Quote:Stunned archaeologists probe claims of giant skeletons in Nevada caves where they found a
15-inch sandal that had been worn down as well as massive handprints across the walls

*Remains of ancient humans in Nevada cave reportedly belonged to giant people
*Native Americans' oral history offers clues to a red-haired barbarian race of men
*These invaders were supposedly trapped in a cave where they were all killed off

'Archaeologists have long been baffled about claims that a long-lost group of giant humans who
stood up to 10 feet tall once lived in the southwestern US. Supersized human skulls, 15-inch sandals,
and massive handprints have been uncovered in excavations inside a cave in Lovelock, Nevada over
the last century, which have continued to spark the curiosity of scientists and the public.

The claims about these 'Giants of Lovelock' originated from Native Americans who told stories about
a brutal tribe of pale-skinned, red-haired invaders who waged war on the local groups, before finally
being trapped in a cave and exterminated.

According to archaeologists, the story is likely an exaggeration of the facts or even an outright fabrication
- but some of the pieces of evidence continue to encourage believers.While the first artifacts linked to the
Giants of Lovelock were uncovered in the early 1900s, stories about the giants continue to surface as
experts and average people hope to finally uncover the truth.

But it all started when a pair of miners first discovered the gigantic remains in 1911.
They were there searching for guano, the excrement of birds or bats, which has long been a valuable source
of fertilizer and an ingredient in gunpowder. But as they dug deep down into the guano, these prospectors
found more than they bargained for: more than 60 human skeletons.

And some of them were reportedly extraordinarily large - between seven and eight feet tall.
'One of his great finds was a skeleton, found about twenty miles southerly of Lovelock, Nevada, showing
that the body of which it was a framework, was exactly seven feet, seven inches tall,' according to the
1935 biography of John T. Reid, a mining engineer who worked in Lovelock. 'It is one of the 'giant men'
of an ancient race of which skeletons were unearthed in Central Nevada.'


(Top) Lovelock Cave. Remains of shoes were found during excavations.
(Bottom)Sarah Winnemucca Hopkins and her father Chief Poito Winnemucca of the Paiute tribe.

Many of these finds were as expected: baskets, duck calls, arrowheads, and ceremonial objects carved
into the shapes of animals. But there were also some extremely odd findings, including gigantic sandals
that appeared to have been worn. These shoes, about 15 inches long, would translate roughly to a US
size 29 shoe.

Radiocarbon dating later showed that human remains and plant material in the cave ranged from between
2030 BC and 1218 BC. Another odd find was a handprint seemingly etched into the stone that appeared
twice the size of an average human hand. Reports from these excavations seemed to grow the size of the
giants: As of 1931, they were reportedly 8.5 and 10 feet tall.

Remarkably, some of them had red hair, a stark contrast from the local Paiute tribe of Native Americans.
Though their existence may remain a mystery, the oral tradition may offer some clues. Paiute tribes native
to the area tell stories of a barbarian group called the Si-Te-Cah, a group that reportedly moved into the
area 3,000 years ago.

According to Paiute mythology, the Si-Te-Cah then began waging war on them and their neighbors - and
they also had red hair. Accounts from 16th-century Spanish conquistador Pedro Cieza de León seemed
to corroborate the existence of a fierce and mysterious group of red-haired barbarians.

He picked up a story in Peru of a race of giant men who 'came by sea in rafts of reeds after the manner of
large boats; some of the men were so tall that from the knee down they were as big as the length of an
ordinary fair-sized man.' This story is consistent with the Peruvian natives who traversed Lake Titicaca in
woven-reed boats.

According to the Paiute legend, the tribes eventually banded together to fight the Si-Te-Cah. They chased
them into a cave, pelted them with arrows, and lit a fire at the mouth. Some of the invaders were killed by
arrows, some by fire, and some by asphyxiation from the smoke. All of the Si-Te-Cah were killed in that
skirmish, according to stories. And there is indeed archaeological evidence of a large blaze at the mouth
of the cave.

But some historians have different explanations for the evidence.
First of all, the 'giant' remains may have only been tall people, according to a University of Nevada study
that showed they were only about six feet tall - not eight or 10. A history book from Sarah Winnemucca
Hopkins, titled Life Among the Paiutes: Their Wrongs and Claims does not make any mention of giants
- but it does make reference to barbarians.

And historians have pointed out that aging in dry, desert conditions can turn dark hair red, potentially
explaining the red-haired remains. Furthermore, historian Adrienne Mayor wrote in her book Fossil
Legends of the First Americans that local entrepreneurs may have simply exaggerated the size of
the human remains to drum up tourism in the region.

The history museum in Winnemucca, Nevada currently houses many of the artifacts found in Lovelock Cave.
A crowdfunding effort from 2014 to further investigate the caves only netted $10...'