Archaeological research has helped us understand the complicated story of our species’ past, from the earliest hominins to the dawn of civilisation and beyond. But some people are convinced that it has overlooked an important chapter. They believe there was an advanced global civilisation some 20,000 years ago during the last glacial maximum, often referred to as the ice age – but that it was mysteriously destroyed, with its impressive settlements and monuments drowned by rising seas.
Flint Dibble, an archaeologist at Cardiff University in the UK, is doing all he can to make it clear that such ideas aren’t supported by the evidence. Earlier this year, he appeared on The Joe Rogan Experience podcast to take part in a high-profile debate with Graham Hancock, a writer who has spent years arguing for the existence of this forgotten society and who discusses the idea in his Netflix show, Ancient Apocalypse.
Dibble spoke to New Scientist about the reasons for the enduring appeal of mythical lost civilisations, why belief in them can be so harmful, and how to persuade people to reject the ideas promoted by Hancock and others through the use of “truth sandwiches”.
Colin Barras: Why do you think the myth of an advanced lost civilisation generates so much interest?
Flint Dibble: That’s a tough one. You have to appreciate that Graham Hancock’s idea isn’t new: it stems directly out of …