The traditional historic narrative tells us that humans took to the skies through flight in the early 1900s, yet one Iraqi Minister apparently wants to set the record straight.
Kazem Finjan, Iraq’s Transport Minister, informed reporters last week that the ancient Sumerian inhabitants iof modern-day Iraq invent space travel. Not only that, they built the first airport in the world at around 5,000 B.C.
"The first airport that was established on planet earth was in this place," Finjan is quoted as saying.
It seems this ancient Sumerian airport served as a hub for space travelers, and the galactic enterprise led to the discovery of the planet Pluto. He backed up his claims by citing the academic Samuel Noah Cramer, who wrote a book entitled, " The Sumerians: Their History, Culture, and Character ."
But ... while Cramer highlights the ancient Sumerians apparent knowledge of the universe, his claims fall short of those made by Finjan.
Sumerians are believed to have settled in the region of southern Mesopotamia – now south Iraq – between 5,500 B.C. to 4,000 B.C., developing agriculture, trade and artisan skills such as metalwork, weaving and pottery.
While the Sumerian's cultural and historic influence was significant and their creation myths show an advanced knowledge of the universe, most people are reasonably skeptical of Finjan's claims.
