Short Answer: Yes (at least for some, like Erich von Daniken). Slightly Longer Answer: Yes, because some presume that humans in antiquity were so primitive they could not build these things without the assistance of non-human intelligence. Then, an elect super-race...
moundbuilders
Why the Moundbuilder Myth is Wrong
Readers interested in ancient North America (and who are data-driven, not conspiracy-driven or fans of bad biblical interpretation) would do well to read this old (2011) essay by Kenneth Feder, Bradley T. Lepper, Terry A. Barnhart, and Deborah A. Bolnick:...
Ancient Astronaut Theory and Racism
I've blogged before about how the theory of ancient aliens being responsible for the monumental building of ancient Egypt and other contemporaneous civilizations is inherently racist. The idea is basically that the humans of Egypt and these other cultures were simply...
The Racism Behind Ancient Alien Mummy Hoaxes
Yep. I've said it before and I'll say it again. When ancient alien theorists (or Christian North American nephilim "race" theorists) insist those are the explanations for impressive engineering and architectural work (think Nazca lines, mounds), what they're saying is...
The Myth of Double-Row Teeth and Elongated-Skull Nephilim
I’ve blogged once before about this point of pseudo-research as it relates to using the Talmud for its justification. In biblical thinking and history, however, the nephilim (who were unusually tall) died out in biblical times. That means there were no modern nephilim...
American Moundbuilders and Earthworks: Textbook Pseudo-Archaeology
Here's a link to a short essay that outlines the basic "techniques" for pseudo-archaeological analysis. While the essay notes the flawed thinking of Glenn Beck in regard to the Newark Earthworks, the essay ought to be a cautionary piece for all Christian Middle Earth...
A Blow to Racist Fringe History
Jason Colavito has an interesting post on some recent research that damages the Solutrean Hypothesis. For those who haven't heard of this, Jason explains: Fringe history believers have long used the Solutrean claim as evidence for European primacy in the Americas, a...
Colavito, Hanks, and Giants: Some Interaction by Heiser
See how I cleverly included all three last names for better searching? You'll understand that if you read Jason Colavito's latest post on "gigantology": Micah Hanks: The Hubris of Jason Colavito and Skeptics Over Giants Is "Worthy of Study." Basically, Micah Hanks is...
More Nephilim-Bigfoot-Mound Builder-Peruvian Cone-Heads Flim-Flam
This would all be discouraging were not Jason Colavito's lengthy reviews of this stuff so entertaining. Both of these essays were posted this month. Annotations are mine. Creationist "Bigfoot" Veterinarian Wants Cash to Sequence Nephilim "Giant" DNA Readers will...
PseudoScience and the Ohio Serpent Mound
An interesting discussion on this over at the "Hot Cup of Joe" blog, which focuses on archaeology and anthropology. Check it out for some holiday PaleoBabble!