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00:00An expansive Egyptian burial site is discovered.
00:04You would expect to find an elaborate tomb at the bottom of a shaft like this.
00:08But there is nothing decorative about this space.
00:11This is a tomb, but something is still not quite lining up.
00:16Mysterious buried treasure is unearthed in the Namib Desert.
00:19Thousands of coins from various power centers of the time are pulled from the sand.
00:24In total, over 2,000 gold, silver, and copper coins are found.
00:29This is an invaluable find.
00:31And a World War II relic is found perfectly preserved in the sand.
00:36It seems that it endured a pretty rough but successful landing.
00:40But if the plane crash landed, did the pilot survive?
00:48Astonishing discoveries unearthed from the depths of the desert.
00:55Ancient lost cities.
00:58Forgotten treasures.
01:01Mysterious structures.
01:04Extraordinary curiosities, once lost to the sands of time, are finally revealed.
01:10As new technology uncovers remarkable tales hidden beneath the deserts of the world,
01:16the secrets in the sand will finally be exposed.
01:32Cairo, from the Arabic word meaning triumphant, is the capital city of Egypt.
01:38It sits along the Nile River, where the deserts and the delta meet.
01:43It's not only the cultural center of the Arab world, but it's Africa's most populous city with a population of
01:50more than 22 million people.
01:52While a much more modern city, as compared to the depth of Egyptian history,
01:57Cairo is surrounded by ancient sites, relics, and countless connections to the past.
02:0432 kilometers south of Cairo, west of the modern Arab village of Saqqara,
02:09in the shadow of the Unas Pyramid, last excavated over 100 years ago,
02:15archaeologists made a remarkable new discovery, directly next to the original site.
02:22Beneath the sand, at the forgotten, crumbling site,
02:26teams unearthed the mouth of a shaft, with two round holes cut into the ground next to it.
02:3142 tons of debris are removed from the site, including thousands of shards of pottery and rock.
02:36But what it reveals has everyone stomped.
02:4213 meters below the ground, they found a 5 meter by 8 meter ventilated room,
02:47with even more ceramic jars and bowls,
02:50a table hewn from huge slabs of rock,
02:53and a large vessel still filled with ash, charcoal, and dark sand.
02:59Based on the style of the pottery shards present in the layers throughout the shaft,
03:03experts date the site to around 600 BCE,
03:06making it around 2,500 years old.
03:08But what is this place?
03:12Here in Egypt, you would expect to find an elaborate tomb at the bottom of a shaft like this.
03:18But there is nothing decorative about this space, nor is there a sarcophagus.
03:24Egyptian burials ranged from modest shallow graves,
03:27to elaborate majestic sites,
03:30like that of King Khufu's tomb at the Great Pyramid of Giza.
03:34The size and style depended on your status or class.
03:39The only similarities of note here are the shaft itself and the air ventilation system.
03:44Tombs almost always feature some type of air shaft,
03:47believed to maintain airflow and keep the inevitable dust down.
03:51Others believe these air vents may have had a more spiritual purpose,
03:55to allow the deceased soul to pass from the chamber and into the afterlife.
04:00But with no entombed body present, that reason doesn't really seem to apply.
04:06Investigating further south along the site,
04:09they discovered the mouth of yet another shaft.
04:11Only this one was much larger and ran 30 meters below the surface.
04:17The shaft is more similar to that of the pharaoh Djoser's tomb,
04:21a grand stepped pyramid.
04:23It's actually the first ever pyramid built in Egypt.
04:27It stands 62 meters above the sand
04:30and features a central 28 meter deep burial shaft.
04:35The shaft leads to Djoser's tomb that features ornately carved stone
04:39and beautiful blue glazed tile.
04:42And it's only a short walk away from this new discovery.
04:45So perhaps this shaft leads to another pharaoh.
04:49The shaft at Djoser's tomb is similar to this one,
04:53only it leads to something much more grand
04:55than the basic structure discovered here.
04:58This is a tomb, but something is still not quite lining up.
05:03The newly discovered 30 meter shaft
05:06doesn't lead to just one tomb fit for a pharaoh,
05:09but contains many levels of niches, rooms and tombs.
05:15At three meters deep, there's a mummy in a small niche.
05:19And at nine meters, there are two rooms of mummies,
05:23one of which has a few niches for individuals,
05:25but also rows of mummies stacked on top of one another.
05:29Amongst the stacks of mummies is the burial of a wealthier woman.
05:33She is wrapped in a gilded plaster bodice
05:35inside an unfinished sarcophagus.
05:38She was buried next to many shabity figures,
05:41signifying her wealth and status.
05:44And yet, also lies beside a very simple burial of a skeleton
05:48covered with only four stones.
05:52It's very strange.
05:54Then, at 17 meters, there are many more mummies
05:57stacked on top of one another in the middle of the shaft,
05:59including some beautifully painted coffins.
06:02These haphazardly placed mummies are right next
06:05to the private compartment of two men from a single family.
06:08The variety here is fascinating.
06:11Continuing the dig,
06:13at the bottom of the shaft,
06:15they discovered a second, smaller shaft,
06:17leading horizontally to a series of six tombs
06:21cut into the bedrock.
06:22There is a room to the west of the shaft
06:25that houses two mummies,
06:27one of which is in a very decayed wooden coffin.
06:30This tomb is much more ornate
06:33than the discoveries found above it,
06:34and yet still more simple
06:36when compared to a royal burial.
06:38Deciphered inscriptions indicate
06:40that there is a priest entombed here.
06:42The priest was wearing a gilded mask
06:45with black gemstone inlays for the eyes.
