Jim Hatt said:
Lamar.
My only reason for coming to T-Net, is to dispel wild theories about the stone maps and what is written on them. If you take this as a personal attack on you, so be it. But was not my intention and I have no control over how you perceive things.
If someone (anyone) challenges the authenticity of the stone maps, based on nothing but their knee jerk reaction to words and symbols engraved on them. I remind them of the following:
The only way to “gauge” the validity of any map is to have some parallel information to compare it to.
One way would be to compare it to a proven map of the same area it is suspected of applying to.
Another is to go to the area it is assumed to apply to, and see if it matches the terrain in that area.
Even then… A lot of consideration would have to be given to how detailed, or ambiguous the map maker intended the map to be, and any security factors that may be incorporated into it. Especially if the map was believed to lead to anything of value. Anyone who looks at a treasure map, or a map that leads to a lost mine, and immediately starts forming conclusions based on superficial observations, is not someone whose opinion I would put much faith in.
Judging the validity of any map, by the spelling and grammar used on it, the material it was drawn on, or any subjective opinions, about the meaning of any symbols on it, is ridiculous, no matter who the author might have been, or when it was believed to have been drawn.
Lamar Wrote:
“This is some sort of joke, isn't it? The evidence against the stone maps being carved before the 1940s is pretty much ENDLESS! FOr example:
The style of the lettering
The style of caricatures (figures)
The Bowie knife
The shape of the heart
The position of the brand on the horse
The so-called *Spanish* words used
The grammar
The tools used to carve the stone maps”
You may believe that the reasons stated above are valid reasons for dismissing the validity of the stone maps.
I disagree.
Jim Hatt
Dear Jim Hatt;
Wait a minute please. First, I NEVER discounted the stone maps in any way for the simple and honest reason that I have NO IDEA what their intended purpose was for, HOWEVER I *feel* that they do not lead to the LDM. I honestly, and I say this with all sincerity and honesty, I do not know what the purpose of the stone maps are for and I do NOT know that they were used to intentionally misrepresent the possible location of the LDM. Many people have *assumed* that the stone maps lead the way to the entrance of the LDM, yet there is nothing that I can find on the maps themselves which leads me to believe that they are maps to the LDM.
My conclusions also reflect the general consensus among other, very highly accredited, opinions on the same subject, such as:
The stone maps are modern and they were most likely carved in the time period from the 1940s to the 1960s.
The details were carved by hand, yet the stone's facing surfaces were smoothed flat by modern machinery, as is evidenced by the microscopic tools marks are going in one direction on all of smooth faces of the maps.
The misspelling of Spanish words is highly typical of the misspelling errors committed by non-native Spanish speakers and what's more, the spelling errors are highly typical of errors committed by native English speakers who try to write phonically in Spanish. In short, the errors are typical of what a Spanish teacher would encounter among students in high school Spanish class. I verified this by showing the errors to several high school Spanish teachers and their opinions were conclusive across the board. "The person writing the sentences had a very poor grasp of the Spanish language, at least how Spanish is written."
The witch map does not depict a Jesuit, a Franciscan, or other Roman Catholic clergyman, due to the garb depicted in the caricature.
The heart is a modern rendition and it does not reflect the style of heart that was used in colonial Mexico, even during the late 1800s.
The knife depicted is a Bowie knife and it is typical of the design favored by our military during WWII. The overall shape of the blade, the handle and especially the guard tells one that the carving of the knife on the stone was rendered from an actual hunting knife, the type of which was hugely popular with sportsmen immediately following WWII. Advertisements in old copies of Field & Stream, Outdoor Life and other magazines will easily verify this.
The lettering on the stones is not the same style as found throughout Latin America which was first brought to the New World by the Spanish colonists. In fact, the lettering style is decidedly American and not Latin in origin.
The heart inset is clearly and plainly from a different stone source than it's counterpart and thus it may be surmised that the actual heart was carved first and then it's pattern was traced upon the stone map, and then the relief was carved accordingly. Also, the relief of the heart stone clearly depicts machine marks when viewed under a 10X or greater microscope.
And those are the facts, my friend. You can argue and disregard any and all of them for as long as you wish, yet the facts remain the same. Once more, I have no idea what the intended purpose of the maps were for, I only know what I was able to examine.
Your friend;
LAMAR