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[[File:Ev67c.jpg|right|thumb|200px|Piltdown man "skull"]]

[[File:Ev67c.jpg|right|thumb|200px|Piltdown man "skull"]]

'''Piltdown Man''' was a notorious hoax perpetrated early in 20th century [[Great Britain]], in which a medieval human skull was combined with the lower jaw of an [[orangutan]] and subsequently "found" in a gravel pit in the near the village of Piltdown, England. Hailed as the "missing link" between man and ape-like species by promoters of evolution for decades, Piltdown man was exposed as a fraud only through later scientific testing and simple observation.  The refusal of evolutionists to adhere to the scientific method and allow independent scrutiny of their claims enabled this fraud to persist '''''for over forty years'''''.

'''Piltdown Man''' was a notorious hoax perpetrated early in 20th century [[Great Britain]], in which a medieval human skull was combined with the lower jaw of an [[orangutan]] and subsequently "found" in a gravel pit in the near the village of Piltdown, England. Hailed as the "[[missing link]]" between man and ape-like species by promoters of [[evolution]] for decades, Piltdown man was exposed as a fraud only through later scientific testing and simple observation.  The refusal of [[evolutionists]] to adhere to the [[scientific method]] and allow independent scrutiny of their claims enabled this fraud to persist '''''for over forty years'''''.

Critics of evolution believe that the Piltdown man was not an isolated incident of bad judgment by evolutionists and that the examples of the [[Nebraska Man]], [[Java Man]], [[Ocre Man]], [[Neanderthal]]s, and [[Flores Man]] can be cited. <ref>[http://www.nwcreation.net/evolutionfraud.html "Evolution Fraud"], Northwest Creation Network</ref> Rather than admit the defects in their methods that facilitate hoaxes, many evolutionists simply rewrote their alleged tree of ancestors without the Piltdown man in it.

Critics of evolution believe that the Piltdown man was not an isolated incident of bad judgment by evolutionists and that the examples of the [[Nebraska Man]], [[Java Man]], [[Ocre Man]], [[Neanderthal]]s, and [[Flores Man]] can be cited. <ref>[http://www.nwcreation.net/evolutionfraud.html "Evolution Fraud"], Northwest Creation Network</ref> Rather than admit the defects in their methods that facilitate hoaxes, many evolutionists simply rewrote their alleged tree of ancestors without the Piltdown man in it (a clear case of [[evolutionist denial]]).

==History==

==History==

In February 1912 Arthur Smith Woodward of the British Museum received a letter from a Sussex lawyer named Charles Dawson about a discovery he had made while excavating a gravel pit.  What Dawson had described were fragments of a skull cap belonging to an ancient human; the skull was found in 1908 in the Piltdown region; other fragments were recovered in 1911, along with animal bones.  Excitement over the findings resulted in a more comprehensive excavation in June, 1912, allowing the recovery of more skull fragments, part of the mandible, additional animal bones and stone tools.   

In February 1912 Arthur Smith Woodward of the [[British Museum]] received a letter from a [[Sussex]] lawyer named Charles Dawson about a discovery he had made while excavating a gravel pit.  What Dawson had described were fragments of a skull cap belonging to an ancient human; the skull was found in 1908 in the Piltdown region; other fragments were recovered in 1911, along with animal bones.  Excitement over the findings resulted in a more comprehensive excavation in June, 1912, allowing the recovery of more skull fragments, part of the mandible, additional animal bones and stone tools.   

Shortly afterward, Piltdown Man was declared the most important fossil find in Europe.  The ''New York Times'' declared it to be the true missing link; a headline from that paper would read “Darwin Theory Is Proved True.”  A leading British scientific journal chimed in:

Shortly afterward, Piltdown Man was declared the most important [[fossil]] find in Europe.  The ''[[New York Times]]'' declared it to be the true [[missing link]]; a headline from that paper would read “[[Charles Darwin|Darwin]] [[Evolution|Theory]] Is Proved True.”  A leading British scientific journal chimed in:

