The Tjerk Vermaning Affair.

The true story about a famous amateur archaeologist from Dutch history.

How the dream of a passionate amateur archaeologist was destroyed by a number of professional archaeologists.

In 1965 and 1967, Neanderthal flint tools were found by Tjerk Vermaning in Hijken and Hoogersmilde. Those flint tools from prehistoric times were claimed by scientists and classified as treasure finds. These are finds from the Middle Palaeolithic and are of considerable historical value for the Netherlands. Tjerk Vermaning initially tried to keep these finds for himself, but was eventually forced to hand over his finds. However, with his later finds from Eemster, Vermaning did not want to repeat this and therefore did not report the site to the authorities. After his Eemster discoveries from 1972, Vermaning was arrested in March 1975 and charged with selling counterfeit flint tools to the province of Drenthe. From that moment on, the most controversial affair in Dutch archeology hit the news. It is illogical that Vermaning tried to gain financial advantage in this way by selling fake artefacts, given that he was forced to hand over the real artefacts from Hijken and Hoogersmilde. A forger who refuses to hand over his finds and does not report them later does not appear to be seeking financial gain or prestige. The lack of evidence for forgery and the substantiation of the accusation raise questions. Divergent views and positions and hypotheses are a normal and healthy part of scientific research and discussion. Current research methods and knowledge are insufficient to determine that Vermaning's finds are forgeries. This website explains why this is the case. This sheds a different light on the affair surrounding Tjerk Vermaning and argues for his innocence. Read how different interests come into conflict with each other in the affair surrounding Tjerk Vermaning, from the beginning in 1969 to the present day. The conflicting claims about the authenticity of artefacts can be explained by the diverse and complex conditions in which they have been preserved. This website contains several examples that demonstrate that the originality of the Middle Paleolithic tools found by Vermaning can be substantiated.

The Truth Behind the Flint Artifacts.

 

As an amateur archaeologist, Tjerk Vermaning has received much recognition in the Netherlands because of his discoveries, which have been purchased by museums and through publications in professional journals. However, this recognition lasted until a certain point.

Until now, based on conspiracy theories, Tjerk Vermaning is said to be actively involved in forging Neanderthal flint tools and tampering with sites. The result was the end of his career in archaeology. This website is about authentic flint tools from the Paleolithic that, according to   Prof. Tjalling Waterbolk,   were forged. This was due to doubts from    Drs. Dick Stapert who did not find the artefacts reliable and credible. According to Prof. Waterbolk, the flint artefacts   by Ad Wouters were made   on behalf of Assian Bohmers   to spite him, possibly in collaboration with Tjerk Vermaning.

This has led to controversy in the archaeological world and accusations of fraudulent practices against the amateur archaeologist. However, after extensive research and analysis of the flint tools by APAN amateur archaeologists, it was found that the tools are authentic and not forged. This has somewhat debunked the allegations of fraud, but the issue still remains a matter of discussion and debate in the archaeological community. In 2022, Tjerk Vermaning was again accused of forgery, but the evidence remains speculative. Which leads to a renewed discussion about the suspicion of contradictions. With the book “Forgery in Gesteente”, which was published in 2022, the authors and also the researchers try to pass off Tjerk Vermaning's flint artifacts as forgeries for good. After the publication of that publication, the APAN amateur archaeologists announced that once again no evidence has been provided, as there are many nuances and comments to be made about the research. No line has yet been drawn under the Vermaning affair.

This website was founded in February 2023 because of the ethical and moral issues surrounding the stones of Tjerk Vermaning. The forgery allegations have led to numerous questions regarding the credibility of the allegations that resurfaced in 2022. The accusation that the flint tools were forged arose after the artifacts were viewed under a microscope, but there is no guarantee that they were actually forged. You can find more information about this subject on this website.

 

 

The Amateur Archaeologist who Changed the History of the Netherlands.

Who was Tjerk Vermaning?