06:49Examination of the artifact
06:50proved that it was made almost entirely of pure silver,
06:55a very rare metal for the time.
06:58Because the tombs of most ancient Egyptian dignitaries were looted,
07:02this mask is only the third of its kind
07:05ever discovered in Egypt.
07:07And it is much more impressive
07:09and would have been much more expensive
07:11than the gilded plaster mask found in the tomb above.
07:15Ancient Egyptians believed that the bones of their gods
07:18were made of silver,
07:19and their flesh made of gold.
07:22Wearing a mask like this,
07:23made of precious metals,
07:25would have been seen as getting a step closer to the gods.
07:28Famously,
07:29Tutankhamun was buried with a glorious,
07:31double-layered, high-carat gold mask.
07:34It was inlaid with coloured glass,
07:36gemstones,
07:37quartz,
07:37and obsidian.
07:39To the east is one of the larger tombs,
07:42and so far the deepest to be excavated.
07:46In Egyptian burials,
07:47the deeper the tomb,
07:49the closer the interred person was to the realm of the afterlife.
07:53It holds a single massive sarcophagus,
07:56with a five-ton lid,
07:58two sets of shabtis,
08:00and two boxes of alabaster canopic jars,
08:03used to hold the removed organs of the mummified body.
08:08The jars bear the inscription of the entombed woman,
08:11named Tadihor.
08:12This type and depth of burial,
08:15with so many funerary items,
08:17would have been very costly.
08:19The last of the chambers contains four rotting wood coffins,
08:23and among them is a woman named Didi Bestat,
08:27who was buried with six canopic jars.
08:31This is strange,
08:32because we've only ever seen or read about canopic jars being used in fours.
08:37This is because the ancient Egyptians believed
08:39that the lungs, liver, stomach, and intestines
08:42were each protected by one of the four sons of Horus.
08:46The discovery of six jars for one person
08:49could signify a new style of burial tradition previously undocumented.
08:54CT scans of the additional jars
08:57show that they do contain mummified tissues.
09:00However, the reason for two additional jars is still unknown,
09:03and likely doesn't represent a shift in tradition,
09:06but rather is just a unique case.
09:10There are so many unique and surprising discoveries at this one site.
09:14Frankly, the discovery of a single mummy is still exhilarating
09:18and worthy of attention,
09:19but 54 mummies?
09:21That's really rare.
09:22Why were so many different people buried together?
09:33After archaeologists uncovered a previously undiscovered Egyptian shaft
09:38containing 54 puzzling mummified remains,
09:41they were left wondering
09:42why so many were buried together.
09:46Back on the surface,
09:48ceramics experts were reconstructing
09:50the thousands of pot shards
09:52into hundreds of vessels,
09:55measuring cups, and bowls.
09:57What's so interesting is the discovery
09:59that there are clear symbols painted
10:01onto each container with black ink,
10:03only they don't appear to be decorative
10:05or canopic vessels,
10:06items traditionally associated with burials.
10:09So if not that,
10:11what were they for?
10:13Each dish appeared to be labelled with the names of substances,
10:17notes about their use,
10:18and rudimentary instructions.
10:20They included beeswax,
10:22conifer,
10:23pistachio,
10:24cedar oil,
10:26bitumen,
10:27and animal fat.
10:29And some were found to be mixed together
10:31in various concoctions.
10:33These aren't casual items.
10:35They're chemicals and substances
10:36that were specifically used
10:38in the preparation,
10:39embalming,
10:40and mummification of bodies.
10:41So these mummies weren't just buried here,
10:44but likely prepared here as well.
10:47The first discovery
10:48of the unidentified 5x9-metre room
10:51with stone slabs,
10:52ventilation,
10:53a large pot filled with ash,
10:55which was likely an incense burner,
10:58all make more sense
10:59in this context as well.
11:01If true,
11:02perhaps the odd room
11:03at the bottom of that 13-metre shaft
11:05is some kind of ancient morgue
11:07or a mummification workshop.
11:10Exploring the grounds
11:11around the mouth of the shafts,
11:13experts were able to identify
11:15the foundation
11:16and remaining structure
11:17of a building and a ramp
11:19with two large mud-brick basins
11:21on either side.
11:23This setup looks very similar
11:24to the historical records
11:25of ebu tents,
11:27or tents of purification.
11:28This is where the first steps
11:30of the mummification process began.
11:32Here, the body would be washed
11:34with sweet-smelling herbs
11:35and then dried out
11:36before having the organs removed.
11:38It's believed that this morgue-type room
11:41is a mummification workshop,
11:42where funerary practitioners
11:44performed both secret
11:46and religious rites
11:47to transition someone
11:49through the last phase of life.
11:51It's all beginning to add up.
11:53The above and below ground
11:54mortuary workshops
11:56and embalming spaces
11:57and this shaft
11:58of many different burials
11:59seem to make up
12:01a massive funeral complex.
12:04We often think of Egyptian burials
12:06as grand experiences
12:08with pyramids
12:09and ornate tombs
12:10for the pharaohs
12:11who ruled the land.
12:12But this site,
12:13the first of its kind
12:15to be discovered,
12:16tells us so much more
12:17about ancient Egyptian society,
12:18their needs,
12:19and their access
12:20to end-of-life services.
12:22The fact that there were
12:23so many different styles
12:24of burial
12:25is evidence
12:26that there was
12:27a funeral package
12:27for anybody
12:28at any price point,
12:30from simple gilded plaster masks
12:31to expensive silver ones,
12:33making access
12:34to the afterlife
12:35available for all.
12:45The Namib Desert
12:47spans an enormous area
12:48that traverses the borders
12:50of three different nations,
12:52Angola, Namibia,
12:54and South Africa.
