Archaeology is a fascinating subject, and from time to time it can be quite exciting. A good example is the discovery, translation and interpretation of the Dead Sea scrolls. The subject has also been given a great boost by the Indiana Jones films. My attention was recently caught by an exciting and controversial report of the discovery of an ancient temple under Lake Titicaca.
Lake Titicaca is the world's highest lake navigable by large vessels. It lies in the Andes, 3,810 metres above sea level, straddling the border between Peru, to the west, and Bolivia, to the east. It is the second-largest lake in South America, with a surface area of 8,300 square kilometres. It is 190 kilometres long, 80 kilometres across at its widest point and averages about 150 metres in depth.
Forty-one islands rise from the lake, which is millions of years old. The largest, Titicaca Island, contains temple ruins that mark the spot where legend says Manco Capac and Mama Oello, the founders of the Inca dynasty, were sent to earth by the sun. In Inca mythology, Manco Capac and Mama Oello emerged from the depths of the lake to found their empire.
Some of the people living in the Titicaca basin still practise ancient methods of agriculture on stepped terraces that predate Inca times. Some still live according to the principles of Inca life and observe three golden rules: Do not steal, do not be idle and do not lie.
The people who live around the lake have long told stories of Wanaku, a lost underwater city, the Atlantis of South America. They have described a mysterious island with a hidden entrance to tunnels built by the Inca. An archaeological expedition recently declared it had found evidence that the legends may be true.
In August last year, an Italian archaeological group, Akakor Geographical Exploring, reported finding the remains of what is thought to be a 1,000- to 1,500-year-old temple under Lake Titicaca. They were led by a submerged ancient road to a 200-metre-long, 50-metre-wide "holy temple", a terrace for crops and an 800-metre-long containing wall.
They also found a stone anchor, vases and bones from animals such as a llama that may have been ritually sacrificed. The find was made near the Bolivian town of Copacabana.
The age of the ruins would mean they predate the Inca, and the leader of the expedition attributed them to the indigenous Tiahuanaco people, who lived on the shores of the lake before becoming part of the Incaic empire. The team hopes eventually to bring the ruins to the surface.
The group's report has raised the ire of the professional archaeological community, however. Some respected archaeologists with long experience in Bolivia are sceptical about the Italian group's techniques and about the validity of its findings. It has been pointed out that the Akakor expedition spent only 20 days in Bolivia, whereas most archaeological investigations work methodically on a site for months or years.
Also, Akakor announced its findings at a press conference, whereas the conventional way to publish scholarly findings is to submit them to a peer-reviewed journal. It has also been pointed out that, of the 24 people on the Akakor expedition, only one was an archaeologist.
The Akakor report also claims that the temple ruins, mostly hand-cut stones, lie under 15-30 metres of water. The level of the lake has risen and fallen by up to 20 metres in the past 1,000 years, which means a building 15 metres underwater could have been built on dry land hundreds of years ago. Archaeologists who have worked at the lake say it is inconceivable that such a large ruin, lying in such shallow waters, could have remained undetected until last August.
Archaeology is particularly prone to occasional fantastic claims, such as the discovery of lost cities, evidence that extra-terrestrials built the Egyptian pyramids and so on. Such reports often inspire amateurs to organise expeditions, and searches are ongoing in the Andes for Paititi, a fictitious city where the Inca are supposed to have hidden their gold when the Spanish invaded. Indeed, Akakor Geographical Exploring is named after supposedly the largest underground city in the Amazon, which is said to be accessible only by tunnel.
Professional archaeologists are very irritated by amateur expeditions, especially those that pursue fantastic ideas. Such trips find it easy to grab media attention and shift public focus away from the far less dramatic pursuits of the professionals.
More important, they can also siphon off money that would otherwise go to professional research. The "exciting" projects undertaken by amateur expeditions can often attract much higher funding than rigorous but prosaic-seeming professional expeditions.
In this case, it should be easy to settle the matter. Akakor Geographical Exploring has made definite claims and named the location of its find. Let it produce proof of the find, and make it available for professional scrutiny.
William Reville is a senior lecturer in biochemistry and director of microscopy at University College, Cork