Controversial during his life, perhaps even more so after his death. New research shows that probably 1500 finds by the famous Drenthe amateur archaeologist Tjerk Vermaning were fake.
The researchers speak in their book Falsehood in rock on “the biggest archaeological fraud ever”, reports RTV Drenthe.
Vermaning (1929-1987), a traveling knife sharpener by trade, made his first discovery in 1965. In a field in Hoogersmilde he found special archaeological objects from the time of the mammoth hunters, according to him at least 50,000 years old.
In the years that followed, Vermaning sold startling finds from the Stone Age such as hand axes, thousands of years old stones and other artifacts. He earned money by offering his finds to museums. He also received a subsidy from the province of Drenthe.
Sued for fraud
But doubts arose about the finds during his lifetime. Vermaning was charged with fraud in the 1970s, but acquitted on appeal. Until now there was no answer to the question whether his finds were real or fake.
Nine researchers led by archaeologist Frans de Vries have spent 25 years researching Vermaning’s work, applying the latest photography techniques, conducting chemical and microscopic research on flints and visiting Vermaning sites.
Their conclusion: Vermaning made his own tools and invented sites. He scattered stones on fields in Drenthe and Frisian, and sometimes put them in the ground to mislead scientists who were doing research.
Brain behind Vermaning
The researchers also pay a lot of attention to the man they call “the brain” behind Vermaning’s forgeries: Ad Wouters (1917-2001). At the same time as Vermaning, the former priest from Brabant grew into an authority among amateur archaeologists. In fact, they were associates who created counterfeits together. In 1975 Wouters presented himself as a witness in the lawsuit in which Vermaning was suspected of fraud.
In their book, the researchers discuss eleven sites in which Wouters was involved at the time. It often turned out to be discoveries claimed by himself or places that he had supplemented with objects from his own stock.
Wouters also became proficient in artificially aging newly made artefacts, they say. “He gave these freshly minted pieces a polishing treatment so that they looked as if they had a natural shine. Done with great refinement and can only be unmasked with a microscope.”
–