12:55Almost entirely rainless,
12:57the sand reflects
12:59the parched environment
13:00with pale variations
13:01of orange and yellow.
13:03The population
13:04of the Namib Desert
13:05is quite low.
13:06So, barring a few
13:07isolated communities,
13:08it's virtually uninhabited.
13:09This area of the Namib
13:11is known as the
13:12Shpergebi,
13:12or Forbidden Zone.
13:15It's very close
13:17to the border
13:17with South Africa,
13:18and it's so laden
13:20with natural resources
13:21that for a period
13:22of about 100 years,
13:24anyone without permission
13:25was barred
13:26from entering this area.
13:28Around 20 kilometers
13:30from the nearest town
13:31of Aranyamund,
13:32a group of miners
13:33were building
13:3420-meter-tall levees.
13:36to section off the sea
13:37from the beach
13:38in order to expose
13:39the ocean floor
13:40and prepare the area
13:42for diamond mining
13:43when they came across
13:44something that brought
13:46their work to a halt.
13:48An excavator operator
13:50unearthed several
13:51heavy metal objects,
13:52each with a cylindrical shape.
13:54They narrow towards one end
13:55while expanding
13:56into a rectangle
13:57on the other,
13:58and they appear
13:59to be made of bronze.
14:00What could these things be?
14:03The mining company's
14:04chief geologist
14:05is called in
14:06to examine the objects.
14:07He concludes
14:08that their oblong shape
14:09is reminiscent
14:10of old cannons
14:11that were in use
14:12hundreds of years ago.
14:14As with any technology,
14:16cannons have gone through
14:17their fair share of change.
14:19If you look at 16th
14:20and 17th century examples,
14:22you'll find that they're
14:23mostly long and rounded,
14:25narrowing toward the muzzle end.
14:27But these cannons
14:28have one side
14:29that's distinctively rectangular,
14:31allowing the archaeologists
14:33to identify them.
14:35After examining
14:36the cylinders more closely,
14:38they identified them
14:39as breech-loading cannons.
14:41As opposed to muzzle loaders
14:43where ammunition
14:44was loaded
14:44via the front of the weapon,
14:46these guns
14:47were loaded
14:48from the rear.
14:50The shape of the guns
14:52indicate that they are
14:53hundreds of years old,
14:54predating anything
14:56that would have been in use
14:57even in the 19th century.
14:59Cannons such as these
15:00would have been used
15:01both on land
15:02and at sea.
15:03But out here,
15:04the shoreline is vacant
15:06of any fort or fortifications.
15:08This is also where
15:08the extremely powerful
15:10Benguela current
15:11comes up
15:12from the South Atlantic.
15:13When you combine this
15:14with the reefs
15:15that line the shore
15:15and the frequent
15:17disorienting fog,
15:18you have a very good recipe
15:19for shipwrecks.
15:23This has made
15:25the Skeleton Coast
15:26into the world's
15:27preeminent ship graveyard.
15:29The entire coastline
15:31is covered in shipwrecks
15:33like the Edouard Bolin,
15:35a cargo ship
15:36that ran aground
15:37in 1909.
15:38The Otavi,
15:39which sank in 1945,
15:41and the Winston,
15:43wrecked in 1961,
15:44all of which testifies
15:45to hundreds of years
15:47of maritime activity.
15:49Suspecting the cannons
15:50could be from
15:51an old shipwreck,
15:52the archaeologists
15:53also discovered
15:54what appeared to be
15:55four separate pieces
15:56of heavily corroded hardwood.
15:59And as excavations
16:00continued,
16:01they found long,
16:02smooth,
16:03bone-like materials
16:04clustered together
16:05in the wet sand.
16:06It turns out
16:08these are elephant tusks,
16:09and the sheer number
16:10of them is astounding.
16:12They find more than
16:13100 pieces of ivory,
16:15which is the largest
16:16collection of tusks
16:17ever found in a shipwreck.
16:19The tusks have been
16:20impeccably preserved
16:21by the cold water
16:22coming up from
16:23the South Atlantic
16:24and by the seabed itself.
16:28Starting in the mid-1400s,
16:30elephant ivory was sourced
16:31from the African continent,
16:33remaining a lucrative trade
16:34over the course of centuries.
16:36The beginnings of trade
16:38in elephant ivory
16:39coincided with
16:40the Portuguese Empire's
16:41expansion and colonization
16:43of Africa's Atlantic coast.
16:46In 1494,
16:48the Pope had divided
16:49the New World
16:50into Spanish and Portuguese
16:51spheres of influence.
16:53The Spanish were granted
16:54control of everything
16:56west of the line
16:57of demarcation,
16:58and the Portuguese
16:59everything to the east,
17:01effectively granting them
17:02exclusive access
17:03to Western Africa.
17:05If you also consider
17:07that the Portuguese
17:08had already been exploring
17:09the west coast of Africa
17:10and opening new trade routes
17:12to India,
17:12it makes you wonder
17:13if this wreck
17:14could be a Portuguese one.
17:16Elephant ivory
17:17was a crucial commodity
17:18traded by the Portuguese Empire.
17:20So that means
17:21this ship could be
17:22from any time
17:23within a several-hundred-year period.
17:26As the team
17:27continued to dig,
17:28they uncovered a trove
17:29of half-moon-shaped
17:30metal objects.
17:32Hundreds of them
17:33were littering
17:33the muddy ocean floor.
17:36These are called ingots.
17:38An ingot is a block
17:40of any metal,
17:41which in this case
17:42is copper.
17:44Metals such as copper
17:46were melted into ingots
17:47because it allowed
17:48their shape and weight
17:49to be standardized,
17:50making it easier
17:51to store and ship
17:52the commodity.