:''The fossil human skull and mandible to be described by Mr. Charles Dawson and Dr. Arthur Smith Woodward at the Geological Society as we go to press is the most important discovery of its kind hitherto made in England.  The specimen was found in circumstances which seem to leave no doubt of its geological age, and the characters it shows are themselves sufficient to denote its extreme antiquity.''<ref>''Nature'', December 19, 1912, pg. 438; article “Paleolithic Man”</ref>

:''The fossil human skull and mandible to be described by Mr. Charles Dawson and Dr. Arthur Smith Woodward at the Geological Society as we go to press is the most important discovery of its kind hitherto made in England.  The specimen was found in circumstances which seem to leave no doubt of its geological age, and the characters it shows are themselves sufficient to denote its extreme antiquity.''<ref>''[[Nature (journal)|Nature]]'', December 19, 1912, pg. 438; article “[[Paleolithic Age|Paleolithic]] Man”</ref>

Its "extreme antiquity" was thought to have been between 400,000-500,000 years ago, based on the animal teeth found with the remains.  The result of their deductions wasn't just scientific excitement; it was national pride.  [[Germany]] had [[Heidleberg Man]], the [[Indonesia|Dutch East Indies]] had [[Homo erectus|Java Man]]; in the announcing of Piltdown Man, the British Isles could lay claim to the first Englishman.<ref>http://www.bradburyac.mistral.co.uk/tenness5.html</ref>  In gratitude to its discoverer, evolutionary scientists give it a formal name: ''Eoanthropus dawsoni'' - "Dawson's dawn man".

Its "extreme antiquity" was thought to have been between 400,000-500,000 years ago, based on the animal teeth found with the remains.  The result of their deductions wasn't just scientific excitement; it was national pride.  [[Germany]] had [[Heidelberg Man]], the [[Indonesia|Dutch East Indies]] had [[Homo erectus|Java Man]]; in the announcing of Piltdown Man, the British Isles could lay claim to the first Englishman.<ref>http://www.bradburyac.mistral.co.uk/tenness5.html</ref>  In gratitude to its discoverer, evolutionary scientists give it a formal name: ''Eoanthropus dawsoni'' - "Dawson's dawn man".

==Questions begin==

==Questions begin==

The date first assigned to the bones was never based on the bones at all, but rather were based on testing of older material found nearby. This is partially due to the fact that modern dating techniques, like the [[Fluorine Absorption test]], were not yet invented (and indeed, when they were, proved essential to Piltdown man's downfall<ref>[http://www.palarch.nl/NorthWestEurope/nweur_2006_1_1.pdf Annotated Biblography of the Piltdown Man Forgery]</ref>).  Like similar artifacts purporting to prove evolution today, there was no independent or public scrutiny of the actual materials.

The date first assigned to the bones was never based on the bones at all, but rather were based on testing of older material found nearby. This is partially due to the fact that modern dating techniques, like the [[Fluorine Absorption test]], were not yet invented (and indeed, when they were, proved essential to Piltdown man's downfall<ref>[http://www.palarch.nl/NorthWestEurope/nweur_2006_1_1.pdf Annotated Biblography of the Piltdown Man Forgery]</ref>).  Like similar artifacts purporting to prove evolution today, there was no independent or public scrutiny of the actual materials.

In 1950 it was shown by the fluorine method of relative dating that the Piltdown mandible and cranial bones were considerably younger geologically than the Lower and Middle Pleistocene fossils said to have been found at the same site.<ref>http://www.clarku.edu/~piltdown/map_expose/radioactivedating_piltdown.html</ref>  Only then did [[evolutionists]] admit that they had been teaching a fraud.

In 1950 it was shown by the fluorine method of relative dating that the Piltdown mandible and cranial bones were considerably younger geologically than the Lower and Middle [[Pleistocene]] fossils said to have been found at the same site.<ref>http://www.clarku.edu/~piltdown/map_expose/radioactivedating_piltdown.html</ref>  Only then did [[evolutionists]] admit that they had been teaching a [[Scientific fraud|fraud]].

{{Creation vs. evolution}}

{{Creation vs. evolution}}