More Evidence that Ancient Romans May Have Made It to Oak Island, Canada

Ancient Origins

What appears to be an ancient Roman sword has been found off the East Coast of Canada, but it is just one of several indications that Romans may have been there around the 2nd century or earlier. That’s at least 800 years before the Vikings landed, which is currently believed to be the first contact between the Old World and the New World.
The sword was discovered off the coast of Oak Island, Nova Scotia, during investigations into local lore of treasure buried on the island, conducted as part of the immensely popular History Channel show, “The Curse of Oak Island.”

A map showing Oak Island, Nova Scotia, Canada. (Norman Einstein/CC BY-SA)

J. Hutton Pulitzer worked as a consultant on the show for two seasons and he appeared in the show’s second season. His team began investigations on the island eight years before the History Channel arrived in 2013.
Pulitzer has given Epoch Times exclusive information about new discoveries on the island that, along with the sword, support his theory of a Roman presence.
Pulitzer is a well-known entrepreneur and prolific inventor. Many remember him as the host of the “NetTalkLive” TV show, an early Internet IPO titan, and the inventor of the CueCat (an idea that attracted major investors; it involved a device people could use to scan codes, similar to today’s QR-codes). His company famously went down in flames during the dot-com bubble burst, but Pulitzer’s patents live on today in 11.9 billion mobile devices.
A little over a decade ago, he turned his sights to his passion for lost history and, as an independent researcher and author, he has been working with experts in many fields, to investigate the mysteries of Oak Island.
His theory about an ancient Roman presence on the island has already met with some resistance, as it defies the currently accepted theory that the Vikings were the first Old World explorers to make it to the New World. He asks, however, that historians and archaeologists approach the evidence objectively, without a preconceived idea that the Romans did not make it to the New World.

J. Hutton Pulitzer. (Courtesy of J. Hutton Pulitzer/InvestigatingHistory.com)

The Oak Island sword’s authenticity has been verified by the best available tests, according to Pulitzer (Epoch Times was given access to the testing data).
The sword alone isn’t evidence however that the Romans were on Oak Island themselves. It is possible that someone only a few hundred years ago was sailing near the island and had in his possession this Roman antique. It may have been later explorers who left it there, not the Romans.
But other artifacts also found on-site provide a context that is difficult to dismiss, Pulitzer said.
Other artifacts his team has studied include a stone with an ancient language connected to the Roman Empire, burial mounds in the ancient Roman style, crossbow bolts reportedly confirmed by U.S. government labs to have come from ancient Iberia (encompassed by the Roman Empire), coins connected to the Roman Empire, and more.

The Sword

An X-ray fluorescence (XRF) analyzer confirmed the metal composition of the sword matches that of Roman votive swords. XRF testing uses radiation to excite the atoms in the metal to see how the atoms vibrate. Researchers can thus detect which metals are present. Among the materials detected in the sword are zinc, copper, lead, tin, arsenic, gold, silver, and platinum.
These findings are consistent with ancient Roman metallurgy. Modern bronze uses silicon as the primary alloying element, but silicon is absent in the sword, Pulitzer said.

J. Hutton Pulitzer holding an XRF machine. (Courtesy of J. Hutton Pulitzer/InvestigatingHistory.org)

A few similar swords have been found in Europe. This model of sword has a depiction of Hercules on the hilt and it is believed to be a ceremonial sword given by Emperor Commodus to outstanding gladiators and warriors. The Museum of Naples made replicas of one of these swords in its collection, leading some to wonder whether the Oak Island weapon is a replica.
Though the replicas match the Oak Island sword in appearance, Pulitzer said the tests on its composition have 100 percent confirmed it is not a cast-iron replica. The sword also contains a lode stone that is oriented due north and could thus aid navigation, which is absent in the replicas.
History Channel producers obtained the sword from a local resident, which had been passed down in his family since the 1940s. It was originally found while illegally scalloping and it was pulled up in their rake. The family never told anybody about the discovery until the recent flurry of interest in Oak Island because, in addition to facing penalties for breaking the law, illegal scalloping is frowned upon and considered taboo in the small community.
By Tara MacIsaac , Epoch Times

Unraveling the Origins of the Roman Sword Discovered Off Oak Island

Ancient Origins

Last month, we reported on the startling discovery of a Roman ceremonial sword off Oak Island , located on the south shore of Nova Scotia, Canada, radically suggesting that ancient mariners visited North America more than a thousand years before Columbus. While the announcement was largely met with surprise and excitement, many have also questioned the authenticity of the artifact. Here we explore the origins of the mysterious Roman sword.

Discovery of the Roman Sword

The finding of the Roman sword off Oak Island, which was originally announced by Johnston Press and published in  The Boston Standard , was revealed by researchers involved in The History Channel’s series  Curse of Oak Island , which details the efforts of two brothers from Michigan as they attempt to solve the mystery of the Oak Island treasure and discover historical artifacts believed to be concealed on the island.

