The Lost Treasure of King Juba - by Frank Joseph (Paperback)

About the Book

Compels us to consider the possibility that Africans arrived in North America a millennium before Columbus. Contains over 100 photographs of ancient artifacts, discovered in 1982 in a southern Illinois cave. Explains the mystery of the Washtaws, a tribal group of African origin, encountered by the Lewis and Clark Expedition. Suggests that King Juba actually sailed to America to rebuild his kingdom in the New World.

Book Synopsis

The story of a mysterious southern Illinois treasure cave and its proof of the presence of Africans in North America long before Columbus.

- Includes over 100 photographs of the artifacts discovered.

- Re-creates the historic voyage of King Juba and his Mauretanian sailors across the Atlantic to rebuild their society in the New World.

- Explains the mystery of the Washitaws, a tribal group of African origin, first encountered by the Lewis and Clark Expedition.

In 1982 Russell E. Burrows, a treasure hunter in southern Illinois, stumbled on a cache of ancient weapons, jewels, and gold sarcophagi in a remote cave. There also were stone tablets inscribed with illustrations of Roman-like soldiers, Jews, early Christians, and West African sailors. These relics fueled a bitter controversy in the archaeological community regarding their authenticity, leading Burrows to destroy the entrance to the cave.

Researching more than 7,000 artifacts removed from the cave before it was sealed, Frank Joseph explains how these objects came to be buried in the middle of the United States. It started with Cleopatra, whose daughter was made queen of the semi-independent realm of Mauretania, present-day Morocco, which she ruled with her husband, King Juba II. Following the execution of their son, Ptolemy, by Emperor Caligula, the Mauretanians rebelled against their Roman overlords and made their way into what is now Ghana. There they constructed a fleet of ships for a transatlantic voyage to a land where they hoped to rebuild their kingdom safe from Roman rule. They took with them a great prize unsuccessfully sought by two Roman emperors: Cleopatra's golden treasure and King Juba's encyclopedic library of ancient wisdom.

Fully illustrated with many previously unpublished photographs of artifacts retrieved from the southern Illinois site, The Lost Treasure of King Juba is a compelling story that could force us to rethink the early history of our nation and the possibility that Africans arrived on our continent nearly fifteen centuries before Columbus.

From the Back Cover

ANCIENT CULTURES / AMERICAN HISTORY "Here is both a fascinating chronicle of one of history's greatest treasure stories and a paradigm-shattering tale of a pre-columbian expedition to the New World. No one interested in the real story of America's prehistory can afford to ignore this book." --Steven Sora, author of Secret Societies of America's Elite In 1982 Russell E. Burrows, a treasure hunter in southern Illinois, stumbled on a hidden cave and its cache of ancient gold sarcophagi and statues, gold medallions, and weapons. There were also hundreds of black "portrait stones," inscribed with various symbols and letters and the profiles of Roman soldiers, ancient Jews, early Christians, and West Africans. Researching more than 7,000 artifacts removed from the cave before it was sealed--and gathering the opinions of a number of experts in archeology, the history and languages of ancient cultures, and geology--Frank Joseph pieces together how these objects came to be buried in the middle of the United States. Almost 2,000 years ago Cleopatra Selene, daughter of Cleopatra, ruled the semi-independent Roman province of Mauretania, in present-day Morocco, with her husband, King Juba II. Following the execution of their son, Ptolemy, by Emperor Caligula, the Mauretanians rebelled against their Roman overlords. The Roman legions attacked, pushing them down the west coast of Africa in retreat. To escape, the Mauretanians constructed a fleet of ships with the help of West Africans for a transatlantic voyage to a land where they hoped to safely rebuild their kingdom. Taking with them two great prizes--Cleopatra's golden treasure and King Juba's encyclopedic library of ancient wisdom--and using the maps and navigational knowledge of their ancestors, they sailed past the Canary Islands, following the same route that Columbus was later to take on his famous voyage of discovery. Illustrated with over a hundred photographs of artifacts retrieved from the southern Illinois site, The Lost Treasure of King Juba is a compelling story that could force us to rethink the early history of our nation and the possibility that Africans landed on our continent nearly fifteen centuries before Columbus. FRANK JOSEPH is the editor-in-chief of Ancient American magazine and the author of The Destruction of Atlantis and Synchronicity and You. He lives in Colfax, Wisconsin.

Review Quotes

"Frank Joseph provides an inheritently interesting and iconoclastic discourse on the evidence of Africans in America before Columbus."-- "The Bookwatch, October 2003, Vol.25 No.10"

"If you enjoy a good non-fiction mystery, a kind of arm chair treasure hunt, and are a bit of a closet archaeologist or a medievalist to boot, this is a book for you. Fascinating reading."-- "Convergence, Vol.13 Issue1"

"Joseph's new book puts it all together. He gives an historical background of the people who are the cave's history."-- "Marquette Monthly, October 2003"

"Here is both a fascinating chronicle of one of history's greatest treasure stories and a paradigm-shattering tale of a pre-columbian expedition to the New World. No one interested in the real story of America's prehistory can afford to ignore this book.-- "Steven Sora, author of Secret Societies of America's Elite"

About the Author

Frank Joseph is the editor-in-chief of Ancient American magazine and the author of The Destruction of Atlantis and Synchronicity and You. He lives in Colfax, Wisconsin.