17:53When they reached
17:54their destination,
17:55they were then melted down
17:56and made into whatever
17:58object or tool
17:59they were needed for.
18:00As archaeological excavations
18:02continued in the
18:03drained seabed,
18:05small round objects
18:06that appeared
18:07to be precious metal
18:08emerged from the sand.
18:15thousands of coins
18:16from various power centers
18:17of the time
18:18are pulled from the sand.
18:20They find Venetian,
18:21French, and Moorish,
18:22as well as Spanish
18:23and Portuguese coins.
18:25In total,
18:26over 2,000 gold,
18:28silver, and copper coins
18:29are found on the sea bottom.
18:31This is an invaluable find,
18:33not only because
18:34of the precious metals,
18:35but because coins
18:37provide an archaeologist
18:38with hard, irrefutable dates.
18:41Because we often know
18:42exactly when a coin
18:43was minted
18:44and when it was discontinued.
18:46Over 90% of the coins
18:48were Spanish excelentes,
18:50stamped with the portraits
18:52of Queen Isabella
18:53of Castile and Leon
18:54and her husband,
18:55Ferdinand II of Aragon.
18:57The coins were minted
18:59from 1497 to 1548.
19:03An extremely rare gold sovereign
19:05was also on earth.
19:06This coin has an impression
19:08of an inner circle of pearls
19:10surrounding the cross of Christ.
19:12On the reverse side
19:14is the coat of arms of Portugal.
19:16This is a coin minted
19:18over the course of several decades.
19:20However, this particular version
19:22stands out to numismatists.
19:25Numismatists are people
19:26who study coins,
19:27and they know that this coin
19:29wasn't minted until 1525.
19:31This particular coin
19:33was only in circulation
19:35until 1538.
19:37So that gives us
19:38a 13-year time frame
19:40when the ship
19:42would have been at sea.
19:45Archaeologists combed
19:46through the Portuguese archives
19:47in search of any documentation
19:49relating to a ship
19:51that was lost
19:52off the coast of Southern Africa
19:53between 1525 and 1538.
19:57A letter from February 13, 1533
20:00states that the Portuguese king
20:02sent knights to Seville
20:03to fetch 20,000 gold coins
20:06from investors
20:06for an India-bound fleet.
20:09At this time,
20:10the voyage to India
20:11was typically undertaken
20:12by vessels called naus,
20:14essentially the workhorses
20:15of the Portuguese fleet.
20:17Naus were the vessel of choice
20:18for months-long voyages
20:20where the ship would encounter
20:21some of the roughest seas imaginable.
20:23Also known as caraks,
20:25the naus were essential
20:26to Portugal's ability
20:28to project its power
20:29across the seas.
20:31They were three-masted ships
20:33measuring up to 45 meters long
20:35and despite their size,
20:37could carry an immense amount of cargo.
20:40The archaeologists discovered
20:43a manuscript
20:43that details ships
20:45that were lost
20:46in the year 1533,
20:49including a carak
20:51known as
20:52the Bom Jesus,
20:54which was lost
20:55off the coast
20:56of southern Africa.
20:57The Bom Jesus
20:58was captained
20:59by Don Francisco de Noronha
21:01and had 300 people on board.
21:04Experts think
21:04that it encountered
21:05a fierce storm
21:06and either would have
21:07hit a shoal
21:07or drifted into the shore
21:09where it then capsized,
21:10taking crew
21:11and cargo with it.
21:13The Bom Jesus
21:14was headed for India
21:15where the Portuguese
21:16hoped to trade
21:16some of its cargo
21:17for diamonds.
21:18Ironically,
21:20it ended up wrecked
21:20on a beach
21:21absolutely littered
21:22with diamonds.
21:23Talk about needing
21:24to be careful
21:25what you wish for.
21:26The ship and its cargo
21:28are testament
21:28to the early period
21:30of globalization
21:31where the transport
21:32and consumption
21:33of goods
21:34defined
21:34and continues
21:36to define power.
21:49Egypt's al-Wadi al-Jadeed
21:51is an expanse of sand
21:53that covers nearly
21:54half the country.
21:55It takes up
21:56a significant portion
21:57of the Sahara Desert
21:59and over the years,
22:00its inhospitable landscape
22:02has made life difficult
22:03for many people
22:05traveling across it.
22:06It's located
22:07several hundred kilometers
22:09from Egypt's capital
22:10of Cairo.
22:10So once you're in it,
22:12it can take a long time
22:13to get out of it.
22:14There are only
22:15five oases
22:16scattered across
22:17the western desert.
22:19Water is incredibly scarce.
22:21So whoever gets lost here
22:23is in serious trouble.
22:25In 2012,
22:27a group of oil
22:28and gas surveyors
22:29were traveling
22:30through an area
22:31of the western desert
22:32when they came across
22:33something entirely unexpected.
22:36They stumble upon
22:37an aircraft
22:38that appears
22:39to have been lying there
22:40for quite some time.
22:41It's nestled
22:42among large rocks
22:43which must have made
22:44the landing
22:45incredibly uncomfortable.
22:46And owing to the
22:47absolute absence
22:48of humidity,
22:49the desert winds
22:50and its remote location,
22:51the plane is in
22:52astoundingly good condition
22:53as though it had been
22:55abandoned yesterday.
22:57The propeller
22:58had been torn off
22:59and lay behind
23:00the aircraft.
23:01And on the other side
23:02of the plane,
23:03they discovered pieces
23:04of tire
23:04and scraps of metal.
23:06Relatively speaking,
23:07the plane is in
23:08very good shape.
