A New Zealand laboratory has been given the job of dating a
Chinese ancient map which could revolutionize the views on who
discovered New Zealand, Australia and the Americas, according to a
local TV report on Tuesday.
Until international publicity about the ancient map in the past
few days, the radio carbon-dating unit of New Zealand's Waikato
University had no idea how important the parchment was, said
NZTV.?????
Experts believe the analysis has the potential to indicate a
famous Chinese explorer discovered America before Christopher
Columbus. It would also reinforce theories that the Chinese were
the first to discover Australia and New Zealand.
Steve Behrendt, a historian, said the theory, which had been
around for the past decade or so, was popularized in a book in 2003
called 1421.
The theory is back in the spotlight again with a map that
supporters say adds weight to the idea that the Chinese discovered
America.
Waikato University is one of the leading laboratories in the
world with radio carbon analysis and a tiny scrap of paper
currently being analyzed has provoked intrigue and controversy as
far away as Britain and the United States.
Gunnar Thompson, a researcher of ancient maps and early
explorers, said if the map was genuine it would revolutionize
thinking about 15th century world history.
(Xinhua News Agency January 18, 2006)
