I saw once that they showed one yo craftsmen and an old lady who hand makes gloves was like "I still use one! it's so we can shape the fingers properly." When in doubt, show the artifact to the artisans.
For all you people complaining that knittin wasnt invented yet, doesn't mean that it wasn't use for fibre. You know what very similar looking devices are used to make now in the fibre world? Ropes of yarn. This could have easily been intended as a tool to help braid ropes, which were definitely invented by then.
Christians have, over millennia, scraped out ancient writings to copy biblical texts on the valuable paper. It's unimaginable how much knowledge was lost due to Christians.
Conspiracy dumbshits/Eurocentric racists be like: well, we can't figure out what it's for, but it kinda looks like this other thing, so this is definitive proof of an advanced pre ice age civilization that was taught by aliens.
Yeah, it's complete bullshit but there's like seven different people regurgitating it and getting upvoted higher up in the post, so it will continue to spread as false info is want to do.
People in ancient Egypt: "We just got back from the Land of Punt! It's such a wonderful place! There's no need to go into detail, everyone knows where Punt is!" Historians: "Where the fuck was this place? And why didn't anyone write down even a vague description of its general location?"
Remember reading about a story where for a couple of decades archeologists studied a specific tool made out of bone but could not figure it out no matter what they did, then they took it to a local artisan and they knew exactly what it was because they still used the tool today and even told them why it was made of bone
Future historian: Yup cow eggs and chicken milk were staple parts of their diet back in 2023 right before an elongated muskrat and tiny handed man destroyed society to make Amerigo Vespucci great again again
Watching a youtube channel Tasting History this seems to happen quite often when he tries to recreate some ancient dishes. So many times there are words or methods that are either disputed or utterly unknown but seem obvious to the writer.
One other reply in the Tumblr post that caught my eye is that there used to be a third shaker in addition to salt and pepper, but since nobody wrote down what it was for, we can only guess. Later research revealed that it was most likely mustard. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk%3ASalt_and_pepper_shakers#Third_shaker
The Greek Chorus from things like Oedipus were sung and performed to music. Unfortunately it was so common and played from memory that none of the music was actually written down. So now it’s just toneless chanting.
Or another favorite I saw somewhere around here “imagine archeologists in a 1,000 years reading through ancient texts trying to figure out the difference between ‘A Booty Call’ and ‘A Butt Dial’”
Different levels of complexity. Emojis represent simple, singular concepts that can be combined into others or chained as words in a sentence. Memes represent complex concepts and ideas and are closer in complexity to entire sentences.
Historians absolutely love people who write overly tedious journal entries. That time you wrote about going to the farmers market, seeing the various fruits and vegetables for sale, then leaving because you saw a particularly large bee? They’re in heaven.
I remember seeing a video a while back where, based on these fairly ubiquitous table top spice tracks from Victorian times (or earlier), there were three universally known spices found on every table; salt, pepper, and nobody knows what the third one was. The hope is that they'll find some incredibly inane diary entry one day that explains what it was.
Just like when I'm watching a cooking show and instead of learning the recipe I learned about someone's childhood in South Tyrol, shoe prices and it somehow tied in with the battleship Bismarck. All I wanted was mascarpone but ok.
Where do I give mine to? I wrote down what I did and who I did it with and include ticket stubs and stuff. Those have prices on it. I'm going to get rid of them.
Unless there are organizations dedicated to preserving stuff like this your best bet is a time capsule. Store it for a while, then when it's time find a out of the way place to burry and mark it. If it isn't disturbed for ~200 years people will suddenly be very interested in what you did and who you did it with.
It doesn't take long to forget what things are for. I have a set of Victorian condiment containers. Salt, pepper and a little spout, like a tiny pitcher. Vinegar? Oil? No one wrote down what tasks the kitchen maid had to do other than "keep these containers filled." Filled with what? (We use it for hot sauce. I doubt an English-Irish household was stocking Cholula on their table.)
Reminds me of that trade partner that ancient Egypt had. Nobody knows jack about them. Records mention them, but nothing about where they were at, because the record keepers of the time thought, "obviously, we don't need to explain our good buddies, everybody knows who and where these folks are". Modern historians actually thought that the trade partner was some weird fantasy until fairly recently, because, yeah, we had no clue on who they could have possibly been.