23:09It seems that it endured
23:10a pretty rough
23:11but successful landing.
23:12But if the plane
23:13crash-landed,
23:14did the pilot survive?
23:24After a well-preserved
23:26plane wreck
23:26was discovered
23:27in the middle
23:28of the Sahara Desert,
23:29a group of Italian
23:30archaeologists
23:31rushed to investigate.
23:34Upon arrival,
23:35they were immediately
23:36drawn to the cockpit.
23:39There are no decayed
23:41remains inside the plane
23:42and there are no
23:43human remains
23:44found in the
23:45immediate vicinity,
23:46meaning the pilot
23:48probably survived
23:49the crash landing.
23:51There's only room
23:52for one man
23:53in the cockpit.
23:54So if there were
23:55to be remains
23:56at this site,
23:57they would be the remains
23:58of one person only.
24:00The plane was like
24:02a time capsule.
24:03Inside the cockpit,
24:05the switches and controls
24:06were still in the same
24:07position they would
24:08have been in
24:09when the plane
24:10crash-landed.
24:12Mounted on each
24:13of the wings,
24:14there are three
24:14machine guns.
24:15And opening the
24:16ammunition compartments
24:17inside the wings
24:18reveals that it's loaded
24:19with live rounds
24:21for the six
24:21.50 caliber machine guns.
24:24The gun loading
24:25instruction panel
24:26is written in English.
24:27So,
24:28considering the
24:29apparent age
24:29of the plane,
24:30as well as the fact
24:31that these guns
24:32were primed
24:33for combat,
24:34it's safe to say
24:35that this plane
24:36flew for the Allies
24:37during the Second World War.
24:40In 1940,
24:42the Axis powers
24:43invaded North Africa
24:44in an attempt
24:45to staunch oil supplies
24:47that were being shipped
24:48to Britain
24:48from the Persian Gulf
24:50via the Suez Canal.
24:52By 1942,
24:54the Italians
24:55and Germans
24:55were locked
24:56in a desperate battle
24:57against the British
24:58at El Alamein.
25:00If the Germans
25:01were allowed
25:02to further advance,
25:03the essential
25:04Allied oil supplies
25:05and control
25:06of the Suez Canal
25:07would be in serious jeopardy.
25:10The Battle of El Alamein
25:12was the turning point
25:13of the war
25:14in North Africa.
25:15It was fought
25:15over two phases,
25:17stretching from July
25:18into November of 1942.
25:21Could it be
25:22that this fighter
25:23was shot down
25:24at some point
25:24during the Battle
25:25of El Alamein?
25:28The battle
25:29extended across
25:30a front line
25:31that stretched
25:32from the coast
25:32to the Katara Depression,
25:34which is very far
25:35from where this plane
25:36crash-landed.
25:38The plane's engine
25:39was identified
25:40as a V1710-39 Allison.
25:44There were several
25:45Second World War-era planes
25:47that used this engine,
25:48but three of the most common
25:50were the American-designed
25:52P-38 Lightning,
25:53the P-51 Mustang
25:55and the P-40 Kitty Hawk.
25:58This plane
25:59is definitely
25:59not the P-38
26:00because its fuselage
26:02is completely different.
26:03And it isn't
26:04the P-51 either,
26:05as its wings
26:06were typically armed
26:06with four
26:07.30-caliber machine guns,
26:09not six.
26:10That leaves
26:11the P-40 Kitty Hawk,
26:14a fighter
26:15that saw use
26:16in the earlier stages
26:17of the Second World War.
26:18And although
26:19they were produced
26:20by the Americans,
26:21they were used
26:22by Commonwealth forces
26:23as well.
26:24When the U.S.
26:25entered the war,
26:25the P-40
26:26was its best
26:27and most common fighter.
26:29So these planes
26:30were rushed
26:31to a variety
26:32of different
26:32Allied air forces
26:33fighting in different theaters.
26:35In the end,
26:36some 28 different
26:37air forces
26:38ended up using
26:39this plane.
26:40So which one
26:41of these air forces
26:42did this plane belong to?
26:44While inspecting
26:45the fuselage,
26:46the Italians
26:47found evidence
26:48of anti-aircraft fire.
26:49A large caliber round
26:51had torn through
26:51the rear
26:52and damaged
26:53the plane severely.
26:54In particular,
26:56the landing gear.
26:57Although the landing gear
26:58is damaged,
26:59it's also out.
27:01So perhaps
27:01the plane was shot up
27:03while the wheels
27:03were down.
27:05Could it be
27:06that this fighter
27:07was heavily damaged
27:08in combat
27:09and had to perform
27:10an emergency landing
27:11all the way out
27:12in the middle of nowhere,
27:13hundreds of kilometers
27:14from the fighting?
27:16While searching
27:17for further clues
27:18as to who had piloted
27:19this plane
27:20and why it had landed
27:21in the middle
27:22of the Wadi Al-Jadeed,
27:23the archaeologists
27:25found a piece
27:25of tattered white silk
27:27by the aircraft's nose.
27:29White silk is interesting
27:31because we know
27:31that the English
27:32made parachute canopies
27:34out of silk
27:34until 1943
27:36with nylon replacing it
27:38in the following years.
27:39This would coincide
27:41with our timeline
27:42of the Battle of El Alamein.
27:44So this is what remains
27:46of the pilot's parachute.
27:48He must have used it
27:50to protect himself
27:50from the sun.
27:51Out here,
27:52the heat can be
27:53absolutely excruciating
27:55with temperatures
27:56easily reaching
27:57into the high 30s.
27:59Upon further examination,
28:01the Italians
28:02found the tell-tale symbol
28:04of the Royal Air Force
28:05under the wings.