Tjerk Vermaning (Staphorst 1929) was the youngest child from a skipper's family. The family mainly traveled through the northern provinces with their inland vessel. They moored everywhere and Tjerk liked to wander through the adjacent fields. From an early age, he was interested in fossils that he found himself. But he also often found tools from prehistoric man on the same lands. He wanted to know more about this and that is why he started visiting libraries and borrowing books about it. Through self-study he became an autodidact in the field of fossil science and an expert on flint tools of early man. He learned to distinguish the different cultures and his desire was to discover the earliest. After his marriage to Grada, he bought his own boat and became an independent inland skipper, as well as a specialist in sharpening all kinds of mowing machines, such as lawn mowers. This later became his main source of income. Once moored somewhere, he visited the farmers on his moped for grinding assignments. He also continued to scour the fields. Particularly in Drenthe, he successfully discovered many encampments of prehistoric inhabitants. He recognized most cultures, but for the correct identification of some special finds he contacted professional archaeologists from the Drents Museum. Over the years, Vermaning had become a specialist in the field of the Old Stone Age, the Paleolithic. As mentioned, he did not rely solely on repairing agricultural implements and sharpening knives and mowers for his livelihood. In addition, he often sold fossils and artifacts he found to museums. Later he lived for some time on a subsidy from the province of Drenthe, as a flint seeker. He had turned his houseboat into his own museum, he called it De Palaeohistoria. Tjerk Vermaning discovered three important flint concentrations from the Middle Palaeolithic. With these finds, Vermaning showed that the habitation history of Drenthe and therefore the Netherlands began fifty thousand and even a hundred thousand years earlier. Vermaning thus made an important contribution to the History of the Netherlands. He died on October 11, 1987 at the age of 58 in the University Hospital of Groningen. Tjerk Vermaning has become the most famous amateur archaeologist in the Netherlands. His finds were purchased by museums and published in professional journals. Vermaning received the Cultural Prize of Drenthe and also an annual allowance to continue the search. That changed on March 18, 1975. He was at the center of the most controversial period in Dutch archaeology. By the statement of Drs. Stapert, led by Prof. Waterbolk affiliated with the Biological-Archaeological Institute of the University of Groningen. All Vermaning stones would consist of freshly processed stones, which would later have been processed with electric grinding wheels.

 

 

Tjerk Vermaning's groundbreaking discoveries in Dutch History: Three crucial discovery complexes with Neanderthal tools.

1. Hoogersmilde.

On the left in the photo Farmer Vos, the landowner of the Hoogersmilde site. He himself had no interest in preserving half of the discoveries, he wanted to give them to Tjerk Vermaning.

2. Hijken.

In August 1967, Vermaning made another discovery of a "mammoth hunter encampment". This was near Hijken on the Vorrelveen road with finds of 45,000 - 50,000 years old, with more than 400 artifacts that showed similarities with the earlier finds of Hoogersmilde. Thanks to his experience, Vermaning now knew where to look for his archaeological hits.

3. Eemster.

In 1972, the finds of very old stone tools at Staphorst were added, which were even estimated at 250,000-500,000 years old, they were comparable to the stone tools found in Vértesszőlős, Hungary, and 17 more stone tools at Eemster (municipality of Dwingeloo ), which he had not yet announced. These were tools that could be 80,000 to 90,000 years old. He found the first indications for this group of finds in the "stone catcher" of the Oranje potato flour factory in Hijken. Through information from the truck driver, he found out the precise location of the potato field where these finds, together with the potatoes, had come from. He went searching and found several hand axes and associated tools, both in the field and in heaps of stones next to the field. He named the site Eemster to keep the location on the Schietveld near Lee, Leebroek secret.

On October 31, 1972, Vermaning and his wife Grada Vermaning Jansen sold the stones to the Biological Archaeological Institute of the University of Groningen. Vermaning found three important Middle Palaeolithic complexes in Drenthe between 1965 and 1972: Hoogersmilde in 1965 (the two concentrations referred to as Hoogersmilde A and B), Hijken in 1967 and Eemster in 1972. Later, the concentration at Ravenswoud, Lheebroek was also added. be added. With his finds he had extended the history of man's presence in the Netherlands. On a geological scale, Vermaning found the Neanderthal habitats in a limited area. The Neanderthals probably had a good reason to settle in that particular area. It cannot be ruled out that more sites will be discovered in that area in the future. This would be of great significance for Vermaning.

Tjerk Vermaning accused of forgery.

In 1967, Tjerk Vermaning discovered a "mammoth hunter's encampment" near Hijken with more than 400 artifacts spread over a field with similarities to the earlier finds at Hoogersmilde. Vermaning also found various flint artefacts that are 50,000-80,000 years old at other sites such as Eemster. He showed that habitation in the Netherlands began a hundred thousand years earlier than was generally assumed.

