Natural uncovering of desert ruins
My world has a semi-nomadic people that inhabit a vast sandy desert. Underneath this desert lie the ruins of an enormous metropolis -- a city that was abandoned tens of thousands of years ago.
In the past fifteen to twenty centuries something has changed in the region which has resulted in the slow uncovering of these long-lost buildings. This process could have been going on for longer, but only in the past few centuries have the ruins actually started to surface.
What is the slow, gradual change that started this? My first thought was a shifting of the direction of the prevailing winds, causing sand to be blown away instead of deposited, but I don't know how realistic this is.
reality-check geography deserts archaeology
edited 20 mins ago
Cyn
4,199730
asked 5 hours ago
Harm van den Brand
162
New contributor
Harm van den Brand is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
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add a comment |
My world has a semi-nomadic people that inhabit a vast sandy desert. Underneath this desert lie the ruins of an enormous metropolis -- a city that was abandoned tens of thousands of years ago.
In the past fifteen to twenty centuries something has changed in the region which has resulted in the slow uncovering of these long-lost buildings. This process could have been going on for longer, but only in the past few centuries have the ruins actually started to surface.
What is the slow, gradual change that started this? My first thought was a shifting of the direction of the prevailing winds, causing sand to be blown away instead of deposited, but I don't know how realistic this is.
reality-check geography deserts archaeology
edited 20 mins ago
Cyn
4,199730
asked 5 hours ago
Harm van den Brand
162
New contributor
Harm van den Brand is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
This desert... is it a sandy desert or dried mud desert?
– SRM
5 hours ago
A sandy desert. Think Sahara
– Harm van den Brand
4 hours ago
As a side note, this might be worth a look - messagetoeagle.com/…
– chasly from UK
4 hours ago
Hmmm.... this could be a normal very in-scope question, or a question that needs to be closed because it's very broad. Describing what climate change brings about the uncovering of a city buried in sand is vague. Yes... winds... but what caused that change? For the moment, I'm voting to close as unclear. Please don't be offended. The closing process gives you time to clarify the question. What is the nature of a good answer? Scientific purity? Speed of event? Collateral damage? Our answer will affect your plot. What should we avoid?
– JBH
3 hours ago
I think it's a good question. Better than many. While I am not too keen on closing this question, because I think it is pretty clear what you're asking, I do agree with JBH that we really need more information to give you a really spanking answer!
– elemtilas
1 hour ago
add a comment |
My world has a semi-nomadic people that inhabit a vast sandy desert. Underneath this desert lie the ruins of an enormous metropolis -- a city that was abandoned tens of thousands of years ago.
In the past fifteen to twenty centuries something has changed in the region which has resulted in the slow uncovering of these long-lost buildings. This process could have been going on for longer, but only in the past few centuries have the ruins actually started to surface.
What is the slow, gradual change that started this? My first thought was a shifting of the direction of the prevailing winds, causing sand to be blown away instead of deposited, but I don't know how realistic this is.
reality-check geography deserts archaeology
edited 20 mins ago
Cyn
4,199730
asked 5 hours ago
Harm van den Brand
162
New contributor
Harm van den Brand is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
My world has a semi-nomadic people that inhabit a vast sandy desert. Underneath this desert lie the ruins of an enormous metropolis -- a city that was abandoned tens of thousands of years ago.
In the past fifteen to twenty centuries something has changed in the region which has resulted in the slow uncovering of these long-lost buildings. This process could have been going on for longer, but only in the past few centuries have the ruins actually started to surface.
What is the slow, gradual change that started this? My first thought was a shifting of the direction of the prevailing winds, causing sand to be blown away instead of deposited, but I don't know how realistic this is.
reality-check geography deserts archaeology
reality-check geography deserts archaeology
edited 20 mins ago
Cyn
4,199730
asked 5 hours ago
Harm van den Brand
162
New contributor
Harm van den Brand is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
edited 20 mins ago
Cyn
4,199730
asked 5 hours ago
Harm van den Brand
162
New contributor
Harm van den Brand is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
edited 20 mins ago
Cyn
4,199730
edited 20 mins ago
Cyn
4,199730
edited 20 mins ago
Cyn
4,199730
4,199730
asked 5 hours ago
Harm van den Brand
162
New contributor
Harm van den Brand is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
asked 5 hours ago
Harm van den Brand
162
asked 5 hours ago
Harm van den Brand
162
162
New contributor
Harm van den Brand is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
New contributor
Harm van den Brand is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
Harm van den Brand is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
This desert... is it a sandy desert or dried mud desert?