28:06So it must have been flown
28:07by a British pilot.
28:09But why would the fighter
28:11be out here?
28:12The Battle of El Alamein
28:13and the rest
28:13of the North African campaign
28:15were fought closer
28:16to the coast,
28:17not hundreds of kilometers
28:18to the south.
28:20This is an impossibly
28:22unforgiving environment.
28:23And without water,
28:25a person can only survive
28:26for three days,
28:28if not less.
28:29The poor pilot
28:30would have known
28:30that he was in a race
28:32against time.
28:33It's impossible
28:34to even imagine
28:35what would have been
28:36going through his mind
28:37after crash landing
28:38out here.
28:40Despite no human remains,
28:42the archaeologists
28:43were sure they were
28:44in an area
28:44where someone
28:46would have suffered
28:46incredible physical
28:48and mental hardship.
28:50So they inspected
28:51all the surrounding debris,
28:53hoping for clues
28:54as to what had happened
28:55to the pilot.
28:57Beside the crash site,
28:59they discovered
28:59the aircraft's battery
29:01and radio.
29:02It appears that the pilot
29:03had removed the radio
29:05and rigged it to the battery
29:06to try to call for help.
29:08The lack of remains
29:09could suggest
29:10that he was successful
29:12in doing so.
29:13Next, the archaeologists
29:15found an identification plate
29:17with the plane's
29:18serial number 1035.
29:20They ran it
29:21through the archives,
29:23hoping it would provide
29:24more information
29:24as to who piloted
29:26the P-40.
29:27The records indicate
29:28that the plane
29:29was flown by 24-year-old
29:31Flight Sergeant
29:31Dennis Copping
29:32from Essex in England.
29:34He was a pilot
29:35in 260 Squadron
29:36and was part of the force
29:38that was tasked
29:39with preventing the Germans
29:40from reaching
29:40the Suez Canal.
29:43Hoping to find
29:44any indication
29:45or hints
29:46as to what had become
29:47of Copping,
29:48their search was expanded
29:49beyond the immediate area
29:51surrounding the plane.
29:54It's hard to believe,
29:56but out there
29:57in the middle of the desert,
29:58after two hours of walking
30:00and five kilometers
30:00from the wreck,
30:01they find a metal button.
30:03It's imprinted
30:04with the year 1939
30:06and the text
30:07Made by SSD Brothers,
30:09a company we think
30:10produced goods
30:11for the armed forces.
30:12It's incredible.
30:14This is actually
30:15like finding a needle
30:16in a haystack.
30:17But that being said,
30:19there is no way
30:20of proving
30:21that this would have been
30:22a button
30:23from Copping's uniform.
30:25Although,
30:26why would an English button
30:28from 1939
30:29be out here?
30:31Back in the archives,
30:33they found oral testimony
30:34from the pilots
30:35who had flown
30:36alongside Copping.
30:38Flight Sergeant L. Shepard
30:40stated that on the early morning
30:42of the 28th of June 1942,
30:45while on a reconnaissance flight,
30:47Copping was hit
30:48by anti-aircraft fire.
30:49This was evidenced
30:51by the huge tears
30:52to the airplane's fuselage.
30:54But what Shepard also says
30:56is that although this damage
30:58wasn't enough
30:58to bring the fighter down,
31:00it did damage
31:01the landing gear.
31:02Flying with damaged landing gear
31:04could be incredibly dangerous.
31:07If for some reason
31:08it can't be put down
31:09following takeoff,
31:11the landing would have
31:12to be done without wheels,
31:13which is probably
31:14easier said than done.
31:17Following the early morning
31:18reconnaissance flight,
31:19Copping and his colleague
31:20were ordered to fly
31:21200 kilometers to the east
31:22to have their landing gear
31:24fixed at the repair station
31:25LG 100.
31:26But something was wrong.
31:28Not long after takeoff,
31:30Shepard noticed
31:31that Copping
31:32was headed southwest,
31:34way off course.
31:36Shepard broke radio silence
31:38in order to warn him.
31:39He even flew up close
31:41and tried to use hand signals
31:43to indicate he was heading
31:44the wrong way.
31:45But strangely,
31:46Copping didn't respond
31:48and just kept going.
31:51Realizing that if he continued
31:52along the same course
31:54as Copping,
31:54he too would end up in trouble,
31:57Shepard changed course.
32:00Tragically,
32:01Copping didn't follow
32:02and instead kept heading
32:04towards Wadi Al-Jadeed.
32:07He had enough fuel
32:09for about three hours
32:10and eventually would have
32:11been forced to land.
32:12In the end,
32:13crash landing hundreds
32:14of kilometers
32:15from his intended destination.
32:18You wonder,
32:20why didn't he respond
32:21to Shepard's attempt
32:22at communicating?
32:24Maybe the radio
32:25was damaged by Flack
32:26or maybe Copping himself
32:28was convinced
32:29that he was heading
32:30in the right direction.
32:31But that still doesn't explain
32:32why he never responded
32:34to Shepard whatsoever.
32:36Approximately 10 kilometers
32:38from the plain,
32:39the archaeologists
32:40explored a ravine
32:41littered with boulders.
32:43In a rock crevice,
32:45they found more remnants
32:46of the pilot's
32:47white silk parachute.
32:50Spurred on,
32:51they looked for further clues
32:52and were astonished
32:53when they unearthed
32:54what appeared
32:55to be human remains.
32:57There's a total
32:58of 12 bones
33:00clustered in the sand.
33:01Ribs, vertebrae,
33:03a clavicle,
33:04as well as finger
33:05and foot bones.
33:06Could it have been here
33:08that the unfortunate pilot
33:09met his end?
