Quote Originally Posted by Kilted in Maine View Post
http://archaeological-burial-practic..._makan_mummies


"The Cherchen Mummies
Consisting of three women, a man and a baby, these mummies found south of Loulan were buried in approximately 10000BC. Their height features and tartan clothing suggests they were of European, perhaps Celtic origins..."


"The arid desert of western China and the Silk Road, the ancient caravan route through the heart of Asia. It is here in the shifting sands of the Taklamakan Desert in Xinjiang that the earliest tartan remnant was found.
Takla Makan means "go in and you'll never come out" but thankfully sometime around the 16th century an intrepid Swedish explorer, Sven Heden, managed to survive the hazardous desert crossing and emerge from the other side having made an incredible discovery.
He stumbled across the burial place of well-preserved mummies who, despite being in China, had all the facial characteristics of Caucasians. The textiles Heden found in their final resting place were beautifully woven from wool yarn, amongst which were flawlessly preserved, intricate tartans dating from between 1200 and 700 BC – which bore a striking similarity to Celtic tartans from northwest Europe.
Perhaps these early travellers were the victims of a natural disaster or were simply swallowed up by the fickle dangers of the desert. Celts are thought to have come originally from the southeast of Russia around the Caspian Sea, gradually heading westwards to Britain and France. Were these tartan-clad people early Scots?..."
...now thats travelling right there!