Prehistory and Protohistory of Humanity: Challenging Issue of Modern Scientific Knowledge

Objectives: Based on published historical, geological and geophysical information, an overview of some aspects of fundamental scientific issue concerning the human history has been presented. Methods/Statistical analysis: The problem of human origin, studied on the basis of the principles of knowledge built using different hypotheses, discredits the concept of African “origin”. Focus is on the mythological information about Hyperborea and Atlantis, ancient archetypal representations containing untapped opportunities of interpretation of prehistory based on the human and natural sciences. The authors prove that a myth can be a source of information that fills the shortage of reliable knowledge about the world. Findings: Following the version of A. M. Chechelnitsky, there is a logical chain of assumptions about the existence and destruction of Atlantis in the region of the Far East and its relationship to Hyperborea. It is alleged that Hyperborean hypothesis interpreted within the locality is an example of a non-scientific approach to ancient history. Reliance on interdisciplinarity makes it possible to use the data showing that the disappearance of Hyperborea, similar to Atlantis, was as a result of a global cataclysm. The authors emphasize that the study of history through the prism of its effects completely changes the view of the living environment of mankind, reveals its vulnerability and very limited capacity to withstand the elements. Accepting the existence of these islands in the Arctic Ocean prior to the tectonic disaster, the researchers are moving toward deeper understanding of causality of the history. It gives an idea about the changes in the world that led to the current position of the continents, which was preceded by another, hypothetical reality. Application/Improvements: The problem of prehistory tests the academic community scientific principles to destruction. It is regarded as a necessary component of the man’s modern vision of himself in the historical space.