The Possibility that Giants Actually Existed

Photo by Jez Timms on Unsplash

Is it possible that giants may have actually roamed the Earth? I believe so, but not the 50-foot tall beasts that we read about in the books. I think it may have more to do with ancient peoples encountering other tribes/clans. 

Many ancient tales of giants seem to have originated from seafarers. As these sailors would go from one port to another, they'd encounter peoples they'd never seen before. Those people from around the Mediterranean were shorter in the ancient world than they are today. The average height of a Roman soldier seems to have been between 5' 5" and 5' 7". 

As ancient seafarers and warriors moved into the Balkan Regions and around the Black Sea, the inhabitants must have seemed enormous. The Thracians, from around modern Bulgaria, were said to be wild and savage warriors of large stature. 

The Roman Emporer Maximinus was said to be of Thracian blood, or at least partially. Some accounts have him standing more than 8-foot tall and having a thumb so large as to wear his wife's bracelet as a ring. Though there's no real proof of this, the Greek historian, Herodian, provided a description of the man. He said in his History of the Roman Empire (7:1:12) that "his appearance was frightening and his body was huge".

The Bible tells stories of giants throughout Mesopotamia. Probably the most famous is that of David and Goliath. The Philistine was portrayed as a giant 9-foot tall, and to the smaller Judean tribe, it probably seemed true. 

There are many stories from various Native American tribes that recount a race of giants that roamed the lands. Many were said to be of white skin and had red hair. They were quite large and very war-like. Ironically, there is a theory (The Solutrean Hypothesis) that says Western Europeans crossed the Atlantic some 3,000 years before the Clovis culture crossed the Bering Strait. Could this be the giants told of in the stories?

I can't say that I believe that there was an actual "race of giants" that populated the world. However, I do think that many of the stories about extremely large people were based in fact. And you? What do you believe? Is it possible that giants actually existed?

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© Christine Graves 2020

Welcome to Mystic Realms

Image by DarkWorkX from Pixabay

Hello and welcome to Mystic Realms. Allow me to introduce myself (to those of you who may not know me). My name is Christine Graves and I am an avid writer. I'm not a great writer. I'm not a well-known writer. But I do like to write in a wide variety of genres. 

Mystic Realms is going to be a space filled with stories of the unknown. I'm a huge fan of ancient history, mysteries, and mythologies. I love a good "Who Dunnit?" and I'm one of those weirdos who think they can solve mysteries that have baffled the experts for eons. If you're going to dream, dream big.

My goal for the site is to take a look at the "other" side of life. I'll write about odd disappearances, possible truths behind ancient myths and legends, and anything else that might fall into these categories. I'll be discussing historical moments that have a bit of a strange twist to them. If it seems weird, odd, or even completely impossible, I'll be talking about it.

I'll also be reviewing various books and websites throughout the cyber-verse that have to do with this genre. I have a lot of writing friends who dabble in this sort of thing and can't wait to tell you all about them. They're an awesome lot.

If you have any topics you'd like to see listed here, let me know. I'm always up for hearing what the readers are interested in. According to my husband, I'm the only person on the planet who has an interest in this type of thing, but I know that not true. Please help me prove him wrong. 

So come along and let's see if we can't find the truth in the world of unknown. We'll right the wrongs, prove the improbable, and maybe have a few laughs along the way. So here we go, kids. Let's journey into the Mystic Realms.