Land of Punt! Based on more recent discoveries most historians agree that it was located around modern Eritrea, but there's a lot of info still unknown on this civilization. Considering Troy was only rediscovered by the modern world in the late 1800s it's entirely possible that we could be just a few discoveries away from unearthing way more about Punt and it's impact & place in history
That's one theory, but an implausible one, since knitting would not show up in Europe until more than 1000 years after these were known to be made. The truth is, we will probably never know what they were meant to be used for, or if they served any use at all beyond looking cool on a shelf, which would be ironic, since that's pretty much what we're doing with them today.
They were used for whatever they were practical at the moment. I use a drinking glas as a storage-device for pens and pencils. A Ben and Jerry's cup as an impromptu garbage bin on my work desk and my car as a motel when I am on tour.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_dodecahedron. the knitting of gloves is speculation as the earliest examples of European knitwear is from the 1500's whereas the artifact dates to 100 ad and 200 ad. this blog breaks down the problems with the knitting gloves theory https://eukaryotewritesblog.com/2022/08/04/fiber-arts-mysterious-dodecahedrons-and-waiting-on-eureka/
best guess is that it was a thing to prove a smiths skills to qualify for a guild, an early clock to be used with candles of set diameters and burn times, a surveying instrument, and yes to knit things like socks and fingers for gloves
All three of the latter are ruled out by the fact that none of these were standard in size or proportions. Also, they tend to be found in and around smithies, often military.
False. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_knitting. earliest cultural examples, and artifacts date to 11th century Egypt. However weaving https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weaving dates back to between 10,100- 9800 bce. the key distinction is that knitting is a system of two strands of thread knotted together in a repeating fashion whereas weaving uses a loom or similar device to interlace two sets of thread at right angles
The earliest example is a modern-looking sock with enclosed toe, heel requiring a different stich, with a complex color pattern. It was obviously not the first knitted thing, knitting had been around a while before that sock was made. The archaeological record is missing the entire early history of knitting.
sevenfingerman
Wasn't this for knitting or something?
NekoKamiGuru
It is for knitting the fingers of gloves. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=76AvV601yJ0
AboveAverageJoe2019
I saw once that they showed one yo craftsmen and an old lady who hand makes gloves was like "I still use one! it's so we can shape the fingers properly." When in doubt, show the artifact to the artisans.
TheWombatStrikesAgain
"Everybody knows what a glordumfretrz is. No point in going into details."
OrkieBleu
It's for knitting socks! JEFFY SPAGHETTI!! Did no one watch the documentary?
allbluesnoclues
makes me think of the Black Books episode where Fran doesn't know what she sells
DreadPirateJaceMangrove
A NEW HAND TOUCHES THE BEACON
RainierCamino
EDDDDDDD
Archeologists today: "Most likely ceremonial."
YouHaveItAllWrong
For all you people complaining that knittin wasnt invented yet, doesn't mean that it wasn't use for fibre. You know what very similar looking devices are used to make now in the fibre world? Ropes of yarn. This could have easily been intended as a tool to help braid ropes, which were definitely invented by then.
NotUSAmerican
Christians have, over millennia, scraped out ancient writings to copy biblical texts on the valuable paper. It's unimaginable how much knowledge was lost due to Christians.
Morsalbum
amen to that brother
FaecalJacksonPollock
That's SCP-184, The Architect.
Cranbananarama
Glad someone else noticed.
hitdog42
Conspiracy dumbshits/Eurocentric racists be like: well, we can't figure out what it's for, but it kinda looks like this other thing, so this is definitive proof of an advanced pre ice age civilization that was taught by aliens.
pallara
I really dig archaeology, when it gets processual...
atomicsnarl
Horse -- Everybody knows what a horse is.
pjm82
I thought some grandma somewhere saw that thing and explained to the scientists it was for sewing
VibratingNipples
oh that, that just used for dick side measurements
Zcarto
In the game Path of Exile we call them Prime Chaotic Resonator :3
FireSolvesProblems
tetondons
Every damn time I don't comment code properly
XeononSolomon
It's a knitting thing. We still use them today and make them in a similar fashion.
