Italian original text : http://eclisseforum.wordpress.com/2012/09/12/piramidi-in-bosnia-linchiesta-di-eclisseforum-it-i-protagonisti-la-fondazione/
The protagonists
Before we can begin looking in more detail at the pyramids and tunnels, we need a description of the individuals and institutions mentioned in the course of the narrative, so that their roles and their organizational relationships are made clear. We are therefore providing brief details of the history of some of the organizations and people at work on the site, their modus operandi, what their work consists of, the way in which they set about it, and how their findings are published.
The Bosnian Pyramid Foundation
The "Archaeological Park: Bosnian Pyramid of the Sun" Foundation is the organization around which the whole scenario of the Bosnian Pyramids revolves. The foundation was established in 2006 by Dr. Semir Osmanagic, and lost no time in declaring its support for the claim that, buried beneath the hills of the valley of Visoko, in Bosnia, there were pyramids. The Foundation controls all excavation sites, from the tunnels to the pyramids, as well as other associated investigations in the area of Visoko.
It quickly became apparent that the Foundation’s main strategy was that of sensationalistic press releases more concerned with attracting attention to the story than with the publication of discoveries in a proper scientific manner. Moreover, the conclusions drawn from the work could hardly be described as orthodox, and, indeed, are heavily fringe, ranging from “alien intervention" as an explanation for the origins of the structures, to the (not exactly original) hypothesis of an ancient civilization with advanced technology that met an untimely end. Claims of this sort should be supported by evidence no less impressive – of which, however, there has so far not even been the slightest trace.
The structures themselves, for example, were immediately described as constructions dating back to 12,000 BC, but without any supporting historical or archeological evidence. What were the grounds for making such a claim? What evidence makes such a date, if not irrefutable, at least a theoretical possibility? To these questions, unfortunately, we have absolutely no answer.
This scramble for conclusions is something that has always characterized the Foundation’s activities. The main feature of its website presentation http://www.piramidasunca.ba/eng/home-en.html# has been a series of ever more sensational and "Archaeo-Mystery"-type announcements. The Foundation has even gone to the lengths of calling on various mediums and psychics, and carrying out advanced experiments designed to somehow awaken the Great Pyramid of the Sun (a subject that will be discussed in later articles).
For years now, the Foundation has been organizing excavations with the assistance of volunteers, who have come from every corner of the globe to help with work in various trial pits in which the secrets of the pyramids were supposedly lurking. In a conversation with one of the young people taking part in this work, we were told that the preliminary training of volunteers is rather on the perfunctory side, limited to a few hours of "training," and that the work is carried out in a manner more suited to a building site than an archaeological excavation. It includes the use of bulldozers to remove stones and earth, which poses a thread to archaeological strata, or risks the loss of important artefacts.
On this subject, a contact of ours, who, although preferring to remain anonymous, not only had first hand experience of the excavations, but also evidently had a very good knowledge of the facts of the case, told us that: "the archeology of Visoko is not very high on the agenda, even if quantities of archaeological finds were to come to light." An observation that, echoing the volunteer’s comments, leaves something of a bitter taste.
A further indication of the manner in which the volunteers are managed is revealed by the words of the SB Research Group (SBRG) coordinator Paolo Debertolis (aka Pablito on various online forums, and of whom more later). Although a member of an association playing a supporting role to the Foundation, and working very closely with it, he has never held back from criticising it, thus providing valuable clues about how the excavations have been carried out. According to Dr. Debertolis, for example, the archaeologist in charge of the excavations on behalf of the Foundation at that time (June 2011) had her work cut out to keep control of the volunteers, who were described as "unruly". [1]
Work of volunteers - Source Croatia.ch
On several subsequent occasions, Dr. Debertolis also expressed concerns about the Foundation [2], in terms of “conflicting internal agendas”, [3] the lack of common sense in the way excavations were carried out (serving to confirm the use of "destructive archeology") [4] and the generally muddled approach, the emphasis being primarily on encouraging more tourists rather than promoting any serious study of the structures [5].
Doubts have also been raised about the safety of the workers and volunteers involved in excavating the tunnel. Phrases such as the following:
"For the first time one is working inside the tunnel in such a way that one can proceed in safety, with due regard also being paid to archaeological requirements."
August 2011 link
This does rather suggest that, before 2011, the tunnel excavations were being carried out in an unsafe manner, which, putting it bluntly, seems hard to understand, and demonstrates a lack of consideration both for the people working there and any potential archaeological finds.
In 2008 and 2011, the Foundation organized two conferences, ICBP 2008 and ICBP 2011, to publicly present the results of their research.
An assessment of the quality of the published documentation, the calibre of debate and the coherence of the theories proposed, we leave to those of our readers who might wish to look through the various proceedings.
The official sites are:
http://www.piramidasunca.ba/eng/latest-news/daily-news/icbp-2011-conference.html
By way of example, this is a link to one of the papers presented at ICBP 2011:
In short, what emerges from this situation and from the statements made by various people [6] is that the activities of the Foundation are primarily geared to promoting tourism in the area, to encouraging rumours about "mysteries", and to luring visitors and volunteers to the site with the promise of great discoveries to be made, in a bid to make them feel part of a larger project whose purpose is to uncover an ancient mystery - one, moreover, disputed by the assembled ranks of orthodox archaeologists.
Without even beginning to consider the actual merits of the situation, it has rapidly become very clear that everything is pervaded by a vein of sensationalism. Despite all the sensationalism and a clear lack of objectivity, the protagonists themselves have no hesitation in describing the excavation as “the most important archaeological site in the world”. We could not help wondering if perhaps this continual emphasis on bravura display has somehow pushed into the background considerations of the scientific rigour and methodology required to address an archaeological excavation of this scale, and unfortunately our worst fears have been confirmed. Moreover, there are clear signs of political interference, designed more to gratify tourists rather than those who work there, which is hardly conducive to archaeological investigation, and frustrates the ordered development of serious scientific debate.
N.B.
All statements quoted from other sites, as public sites, were copied on fixed media, whether in text or screenshot form. Their modification or removal will result in our having to incorporate appropriate explanatory notes in this series of articles.