The controversial archaeologist, Semir Osmanagich, wrote in a blog that the sphere dates back more than 1,500 years and is “the most massive stone ball in Europe.” He estimates the sphere weighs some 30 tons or more.
Osmanagich said he discovered the sphere in the village of Podubravlje, near Zavidovici, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and his estimates show it has a radius of between 1.2 to 1.5 meters (about 3 feet, 11 inches to about 4 feet, 11 inches).
He says the sphere, in addition to his earlier claims that Bosnia is home to hidden ancient pyramids linked by underground tunnels, prove the existence of an advanced, lost civilization.
“It would be another proof that Southern Europe, Balkan and Bosnia, in particular, were home for advanced civilizations from distant past and we have no written records about them,” Osmanagich wrote in the blog post announcing the discovery for his non-profit group named The Archaeological Park: Bosnian Pyramid of the Sun Foundation.
Other archaeologists have dismissed Osmanagich’s previous claims about pyramid finds. Anthony Harding, President of the European Association of Archaeologists, described the claims as “complete fantasy.”
According to the International Business Times, some archaeologists have already dismissed Osmanagich’s sphere discovery saying that the rock was likely created naturally. Mandy Edwards of the University of Manchester's School of Earth, Atmospheric and Environmental Sciences told the Daily Mail that the rock was likely formed by the "precipitation of natural mineral cement within the spaces between sediment grains."
Could Osmanagich's new discovery be manmade?
Stone balls have been discovered around the world and linked to ancient civilizations. There are ancient volcanic stone spheres in western Mexico, stone balls in the small island in Pacific – Isla del Cano, volcanic stone balls on Easter Island, and others in Tunisia, and the Canary Islands.
Among the most famous of these finds are the more than 300 granite balls uncovered in Costa Rica. Each weighs up to 14 tons and were linked to the now extinct Diquis culture. In June 2014, the Stone Spheres of the Diquis was added to the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites.
Osmanagich stands by his theory that his recent find could represent the biggest, manmade stone ball of them all. He added that his team has located stone balls in several other locations in Bosnia.
“We found granite stone balls in the Teocak village in northeastern Bosnia, volcanic stone ball near town of Konjic in middle Bosnia and sandstone stone spheres in many locations in western and middle Bosnia,” Osmanagich wrote.
Read more at Discovery News
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