– SRM
5 hours ago
A sandy desert. Think Sahara
– Harm van den Brand
4 hours ago
As a side note, this might be worth a look - messagetoeagle.com/…
– chasly from UK
4 hours ago
Hmmm.... this could be a normal very in-scope question, or a question that needs to be closed because it's very broad. Describing what climate change brings about the uncovering of a city buried in sand is vague. Yes... winds... but what caused that change? For the moment, I'm voting to close as unclear. Please don't be offended. The closing process gives you time to clarify the question. What is the nature of a good answer? Scientific purity? Speed of event? Collateral damage? Our answer will affect your plot. What should we avoid?
– JBH
3 hours ago
I think it's a good question. Better than many. While I am not too keen on closing this question, because I think it is pretty clear what you're asking, I do agree with JBH that we really need more information to give you a really spanking answer!
– elemtilas
1 hour ago
add a comment |
This desert... is it a sandy desert or dried mud desert?
– SRM
5 hours ago
A sandy desert. Think Sahara
– Harm van den Brand
4 hours ago
As a side note, this might be worth a look - messagetoeagle.com/…
– chasly from UK
4 hours ago
Hmmm.... this could be a normal very in-scope question, or a question that needs to be closed because it's very broad. Describing what climate change brings about the uncovering of a city buried in sand is vague. Yes... winds... but what caused that change? For the moment, I'm voting to close as unclear. Please don't be offended. The closing process gives you time to clarify the question. What is the nature of a good answer? Scientific purity? Speed of event? Collateral damage? Our answer will affect your plot. What should we avoid?
– JBH
3 hours ago
I think it's a good question. Better than many. While I am not too keen on closing this question, because I think it is pretty clear what you're asking, I do agree with JBH that we really need more information to give you a really spanking answer!
– elemtilas
1 hour ago
This desert... is it a sandy desert or dried mud desert?
– SRM
5 hours ago
This desert... is it a sandy desert or dried mud desert?
– SRM
5 hours ago
A sandy desert. Think Sahara
– Harm van den Brand
4 hours ago
A sandy desert. Think Sahara
– Harm van den Brand
4 hours ago
As a side note, this might be worth a look - messagetoeagle.com/…
– chasly from UK
4 hours ago
As a side note, this might be worth a look - messagetoeagle.com/…
– chasly from UK
4 hours ago
Hmmm.... this could be a normal very in-scope question, or a question that needs to be closed because it's very broad. Describing what climate change brings about the uncovering of a city buried in sand is vague. Yes... winds... but what caused that change? For the moment, I'm voting to close as unclear. Please don't be offended. The closing process gives you time to clarify the question. What is the nature of a good answer? Scientific purity? Speed of event? Collateral damage? Our answer will affect your plot. What should we avoid?
– JBH
3 hours ago
Hmmm.... this could be a normal very in-scope question, or a question that needs to be closed because it's very broad. Describing what climate change brings about the uncovering of a city buried in sand is vague. Yes... winds... but what caused that change? For the moment, I'm voting to close as unclear. Please don't be offended. The closing process gives you time to clarify the question. What is the nature of a good answer? Scientific purity? Speed of event? Collateral damage? Our answer will affect your plot. What should we avoid?
– JBH
3 hours ago
I think it's a good question. Better than many. While I am not too keen on closing this question, because I think it is pretty clear what you're asking, I do agree with JBH that we really need more information to give you a really spanking answer!
– elemtilas
1 hour ago
I think it's a good question. Better than many. While I am not too keen on closing this question, because I think it is pretty clear what you're asking, I do agree with JBH that we really need more information to give you a really spanking answer!
– elemtilas
1 hour ago
add a comment |
2 Answers
2
active
oldest
votes
This happens all the time over a relatively short timescale. Sand travels across the desert in wind-driven waves - these are usually described as dunes but they move.
A building could be covered one day by the crest of a wave and a week later be exposed in the trough of the wave.
I imagine that originally the area was a vast fertile plain and underneath the soil was alluvial rock. When the plain started to become desert, the sand gradually blew over it over hundreds or thousands of years, eventually burying the city. As the wind continues to drive the sand along, eventually the bedrock is uncovered. The foundations of the buildings were cemented to it and so they appear gradually. There is no need to change the direction of the prevailing wind.
answered 4 hours ago
chasly from UK
11.9k352109
add a comment |
Before the metropolis was covered by the desert, it was drowned in a sea.
I am thinking of Sarnath, claimed by the lake.