In 1972, under pressure, Vermaning sold some of his finds to the Biological-Archaeological Institute of the University of Groningen. Prof. Waterbolk, who had recognized Vermaning's finds as authentically Paleolithic in 1973, later had his doubts. Prof. Waterbolk and Drs. Stapert, from the Biological Archaeological Institute, had their doubts about the authenticity of the artefacts. Stapert wanted to promote tools as forgeries with his vague discovery on flint. The result was that Vermaning was arrested by the police on March 18, 1975 on suspicion of fraud and was taken to the state police station in Assen for questioning and was only released after 26 hours.

 

A criminal verdict followed in 1977. Vermaning was initially found guilty of fraud and sentenced to one month in prison on June 17, 1977. By the claim of Drs. Stapert and Prof. Waterbolk that the Vermaning artefacts consisted of freshly worked stones, which were later processed with electric grinding wheels. Stapert had only partially examined the Hoogersmilde collection. Stapert had not seen the Eemster and Ravenswoud collection for research, but stated during the court hearing that he had examined both collections. A third of the Hijken collection appears to have gone missing before or during the Vermaning trial to this day. 

 

Dr. G. Boom of the University of Groningen and researcher at the Physical Metallurgy laboratory, discovered a remarkable similarity under the electron microscope. The surface layer between authentic artifacts and the Vermaning artifacts showed no spectral or microscopic difference. Unfortunately, this discovery was downplayed by Stapert during the trial and referred to as unimportant, which meant that the research report of March 10, 1975 by Dr. Boom did not receive attention in the court hearing. That information would have been crucial for Vermaning during the trial. The outcome of the conclusion from Dr. G. Boom's report was to the disadvantage of Drs. Stapert and Prof. Waterbolk. During the opening of the court hearing, Dr. Boom's name was not mentioned when the court clerk read out the list of expert witnesses. The investigation report was deliberately kept out of court by Stapert.

The Vermaning case received a lot of attention nationally on TV and in newspapers, creating a public image and dividing opinions. Interested amateur archaeologists started the association   APAN   Aktieve Praktijk Archeologie Nederland in 1976 in support of Tjerk Vermaning . Friends of Vermaning describe Vermaning as an honest man of integrity, who is not complicit and guilty of fraud and deceit. After the trial, books about the Tjerk Vermaning case were published and a special exhibition was held in the Drenthe museum. To this day, professional and amateur archaeologists still disagree about Vermaning's finds. Since then, Tjerk Vermaning has become the most controversial and famous amateur archaeologist in the Netherlands.

Vermaning picked up the hand axes in 1965 on the surface of the boulder sand in Hoogersmilde, which is the layer that lies directly on the boulder clay. In the same year, professional archaeologist Van der Waals started an archaeological excavation in the untouched soil layers of the Hoogersmilde site in October 1965. This revealed a quarter of the total finds, 26 tools that were identical in all respects to the Vermanings finds. Stapert, later came up with the arguments why Van der Waals had been fooled by Tjerk Vermaning, according to Stapert. Van der Waals had no choice but to change his position. The hand axes are said to have been forged and later buried in the ground. "But then you can assume that an experienced archaeologist like Van der Waals could tell the difference between disturbed and undisturbed soil layers?"

Prof. Waterbolk had come up with a solution for that difference between disturbed and undisturbed soil. Waterbolk claimed that Tjerk Vermaning secretly put the stones in the ground during archaeological excavations when it rained, so that the stones are easy to press into the ground and it is as if they are in undisturbed ground. However, this was not supported by an archeology student who indicated in his study report during the excavations that the ground was extremely hard and the temperature cold. Farmer Vos had also already announced that the soil at the Hoogersmilde site was rock hard at the time, so that it was impossible to hammer a nail into the ground. The alleged depth at which Vermaning would have buried the stones was 80 cm deep. However, Prof. Waterbolk's argument that the stones could be pressed firmly into the ground by rain showers is incorrect. It was emphasized by Ad Wouters that there was no rain at all during the excavations in Hoogersmilde in 1965. An analysis of a weather map from the KNMI confirmed this fact, as the first heavy rain shower only occurred five days after completion of the excavation. A weather map from the KNMI from 27-9 to 16-10-1965 confirms this. If Tjerk Vermaning had put those stones in the ground, it would have been noticed. During the soil formation, the artefacts have remained reasonably close together in a loamy pebble sand layer, so that they hardly develop any patina, because they have been well embedded in the loam through cyroturbation.

