Vanished Persian army said found in desert

msnbc in sensational style (as only they can) has the headline, which caught my eye today,

50,000 soldiers believed buried by a cataclysmic sandstorm in 525 B.C

The report continues,

The remains of a mighty Persian army said to have drowned in the sands of the western Egyptian desert 2,500 years ago might have been finally located, solving one of archaeology’s biggest outstanding mysteries, according to Italian archaeologists.

Bronze weapons, a silver bracelet, an earring and hundreds of human bones found in the vast desolate wilderness of the Sahara desert have raised hopes of finally finding the lost army — 50,000 strong — of Persian King Cambyses II, buried by a cataclysmic sandstorm in 525 B.C.

“We have found the first archaeological evidence of a story reported by the Greek historian Herodotus,” Dario Del Bufalo, a member of the expedition from the University of Lecce, told Discovery News.

According to Herodotus (484-425 B.C.), Cambyses, the son of Cyrus the Great, sent 50,000 soldiers from Thebes to attack the Oasis of Siwa and destroy the oracle at the Temple of Amun. Alexander the Great had famously sought legitimization of his rule from the oracle of Amun in 332 B.C., but according to legend, the oracle would have predicted the death of Cambyses.

After walking for seven days in the desert, the army got to an “oasis,” which historians believe was El-Kharga. After they left, they were never seen again.

“A wind arose from the south, strong and deadly, bringing with it vast columns of whirling sand, which entirely covered up the troops and caused them wholly to disappear,” wrote Herodotus.

As no trace of the hapless warriors has ever be found, scholars began to dismiss the story as a fanciful tale.

Now, two top Italian archaeologists claim to have found striking evidence that the Persian army was indeed swallowed in a sandstorm…

You can read the rest here.

It concludes as follows,

The team communicated their finding to the Geological Survey of Egypt and gave the recovered objects to the Egyptian authorities.

“We never heard back. I’m sure that the lost army is buried somewhere around the area we surveyed, perhaps under 16.4 feet of sand.”

Piero Pruneti, editor of Archeologia Viva, Italy’s most important archaeology magazine, is impressed by the team’s work.

“Judging from their documentary, their hypothesis of an alternative route is very plausible,” Prunetic told Discovery News. “Indeed, the Castiglioni’s expeditions are all based on a careful study of the landscape…An in-depth exploration of the area is certainly needed!”

Make of it what you will…