmark. Photo courtesy of Richair/Dreamstime.com.
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