This Week In History News, September 3 – 9

Published September 8, 2017
Updated March 13, 2019

Excalibur possibly found, ancient city to be washed away, pre-Pyramid ruins discovered in Canada, mysterious manuscript decoded, new Holocaust revelations come to light.

Girl Finds Sword In Lake Where King Arthur’s “Excalibur” Was Thrown, According To Legend

Matilda Excalibur

SWNS.com

One little girl was thoroughly surprised when she found a sword in the exact lake that legend says King Arthur’s sword Excalibur was left.

The Scotsman reports that Matilda Jones, aged seven, from Doncaster, England was on a trip to Cornwall with her father when she found the sword.

Her father, Paul Jones, 51, brought his two daughters to Dozmary Pool on Tuesday, August 29th. On the way to the lake, Paul recounted the legend of King Arthur, and the story of how Excalibur was said to have been discarded in the Dozmary Pool.

When they got there, just like the Arthurian legend, a sword lay in the water waiting for someone to draw it out.

Read more here.

A 12,000-Year-Old City Is About To Be Washed Away On Purpose

Hasankeyf Castle

Wikimedia Commons

A new major infrastructure project threatens one of the most impressive ancient sites in the world.

The Hasankeyf citadel in southeastern Turkey has been standing since the Middle Bronze Age and is some 12,000 years old. At different times, Hasankeyf been part of the Roman, Byzantine, Arab, Mongol, and Ottoman empires. Replete with caves, spires, and ancient buildings, Hasankeyf remains a beautiful connection to a distant past.

However, The Guardian reports that construction of the Ilisu Dam on the Tigris River is on the verge of raising water levels in the area and flood the citadel and 80% the city it was once part of.

Dig deeper here.

Ancient Ruins Older Than The Pyramids Discovered In Canada

Triquet Island Settlement

Grant Callegari/Hakai Institute

A team of Canadian Ph.D students discovered an ancient village that dates back to before the era of the pyramids.

CTV reports that a team of students from the University of Victoria’s archeology department have uncovered the oldest settlement in North America. This ancient village was discovered when researchers were searching Triquet Island, an island located about 300 miles north of Victoria, British Columbia.

The team found ancient fish hooks and spears, as well as tools for make fires. However, they really hit the jackpot when they found an ancient cooking hearth, from which they were able to obtain flakes of charcoal burnt by prehistoric Canadians.

Discover more here.

author
All That's Interesting
author
A New York-based publisher established in 2010, All That's Interesting brings together subject-level experts in history, true crime, and science to share stories that illuminate our world.
editor
John Kuroski
editor
John Kuroski is the editorial director of All That's Interesting. He graduated from New York University with a degree in history, earning a place in the Phi Alpha Theta honor society for history students. An editor at All That's Interesting since 2015, his areas of interest include modern history and true crime.