33:18After the wreck
33:19of a British World War II plane
33:21was found deep
33:22in the sands
33:23of the Sahara Desert,
33:25archaeologists
33:26expanded their search
33:27and were astounded
33:28to discover human remains
33:3010 kilometers
33:31from the wreck.
33:32When you come across
33:33something like this,
33:34you have to remember
33:35that despite being
33:36an incredible discovery,
33:38what you're observing
33:38is a human tragedy.
33:40A young man,
33:41likely suffering,
33:43desperate and afraid,
33:45died under terrible circumstances.
33:50He probably came this way
33:51in an attempt
33:52to walk out of the desert,
33:53but he likely
33:54didn't have much water.
33:55And in this sun and heat,
33:57that doesn't give you
33:58much time.
33:59After performing
34:00DNA analysis
34:01on the bones,
34:02the Egyptian government
34:04stated that the tests
34:05were inconclusive,
34:07claiming they were too old
34:08to assess properly.
34:09This is a bit strange
34:11because bones
34:13of fallen servicemen
34:14from the Second World War
34:15are frequently
34:15and accurately identified.
34:18And the Egyptians
34:19also say that the bones
34:20are all from the same person,
34:22even though they don't know
34:23who that person is.
34:25Even though the bones
34:27can't be identified,
34:28it doesn't discount
34:29the possibility
34:30that they are really
34:31Flight Sergeant Copping's remains.
34:35The official British position
34:37is that the bones
34:38aren't Copping's remains.
34:40And with this,
34:41appear to have put
34:42the matter to bed.
34:43So we may never know
34:44if this ravine
34:45in the Wadi Al-Jadid
34:47really is
34:48his final resting place.
34:50But we can
34:51spare a thought
34:52for him
34:52and his family
34:54and hope that they may
34:55one day receive
34:56a definitive answer.
34:59Flight Sergeant Copping
35:01made the ultimate sacrifice
35:02in an extraordinary effort
35:04that halted
35:05the German advance
35:06in North Africa,
35:08spelling the beginning
35:09of the end
35:09for the Axis powers.
35:12The Nazi armies
35:14were forced to retreat
35:15for 1,000 miles.
35:16They were hurled
35:18off the continent of Africa,
35:19never to return.
35:31On a small peninsula
35:33northwest of
35:34Keelung City, Taiwan
35:36lies Biduzi Seaside Park
35:38jutting out
35:39into the East China Sea.
35:42Located approximately
35:4325 kilometers
35:44from Taipei,
35:45Keelung is a prominent
35:46port city
35:47surrounded by mountains.
35:48It has long been
35:49associated with military bases
35:50and has a successful
35:52fishing industry.
35:53This is a unique environment
35:54of rocky,
35:55eroded sandstone
35:56sandwiched between
35:58grasslands
35:58and the sea.
36:00A geologist
36:01at Kochi University
36:02was searching
36:04for fossil impressions
36:05of stingrays
36:06along the jagged
36:07sandstone shore
36:08when he discovered
36:09something unexpected.
36:11Strange shapes
36:12frozen in the stone.
36:15To the untrained eye,
36:17they look plain,
36:18like darkish lines
36:19etched into the rock face.
36:21But to an expert,
36:22there's so much more.
36:24These traces
36:25are left by
36:26an ancient organism
36:27living in the sediment
36:28long ago.
36:29These traces
36:29then become
36:30preserved over time,
36:31transforming into
36:33what we call
36:34trace fossils.
36:35There are many
36:36different kinds
36:37of trace fossils,
36:38including footprints,
36:40burrows,
36:40and nests.
36:42These are burrows.
36:43The holes or tunnels
36:45dug by animals
36:46usually used as a home.
36:48But they don't match
36:49anything in the
36:50fossil record.
36:50The imprinted burrows
36:52appear to have been
36:52tunneled into the ground
36:53long ago.
36:54burrow, and the mouth
36:56of the burrow is
36:56two to three centimetres
36:57wide, and it runs
36:59over 30 centimetres
37:00deep into the rock
37:01formation.
37:02But what kind of
37:03animal made it?
37:04Given the width
37:05of the passage
37:06found here,
37:07it's possible it could
37:08have been a small
37:09rodent's burrow.
37:11Mice tend to have
37:12small burrows
37:13approximately three
37:14centimetres in diameter,
37:16and are found in a
37:17variety of shapes,
37:18complex layouts,
37:19and designs.
37:21In fact, a similar
37:23fossilised imprint
37:24of a rodent burrow
37:25was found in America,
37:26which shares some
37:27overall features
37:28with the burrows
37:29discovered in Taiwan.
37:31Though these burrows
37:32are a bit larger,
37:33with a diameter
37:34of eight to nine
37:35centimetres.
37:36Looking for further
37:37evidence, scientists
37:38expanded their search,
37:40and 23 kilometres away,
37:42they made a similar
37:43discovery along the
37:44rocky shores of
37:45Yellow U Geopark.
37:46Here they find a more
37:48complete fossil,
37:50beginning at the mouth,
37:51the burrow appears
37:52to go down 70 centimetres,
37:54before gradually
37:55bending horizontally
37:56to form a shape
37:57like an elongated
37:58capital L.
37:59The rock formations
38:01at Ye Liu,
38:01and at the original
38:02discovery at Baduzi,
38:04are both from
38:05the Myocene era,
38:06a period between
38:0722 and 5 million
38:09years ago.
38:10But Taiwan was only
38:11formed 4 to 5
38:12million years ago.
38:14In geological terms,
38:15it's a relatively young
38:16and developing island.
