Pre- historical Kenya
First stop in the time machine- I look outside, and there’s a clear blue sky. It’s a sunny day. It looks like I have landed in some sort of camp. There are two monkey- looking humans sitting on the ground, using a very sharp rock to make a spearpoint. They are tying it to a large branch. I guess this is a former version of a spear. The sound of rock against rock echoes in my ears. The early humans have hair covering their whole bodies. I can tell they are female. There is a small fire on the ground, in a hearth made from large rocks. The smoke is intoxicating. A smaller and probably younger early human was playing with a twig on the ground, making grunting noises. I look up, and I see a large, dry field. In the distance I can see many grasslands, with occasional trees and mountains further ahead. There are some animals, including rabbits, birds, and even a deer in the background. The deer is running towards the camp. It looks tired. Suddenly I realize that something is chasing it, running at a constant speed after it. It’s two ape- like humans, carrying spears. They don’t look tired or dehydrated, but the deer looks like it’s about to die. As they approach the small fire, the deer falls, exhausted, and one of the early humans sinks the spear into its flesh. Exuberantly, they pick it up together and walk towards the camp. The two other early humans, the females, come to help the males, and together they manage to roast the deer over the fire. There is happy grunting everywhere, and the young come to see the deer, as it is being cooked. As one of the males has a small wound of his left leg, he gets special attention and is cared for by the others. Then, they all sit down and eat happily.
Ancient Sumeria
I now come to the small village of Ain Mallaha, in Sumeria. I am now inside a sort of house; with stone covered dirt walls and a reed roof. There are some fifteen humans inside the house. There are a few minding the fire, in the circular fire pit, roasting meat and grain. There are others storing food in storage bins. The surplus is being stored in another part of the house, with other storage bins. It looks like there has been a great surplus this year. Other’s are using mortar and pestle for the grain, while talking to each other. Mortar and pestle are stone tools used to grind grain. There are children inside and outside the house, running around. As I walk outside I smell fresh grass, the fragrant of flowers, and animal manure. The sun is high up in the sky, casting its rays over Sumer. I can see a valley of lush vegetation, full of life. There are small birds, rodents, and insects scurrying around for food in the forest floor. The bushes are filled with ripe berries, and there are plentiful nuts. Tall trees tower over me, filled with the singing of birds. Everything around me is green. No wonder it is called the “fertile crescent”. I can also see fields of yellow. This is probably where all the grain comes from, and the great surplus. There are humans working in the fields, collecting the grain. Further away there are sheep and goats grazing in the rich grass. As I look more closely, I can also see a few dogs running around. These are the domesticated animals of the people of Ain Mallaha. Now, I see some humans walking through the forest. They are collecting fruits, nuts, berries, and eatable plants. However, now they are walking back the camp. I hear them chattering happily, and eating some of their finds in the forest.
Ancient Egypt
I am now standing in front of the Nile River, in ancient Egypt. It is early morning, and the small houses along the river are coming to life. The houses are small, made from straw or bricks. The brick are made from mud and straws, and then sundried. Men are plowing the fields by the river banks, and collecting the last crops. It is now the end of the harvest season, and all the surplus has been stored. Now the Egyptians are waiting for the inundation season, to make their fields fertile again to be able to grow more crops. Children are playing in the water, cleaning themselves and splashing around. The water isn’t very deep by the riverbanks, so they are safe from the dangers of the predators of the Nile River. Women are indoors, doing house chores. The river is full of life too, just like its banks. There are shadows of both large and small fish swimming in the shallow water, in schools. There are frogs and tadpoles, otters, birds out hunting, ducks, ad various insects near the shore. Mosquitoes have nested along the banks in the swamps, and I hear a slight buzzing noise. Farther out, however, are more dangerous predators, such as the crocodile, camouflaged as wooden logs in the brown water. I see a man with his young son get on a small boat, and onto the Nile. The son is no more than twelve. The man has a fishing line, and he casts it out, and then waits patiently. His son stares wide eyed. There are other boats out too, both fishing and hunting for ducks and birds. I hear a rumbling noise, and I see a boat advancing. It is a large sailboat, carrying boxes of food. It is probably trade from Nubia, going into the city.
Ancient India
I am now in the Aryan civilization, in ancient India. As I look around, I see small buildings looking like houses on one side. They are more advanced than in Sumer, with advanced houses. Most of them even have courtyards. There is chattering and laughter in the streets, as the children run around and play, with their toys and pets. It is now mid- day, and it is quite hot. There are artisans trying to sell their wares on the streets, and they are indeed receiving many customers. I watch a carpenter use an iron axe to chop up some wood, and sell a wooden carving to an elderly lady. The streets are very busy. People are wearing colored clothes, with a lot of bight cotton, and a lot of jewelry. As I walk along, I see a wedding going on. It is a young woman from the prior Indus valley getting married to an Aryan soldier. This is an intermixing of cultures. I have heard that the Aryans came here with their chariots and easily overpowered the soldiers, and now the Indus valley is under the rule of the Aryans. I hear the priest reading a passage out of the Vedas, a holy book of the Aryans. Vedas means “knowledge”. The priest is highly respected by everyone. Priests are definitely on the top of the social levels. I continued walking. I could see parents with their elder children working in stores and boutiques. Children have to take the social class and profession of their parents. It’s a very rigid caste system. Now, I reached the Indus river. It’s full of life, with animals and plants along the river banks. I smell the lush, green vegetation. The water is clear and clean.
Present day archaeological dig
Now, I am in a present day archeology camp. I can see archaeologists everywhere, with their small brush tools, screeners, and buckets. They are digging up the remains of an ancient city. To preserve the camp, a large tent has been built around it, casting a large shadow over it. On one end of the camp is where the screened soil is dumped, and the rest is digging area. A large grid has been laid out, with perfect squares to be able to tell exactly where objects of the past were found. Archaeologists are sketching, brushing, screening, emptying buckets, discussing artifacts, taking photographs, and recording accurate field notes. I can smell the moist soil that is being dug up. I can hear soft talking, the clicking of photographs, the sound of pencils against paper, and discussions being made. This might be the greatest archaeological find yet.