RobearGWJ
Pretty sure that hypothesis has not held up. https://www.cracked.com/article_32125_no-these-mysterious-roman-artifacts-probably-arent-knitting-aides.html
Gerokeymaster
Yeah, it's complete bullshit but there's like seven different people regurgitating it and getting upvoted higher up in the post, so it will continue to spread as false info is want to do.
Endocrom
Pokeball (parts missing)
Alfadorfox
just add Apricorn. (paleobiologist: *screams* "WHAT'S AN APRICORN?!")
beaverusiv
It's for crafting https://www.poewiki.net/wiki/Prime_Chaotic_Resonator
FiftyShadesOfCauliflower
If only it were dildo-shaped, then they'd know with absolute certainty that it had to be some kind of religious talisman or good-luck charm.
MadnerKami
Do you see that suspicious round hole there? Think about it...
Shaodyn
People in ancient Egypt: "We just got back from the Land of Punt! It's such a wonderful place! There's no need to go into detail, everyone knows where Punt is!" Historians: "Where the fuck was this place? And why didn't anyone write down even a vague description of its general location?"
FTUG
Remember reading about a story where for a couple of decades archeologists studied a specific tool made out of bone but could not figure it out no matter what they did, then they took it to a local artisan and they knew exactly what it was because they still used the tool today and even told them why it was made of bone
Munchman347
What gave it away was the knob on the end... 'It's a religious artifact!'...
IDontKnowWhatToDoAnymoreAndImTired
For tanning and conditioning leather, IIRC.
Sironagold
It's a bone slicker, I have one, and it's... well I mean it's not all it's cracked up to be, you can use wooden ones just fine...
TyrannusEquus
I like polished antler myself.
MrSwissroll
ColoradoCattleCo
Just cuss about 10 times and toilet paper will magically appear.
LiarLiarPantsUntier
I’m amazed when people don’t know how to use them.
nclu
Say no more, it's obvious. We don't even have to write it down.
Fabulously
The 3 shells *nods
DarthMaddness
For people thay don't understand..
/gallery/vfVbwrp
DarthMaddness
That
WhatAmILookingAtHere
Are you… Are you commenting on your own comment?
DarthMaddness
Misspelled the word
ubnty
Future cooks are going to wonder what which animals we got our eggs and/or milk from when they read our recipe books...
stevencloser
Unless they cross reference our dictionaries, which do specify it's usually cows and chicken.
TheFunionKnight
Future historian: Yup cow eggs and chicken milk were staple parts of their diet back in 2023 right before an elongated muskrat and tiny handed man destroyed society to make Amerigo Vespucci great again again
Arcanum3000
This sort of thing is already a problem with medieval recipes. "Add the usual herbs." WHAT HERBS?! WHAT HERBS YOU FUCK?!
amp99
stevencloser
We have written down that it's cow's milk and chicken eggs. And I'd assume they'd dig out our factory farms.
nevergoingtogiveyouupnevergoingtoletyoudown
Ergo: "See therefore"
Midgarmerc
Birds
Radix865
Watching a youtube channel Tasting History this seems to happen quite often when he tries to recreate some ancient dishes. So many times there are words or methods that are either disputed or utterly unknown but seem obvious to the writer.
Keairan
I love that channel. So much neat stuff.
GodLikeButHumble
I look forward to what abominations future paleontologists will "reconstruct"/come up with based on Bad Dragon toys.
JaccoW
Easy. They were used for religious rituals. Just like all the wood/ivory/stone dildos we found in the past. Or ornamental.
vaecae
Obviously fertility totems for cryptic gods from the mysterious 'SCP'.
VinchVolt
One other reply in the Tumblr post that caught my eye is that there used to be a third shaker in addition to salt and pepper, but since nobody wrote down what it was for, we can only guess. Later research revealed that it was most likely mustard. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk%3ASalt_and_pepper_shakers#Third_shaker
PotatOSLament
The Greek Chorus from things like Oedipus were sung and performed to music. Unfortunately it was so common and played from memory that none of the music was actually written down. So now it’s just toneless chanting.