Main: Oak Island, Nova Scotia. Credit:  Farhad Vladia / Panoramio . Inset: The Roman sword found in water just off the mysterious Oak Island, Nova Scotia. Credit: investigatinghistory.org and National Treasure Society

J. Hutton Pulitzer, lead researcher and historic investigator, along with academics from the Ancient Artifact Preservation Society, have compiled a paper on the finding, which is scheduled to be published in full in early 2016.
According to Pulitzer, a shipwreck, believed to be Roman, was found off Oak Island, and within the wreck a well-preserved Roman ceremonial sword was retrieved. 
Pulitzer told the Boston Standard that the sword was hauled onto a fishing boat decades ago, but was kept secret because the finder and his son feared they would be punished due to strict laws in Nova Scotia regarding retrieving treasures from shipwrecks. 
However, relatives of the finder, who is now deceased, recently came forward to reveal the precious sword to researchers. 

A close-up of the sword found off Oak Island. Photo courtesy of investigatinghistory.org and National Treasure Society

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Verifying Authenticity

In his blog article ‘ How can a sword cut history? ’, Pultizer states that the sword underwent various analyses, including XRF testing , and has been verified by the Roman Antiquities  authority as a gladiator ceremonial votive sword. XRF testing (X-ray fluorescence) is a proven technique for material analysis, including metals. The results found the same arsenic and lead signature in the metal of the sword, down to the atomic level, as that found in other ancient Roman artifacts.
Interestingly, the sword was also found to have magnetic qualities, causing it to point true north, a navigational feature built into some swords of the era through the use of lodestones. Ancient peoples were aware of the magnetic properties of lodestones from as early as the 6 ^th century BC. Cast iron replicas of Roman swords do not possess such characteristics.

“History shows many such items were given out by the Emperor to legion commanders, possibly as “protection, strength, and guidance of Hercules” prior to entering into battle or departing on a special mission,” reports Pultizer. “When such ceremonial swords were made they used solid cast, then hand crafted using a lost wax technique, and lastly gilded with gold like various Egyptian artifacts, making them very rare and highly prized.”

The Roman sword found off Oak Island is believed to be part of a rare set of votive swords. Four similar swords having been recovered and verified, now in private collections and museums, including the Museum of Naples, Italy, which issued cast iron replicas of the sword. Many replicas of these rare swords can now be found on websites such as eBay and Amazon.

Cast iron replica from the Naples Museum ( Design Toscano )

Symbolism of the Sword

Arts and antiquities collector and researcher David Xavier Kenney , has extensively studied the features and symbology of one of the Roman votive swords belonging to the same set, currently owned by a private collector in the Netherlands and dated to between 190 to 192 AD.
According to Kenney, the sword hilt depicts a statuette holding a piece of driftwood, tree trunk, branch or club overhead, ready to destroy a shrine that includes a type of Irminsul of the north (pillar that played an important role in Germanic paganism) associated with solar worship.

Roman votive sword studied by David Xavier Kenney, dated to 190 to 192 AD. Credit: David Xavier Kenney.

Connection with North America

Kenney maintains that the symbolism of the sword may reflect an ancient belief that there was a legendary or mythical sacred island to the far north in the west that was associated with a meteor strike, the magnetic, the water compass, navigation, and solar worship.

“Most likely much of that belief was based on ancient sea lore about visitations to Iceland and Greenland - that traveled among peoples who did not have a known, or accepted, written language,” writes Kenney.
“Further study in relation to this sword was initially prompted by my findings in 2008 that suggested that some of the sword's symbolism appears to have been connected to the North Atlantic Ocean,” adds Kenney. “I did additional studies in December 2012 on a Roman metal votive artifact found in West Virginia, then a bit more in August of 2014 researching an ancient Native American stone tool/Roman votive artifact from Pennsylvania. Symbolism contained on both of those artifacts appear to indicate at least a Roman knowledge of the Cape York meteorite in Greenland, and possibly with a keen interest.”

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Evidence to Support Roman Presence in North America

In an attempt to dismiss skeptics, who may suggest the artifact had simply fallen off the side of a boat in more recent times, Pultizer and his team have dug up numerous other pieces of evidence to support the theory that the Romans made it to the New World more than 1,000 years before Christopher Columbus.  This includes DNA, botanical, linguistic, stone symbols,  archaeoastronomy, structure and architectural  evidence, artifacts including coins,  burial mounds, and a Roman shipwreck — where the Oak Island sword was found.

“When you put all these things together and you look at the anomalies, it’s not a coincidence,” Pultizer told the Boston Standard. “The plants, the DNA, the artifacts, the language, the ancient drawings - you have something that deserves to be taken seriously.”

Featured image: The Roman sword found just off Oak Island. Photo courtesy of investigatinghistory.org and National Treasure Society
By: April Holloway