Tjerk Vermaning was determined to prove that Neanderthals had lived in the Netherlands. He had repeated conversations with archaeologists, including curator and archaeologist JD van der Waals of the Drents Museum (1959-1966). Van der Waals became irritated because Vermaning kept visiting him in the winter and started bringing up the subject again and again, claiming that he was going to find the proof. Van der Waals could not recognize any tools in the loose flint finds that were shown to him and with which, according to him, he was regularly harassed. Ultimately, Van der Waals later had to admit that Vermaning had shown with the finds from Hoogersmilde that Neanderthals lived in the Netherlands. However, after doubts expressed by Stapert in 1975 about the authenticity of the artifacts, Van der Waals became suspicious and disappointed. He then referred to Vermaning's visits as coming by to have small talk. Nevertheless, he recognized that Vermaning had an exceptional talent for finding artifacts. However, after Stapert's false findings, little positive was said about Vermaning and its sites, and Van der Waals also questioned its reliability. Despite this, the archaeological excavation that Van der Waals carried out in October 1965 in the pristine soil layers of the Hoogersmilde site revealed tools that were identical in all respects to the finds of the Vermanings. Van der Waals agreed with Stapert's argument that Vermaning had cleverly placed the flint tools in the ground.

Tjerk Vermaning keeps the site of Eemster 1 a secret from professional archaeologists.

Tjerk Vermaning worked carefully at the site. He recorded each find, numbered them in the order found and placed flags to ensure a clear overview. This was to create a record of the location where he picked up the artifacts. Below, “Eemster 1.” Some flint tools found in 1972 by Tjerk Vermaning. Serrated tool, convex planer and biface.

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Some of the 144 exits of “Eemster 1”. The deposits make it clear that there was a Middle Paleolithic production site. 

Despite the disappointment and the negative impact on his health, Vermaning continued to fight determinedly for rehabilitation. He persisted in his fight because he simply could not tolerate injustice. Vermaning's determination to continue fighting for rehabilitation despite disappointment and negative impact on his health shows that he sincerely believes in his innocence and is unwilling to accept injustice. He is determined to clear his name and seek justice, which is an honest motivation. In the VPRO radio interview from 1986, Section 'De Afloop', in which old issues are examined again, Vermaning talks about this. External link: The VPRO radio interview provides more insight into these events. Eighteen months later after the cancellation of the Eemster excavation, Vermaning died. In accordance with his last will and testament, he had his ashes scattered at the Hoogersmilde site. Prof. Waterbolk retires the same year.

Underground Perspective Eemster 2.

 

▲    In 1993, Klaas Geertsma discovered a discoid hand ax during his excavation .

 

▲ Eemster, find-bearing layer, during the coldest phase of the Vistula Pleniglacial, 30,000 – 20,000 BP, cryoturbate folded.

▲ Profile 1986: “Eemster, from Lee, on the road, Schietveld”. Prof. Dr. J. Jansen from the department of “Chemical Geology” Utrecht points out the cyroturbate folds. The discolorations on a deposit found at the Eemster site had the same deposits that were identical in color as in the cyroturbate matrix.

The Roebroeks team missed many opportunities. The archaeological investigation was not carried out with sufficient care. It was therefore an unpleasant surprise for Klaas Geertsma when the provincial archaeologist of Drenthe, Wijnand van der Sanden, informed him by telephone that the Roebroeks team had concluded after investigation that the Eemster artifacts were forged. Given the history in which professional archaeologist Roebroeks de Eemster had previously declared finds as authentic and this had been the basis for Jan Glimmerveen's report of the find. The well-known arguments for labeling the Vermaning artifacts as false were used again. The artifacts would differ greatly from what is known from the European Middle Paleolithic. However, these deviations would not indicate authenticity. Once again, the archaeological context, the anomalous flint and the rounded ribs, were used as arguments to declare the Eemster find location as a fraudulent archaeological site.