VinchVolt
Good to know that Crystal, Ronette and Chiffon from Little Shop of Horrors are the most historically accurate version of a Greek chorus.
RainierCamino
InTheBeginningWasTheNerd
Yes, albeit with difficulty.
DrLOAC
Or another favorite I saw somewhere around here “imagine archeologists in a 1,000 years reading through ancient texts trying to figure out the difference between ‘A Booty Call’ and ‘A Butt Dial’”
Eramik
We need to leave some kind of rosetta stone, so that emojis and memes can be translated by giraffes in the year one million and a half
toddthewraith
another mentioned that the drawings of anime tiddies might make future historians o.O about what kind of milk is in our recipes.
serpx
Emojis are just modern hieroglyphics
Wolf2Worrior
I thought it was memes now?
InTheBeginningWasTheNerd
Different levels of complexity. Emojis represent simple, singular concepts that can be combined into others or chained as words in a sentence. Memes represent complex concepts and ideas and are closer in complexity to entire sentences.
serpx
Memes are a language all their own
pnersvfu
🍑🍑🍆🍆🏺🏺🔮🪬
serpx
"Why are they so obsessed with fruit?" -future archeologists probably
Cabreza
Historians absolutely love people who write overly tedious journal entries. That time you wrote about going to the farmers market, seeing the various fruits and vegetables for sale, then leaving because you saw a particularly large bee? They’re in heaven.
codenametrixie
Because of reading a similar comment like this, I have started writing down more of the mundane "we don't need to write this down" shit.
Horus175
I remember seeing a video a while back where, based on these fairly ubiquitous table top spice tracks from Victorian times (or earlier), there were three universally known spices found on every table; salt, pepper, and nobody knows what the third one was. The hope is that they'll find some incredibly inane diary entry one day that explains what it was.
Horus175
*racks not tracks
Columbus43219
GerbilHereReportingLiveFromRichardGeresAss
Just like when I'm watching a cooking show and instead of learning the recipe I learned about someone's childhood in South Tyrol, shoe prices and it somehow tied in with the battleship Bismarck. All I wanted was mascarpone but ok.
Cabreza
Little did you know...
RedLetterMediaReactionGifs
I should think anthropologists would enjoy these kind of details immensely!
sardonislamir
They are the same thing really. History is about people most of the time.
killbillsexwife
This is me.
VanessaBludgeons
To be fair, that bee was fucking huge. It kept screaming at me. Upon reflection, it might have been a cat.
VodkaReindeer
So what you're saying is that Jesse Watters is actually a man of culture: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Py-MLiX_0g
fightfightfightlosewinfight
It helps if london burns down around you, but yeah that's why they love sammy pepys
happenedtomeonce
Apparently they’re the only ones I can please
Derfboy
Yeah, they're, like, super voyeuristic.
Shoutrr
3000 years in the future, happenedtomeonce: "MY TIME HAS COME!"
PostTraumaticSouthDisorder
Where do I give mine to? I wrote down what I did and who I did it with and include ticket stubs and stuff. Those have prices on it. I'm going to get rid of them.
Cabreza
Unless there are organizations dedicated to preserving stuff like this your best bet is a time capsule. Store it for a while, then when it's time find a out of the way place to burry and mark it. If it isn't disturbed for ~200 years people will suddenly be very interested in what you did and who you did it with.
PostTraumaticSouthDisorder
I've thought about that. I'll have to check Amazon for waterproof time capsules and ways to preserve paper and photographs.
InTheBeginningWasTheNerd
There are. Look up the Long Now Foundation and the Memory of Mankind project.
BobbyVegana
like that time you received poor grade copper ingots?
Columbus43219
Cabreza
Damn you Ea-nāṣir!
Gegenschein
My messenger had to travel through hostile territory! It was insane
cattywumpus
It doesn't take long to forget what things are for. I have a set of Victorian condiment containers. Salt, pepper and a little spout, like a tiny pitcher. Vinegar? Oil? No one wrote down what tasks the kitchen maid had to do other than "keep these containers filled." Filled with what? (We use it for hot sauce. I doubt an English-Irish household was stocking Cholula on their table.)
ThedawningofWankershim
Garum. Sort of like worshtershire sauce. Was used like ketchup and put on everything.
