Publisher's Weekly Review
Archeologists have long sought to prove that the great flood described in Genesis and in the Babylonian epic of Gilgamesh was a historic event. Columbia University geologists Ryan and Pitman weigh in with a highly conjectural theory that seems as good as any other, if no better. Around 5600 B.C., they maintain, Noah's flood occurred when rising Mediterranean waters roared through the narrow Bosporus Strait, transforming the Black Sea, then a freshwater lake, into a bloated saltwater body. Taking a cue from Australian prehistorian Gordon Childe, who posited that Europe's first farmers came from Asia, the authors contend that the Black Sea at the time of the alleged flood was a fertile oasis, a cultural magnet where diverse peoplesfarmers, animal breeders, artisansexchanged techniques and possibly genes. They point to the sudden appearance in Europe, shortly after 5600 B.C., of "outsider" tribes, advanced farmers who, the theory goes, were fleeing the flooded Black Sea region. Other flood refugees, in this scenario, migrated to Russia's steppes, Anatolia, Mesopotamia and the Middle East, preserving memory of the catastrophe in mythic and oral traditions later enshrined on clay tablets and ultimately in the Bible. Ryan and Pitman base their theory partly on radiocarbon dating of marine sediments that they collected in 1993 during a Black Sea expedition and partly on Ice Age climatic patterns, modern linguists' quest for a proto-Indo-European mother tongue and genetic studies of population migrations over the millennia. Their complicated detective tale is intriguing, but much more solid evidence would be required to convince skeptics. Illustrated with drawings by Anastasia Sotiropoulos and maps by William Haxby. Agent, Roger Jellinek. (Jan.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Kirkus Review
In a rare marriage of science and myth, two geologists draw on their worldwide oceanographic expeditions in search of evidence of the biblical flood. The authors first trace attempts to establish the historicity of the flood back to the work of archaeologists and scientists in the 1820s and '30s. Then, looking at the physical evidence, according to Ryan and Pitman (both geology professors at Columbia University), indicates that the cataclysm actually occurred 7,600 years ago; it consisted of the Mediterranean rising in Marmara and crashing through the natural dam of the Bosporus, raising the Black Sea 280 feet in 12 months. The archaeological evidence, according to the authors, is that the resulting dispersion of the populace led to the spread of farming skills, languages, and cultures to new settlements in southern Europe, Egypt, Mesopotamia, Anatolia, and Asia. The archaeological record is supported by DNA studies that reveal genetic connections between modern peoples of these regions and remains found around the flood region. But Ryan and Pitman don't draw only on science, they study as well the flood stories of various cultures, from Sumer to India, contending that they remain remarkably similar despite local coloring and storytellers' embellishments. These tales tell of the destruction of the world as it was then known, but they universally also offer hope of salvation, regeneration, and divine forgiveness. The authors offer clear explanations of the scientific techniques involved in gathering evidence of the flood, and couch it in a historical narrative that preserves for readers the sense of discovery and wonder experienced by scientists through the 19th and 20th centuries (somewhat oddly, in keeping with this narrative, they relate their own research in the third person). An impressive marshalling of geophysical and archaeological evidence to reconstruct the truth behind an ancient myth. (illustrations and maps)
Booklist Review
Scientists have long sought proof that the Great Flood described in the Bible and in many other ancient sources actually occurred, and now Ryan and Pitman, two senior scientists at Columbia University, can triumphantly chronicle the successful conclusion to more than a century's worth of improvised investigation. They begin their account of this arduous quest, which ultimately involved an international cast of adventurers, geologists, oceanographers, paleontologists, linguists, archaeologists, and mythologists, in the nineteenth century when George Smith cracked the cuneiform code, then leap forward in time to their own studies of ocean floor sediment samples. Ryan and Pitman's startling findings dovetailed unexpectedly with other investigations and lead to the discovery of the Mediterranean's volatile past: it once dried to a desert, then, at the end of the last Ice Age, overflowed its basin and spread far enough to encompass the Black Sea. This tremendous inundation forced the people of the region to disperse all over Europe, the Mideast, and Asia, a culturally significant diaspora the authors vividly re-create. This grand and stirring narrative sets in motion the rising and falling of great bodies of water and the cultural dynamics that have preserved indelible and poetic tales of survival for all time. --Donna Seaman
Choice Review
Ryan and Pitman (scientists at the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, Columbia Univ.) provide a basis for the biblical story of Noah and the flood. Through scientific exploration of the Black Sea, they determined that there was a "Mini Ice Age" c. 6200 BCE, when the Black Sea was a freshwater lake lying hundreds of feet below sea level. The lake basin was a haven for farmers who came from areas affected by the change in climate. When the Ice Age ended c. 5600 BCE, the sea level rose, broke through the Bosporus valley, and filled the Black Sea with salt water. Farmers and village folk were driven from the land and dispersed. Based on archaeological, genetic, and linguistic evidence, the authors suggest that the people of the Black Sea basin migrated to western Europe, central Asia, Mesopotamia, Syria, and Palestine. It would have been the storytellers of the Mesopotamians, perhaps later called Sumerians, who transmitted the flood story through generations for thousands of years. The narrative style makes for interesting reading and easy comprehension of the evidence of the argument. With a wealth of scientific, archaeological, and linguistic data important for understanding the 7th and 6th millennium BCE, this is highly recommended for general readers, seminary and graduate students, and professionals. L. A. Sinclair Carroll College (WI)
Library Journal Review
The lure of reconciling history and myth with scientific fact lies behind this book. Two Columbia University geologists describe mythological traditions related to great flood stories, arguing that approximately 7500 years ago a great flood inundated the Black Sea and scattered the local peoples, who started settlements elsewhere. These dispersed groups took their agricultural skills to new homes, where archaeological evidence has demonstrated the growth of agriculture and civilization. This story focuses more on geology and scientific discovery than on the human experience of a great flood. Although archaeologists were consulted, the hypothesis is supported most strongly with geological studies and would have been more convincing had an archaeologist been a coauthor. That aside, this is a well-written tale that deserves an audience. Recommended for general audiences and libraries. [Previewed in LJ 9/15/98.]Joyce L. Ogburn, Old Dominion Univ., Norfolk, VA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