In image b. Eemster. In the chipped ditch wall right next to the site you can see the ferruginous layer that is conspicuously in the old upper folded permafrost layer of the horizon, the clenching was caused by cryoturbation. It is remarkable that rust-brown iron oxide weathering is present on the artefact Fig. a. that was excavated by Klaas Geertsma, which suggests that the artefact may have been located on and/or in the permafrost layer. Image a. This artifact shows the brown iron infiltration deposited in the cortex layer, probably originating in the layer of ferrous material as shown in image b. Image b. This horizon image shows the layer of ferrous material from which the brown iron infiltration in the cortex layer of the artifact probably originated. A cortex layer (calcite layer) on a flint artifact, which is usually white in color, refers to the outer part of the flint that has not been worked by humans. It is the natural crust or shell that forms on the flint during its formation and growth. That layer was now brown due to the iron in the permafrost layer at a depth of 60 to 70 cm. Although it appears as if the permafrost layer has not been disturbed by the land consolidation work, it may have been disturbed to some extent. No thorough research has been done. In general, land consolidation can be effective to a depth of 30 to 50 centimeters for mixing and turning soil. This improves the soil structure, organic matter is mixed and nutrients are distributed more evenly. In local places it could be deepened. It is possible that the artefacts that Vermaning collected on the surface were originally at a depth of 60 to 70 cm.

It appears that the professional archaeologists involved in the research into Vermaning's Eemster artefacts had a motivation to continue to regard Vermaning as a forger of artefacts. Inner underlying conflicts may play an important role in this?

 The images show the Eemster 2 artifacts discovered by Klaas Geertsma, including the Discoid hand ax found in 1993. Scraper, handle scraper, plug, small discoid, scraper with a plug on the tip and a small block scraper and a back knife. 

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b.

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After cutting off the Leemdijkbijl chip, the difference was clearly visible. Dr. ER Groeneveld of the Judicial Laboratory in Rijswijk and Prof. Bosinski both had to admit that a difference had arisen. Drs. Stapert tried to get out of it during the 2nd court hearing by claiming that this was due to dust left behind on the teeing surface and that the dullness would disappear after a few days. Flint consists of silicon dioxide and is so hard that no dust residues could be formed after spalling. The next day during the court hearing, a soapy water test was carried out with soap and water and a brush to ensure that no difference would be seen. According to Dr. Stapert and Prof. Waterbolk, Vermaning would have applied false friction shine and after cleaning, the Leemdijk ax would become dull. However, that test also yielded no results for Stapert. The only thing that was removed was skin fat that had been on the Leemdijk axe. Dr. G. Boom of the University of Groningen and researcher at the Physical Metallurgy laboratory, had discovered little of note in his previous research on the Vermaning artefacts except skin fat on the flint. The research report of Dr. Boom was not introduced by Stapert during the court hearing. The result of that soapy water test is with some certainty that Dr. Stapert's skin fat could no longer be found on that hand axe. By removing the skin fat on the flint tools, Drs. Stapert gambled on a last chance?

H1.

A conflict during the UNESCO Congress.

Professor François Bordes.

Professor Bordes, was a professor of prehistory and quaternary geology at the scientific faculty of Bordeaux. He was known by archaeologists around the world for his knowledge of the artifacts. Bordes had already seen the hand axes of Vermaning in 1969, but did not want to say much about them the first time except for poorly made roundings and hand axes made with a steel hammer. Before the 1972 conference, resentment had already arisen between Prof. Bordes and Prof. Waterbolk about the hand axes. That was in 1969. That story can be read in APAN Extern 7, which can be downloaded at the bottom of this page. The flint artifacts from the Northern Netherlands are unique due to Ice Age influences. Even Bordes had eaten too little 'fromage' of that. Prof. Bordes used the UNESCO congress unequivocally to get rid of Waterbolk with the hand axes of Hoogersmilde as his bet. He publicly declared them as forgeries. He could not perform a 14C test himself, so it was obvious that he used the hand axes. Waterbolk's reputation was irrevocably damaged by Bordes.

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Eemster 1972/82-A-B.

The images Eemster 1972 and 1982 show two parts that were found independently of each other at the Eemster site. It is striking that part A from 1972, the cortex is colored brown by iron influences and part B from 1982, the white cortex was less influenced in the soil. Part A has probably become more weathered due to the cyroturbation process with rounded ribs, while part B has remained more or less sharp and the cortex is still more or less white. Both parts fit together in a stone composition. The difference is caused by the cyroturbation in which both parts have sunk independently under cyroturbation in the soil during weathering and wear and infiltration and have lain for a very long time. It is clear evidence that Tjerk Vermaning could not have falsified these differences. Exit part B was only found in the field 10 years later in 1982. Is it likely that a counterfeiter would create such inconsistent traces of iron in the cortex layer?

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