HiddenSanity
It was usually mustard, albeit more watery then. Some also had oil and vinigar, but those were usually in the kitchen.
Avocadontcare
Is it part of a cruet set? Usually they would have 5 or 6 pieces which held: salt, pepper, oil, vinegar, mustard, and sometimes lemon juice.
Ialmostgotthis
Boar semen
Avocadontcare
Sageypie
Reminds me of that trade partner that ancient Egypt had. Nobody knows jack about them. Records mention them, but nothing about where they were at, because the record keepers of the time thought, "obviously, we don't need to explain our good buddies, everybody knows who and where these folks are". Modern historians actually thought that the trade partner was some weird fantasy until fairly recently, because, yeah, we had no clue on who they could have possibly been.
theanswertolifetheuniverseandeverything42
Land of Punt! Based on more recent discoveries most historians agree that it was located around modern Eritrea, but there's a lot of info still unknown on this civilization. Considering Troy was only rediscovered by the modern world in the late 1800s it's entirely possible that we could be just a few discoveries away from unearthing way more about Punt and it's impact & place in history
Eramik
Someone... someone should..... take a punt on it....
WhatSayYouCitizen
Yes, that general train of events is something that absolutely kills historians; but that particular device is used for knitting.
LeMegachonk
That's one theory, but an implausible one, since knitting would not show up in Europe until more than 1000 years after these were known to be made. The truth is, we will probably never know what they were meant to be used for, or if they served any use at all beyond looking cool on a shelf, which would be ironic, since that's pretty much what we're doing with them today.
Kamchatkah
Nope, for ancient DnD where dice lumps were required for some reason unknown to historians.
Schnitzelbub
is it called a subway of events until the archaeologysts unearth them?
haileris23
https://www.cracked.com/article_32125_no-these-mysterious-roman-artifacts-probably-arent-knitting-aides.html Probably not. I know this is a Cracked article, but it actually does give a decent summary.
woozle
it's for magic and stuff. I think it's used for Fireball or is it Magic Missile? It's difficult to remember all the components for spells
ironymus
It obviously belonged to a woman with the name Shadowheart
MadnerKami
They were used for whatever they were practical at the moment. I use a drinking glas as a storage-device for pens and pencils. A Ben and Jerry's cup as an impromptu garbage bin on my work desk and my car as a motel when I am on tour.
AvsFreak
twentydollarbanana
Why is this downvoted…?
AvsFreak
I don't know lol. Who down votes pee wee?
KilroyLichking
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_dodecahedron. the knitting of gloves is speculation as the earliest examples of European knitwear is from the 1500's whereas the artifact dates to 100 ad and 200 ad. this blog breaks down the problems with the knitting gloves theory https://eukaryotewritesblog.com/2022/08/04/fiber-arts-mysterious-dodecahedrons-and-waiting-on-eureka/
KilroyLichking
best guess is that it was a thing to prove a smiths skills to qualify for a guild, an early clock to be used with candles of set diameters and burn times, a surveying instrument, and yes to knit things like socks and fingers for gloves
RobearGWJ
All three of the latter are ruled out by the fact that none of these were standard in size or proportions. Also, they tend to be found in and around smithies, often military.
TI99Kitty
Ancient grenades.
VenetianViolet
Knitting has existed for almost 5000 years.
Iputthebestinbestiality
You're probably thinking about viking knitting / nålebinding :)
KilroyLichking
False. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_knitting. earliest cultural examples, and artifacts date to 11th century Egypt. However weaving https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weaving dates back to between 10,100- 9800 bce. the key distinction is that knitting is a system of two strands of thread knotted together in a repeating fashion whereas weaving uses a loom or similar device to interlace two sets of thread at right angles
VenetianViolet
Pardon me. I should have said at least instead of almost.
RobearGWJ
It's also very difficult to tell one-stranded binding from actual knitting, just by looking. And the former came well before the latter.
kakivara
The earliest example is a modern-looking sock with enclosed toe, heel requiring a different stich, with a complex color pattern. It was obviously not the first knitted thing, knitting had been around a while before that sock was made. The archaeological record is missing the entire early history of knitting.