Synopses & Reviews
Over the millennia, the legend of a great deluge has endured in the biblical story of Noah and in such Middle Eastern myths as the epic of Gilgamesh. Now two distinguished geophysicists have discovered a catastrophic event that changed history, a gigantic flood 7,600 years ago in what is today the Black Sea. andlt;BRandgt; Using sound waves and coring devices to probe the sea floor, William Ryan and Walter Pitman revealed clear evidence that this inland body of water had once been a vast freshwater lake lying hundreds of feet below the level of the world's rising oceans. Sophisticated dating techniques confirmed that 7,600 years ago the mounting seas had burst through the narrow Bosporus valley, and the salt water of the Mediterranean had poured into the lake with unimaginable force, racing over beaches and up rivers, destroying or chasing all life before it. The rim of the lake, which had served as an oasis, a Garden of Eden for farms and villages in a vast region of semi-desert, became a sea of death. The people fled, dispersing their languages, genes, and memories.
Review
Richard Ellis andlt;Iandgt;The New York Times Book Reviewandlt;/Iandgt; An interesting and provocative story...Ryan and Pitman have thoroughly researched every aspect of this intricately woven story. They are articulate, enthusiastic, and dedicated.
Review
Amanda Heller andlt;Iandgt;The Boston Globeandlt;/Iandgt; A complex but thoroughly plausible solution to this intriguing mystery in a narrative of surprisingly dramatic intensity.
Review
Philip Morrison and Phylis Morrison andlt;Iandgt;Scientific Americanandlt;/Iandgt; As engaging as it is important...exciting...full of surprises, rivalries, and partnerships.
Review
David Brown andlt;Iandgt;The Washington Postandlt;/Iandgt; A fascinating lesson in geology, oceanography, archaeology, and inductive reasoning.
Description
Includes bibliographical references (p. [263]-302) and index.
About the Author
andlt;Bandgt;William B. F. Ryanandlt;/Bandgt; and andlt;Bandgt;Walter C. Pitmanandlt;/Bandgt; are senior scientists at the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University and recipients of the Shepard Medal of excellence in marine geology.
Table of Contents
andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt;andlt;Iandgt;Contentsandlt;/Iandgt;andlt;/Bandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Iandgt;List of Mapsandlt;/Iandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Iandgt;Note to the Readerandlt;/Iandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Iandgt;Prologue: Witnessesandlt;/Iandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;ONE: THE DISCOVERY OF THE FLOOD STORYandlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Iandgt;1 Deciphering the Legendandlt;/Iandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Iandgt;2 Conversionsandlt;/Iandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Iandgt;3 Visions of Palacesandlt;/Iandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Iandgt;4 The Face of the Deepandlt;/Iandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Iandgt;5 Ur of the Chaldeesandlt;/Iandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;TWO: THE DISCOVERY OF A REAL FLOODandlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Iandgt;6 Hidden Riverandlt;/Iandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Iandgt;7 Gibraltar's Waterfallandlt;/Iandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Iandgt;8 Vanished Desertsandlt;/Iandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Iandgt;9 Pontus Axenusandlt;/Iandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Iandgt;10 Red Hillandlt;/Iandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Iandgt;11 Aquanautsandlt;/Iandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Iandgt;12 Immigrantsandlt;/Iandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Iandgt;13 Close Encounterandlt;/Iandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Iandgt;14 Beachcombersandlt;/Iandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Iandgt;15 Back of the Envelopeandlt;/Iandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;THREE: WHO WAS THERE, AND WHERE DID THEY GO?andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Iandgt;16 Anybody There?andlt;/Iandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Iandgt;17 The Diasporaandlt;/Iandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Iandgt;18 Family Treesandlt;/Iandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Iandgt;19 The Guslar's Songandlt;/Iandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;FOUR: THE FLOOD STORIES TOLDandlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Iandgt;20 On a Golden Pondandlt;/Iandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Iandgt;21 Other Mythsandlt;/Iandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Iandgt;Epilogue: A Telling ofandlt;/Iandgt; Atrahasisandlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Iandgt;Acknowledgmentsandlt;/Iandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Iandgt;Notesandlt;/Iandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Iandgt;Indexandlt;/Iandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt;andlt;Iandgt;List of Mapsandlt;/Iandgt;andlt;/Bandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;Mesopotamia and the Levantandlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;The voyage of the andlt;Iandgt;Chainandlt;/Iandgt; up the Bosporus in 1961andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;The andlt;Iandgt;Glomar Challengerandlt;/Iandgt; drilling the floor of the Mediterranean Sea in 1970andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;The andlt;Iandgt;Atlantis IIandlt;/Iandgt; mapping and sampling the seabed of the Black Sea in 1969andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;The Kerch Strait and the path of the ancient Don Riverandlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;The path of meltwater delivered from the Eurasian ice sheet, beginning around 12,500 B.C.andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;The historical connection of the Black Sea to the Mediterraneanandlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;Anatolia at the time farming began to spreadandlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;Inferred human migrations west and northwest into Europe in the wake of the Black Sea floodandlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;Inferred human migrations northeast into Asia and southeast into the Levant, Egypt, and Mesopotamiaandlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;The Takla Makan desert of western China with the shoreline of the giant lake that formerly filled the Tarim Basinandlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;A Sumerian map of their world