38:17The island of Taiwan
38:19is 400 kilometres long,
38:22and at its broadest,
38:23150 kilometres wide.
38:25It was formed
38:26following the collision
38:27of two tectonic plates,
38:29the Eurasian to the west,
38:31and the Philippine sea plate
38:33to the east.
38:34Given its placement
38:35along so many fault lines,
38:37there is near-constant
38:38crustal movement,
38:39shifting, lifting,
38:40and altering
38:41the island's terrain.
38:42The Eurasian plate
38:43is actually lifting
38:44the island up
38:45at a rate of
38:45five millimetres per year.
38:47This area is comprised
38:49mostly of marine rocks,
38:51indicating that this land
38:52was once
38:53actually the seafloor.
38:56So these rocks
38:58were underwater,
38:59and were actually
38:59just sand
39:00before the burrow
39:01was fossilised.
39:02So no furry rodents
39:04could have made it.
39:05Instead,
39:06we're looking for
39:07a marine animal.
39:08But which one?
39:10X-ray fluorescence
39:11core scanning
39:12determines the chemical
39:13composition of marine
39:15sediments over time.
39:17Using XRF,
39:19experts noted
39:20there was an elevated
39:21level of iron
39:21in the burrow lining.
39:24The variation in iron
39:26suggests that this was
39:27a mucus-secreting
39:28marine animal.
39:29This could include
39:30eels, shrimps,
39:32and mollusks.
39:33Some species of eel,
39:34like the garden eel,
39:36dig their burrows
39:36in groups along
39:37the seafloor
39:38and use mucus
39:39to line their
39:39tunnel structure.
39:42However,
39:43garden eels have
39:44a much more erratic,
39:45squiggly burrow structure
39:47compared to the smooth,
39:49tube-like structure
39:49of the unidentified burrows
39:51found here in Taiwan.
39:53This smooth lining technique
39:55is noted with marine
39:56invertebrates like shrimp,
39:57who are known
39:58for constructing long burrows
40:00and might need more support
40:02due to their lack
40:02of bone structure.
40:03So perhaps,
40:04these are shrimp burrows.
40:05But these burrows
40:07tend to have
40:08a more complex structure
40:09and take on
40:10a U-shaped dual-entrance design
40:12with maze-like inner workings
40:14that would normally
40:15be lined with mud pellets.
40:17So this can't be
40:19a fossil shrimp burrow.
40:21Another major category
40:22of mucus-secreting invertebrates
40:24are large polychaetes,
40:26commonly known
40:27as bristle worms.
40:29Most large polychaetes
40:30are sea-dwelling
40:31and do live in burrows
40:33in the sand or mud.
40:34And given the smooth shape
40:36of the unidentified burrow structure
40:38and the overall thin diameter,
40:40a long slender worm
40:42could have made it.
40:44Examining the imprints further,
40:46scientists noticed
40:47a unique collapse structure,
40:49something that occurs
40:50when the internal
40:51load-bearing structure
40:53fails and falls into itself.
40:55This causes the walls
40:57to be pulled inside
40:58the bounds
40:59of its original shape.
41:01Around the mouth
41:02and vertical position
41:03of the structure,
41:04scientists notice
41:05an interesting
41:06feather-like collapse structure.
41:08The feather-like structure
41:10around the upper burrow
41:11indicates that the opening
41:13went through repeated cycles
41:14of collapse and rebuild.
41:16And this is consistent
41:18with the behaviors
41:18of an ambush predator.
41:20Ambush predators,
41:21or sit-and-wait predators,
41:23are carnivorous animals
41:24that lure, trap,
41:26and surprise attack their prey.
41:28Whatever lived
41:29in this fossilized burrow
41:30created a unique signature
41:32in the stone
41:32through the act
41:33of dragging their prey
41:34through the mouth
41:35of the burrow to feast.
41:37What kind of nightmarish worm,
41:40like something out of
41:40Beetlejuice, Tremors, or Dune,
41:42could be responsible
41:43for these burrows?
41:44The bobbit worm.
41:48Unlike the earthworms
41:49that we're most familiar with,
41:51bobbit worms are venomous
41:52and have a massive
41:53snake-like body.
41:54They can grow to between
41:56two to three meters long,
41:57with a bodily diameter
41:58of up to two and a half centimeters.
42:01A perfect fit
42:02for these fossilized burrows.
42:04Bobbit worms lay in wait
42:05along the sea floor,
42:06with their five antennae
42:08and mouthparts
42:10that look like bony hooks
42:11peeking out from the sand.
42:13They wait for any hint
42:15of movement
42:15or the shadow of a fish
42:17swimming nearby,
42:18then strike.
42:19While not quite the size
42:21of Hollywood sandworms,
42:22up close,
42:23these massive,
42:24blind,
42:25brainless killers
42:25are equally terrifying.
42:27They have the speed
42:29and strength
42:29to split a fish in half,
42:31but they aren't picky eaters
42:32and they'll attack anything
42:33that crosses their path.
42:34The unknown trace fossil
42:36discovered in Taiwan
42:37has now been added
42:39to the record
42:39and named
42:40Pernictus
42:41from Mosei.
42:43Experts believe
42:44that 20 million years ago,
42:46the ancient bobbit worm
42:48colonized the sea floor
42:49along the Eurasian plate,
42:51long before the formation
42:53of the island
42:53we know as Taiwan.
42:55But these worms
42:56are far from extinct
42:58and are well documented
43:00in the tropical
43:00and subtropical waters
43:02of the Indo-Pacific.
43:04of the island
43:06and Podcast Man
43:09are away from ะตั
43:09on the Beach
43:10which is the I Week
43:10that's why
43:11has not been
43:11embodied
43:11by the number
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