These men indeed went to the lake to view Sarnath; but though they
found the vast still lake itself, and the grey rock Akurion which
rears high above it near the shore, they beheld not the wonder of the
world and pride of all mankind. Where once had risen walls of 300
cubits and towers yet higher, now stretched only the marshy shore, and
where once had dwelt fifty millions of men now crawled only the
detestable green water-lizard. Not even the mines of precious metal
remained, for DOOM had come to Sarnath.
The Doom that came to Sarnath
A sea claimed the metropolis, covering it in the waters. Over the years silt and sand built up, burying the sunken city. Years passed; the world changed. The sea dried, leaving only an expanse of salt and sand.
Winds and rare rains then eroded the ancient mudstone into peaks and spires. Like an ancient fossil, the entombed city gradually emerged into the light.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Badlands#/media/File:Badlands00503.JPG
answered 20 mins ago
Willk
101k25193424
add a comment |
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2 Answers
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active
oldest
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2 Answers
2
active
oldest
votes
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active
oldest
votes
This happens all the time over a relatively short timescale. Sand travels across the desert in wind-driven waves - these are usually described as dunes but they move.
A building could be covered one day by the crest of a wave and a week later be exposed in the trough of the wave.
I imagine that originally the area was a vast fertile plain and underneath the soil was alluvial rock. When the plain started to become desert, the sand gradually blew over it over hundreds or thousands of years, eventually burying the city. As the wind continues to drive the sand along, eventually the bedrock is uncovered. The foundations of the buildings were cemented to it and so they appear gradually. There is no need to change the direction of the prevailing wind.
answered 4 hours ago
chasly from UK
11.9k352109
add a comment |
This happens all the time over a relatively short timescale. Sand travels across the desert in wind-driven waves - these are usually described as dunes but they move.
A building could be covered one day by the crest of a wave and a week later be exposed in the trough of the wave.
I imagine that originally the area was a vast fertile plain and underneath the soil was alluvial rock. When the plain started to become desert, the sand gradually blew over it over hundreds or thousands of years, eventually burying the city. As the wind continues to drive the sand along, eventually the bedrock is uncovered. The foundations of the buildings were cemented to it and so they appear gradually. There is no need to change the direction of the prevailing wind.
answered 4 hours ago
chasly from UK
11.9k352109
add a comment |
This happens all the time over a relatively short timescale. Sand travels across the desert in wind-driven waves - these are usually described as dunes but they move.
A building could be covered one day by the crest of a wave and a week later be exposed in the trough of the wave.
I imagine that originally the area was a vast fertile plain and underneath the soil was alluvial rock. When the plain started to become desert, the sand gradually blew over it over hundreds or thousands of years, eventually burying the city. As the wind continues to drive the sand along, eventually the bedrock is uncovered. The foundations of the buildings were cemented to it and so they appear gradually. There is no need to change the direction of the prevailing wind.
answered 4 hours ago
chasly from UK
11.9k352109
This happens all the time over a relatively short timescale. Sand travels across the desert in wind-driven waves - these are usually described as dunes but they move.
A building could be covered one day by the crest of a wave and a week later be exposed in the trough of the wave.
I imagine that originally the area was a vast fertile plain and underneath the soil was alluvial rock. When the plain started to become desert, the sand gradually blew over it over hundreds or thousands of years, eventually burying the city. As the wind continues to drive the sand along, eventually the bedrock is uncovered. The foundations of the buildings were cemented to it and so they appear gradually. There is no need to change the direction of the prevailing wind.
answered 4 hours ago
chasly from UK
11.9k352109
answered 4 hours ago
chasly from UK
11.9k352109
answered 4 hours ago
chasly from UK
11.9k352109
answered 4 hours ago
chasly from UK
11.9k352109
11.9k352109
add a comment |
add a comment |
Before the metropolis was covered by the desert, it was drowned in a sea.
I am thinking of Sarnath, claimed by the lake.
These men indeed went to the lake to view Sarnath; but though they
found the vast still lake itself, and the grey rock Akurion which
rears high above it near the shore, they beheld not the wonder of the
world and pride of all mankind. Where once had risen walls of 300
cubits and towers yet higher, now stretched only the marshy shore, and
where once had dwelt fifty millions of men now crawled only the
detestable green water-lizard. Not even the mines of precious metal
remained, for DOOM had come to Sarnath.
The Doom that came to Sarnath
A sea claimed the metropolis, covering it in the waters. Over the years silt and sand built up, burying the sunken city. Years passed; the world changed. The sea dried, leaving only an expanse of salt and sand.
Winds and rare rains then eroded the ancient mudstone into peaks and spires. Like an ancient fossil, the entombed city gradually emerged into the light.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Badlands#/media/File:Badlands00503.JPG
answered 20 mins ago
Willk
101k25193424
add a comment |
Before the metropolis was covered by the desert, it was drowned in a sea.
