Scientists closer to understanding mysterious markings on the world's oldest wooden statue

Scientists closer to understanding mysterious markings on the world's oldest wooden statue

German scientists may be one step closer to understanding the message on a wooden statue from 9,500 years ago. The secret code on the seven-faced Shigir Idol may contain information about "the creation of the world," Svetlana Savchenko, the idol's "chief keeper" and senior researcher at the Yekaterinburg History Museum, where the idol is housed, told The Siberian Times.

The Shigir Idol, which was apparently preserved "as if in a time capsule," is twice as old as the Egyptian pyramids. It is 9.2 feet tall now, but the researchers estimate it was 17.4 feet tall when it was first built during the Stone Age's Mesolithic period. The statue was discovered in 1890 near Kirovgrad in western Russia.

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Meghan DeMaria

Meghan DeMaria is a staff writer at TheWeek.com. She has previously worked for USA Today and Marie Claire.