A 'Tholus' in California?
For images and links see:
http://www.mactonnies.com/cydonia.html (page 40)
[image]
This conical structure at Edwards Air Force Base
resembles the Tholus at Cydonia.
Edwards Air Force Base in California features a
conical mound very much like the Tholus in Cydonia,
complete with groove/ramp. While the Tholus appears to
have a weathered triangular structure at its peak, the
better-preserved (and much newer) formation at Edwards
boasts a cylindrical metal tank. Details aside, the
resemblance between the Tholus and the mound at
Edwards is striking. While I'm in no way suggesting an
exotic "common origin," perhaps the Tholus in Cydonia
once served a similar purpose as its terrestrial
cousin.
[image]
Image courtesy Mark Carlotto.
If artificial, the Tholus need not be "high-tech." Its
overall resemblance to England's Silbury Hill has been
noted by several researchers. It's conceivable the
Tholus was built by a Bronze Age civilization for
cultural/astronomical reasons. But the winding ramp,
most evident in Mark Carlotto's shape-from-shading
rendering (above), suggests a more sophicticated,
utilitarian origin.
I've proposed that the Tholus might be an observatory
from which hypothetical Martians could take in some of
the exotic formations in the Cydonia region, such as
the unexplained Cliff. The triangular peak is situated
atop a shallow, abraded platform that, curiously
enough, is aimed directly at the distant Face at app.
45 degrees. Such correspondences imply that the
Tholus' placement is nonrandom.
Using terrestrial structures as analogies for possible
Martian ruins is a potentially hazardous practice. The
variations in scale and age are often mind-boggling,
rendering superficial likenesses useless (the
Enterprise Mission's delightfully absurd "Sumer/Iraq-Mars" connection being a case in point).
Nevertheless, a systematic survey of known artificial
structures employing "earthworks"-style engineering
might help us understand the possible function and
meaning of the anomalous morphologies at Cydonia.
(Special thanks to Zak.)