I am thinking of Sarnath, claimed by the lake.
These men indeed went to the lake to view Sarnath; but though they
found the vast still lake itself, and the grey rock Akurion which
rears high above it near the shore, they beheld not the wonder of the
world and pride of all mankind. Where once had risen walls of 300
cubits and towers yet higher, now stretched only the marshy shore, and
where once had dwelt fifty millions of men now crawled only the
detestable green water-lizard. Not even the mines of precious metal
remained, for DOOM had come to Sarnath.
The Doom that came to Sarnath
A sea claimed the metropolis, covering it in the waters. Over the years silt and sand built up, burying the sunken city. Years passed; the world changed. The sea dried, leaving only an expanse of salt and sand.
Winds and rare rains then eroded the ancient mudstone into peaks and spires. Like an ancient fossil, the entombed city gradually emerged into the light.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Badlands#/media/File:Badlands00503.JPG
answered 20 mins ago
Willk
101k25193424
add a comment |
Before the metropolis was covered by the desert, it was drowned in a sea.
I am thinking of Sarnath, claimed by the lake.
These men indeed went to the lake to view Sarnath; but though they
found the vast still lake itself, and the grey rock Akurion which
rears high above it near the shore, they beheld not the wonder of the
world and pride of all mankind. Where once had risen walls of 300
cubits and towers yet higher, now stretched only the marshy shore, and
where once had dwelt fifty millions of men now crawled only the
detestable green water-lizard. Not even the mines of precious metal
remained, for DOOM had come to Sarnath.
The Doom that came to Sarnath
A sea claimed the metropolis, covering it in the waters. Over the years silt and sand built up, burying the sunken city. Years passed; the world changed. The sea dried, leaving only an expanse of salt and sand.
Winds and rare rains then eroded the ancient mudstone into peaks and spires. Like an ancient fossil, the entombed city gradually emerged into the light.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Badlands#/media/File:Badlands00503.JPG
answered 20 mins ago
Willk
101k25193424
Before the metropolis was covered by the desert, it was drowned in a sea.
I am thinking of Sarnath, claimed by the lake.
These men indeed went to the lake to view Sarnath; but though they
found the vast still lake itself, and the grey rock Akurion which
rears high above it near the shore, they beheld not the wonder of the
world and pride of all mankind. Where once had risen walls of 300
cubits and towers yet higher, now stretched only the marshy shore, and
where once had dwelt fifty millions of men now crawled only the
detestable green water-lizard. Not even the mines of precious metal
remained, for DOOM had come to Sarnath.
The Doom that came to Sarnath
A sea claimed the metropolis, covering it in the waters. Over the years silt and sand built up, burying the sunken city. Years passed; the world changed. The sea dried, leaving only an expanse of salt and sand.
Winds and rare rains then eroded the ancient mudstone into peaks and spires. Like an ancient fossil, the entombed city gradually emerged into the light.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Badlands#/media/File:Badlands00503.JPG
answered 20 mins ago
Willk
101k25193424
answered 20 mins ago
Willk
101k25193424
answered 20 mins ago
Willk
101k25193424
answered 20 mins ago
Willk
101k25193424
101k25193424
add a comment |
add a comment |
Harm van den Brand is a new contributor. Be nice, and check out our Code of Conduct.
Harm van den Brand is a new contributor. Be nice, and check out our Code of Conduct.
Harm van den Brand is a new contributor. Be nice, and check out our Code of Conduct.
Harm van den Brand is a new contributor. Be nice, and check out our Code of Conduct.
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This desert... is it a sandy desert or dried mud desert?
– SRM
5 hours ago
A sandy desert. Think Sahara
– Harm van den Brand
4 hours ago
As a side note, this might be worth a look - messagetoeagle.com/…
– chasly from UK
4 hours ago
Hmmm.... this could be a normal very in-scope question, or a question that needs to be closed because it's very broad. Describing what climate change brings about the uncovering of a city buried in sand is vague. Yes... winds... but what caused that change? For the moment, I'm voting to close as unclear. Please don't be offended. The closing process gives you time to clarify the question. What is the nature of a good answer? Scientific purity? Speed of event? Collateral damage? Our answer will affect your plot. What should we avoid?
– JBH
3 hours ago
I think it's a good question. Better than many. While I am not too keen on closing this question, because I think it is pretty clear what you're asking, I do agree with JBH that we really need more information to give you a really spanking answer!
– elemtilas
1 hour ago